Lape0019

Hold on a minute, I would not say your wiring is fine at all. It might be but there are calculations for this. It depends on how far a span you are going from your batteries to your TM. I did almost the exact same swap last year and I had to upgrade from 8 gauge to 6 ( Motorguide 46 to minn kota 80w/ ipilot) If you go on minnkota's website there is a chart on it that can help you out. If the voltage drop is more than 1 volt over the distance you are running, your TM will not work properly (if at all) so the correct wire size is important. If you are not running more than 20 feet of wire, 8awg is fine. I had to run 24 feet so I upgraded just to be safe to 6awg. I honestly think 10 awg will be pushing it and you will be jumping your breaker or blowing your fuse every time you turn that thing on. As for using a 50 amp instead of a 60, there shouldn't be a problem other than it tripping all of the time if the wires get too hot. In your case, again if you are using 10awg, this will more than likely happen often so I would consider at least upgrading the wiring. If you throw a 60 amp into a 10 awg wiring system, I would be worried that the wires would get way too hot and start a fire. If you throw the 8awg in and continue to use the 50, the worst thing that will happen is that it will trip on you some times. I found the chart in the FAQ's here. http://www.minnkotamotors.com/General/What_gauge_wire_and_fuse_is_needed_for_my_motor_/ I cannot remember where I found the calculations but for me unless I was running less than 15 feet of wiring, my voltage drop was going to be over 1 volt. I am hoping this helps you out a bit and if you have any questions, feel free to ask. Adam

I had a 46# motorguide pro series that came with my boat a few years ago. There was no way to tighten the cable and you were basically leaft needing to keep your foot on the pedal. I hated that thing!!!!. It was way to small for the boat, didn't chop through any weeds, and the mount always popped like it was twisitng when I tried to turn. When trying to pull the motor up, the metal bar that locked it in place would sometimes get stuck as well. I switched over to a Minn Kota and haven't looked back. I cannot comment on how much better the Minn Kota is in my circumstance because I went to an electric steer instead of cable steer. It has been the best investment on my boat to date though.

I just put a set in a revo s and it was pretty straight forward. I ordered mine off of tackle warehouse only because I was ordering a cf handle and knobs off of there as well. They were about a dollar more but I saved money on shipping. I grabbed the boca orange seals because they will be easier to service. The seals pop in and out quite easily. You can also run them dry or with lube, and with or without seals. If you lube them, use a light lube. I used the Abu reel oil and it seems to be a little thicker compared to bit sauce or the boca light in lube.

I don't blame you for re using that one RJ!!!! If I ever go out for those gar and catch one like that, the picture would be my Christmas card, screen saver, and back window picture on my pickup. Absolutely gorgeous fish.

I thought I was going to see something like that. Congrats on the new addition!!!

That is a really good idea. No way the chemicals would ever touch the boat that way and probably not that much more expensive between the staples, carpet, and wood required to do it the normal way. Also less work putting it all together.

I have seen it installed on decks and it just seems a little too flimsy to be any good for that. It would be rot proof but I don't know if it would provide enough support for the boat. When installing decks, you have to put the joists closer to 12" on center instead of the standard 16" or 24. My neighbor also has his dock bult out of the stuff and it is not supported well so it will sag in the middle down about 2 inches when I walk over them. I weigh 180lbs and to see that much sag over 3 feet would make me question using it for some twice as long and with only two supports holding it too the trailer.

These two pieces of wood are the only points of contact your boat has on the trailer. If you want to go cheap, I would find somewhere else to try and save money. Preasure treated should work fine considering it will not be in direct contact with the aluminum. From what I have read, it seems there is only a reaction when the two are placed in direct contact. With the carpet there, you should be alright. Other than that, Cedar would work, but I would lean towards the Marine Grade wood. Technically there is nothing special about this stuff either. It is not treated or anything. It is just made from another type of tree that resists mold and rot better than most. I guess a third option would be to just buy reguler wood and coat it with something that would resist rot but this is a job I would want done right so that I didn't have to do it every year. If the carpet is in good condition, you can always re use it. If not, go grab a 6 x 10 indoor outdoor matt and use that. Adam

Sweet rig!!!! I was looking at those with my father this winter during the Ottawa boat show. Spent about a half hour crawling around in the single console version and it was very well made. I am sure it will last you a lifetime.

They may have changed it since I bought mine 2 seasons ago but I only have down imaging and yes, it only works up to 30mph... When I bought mine this was the only "affordable" way to get it and after using it for a few seasons now I am comfortable. If I was in your shoes, I would either grab an elite 7 hdi or grab a humminbird unit as any of the ones they have seems to have traditional 2d as well as di.

I have had this discussion quite a few times because I was one if the first poeple within my friends to make the switch. I have a Lowrance elite 5 dsi and there is a definite difference between the two technologies. It took me almost a year to figure out what was a fish on the unit. The positives Gives you a better picture if structure. Weeds looks like weeds with strings of vegetation instead if a big clump or arches. I find it gives you more information about the bottom if the river/lake you are fishing. Different bottom (clay, rocks, sand) seem to have a different color to them. When you learn how to read what a fish looks like (basically a pixel or two instead of the arch) there is no mistaking it for something floating in the water. The downside. The down imagine reduces the depth range that the sonar can reach. ( mine is rated for 200 feet where traditional sonar can go up to 800 to 1000. Takes some time to get used to. Mine loses signal after 30 mph ( again this is lowrance so you would have to check the manual or online) Would I buy another unit with down imaging? In a heart beat. The nice thing about the humminbird units is they seem to all come with DI and standard sonar so you can use both if you want. If I was to buy another unit, I would be looking at the lowrance elite 7 hdi because it has both and the screen is almost double the size for not much more money than the elite 5 dsi.

Hey Drop, I know you already know the quality of the Dobyns champion series so good call in that. I have yet to buy a rod that long but a few people I have talked to really like that rod. I am trying a lew's this year for the first time as well. I grabbed a team gold speed spool and if it works half as good as it looks, I will be impressed. Between Frank and Marc, they seem to have a severe addiction to those reels so they can't be half bad... I have given up hope with shimano when it comes to $200 to $300 reels so hopefully the gold fits that ticket.

Paddletales tackle in Winchester ontario ( not exactly the GTA) carries all sizes and colors. If you give him a call, he does ship out.

Lol!!! I haven't jumped into the world of custom rods yet but if and when I do, I will be contacting you. The amount of people speaking highly of your work, I don't think I could go wrong... In the mean time, you will not find a better balanced rod than a Dobyns and I will be sticking with them.

This is 100% accurate, the xx line came in at the same time as the x4's Ed had special ordered and I was really looking forward to the 7'2 destruction but it was a little tip heavy with the Core I was planning on mounting on it. The xx line balanced almost the same as the DX I ended up with. The difference was not quite noticeable. It was that close but after spending 20 minutes trying to figure out which one to grab, I went with the Dobyns. The reasoning was basically it balanced a tad bit better, has a lifetime warranty against defects as opposed to 3 years, and IMO, looks a hell of a lot better. Plus I have experience with the Dobyns product and it has not let me down... Adam

I will echo that they are not a fad. The gen 2 rods have been around for around 5 years ( that I know of) but the gen 1 rods have been around for a while. The gen 1 rods were having breakage issues so Gary pulled them off the market and started over again. He still honoured the warranties with the gen 1's and he hasn't had the qc issues he had with the first gen. He switched manufacturing companies and quality went way up. I have used both the savvy series and the champion series so far and I love them. As stated before, I have just bought a Dobyns champion extreme that I am looking forward to suing this year. It balanced better than a glx, the megabass x4 destruction, and a slew of other high end rods. The nrx balanced better but was almost $600 and wasn't rated for anything over 3/4 of an ounce. The cumura balanced about the same but it has a few components that I do not like when compared to the champion extreme. As for warranty, I don't think there is a better one on the market at this point.

I use Stanley ribbit's. they work pretty good weightless but I usually use a swim bait weighted hook as well. I read a review on tackletour a few years ago about the sizemic toads and they seem to be pretty nice. I was going to buy these instead but the Stanley's are the only ones my tackle shop carried. On the plus side, the ribbit's just plain work.

Hey Drop, I imagine the 804 would be fine for everything you listed other than maybe the umbrella rig. Talking to Ed may help there but I am not sure if he has even thrown one. As for the umbrella rig itself, Ed has ontario legal ones at the shop but even if you buy the one you want, you don't have to snip any wires off. You could use spinner blades or just cut the hook off of one or two of the jig heads. The rules stipulate how many hooks per bait and not how many wires are allowed on a bait.

Just checked out fish hawk and Rob is getting somewhere. There is no content up bt it looks like he may have found some sort of backup. Slowly but surely but it is nice to be seeing some progress. Fish hawk is great for local content but the longer it is down, the more I find myself getting just as addicted to OFC!!! Adam

If your plan is to use the rod for jerkbaits, I don't recall any Dobyns savvy sticks that will accommodate this technique. If you want to step up to a champion series, they have crankbait rods that will work great but they are casting rods. I bought a gl2 casting rod for jerkbaits this winter and it is a pretty nicely finished rod balances awesome with a Lew's team gold speed spool.But the horror stories of the nrx I have read about do not sound very nice especially when the rods costs so much. Check this out. http://forums.tackletour.com/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=50255 And if that isn't enough, there is another post titled nrx not aging well. I always take these types of posts with a grain if salt because you don't know how people really handle their equipment but I have had to use a Dobyns warranty and it is extremely hassle free. Brought the broken rod into the store and told the owner my rod locker got hungry, handed over $60.00 and walked out with a brand new rod. G. Loomis will allow this with the wild card once (and i won cost you anything) but if it happens again, you are out of luck.This is why 4 of my 7 rods are Dobyns. I wanted to try the gl2 and the other two rods are old shimano compre's. Coincidentally before I bought the gl2, I have been issuing the old compre medium fast spinning rod for jekbaits and it works fine. It was just a little too long for me at 7 feet. Adam

On the plus side, if you can afford the extra money, it may be a good time to upgrade to I pilot... I have last years version on my terrova and love it. I specifically went with the terrova because of all of the horror stories of having to replace the foot pedal every year or so. It seems they are not water proof and short out every once in a while... If you want to upgrade to the I pilot, you would only be able to control the pedal with the remote but I barely use the foot control any more. Just make sure to keep extra remote batteries in the boat.

Well said Drop... This also holds true with the non polarized glasses although once you get a pair that are polarized, you probably will never get another pair that arent. I have worn cheap sunglasses in the past and always found them to not be as clear and sometimes the lenses would project a roundness to an object. I have a pair of fishing specific Oakley straight jackets in the shallow blue iridium and they are designed for water about 10 feet deep and to take the glare off of the surface. Worth every penny IMO and I am actually planning on getting a new pair shortly. They have a few other lens styles so I might try the VR28's (supposed to brighten up greens and reds to help differentiate between fish and weed) or the deep blue iridium (designed for deeper water). Any Oakley lenses are top notch and if you read all of the technology that goes into them, you would understand why they are more than $50.00. I have also used Maui Jim's in the past and would not hesitate on buying another pair especially at $100!!! I would still be wearing/using my old ones if I hadn't of left them at a restaurant 3 hours from my house... I noticed I left them there when we were about 10 minutes down the road but the driver of the car wouldn't turn around for them... Luckily at that point they were 3 years old and I usually buy a new pair every 3 years anyway... Adam

The only noticeable difference I have ever noticed is because tungsten is more dence, it has a smaller profile. Thy are more Eco friendly but other than the fact they will give a Texas rigged plastic a slightly smaller profile, I really don't find much of a difference.

I just added another one to my arsenal. Here is my current list. Dobyns Champion 734C full handle - Spinnebaits and buzzbaits. Awesome rod and my first casting and Dibyns rod all in one!!! Dobyns Champion 702SF - Tubes and drop shotting duty Dobyns Savvy 735SC - Frogs, Frogs, and more Frogs. - Great rod with a lot of backbone. It can throw a frog pretty damn far while still looking good Dobyns Champion Extreme 735C FH - This is my new aquisition that beat out the new Megabass rods I was looking atlast night. It will be used for Pitchin mostly but a carolina rig may makes it presence know on the business end of this stick. IMO, They balance well, look awesome and give me confidence. I do use other brands, but this is my mainstay. Looking forward to seeing how much more sensitive the DX is compared to the Champion.

I have been waiting 2 months for those megabass sticks to come in. They look great, but still ended up with a DX745 full grip. Awesome rod to pair with a my core 100mgfv. Lookig forward to trying it out soon. I have used the 110's for a few seasons now. I love them and my most productive color is deadly black. It has a kind of chameleon affect on the top of it and the under belly is orange. You dont find them to often because this was a color from 2003 but I have seen them online a few times. As for the bill breaking, I have heard it is more due to the way us north americans fish... Apparantly they were not desigined to be bashed off rocks and stumps but they have remedied that by comming out with the coffin style bill. I mainly use them in open water for smallis so I think I will stick with the originals. I did by a zcrank in pearl white and a pop max jr that I am looking forward to trying out this year. Their finishes look lifelike for the most part and the paint is gorgeous so I hope they work out well for me.