Billy Bob

Bayliner has always suffered a bad rap but at least this boat is powered by a Merc and not the old Force motors they were package with years ago. My concern would be, is this your first boat and do you really need a boat this large. If you are going to be always trailering this boat it gets to be a chore after awhile. The rule of thumb is the larger the vessel the less it see the water. Bob

Not to confuse you even more but Dipsy Divers are like a downrigger/planer board combo and has really caught on in Lake Erie for walleye and Ontario for trout/salmon. They are now my favorite as they are also the least amount of work (i'm a lazy fisherman at times) not to mention they REALLY help catch fish

Would throwing a cat in a burlap bag filled with rocks turn him into a catfish

The number 1 cause to uneven tire wear on trailers is that the tire was never balanced. However, I am not saying for sure that's your problem or only problem. I can't inspect your trailer from here but like other said check the end play of your bearings, check to see it the axle shifted slightly on that side etc......... I had similar wearings on trailer tires and really got tired of it after a while. Those "special" trailer tire cost way too much so here's what I did. I went down to my local Sam's Club and purchased two automotive RADIAL tires in the approx size needed and had them mount and BALANCE the tires. Now over 10 years later problem is still gone. With the "special" trailer tires (not balanced) I was only getting 3-4 year at BEST out of my tires. Believe me the automotive RADIAL tires where less than HALF of what I was paying for the "special" trailer tires and a LOT easier to get. I will never go back to "special" tires again. Bob

dsn, If she wants a dog herself tell her to come down here. The way the road construction is going here with the workers screwing the pooch everyday there will be LOTS of puppies running around here before too long......

Some dogs are just uncontrollable and that's just that. Just like some people are uncontrollable. No one should have to put up with constant dogs barking at all hours of the day or night. PERIOD. I have had several dogs in my lifetime with the last one for 13 years. Good dog owners don't let their dogs constantly bark at any hours through out the 24 hour day. Some people work nights and have to sleep days. Once we start justifying why it's OK for a dog to bark for hours on end we have failed as dog owners. And I don't care if they scare off so called burglars once in the blue moon because they are scarring off the quality of life daily for everyone else. If communication fails between the owner and the local authorities I wouldn't hesitate to take the manner into my own hands. I hope you can get this resolved and start enjoying the back yard again. Bob

OH, so many places to fish and so little money (especially with the cost of expensive gasoline) Damn the oil people, I hope they all choke on some sushi (called bait in my house)

YES to Stoney, last mid June fishing for walleye with black bucktail jigs and very large ones at that

It couldn't of happen to a nicer bunch of guys

Houseboat, great time. Did that 2 times in the Kawartha lakes. Even caught a couple muskies by accident but no size to speak of. I fish mostly walleye and walleye and when I get bored with walleye I just go walleye fishing

I agree, the concept looks nice but what if you need the van to go somewhere ? ? ? I really don't see the advantage having it hooked up to your vehicle but everyone likes different things or God would of only made walleyes

Just two planned so far because my partner is having surgery this year. 1) French River with my two sons, staying at Sand Beach Lodge end of June 2) Fly-In trip with Air Ivanhoe, will be fishing Nemegosenda Lake middle of July. Hopefully at least one or two more trips to beautiful ONTARIO

As I said the boat stored stuff when not fishing and the van kept us dry in the rain. But in complete wash outs we would head home early. Another thing we did for light rain was pitch one of those cheap blue canopies to sit under. If you are camping in campgrounds just pitch a regular tent. They are probably MUCH cheaper and larger. Good Luck Fishing/Camping, Bob

I had a van for almost 20 years and we would sleep at the launch of many lakes for almost nothing. What we did was pile all the none sleeping gear into the boat at night and install the boat cover for the night. Come morning everything none fishing went back into the van for the day. Of course we had coolers for food and adult beverages and always made a long weekend out of it. It sure beats sleeping on the ground. I have caboose cushions (i worked on the railroad) for the inside of the van and it made a great bed for two people. This was a great way to go fishing/camping at anytime because you never needed reservations to sleep in your van at the launch site. Great times, Great fishing but now I too old to sleep in the back of the van. Damn is sucks getting old

Just pop it off the bottom and drag it, repeat. Depending on water temps will depend on the speed you work it. Most times no piece of worm is need but sometimes they just want a little meat taste on it. This year I am going to try a piece of Berkley Gulp worm and see what it does. On the live crawler I like the dark end of the worm and pinch it off right below the collar. Using this short of a piece of worm there are no short bites and they have to take the hook. One of the VERY nice things about using Bucktail jigs over plastics in the weeds is the bucktail holds up when ripped through the weeds while a plastic tail will start to come off. This is a HUGE advantage when popping jigs through weeds. BTW I like to use a 6.5' LIGHT rod and 4# test but 6# test will work. Good Luck, Bob

I can personally attest to not believing everything you see on the Babe Winkleman's show. Take some things with a grain of salt.

I was going to recommend the Raymarine radio which is the old Raytheon company. They make the best but then I seen BPS wants $249.00 for it. That's $100 more than I paid. Are these Canadian prices on the link you posted. But anyways look for a radio that has the cooling fans on the back of the radio so it doesn't burn itself out. Bob

The one bait I have caught walleye on no matter where I have fished is a 1/8 oz ALL black bucktail jig. Sometimes tipped with just a piece of a crawler no longer than the hairs on the jig. The reason this black jig works so well is because walleyes like to bug, meaning they are on the bottom looking for bugs and things to eat. This black bucktail jig must resemble some of the things they are eating. If you haven't tried a all black bucktail jig you might want to buy about 1/2 dozen of them. I make my own but my boat always has about 2 dozen on board. Now if the fish are widely scattered jigging is not the best approach but it they are in classic areas like weed edges etc...... the bucktail shines above all other baits. Happy Walleye Hunting, Bob

Last year while fishing Stoney Lake I caught several LARGE Crappie while fishing for walleye on a black bucktail jig in late June. That kind of tells me that lake has some potential for a good crappie population to be sought after in the spring. Since that was the only time I was on that lake I can't say anything more about it except it also did have a VERY good largemouth population also. I know I would at least target some warm back bays at this time of the year if I lived closer. Good Luck Crappie Hunting, Bob

Used trailers can be a steal or a bad deal but if you know what to look for you can tell easy enough. Hopefully the used trailer will be seen without a old boat on it that the owner is trying to just get rid of also. If there is no boat on the trailer you can really get a good look at the trailer. Trailers have many vibrations because most times the tires where never balanced and they don't have shocks. So look VERY closely for cracks, especially around the springs, where the axles are anchored to the trailer frame and the fenders. Take a close look at the tires. Surprisingly these tires cost more than you think. Many of them will have weird wear patterns because of not being balanced and no shocks. Also watch for dry rot especially the side walls. The tire can look almost brand new only for it to come apart on the road due to dry rot. The next thing of course is the wheel bearing and this can be very easily tested by jacking up the trailer and spin the tire. It should be pretty much quite while spinning and shouldn't want to stop. Once it stops spinning check the end play. There should be a LITTLE but not much when you grab the tire on the top and the bottom and try to rock it in place. The last thing would be the trailer lights. Rewiring isn't that hard but it can add up and cost you more then you think. I would price a reasonable new trailer and try to get a used trailer at 50% or MORE off that price. Don't over spend on something that been through the war just to save a little money because the repairs add up fast. Good Luck Trailer Hunting, Bob

For anyone who has a taste for smelt here's a deal you can't pass up. http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/other/fi...ory/332989.html

The vehicle you choose really depends on the size of boat you will be towing and the distance you like to travel with said boat. I had a Ford Escape for 5 years and it towed my 16' Grumman pretty good. It was a 4X4 V-6 with towing package and 201 hp engine. Stopping wasn't as good as I liked but it did the job as long as I wasn't really loaded down like I was 2 or 3 times a year going up north for a week. Then I really had to watch my speed and distance from other vehicles. That is the BIG reason I now own a Toyota Tundra. Now I don't have to watch what I put in the truck and boat and have PLENTY of power and STOPPING power to depend on. Of course I really pay for that in gas mileage compared to the Ford Escape when NOT towing. Towing they are pretty much the same in mileage getting only 14-15 mpg. Toyota's RAV4 is one of the hottest small SUV on the market. Consumer Reports gives it EXCELLENT reviews and they really hold their value but then again you can't get a deal on a new one because they sell so well. My point is go to Consumer Reports.com and pay the $12 for a year subscription and check out vehicles there. BTW the Dodge Mini Van is a repair job just waiting to happen. Ask folks who have owned them, NOT GOOD.

I have been smoking food and fish for a long time and charcoal briquette models is what I would recommend. It's not hard to control once you do it a couple of times and I believe it does a better job. Smoking is not really hard and gets easier as time goes on. Keep it simple and try to keep your neighbors away from the finished product. Bob

Try this bad boy when your REALLY hungry

The one thing that I believe hasn't been mentioned is the size of the SHARP fillet knife. I have cleaned A LOT of fish in my years and I always use a 4" knife to fillet and my partner (wife) uses a 6" blade to skin. It doesn't matter if the fish is a crappie or a 25 King Salmon the 4" blade works better than a 6" blade to fillet. However, most use the 6" which loses control and slows down the process. With the 4" in blade you have MUCH more control because the tip of the blade is closer to your hand and index finger. Here is a picture of one of my old knives and a new one. See how much use it has seen over the years.