Garry2Rs

Certainly total weight and hull design are factors, but most 16 foot boats with roughly 50 HP should be seeing about 30 mph carrying one or two men. I once had a glass 16 ft bow-rider that was a birch to get up on plain until I went down an inch on pitch. One inch less gave me a much better hole shot, and didn't really hurt my top speed. If you're only getting 5000 RPM. it might bring you up to 5800-6000 which would be just fine. Some Marinas will let you test a new prop... Question...Where is the wake? It should be coming out in the area of the last 1/3 to 1/4 of the hull. If the motor is trimmed too low, you are pushing the bow into the water and loosing speed. For the fastest hole shot, trim the motor all the way down, putting the prop under the boat. As you come up on plain, start raising the motor. You will hear your RPM's increase. At some point you will hear and feel the prop breaching, or you will start porpoising. Trim down and fiddle with it to find the sweet spot. The sweet spot will change depending on wind direction and water conditions.

Brother, your news just made my day!

I am reluctant to answer because the lefties have already decided the issue. Obviously they are right because it feels more natural to them after years of spinning. It would probably be pretentious if I were to point out that this feeling goes away once they learn how to cast. However, on the slim hope that there are still some open minds, I will try one last time. To answer your questions: 1: YES you can use the lefty canted to the side, but the left-hand reel's handle is then pointing down and in...Toward your sleeve, coat or belly etc. Murphy's Law tells us that sooner or later you will accidently drop the reel into gear...What happens next depends on your grip, the weight of your lure and the strength of your line. This is the mechanics of a spring under tension, like a mouse trap. 2: Because of this, many casters will choose or over time start to hold the reel level. This puts the reel handle where they want it. It seems natural, feels good etc. However, it will shorten their cast because they can't flex their wrist as far. This is due to the mechanics of the human body. 3: Since there is no switching of hands, during or after the cast, how do you get a palm grip on the reel? The answer is you don't...By not palming the reel you put undo stress on your wrists as you crank. This becomes more pronounced as the water resistance of the bait increases. This is mechanics x 2, creating torque with gears and the design of the human wrist. Please buy a left-hand reel, you will leave more fish for me!

Please do not put words in my mouth. I stated my case in what I believe was clear text and don't need you to edit my thoughts nor add snide remarks. The world is full of misinformed people... According to Fox News, 16 million American adults believe Elvis is still alive. They didn't say if these folks reeled left or not...

I will be 70 around the time Musky season opens this year. If most new casters are using lefty reels, perhaps I am a casting dinosaur. As such, I promise not to criticize lefty-lovers anymore...After today...HAHAHA. Since now-a-days everyone grows up using a spinning reel. I understand why folks might think they would prefer a left-hand cranking reel, but there were and are good reasons why cast right and crank right is the standard. When I was a boy, in the 50's, the crank handles on many bait casters didn't disconnect, they spun backward during the cast. That, I suspect, was a powerful reason for right-hand cranks for right-hand casters. As I mentioned, the proper grip for a right-hand caster has the reel canted to the left with the crank up and away. This of course kept the crank away from your body, and clothes, as it whirled about. This cant also allows your wrist to bend further. This is the grip which is taught in tennis for the same reason... Once the push button clutch was developed, to disconnect the crank during the cast, one argument was somewhat weakened, but not resolved. To this day, if your crank is inboard during the cast, when you bump or jar it, you are going to have a problem. This is casting mechanics #1. I have used left-hand reels for pitching and occasionally for casting. I honestly find no advantage when casting. Switching the rod from right to left happens while the bait is in the air, most of the time. On the switch, the reel goes into the palm of the left hand. This palm-grip keeps the rod from torquing up and down as you crank. Most right handed guys using a left-hand reel, that I have seen, cast with the rod held so that the reel is horizontal. This limits their back-cast and shortens their cast. This is casting mechanics #2. The most common way to hold the rod in order to cast is with ones finger on the trigger. Since right-hand casters who crank left don't switch hands, they don't naturally move the reel into their palm. This leads to fatigue in the wrist, caused by fighting the torque of the reel as you crank. This is casting mechanics #3 and all I have to say on the subject.

There was no pretension intended, there are sound mechanical reasons for what I said. Beyond that, I don't really care how or why you want to handicap yourself, it doesn't affect me. However, I do think it's wrong to encourage a newbie to copy the mistake. I suspect that someone else suggested to you, that a lefty was the way to go, before you knew better. If you started Right and switched that's your business, if not, someone did you a disservice. The convention is to mount a horse from the left. This might have been a military thing, to have everyone doing it the same way. There are no left handed bicycles. There are left handed reels, golf clubs, baseball gloves and hockey sticks and if you think they suit you better, go with it.

Don't listen to those Lefty-Loves Lew. You are doing it Right! HAHAHA.

When putting together this tackle, remember that everything needs to balance. What weight baits do you expect to use?...If you are throwing 1 ounce baits using a 2-6 rod it's going to wear you out! Will you be using Jerk or glide type baits?...Long rods are in style. They will cast a little farther...Which is fine if you fish with your rod tip up. However, if you are working a jerk bait, like a sledge, your 8 ft rod will splash in the water, scaring the fish if you're not 7 feet tall. My personal favourite was a St.Croix 7ft Premier rated for 1-3 oz. It would throw a big weighted bucktail, a 1.5 or 2 oz. Spinnerbait or fish an 8 inch Sledge with equal ease. Abu C3's are okay reels to start with. They need oil on the worm gear that drives the level wind, almost every time you use them. If you fail to oil them regularly, the pall that reverses the level wind will wear out and stop working. It is very important to balance the reel to the rod. If you put a 6000 serie reel on a 2-6 oz rod they will work well together. If you put the same reel on a bass crank bait rod or a flipping stick, it will be top heavy and will be a pain in the butt to use. In my not so humble opinion, any right-hand person who uses a left hand casting reel is handicapping themselves. Look at any article on Bait Casting and you will see that the reel is supposed to be tilted on its side with the crank hand facing up and away at about a 45 or 50 degree angle during the cast. This is to allow your wrist to bend properly...If you ever had Tennis lessons you will know what I'm talking about. That said, feel free to listen to those who are smarter than all the reel designers.

Bass tournaments have brought many good things to fishing. The widespread use of catch and release, aerators in live wells, widespread use of kill switches, Wearing PFD's while operating under power, better boats, and much better tackle to name just a few. At the same time, money and competition can lead to naked aggression. There was an incident in January where two boats collided violently while waiting to enter a lock. The anglers exchanged words, then got into a scuffle and both had to be fished out of the water... As others have already said, this isn't what many of us want out of a day of fishing.

Go to www.mudhole.com. They sell rod and lure making parts and tools. You can browse their on-line catalogue and/or ask them to send you a hard copy. They have lots of "how-to" videos and there are many more on YouTube. Warning...These activities are highly addictive. No one ever make just one rod or piece of tackle. You will know you're doomed when you hear yourself say: "I could quit anytime...If I wanted too!"

Three things: 1: As Bassman said, the Scatter Rap works quite well. On a straight retrieve, it suddenly and randomly darts off line, then returns to a normal course. The one problem I saw was they didn't come in a Pike size model. 2: Scatter Rap's are Balsa, this new bait looks like Plastic to me. They list at $8.99 at Tackle Warehouse (plus 20% and shipping for Canadians.) and comes in a shallow and a deep version. This new bait is 4.25 inches long and weighs 7/16th. oz. 3: This name says it suspends but is in fact it appears to sink very slowly and is supposed to shimmy as it does... Here's the hype... Living in the shadow world between life and death, the Rapala Shadow Rap combines both the vertical and horizontal struggles that a minnow exhibits when its life hangs in the balance. Sculpted with flat-sides, the Rapala Shadow Rap delivers an erratic darting action with minimal forward movement, so it can maintain the dance of death within a fish’s strike zone. Internally, the Rapala Shadow Rap is equipped with a fixed weighting system, which works like a minnow’s swim bladder, allowing it to sink with a slow-falling quiver – just like a dying baitfish. As it fades into the depths, the Rapala Shadow Rap snaps back to life with a flickering lunge that causes fish to come absolutely unglued.

Here's a link to Rapala's new suspending Jerk-bait... http://enews.rapala.com/q/_8n4pjRfAPVT2XnjKxObVmrTHe48OxIUIZk8OF9MJ2P9SMDQUBTkkAh-8

I'm going to use a split-shot right next to the knot when I want to do shaky head...grin. Speaking of shaky heads...Have you ever tried the Z-man baits? They float so the tail is always pointing up. I'm in Arizona and have been using their finesse worms on a 1/16th ball head jig with good results this winter.

A paddle tail on a weedless bass jig, with a matching skirt would be an outstanding big fish bait. Multi-species, weedless, fishes all depths. Hop it, swim it, or drag it...The only short fall is size, half the time it will be too big or too small,. You can cut some off or trim the skirt to make it look smaller,. It needs to be moving to work the tail, but on a lot of days, it might be best. Over the summer it might very well win weight, but not numbers.

The bait that will catch the most fish day in and day out is a 5 inch Senko type worm. I want mine with a 3/0 EWG hook and if it's not cheating I'd like to carry a few split shot. Surface lures are fun, but if that's all you got, there are going to be some long days. Crank baits and jerk baits are great, but there are summer days when you are going to retrieve move weeds than fish. There's also the question of depth...unless you're throwing a sinking bait, you are stuck within a depth range. Inline and bent wire baits and spoons have to be kept moving. Anything that spins doesn't work that well around weeds, and on some days, the flash will put the fish down. Jig are deadly, and would be my second choice. The problem is I wouldn't want to be stuck with only one profile all season and everywhere...You can drag, hop or swim a jig, but if you're stuck with one profile and one weight /style of jig head this isn't going to allow that much versatility.. Enter the Mid-size worm either mid-brown or dark green. It can be fished on top, in the middle or on the bottom. The variations are almost endless... Move it fast, slow, or not at all. Hooked weedless or wacky or as a drop shot. Change the profile by splitting it in half length-wise for a finesse drop-shot. Bite off a chunk to reduce it's length and profile. Perhaps even add a second worm to bulk-it-up. Etc. etc. etc.

This might be off the mark, but I'll jump in here. Because I change locations every six months, I use a pair of Magic Jacks. One has an Ontario number for my home folks, and one an Arizona number. I only need the one, but it's convenient for my US friends if they don't have to call a Canadian number to reach me. These units plugs into my computer. I need a high-speed connection, but the units let me call anywhere in the US or Canada. I pay about $40.00 a year per unit for unlimited calling.

I was out a couple of days ago, when it was ovecast. Caught two long skinny bass on a Blue Fox spinner and another on a shaky-head worm. It hit 80 since then, and I am waiting for the fish to acclimatize.

Most of Central Ontario seems to share the same basic weather...Where I live, in the Kawarthas, the Blackflies arrive in mid May and last about a month. The Mosquitoes arrive a couple of weeks later and last until after Labour Day. If you want bug free camping try mid to late September.

Lew; I don't mind paying a $2.00 fee, if it helps. However, as a seniors I / we don't need a card, or licence, so there doesn't appear to me that there is any place for the MNR to apply their $2.00 fee.

First of all, the same two fibers are used to make all top quality braids. These are covered by different patents, but are so close to being the same they are called "sisters." Therefore there can't be much difference in abrasion resistance between brands. Second, your reel is only rated for ten pound test mono...In theory, you could use up to 40 braid but as you go up in strength, you will lose casting distance. Faced with your challenges, I think I would use 20 or 30 pound test Power Pro Zero Impact. This line has black "Termination Zones" every few yards, where the line is 50% stronger. By tying knots in these areas, you can retain 100% of the rated line strength.

My neighbour, in the Kawarthas, mentioned catch a bunch from shore last week, in his usual spring time spot...

If you DIY, you might want to pick-up a spare set of bearings and even a spare hub. Fortunately, I never needed them, but always carried a complete spare set when on long trips. IE my 2000 mile haul to AZ in the Fall, before adding a second boat down there... These are cheap items and worth having on hand.

Sorry for your loss Buddy.

No, this Kirk was from an old board, many, many moons ago. When I moved to the East Kawarthas in 2002, I was looking for information about Stoney and L.Buckhorn... Brian, aka Misfish, put me in touch with Kirk and we have been friends ever since.

Thanks Guys.