lew

Always a thermos of coffee for the morning trips and like Radnine, there's always a couple boxes of cereal bars in the boat too. I never leave the dock without a gallon jug of water and if it's gonna be a long day, there'll be a few cans of COKE on ice, along with a bag of samiches and usually some cheeze too. I normally come back to the dock weighing about 3 pounds more than when I left it

Happy Anniversay to you and your lovely bride, Brian !!

Good stuff Meely, didn't know if you were gonna make it or not.

This post brings back lotsa great memories. Back in the 50's & 60's my grandparents had a waterfront home on the west side of Simcoe about 1 mile south of the Narrows and my bro & I had a little 6' wooden punt with a 3HP motor (Evinrude I think) and we'd putt putt putt up to the Narrows every weekend in the spring for those perch and then bring em back for a huge feast. Course we spent 1/2 the day just travelling up & back with that little 3HP

Terry, POLLIWOG & express 168, great ideas from all of you and something I never even considered before today. Yes I do have rails, so I could go for the fixed mount radio for the better service, and then possibly just store the antenna for when it's needed. There's a panel just below the guages on the right hand side of the steering wheel that may be for a VHF as the AM/FM is located in another spot and I'll have a look in there when I pick up the boat next week. This may work out well after all.

Thanks Emile, if I do decide to go with a fixed mount unit, Lowrance will definetely be one I'll be looking at . I've already got 2 Lowrance sonars plus a GPS and am very satisfied with their products. I was hoping to go with a portable because I just don't want to drill any holes in the new glass boat for an antenna, but I'll see what I come up with.

Couple interesting links there fellas, thanks. I'm heading up towards Radioworld in the next week or so and will drop in and have a look at everything that's available.

OK thanks boyz, perhaps the portables aren't such a good idea afterall. And I think my post title should have read vhF rather than vhS

I've been thinking of getting a portable radio for the boat just to keep handy for maybe some bad weather reports, but more importantly to possibly call for help if I break down somewhere and I can't get the cell to work. I don't fish the Great Lakes at all so I'll never be a long ways from shore, but I do spend time on the Ottawa & St. Lawrence Rivers, Bay of Quinte and I also spend quite a bit of time on the West Arm of Nippissing which which can be pretty isolated at times. I just want something small & portable that I can stick in the glove box for when it's needed, but I also don't want to spend several hundred dollars either. I see some for around $100-$150 and wondered if their any good for sending & receiving, or do I need to spend big $$$$ ?? I definetely don't want to install one of those huge antennas on the boat. Any thoughts ??

Excellent job & now your all rigged up and ready to go !! I definetely like the way you cut your transducer mounting plate to fit the angle of the hull, even taking the time to route the edges. It looks very professional and far superior than the way it's normally done. Those little touches make a big difference. I also agree with you on using 2 seperate units for sonar & GPS. I do the same & find it much better than using split screens.

I'll be standing beside Rizzo

You can even call them direct for your answer 870-481-5138

John, I got my Knipex from the Ring Lord out in Saskatoon a couple years back. I like the Cobalt model with the spring in the handle as it makes them much easier to use and they'll easily cut thru any hook you'll ever use. You may find them locally for less money but I don't know where. These guys will have them at your door in a couple days. http://theringlord.com/cart/shopdisplaypro...s=2947514657790

Will your Mother-In-Law do breakfast for 12 Roger ??

I get all those too and especially enjoy going thru the hardcover book as there are so many things that aren't available around here, but they can be so darned expensive to get shipped up here. I've checked out the Canadian Cabellas for a few things but they really don't seem to have much of a selection on alot of items. Hopefully in the near future though.

I don't recall a buffet that early John , but they always put on an excellent breakfast otherwise. See you and everyone else at 7

Some people spend a lifetime seeking praise, others don't need it. Sounds like your GF's grandmother, plus the 2 boys that helped her are all pretty good people and hopefully she has a speedy recovery. She sounds like quite the lady.

The boat looks REALLY good Stoty and hopefully you'll get alot of great years out of it. There's an answer to your PM waiting for you too.

Ya probably, maybe I'll do it with my eyes closed so I don't see what I'm doing

Happy Birthday Bill, all the best to ya !!

No sense following YOUR trolling route Wayne, there's no fish there As for the install, thanks for the heads up guys. I've read the instructions seveal times, plus there was an episode of Ship Shape TV a couple weeks ago where they showed the install of a similar product. Do it on a warm day, take your time and keep your fingers crossed

Thanks guys, but I found one here in Toronto and am picking it up today from Genco Maine down on Queens Quay

Actually Rob, where that sonar is sitting on top of the dash was excellent for mounting electronics. It was solid aluminum, flat & strong, and very accesible from underneath and extremely easy to get at. The only reason I put the GPS on the side was because there wasn't enough room for both units on top. That side unit was quite stable too though on the Ram mount, I just had to make sure it was locked down tight and it only moved when I hit too big a wave at too big a speed

That could be true, but when I called Cabellas Canada he had no idea what I was talking about.

I've read on alot of different websites, mostly American, that an item called Keelshield is recommended to protect the keel on glass boats, so I decided to get one. I searched around Ontario and couldn't find one so I checked Cabellas and they had them on for a decent price, so I gave them a call. Strangest thing though, the Cabellas operator was printing up my order when she discovered that they weren't allowed to ship the item across the border to Canada and she had no idea why. She got her supervisor and she had no idea why either and said they'd never heard of anything like that before I can see maybe a company not being allowed to ship bullets or chemicals or other dangerous goods into Canada, but this thing is basically just a piece plastic. I did a bit more searching after that and actually found one right here in Toronto and I'm picking it up today, but I just found it strange. Anyone else experience that with Cabellas or anyone else for that matter ?? http://images.cabelas.com/is/image/cabelas...ain-Large$