TheKingfisher

Yikes, I've run a couple of thoes for two years now, when were they purchased? Glad your finally getting it resolved. I've had a couple of drags replaced in some Okuma Reels under warranty with no questions asked. Hopefully your new ones will work a bit better!

I've been useing the Dive Bombs all summer with good succsess. I'm not 100% positive what the increase dive equates to, but I know when a 300 copper is going I can put a 3 or 4 oz. dive bomb on a full core and get it going also.

Nee Hi, yeah i did the same thing... 'hmm that boat names slightly familair'. Sounds like you had a day more similar to mine. Oh well still won't complain for the first day out! Hopefully you can find whomever's tacklebox it is!

Yeah go figure... well at least I can use that as my excuse I guess. Makes me feel a bit better since it seemed like we were doing same thing everyone else was.

Hey GLF, nice catch, we were just launching as you were backing in to the launch this morning. Sounds like you guys all ended up doing a lot better than most, were your fish pretty consitent throughout the day? We took off about 10am with only a couple to show for the morning.

Okuma Convectors get my vote for a good value and performance. We have 10 Convectors rangeing from the CV30 to the CV55, We do have one Tekota, and no doubt there are a nice reel, but you pay for it. For riggers I use (and really like) the Shimano Charter Special reels with the lever drags, all 4 of our riggers will be these this year.

Rod lenghts vary, but mostly I use the 8 footers for riggers and cores and copper and 10 footers for divers. I have a mix of Okuma, Diawa and Shimano rods. You should check out the new Okuma Classic rods, they have a lifetime warranty, stainless steel eyes and you can get 3 for the price of one Shimano Talora. I can't wait to try mine new ones out!

We're going with the TR-1! :-)

Hey everyone, I've been looking around at some options for better controling the speed, and steering on our kicker motor. We have a 20 HP Honda outboard on the back on a Garlick lift.

The TrollMaster Pro Troll 3 looks like just the device we need to be able to fine tune our throttle control, and it is said to work with remote steering units as well. Does anyone use on of these? Have any feedback? Use a different, but similar device?

Remote steering units are also on the list of things to research, I've come across a unit by Panther called the electro steer, so again any one else useing a remote steering unit? Right now we use the EZSteer bar, but we're looking for something to allow better steering and more control from anywhere on the boat (thus a remote steer unit).

So anyone who has feedback I'd sure appreciate it!

We're looking to get some new canvas tops build for our boat. Does anyone have any recomendations for where to go in the West Michigan area?? Possibley also a 'trailer' cover as well.

thanks

weekend after Labor day in Manistee with the other 450 boats we were running 60-80 foot behind the balls. Makes it lots of fun to weave in and out... But we were catching fish...

Sounds like a great weekend, we head north tonight for a long weekend in Manistee so thanks for the report!

It's to bad that the whole thread was a setup, because there is a lot of good info shared in here...

Well that was better than we ended up on Monday morning... 1/0 and it was not 'waved around 1 foot' got one of my crew sick so we headed in early. Did much better on Saturday in the 130-150 range with 7 fish, only one salmon, 2 nice 7-8lb steelies, a hog 15+lb Laker and 3 other nice sized lakers.

I've never caught so many trout in one day...

Thanks, I'm really hopeing we're not in the river, but we'll see what the weekend brings for weather!

We got stopped last year by a couple of CO's in about 200 FOW north of Port Sheldon. Big Green Steel Center Console boat. My Dad starts watching this thing makeing a Bline for us at full tilt and he... "Do you think that guy sees us??" I said "Sure does that's a CO Boat"...

Pulled up along side while were on our troll, just wanted to see liscenses and do a quick rod count. Didn't make us pull lines or anything. Real nice and they were back on their way.

It's nice to know they are around...

Any fish coming in the river / lake yet or are they all behind this year? We've got a slip at Riverside Friday - Sunday and will be fishing hopefully all weekend, but the weather is looking a little iffy...

Thanks for the reports, will you be around this weekend fishing? It'd be nice to have someone local to chat with... Thanks

I have a Sub-Troll and use the Scotty Pincher releases off my 14lb ball below my probe. The Scotty release I use, have about an 8inch leader between the cannon-ball and the pinch release. So this more then clears the probe, even when just setting and the line is straight in the water the probe can spin all the way around and not hit my line.

I've always run these releases and never thought about it untill I read your post. But I've not had a tangle in my probe yet.

I have the last few weeks been runnig large flashers off this rigger as well, it's been real productive.

Best night on the water all year this year was the night my probe didn't work... Go Figure...

I just tie the knot, what I did to cut down on the curlies is cut the ends off a Luhr Jenson snubber and put that on above the tie. It also keeps the tag end of the wire under control. Then I can crank it down hard and that snubber acts as a shock so I can keep the wire line tight on the pole.

Yup, I skip it and go find silver fish off shore. Combat fishing goes against the reasons I like to go fishing. I can get stressed out just fine Monday - Friday in my normal day than to make a decision to fish in it on Saturday morning. There is always fish offshore someplace.

For better or for worse, the Decemeber 31 1978 Date only applied to PWC's (ie Jet Ski's) and once your 16 in Michigan you can operate any boat on water (not commercial of course).

I fish quite a bit with kids, my boat has pretty high sides and it would take some work for a kid to 'fall out' assuming they aren't climing on the gunwales. However I don't take kids out without someone else on the boat to help me watch them. Michigan law requires all children under 6 years of age to wear a USCG—approved Type I or II PFD when riding on the open deck of any vessel. Someone once told me that they teether their kids to the boat, but I don't like that idea either because if the boat goes down so do they.

I think the most important thing is makeing the kids understand that it can be dangerous out there on the water. Sometimes I've been known to perhaps stress this a little to much. I had one little guy one time who didn't dare leave his seat for a while. But hey, when he did he wasn't screwing around on deck thats for sure, now he loves to come out with me. Boaters sfatey is a good idea for anyone who is just getting into it. Like mentioned before, when I have people on my boat as Captian (and no I'm not liscensed but you are when you are operating the boat) I take 100% responsibility for everything that happens on board, and I certinally don't one to tell one of my friends what happened to his or her son or daughter while they were out fishing with me. I keep that in the back of my mind and everything has always gone real well.

We're going to be up in Manistee the weekend of Sept 7th for a long weekend, but we're staying and slipped at Riverside Motel, so I won't be down that far to give you a water depth report. I will however let you know how we do when we get back. We go north every year, normally to Onekema but we ran into a lodgeing problem in Onekema this year... So we're in Manistee. Looking forward to a long weekend and lots of fishing!

Silver one has a real good point... I got a little ambitous couple week back when Flasher / Fly's lite up for me, and I ended up loose 3 of them... includeing one whole rig with a dipsey diver... So yeah watch your spread, envision in your head where things are running and how close they are lilkley coming... it'll save you some $$...

As other have said, big white paddle with a white / no see-um fly has been real hot last few trips on my deep rigger.

Hey Tad Pole-

I think we've had this conversation before, but we've been really happy with our 5300i. I'm not positive if we have the newest firmware as mentioned above, we bought it this spring. So I'm guesing it probley doesn't. I'll have to look into that.

But yeah, we like it works well, it seems to be fast and with the Lake Master charts it's a great navagational and fishing tool.

Yeah they look like a couple of my Moonshine flys. I had real good luck with them last year, not quite as much this year, but I've just started getting fish on flys more of late. So that will probabley change here shortly.