Old Ironmaker

Welcome back. You have Rock Bass there. There are no restrictions on them and I can tell you they get to a nice size and they are tasty if you eat fish. I know new lures are expensive and I hate loosing them too. But if you want to catch some bigger fish on the French you have to risk using them rather that a float and worm. Buy some worm harnesses and a few weights and troll them on the French. Much less expensive than basic plugs and spoons. If you are set on still fishing buy some good "pencil" floats and stay away from the plastic Red and white bobbers. A sportsfish will feel the mass of that bobber when hitting you bait and spit it out. I do like still fishing in Florida for Sea Trout when we fish off the piers, and we always still fish for Perch.

We don't have a beach anymore Tom. The water is up against the breakwall. First time in 21 years. Usually this time of year the water is calm and Gin clear. With all this wind the water is smashing against all the walls all day long. Calmer at night. I can't see the bottom through all the gravy. If they are here I can't see how eggs wouldn't wash away. They would have to fight to stay in one spot. I wonder what the biologists would have to say about Bass spawning in rough water. There was a paddle boat smacking against the wall yesterday, it was gone in an hour down the lake. I haven't set foot on the beach yet, what beach. Many here including me have erosion, my massive armor rocks the size of a VW slid down 5 feet or more. No idea how I'm going to fix that.

There is always a method to get what you feel you deserve. On one hand it isn't advisable to go in with emotion and show your cards as "I'm looking for another job if you don't value me", the boss can say "good luck to you, I wish you the best." Or hold your cards close to your vest. I don't know what business you are in but even if a small shop or big business this too has back fired. People talk and managers in business even competitors are closer than one may think. I remember a young supervisor that was getting jerked around that passed his resume about the industry and within a week our Divisional Manager was asked by a competitor for his opinion of this employee. He was caught off guard and embarrassed. The competitor was probably slighting our Manager in the not so innocent conversation. The guy was gone in 2 weeks without employment. Not as easily done today but management would have made it hell for him to stay and he would have never advanced until the current group of managers were long retired. On the other hand my 2 biggest moves I made in my 30 years was because I basically quit. Once walked out in the middle of the day and never showed up the next morning. I got a call from Industrial Relations, now referred to as Human Resources and was offered a better position in a completely different field. He asked me what took me so long? It was all a test for seeing the big picture. It was a clerical job in a pool of 25 people doing the same thing each and every day and if you hang in you die or retire there. The next time was 5 years latter and I gave my letter of resignation after being scheduled 24 consecutive night shifts. I was a relief foreman and again I found out it was a test. Hopefully management doesn't do this anymore but I suspect they still do. Is it possible you are being tested? The boss and you are the only 2 of the 5, 3 leaving, that is strange plus they flew in a full timer over you, man that is cold. From the outside with the limited information you have shared here you are not as valuable as you think you are or the manager has plans he isn't sharing. I hope it is the latter. Not all managers are good at it, you may have one that isn't and can't see the trees for the forest. The best of luck to you.

The pic didn't show on my screen when I first opened the thread. What a beauty. I have American relatives that fish for only Bluegills and catch buckets of them and then clean for hours. They sure are tasty too.

On our river Tom? Tried a fly rod a few times, just can't get the rhythm right. I was in town today, nicest day of the year so far. Way to go. Nice to get the mind off other things for even a hour or so. I hope to get to Port Bruce next week for some big girl perch, I hear they are hitting. Depending on winds maybe we can get out one afternoon for a few hours soon. Only 1.5 hrs from us or so. WEATHER PERMITTING. The lake has looked like Oahu's north shore every single afternoon since last October.

Really? I always tried to hire the other guy. The guy that never gives anywhere close to 100%, always asking to get out early, come in late and go to funerals for his 5 sets of Grand Parents. That is my go to guy or gal. It might be a surprise to some but some part timers earn as much or more than the full time employees.

I was by a few times this week too, saw only 1 trailer at the Dunnville Yacht Club yesterday. I do know a guy that was slamming then 3 weeks back until he took out his prop and put a nice crease in his hull when he hit a deadhead. I went out and it was a mess of wood floating around 3 weeks back, no Cats for us. The water is still high and muddy, just take care.

Those rapids look like the upper Niagara before the Falls, wow. You won't see me in there with my boat.

We are a tough bunch here LW. Keeps everyone on their toes an up to snuff on the law. Some laws we just make up. Your first mistake was posting a pic in the first place. A newbie recently was chased off after his first post and he posted a photo. Never been back since I believe.

That's right, you live near some of the best Musky waters in the world!!! Which is the town with the giant Musky? I remember I think, Gananaque (sic).

My father finally chucked them a few years ago from the family garage. Oh no. I thought they were safe there. He also gave away a game ball I left in the rec room signed by OJ Simpson, my fault and no one elses. My cousin couldn't believe it was OK by me to give him the ball he has been eyeing since 73'. What am I going to say, I want it back after he gave it to his grandson? Oh well.

I just read a tip last week. Use a wet piece of swimming noodle and soak up all the left over oil and skunge in all the hard to get to places after rinsing with bilge cleaner which is nothing more than Spray 9 cleaner. I did the same thing to dry my livewells the other day.

I don't, hated Mullets but do miss skateboarding on death traps in the 60's. Steel wheels just wide enough to fit in any crack in the road, the hardwood boards were 6" to 8" wide, maybe. I hear if I still had ours they are worth a few bucks to collectors. How much Rick?

There's another proven Essox Hunter.

I have only gone on 1 charter for Musky so can't recommend anyone else. I caught 3 times the number of Musky that day than in my entire life and the guide was apologizing to me. The West Arm of Nippising at the end of Sept. with Dan Colomby out of Calendar Bay. He is one of the best around. No more money than any other type of charter, actually for a full day less then some. Handlebarz, a member here, on Lake St. Claire is also known to be great. I can't remember his real name, someone here will. A pal went with him a few years ago and they netted 7 of them. Yep 7!!! Many numbers on LSC but not the size as north country.

Here we go again, deja vu all over again. That's OK. I went through this around 4 years ago and it was deemed to be a Tiger Musky by all here and Dan Columby if I remember right, he would know I am sure. Maybe somehow a baby Tiger or Pike minnow got into Skugog and had a baby with a Musky and then it grew up. When I get a chance I will email someone a picture and post it for me. I have a problem with my laptop and the OFC site posting pics. I post pics on other sites from Photo Bucket but am not able to here because of some issue beyond my limited understanding, hosting issue? I dunno. Experts have tried and said "sorry I can't help you". I am not home right now, in Newmarket for a family Funeral sitting in the hotel lobby doing what good husbands do at a time like this, stay out of the way.

I just took a look at her/he, it hangs in the kitchen, I love my wife. It was Joe Martin on the east mountain. Randy may be his son. Joe was in his mid to late 40's I would say back then. That would put him in his 80's now or older. I hope he is still with us. What a talent. Like I said it looks as good now as it did when I picked it up and it wasn't cheap back then. Something like 30 bucks an inch. I think the kitchen grease keeps it from drying out and looking great, laugh out loud.

Congrats on the catch, rare for sure in my books. It is deemed to be a Musky by regs. I got one Walleye fishing over 30 years ago and back then we mounted trophies, catch and release was just catching on. Later in life I kicked myself for killing it only to find out from the guys here that they can not reproduce. Don't feel as bad now. The next guy probably would have kept it back then anyway. Some were eating Musky back in 81'. I won't say what southern ON lake because I don't want to start another discussion because I am told here on OFC it was impossible as they don't exist in that Kawartha chain lake that is just NE of the GTA that starts with a S and ends in a G, I know what lake I caught it in for goodness sakes and it is not a Musky. I would think that the award winning taxidermist from Hamilton that did it knew the difference between he 2. It still looks like it came out of the water today. Great job.

A sticky from iboats.com. A bit I/O specific but still very useful for all boat owners. HOW TO: Summerize your Winterized boat April 19th, 2007, 09:41 AM Summerization Well, it's about that time of year again. Time to get the boat out of storage and ready for the new boating season. Well at least time to start thinking about it. So, what should you do? Hopefully all the oils, gear lubes, grease zirks , oil & fuel filters, should have been taken care of during winterization. If not, shame on you, time to get it done. Also look in your service manual/owners manual at the maintenance items it suggest for this time of year and however many hours you have on your boat. Now let's talk raw water pump impellers. On Alpha I style drives, the impellers should have been replaced during winterization while the gear lube was drained and the drive off the boat for inspection of the gimbal bearing and alignment. Other drives with external raw water pumps should have the impellers replaced. Most impellers should last a couple of years, if you have an Alpha I Gen II, you can usually get 3 years with no problem. Now you know the impeller will not be the reason you are sitting at the dock on a 3 day weekend with an engine that doesn't cool. Look at your engine belts and pulleys. If they are all rusty, time to take them off, sand em up nice and smooth and paint em with a good coat of enamel. Allow to set for a day if possible just to allow the paint to get cured completely. If the belts are thinned down from the rust, replace them now, it's easier to do now with the tools handy than on the water with the wife and kids watching. Next, it's time to tuneup the engine. Yea, I know what people say about wasting money on spark plugs when they only have a few hours on them from last year, but they have also been sitting with fogging oil on them all winter, plus your cap and rotor both see a lot more corrosion than in the auto industry. If you have points and condenser, well, there is no doubt you need new ones. The points are probably glazed over and you will be getting very week if any spark., but hopefully it will start with the old ones. Start the engine and let it warm up a bit and burn off all that fogging oil. When the smoke clears, pull the plugs and do a proper compression test. See link below. http://www.boatfix.com/merc/Bullet/97/97_25.pdf The main reason for the compression test is to make sure all is well. Record the readings and put them in your log book or a page in your service manual. Then you can check them next year to see how your engine is doing. Change your cap, rotor, points, condenser, etc. With points ignition, you want to set your dwell, set your timing and check your advance timing, adjust idle speed, adjust idle mixture. If you have electronic ignition, just eliminate the dwell check since you don't have points. Now, you know your engine is running properly and set to specs so you get the best fuel economy possible. And with the price of gas the way it is, that is a big plus. While your engine is idling (on muffs of course) make sure it shifts and steers. You wouldn't believe the number of boats that come into our shop each spring after they were put in the water only to find they can't steer it or shift it. Make sure you have oil pressure and the temp is staying where it should. Listen for any strange noises, now is the time to investigate, not when the family is on board and wanting to go boating. Shut her off, and just go over all the hose clamps to make sure nothing was left loose during winterization. Make sure the drain/vent plugs on the outdrive are tight. Check all the fluid levels (including battery water). Recheck all the battery connections. It's best to get rid of those wing nuts and get standard nuts and use a wrench to tighten the freshly cleaned and greased connections. Might want to look at the other end of those cables as well. Corroded ends are a great way to spend money with Sea Tow. If you have a closed cooling system, make sure it's at the proper level. Now, since your corrosion guard product you used to keep your engine nice is probably gone. Time to add another coat. You also want to check the other boat systems needed. Nav. lights, anchor lights, horn, all Coast Guard requirements. Also check your bilge pump and float switch. Make sure the blower works, it's also required. If your boat has them, now is the time to check the head and domestic water systems for operation. Make sure your life jackets and other safety equipment are up to date. Fire extinguishers and flares must be checked. Now, do your entire cleanup and waxing, you probably won't have to leave anymore greasy fingerprints on your boat this year, because you know all is well right at the start. Don't forget to check your trailer; it has to get you to the water. Wheel bearings, breaks, lights, etc. all need checked and repaired. Then all you need is your stickers for the boat, any other license/insurance requirements your state may have and you are ready to go boating. This is just a basic list and really doesn't have a lot of details. That is what your service manuals and owners manuals are for. Last edited by Don S; April 20th, 2008, 09:59 AM.

Experience has a tendency to curb enthusiasm. In my experience 45 year old mechanical items aren't up for much use, they are antiques.

PM me Chris. Buddy custom makes these, stainless, aluminum and hardwood. Makes rod towers too. The shop is in the Haldimand area, west of Dunnville. Give me your email, I think I have some pics here. I had better start charging finders fees to all these people I know that I get work for!!

To seal rivets for life use 3M 5200, it you ever intend on removing them someday 3M 4200. Yes you have to remove anything that sits on the floor, the floor went in first then the benches and boxes etc. I didn't say it was easy it is however doable for someone with some nominal skills, like me. As far as what plywood to use there is a discussion where everyone seems to have an opinion. I asked the same question on iboats and received great advice. I will find the link. You are a few days away from replacing plywood.

You guys just keep hosing down your carpeted boats and bring them to us to replace the wood floor and foam in the aluminums and replace the stringers, foam and floor in the glass boats in the fall. I know I was stretching it with the comparisons. Carpeted boats are not intended to be hosed down unless you wet vac that thing dry and let it sun dry. Shampooing the carpet once a year is different than taking a hose to her. If the boat isn't self bailing where's the water go? Please help me understand. How much water are we talking? A light spray with a hose or power washer? I have carpeted floors on the boat and am intending on replacing it with commercial vinyl this year. I wish I could budget for alum. checker plate.

Yep I'm done for now. Loose lips lose fish.

We are actually rebuilding a 16' Smokercraft now. Everything that is above the floor has to come out. On both sides of the boat just ahead of the transom are alum. boxes where the steering cable run through and on the port side the electrical wiring runs through. They are riveted into the bottom and sides, that has to come off to get to the floor. That's what I thought you were referring to about the rivets. All the foam was soaked so it is bare aluminum now and the foam will be replaced. Pictures are a must for any real help here.