SissySticks

Is this something I can fix myself?

I was drift fishing for smallies at a local lake the other day and wasn't using my bow trolling motor, which is a Minn Kota AT34. I accidentaly kicked it into continuous while it was stowed, and it stayed that way for about 2 hours. I realized my mistake and turned it off, and it still runs fine, but now there seems to be a soft clicking sound that wasn't there before. It could just be my imagination, but is there some reason why it might be clicking now? Is there a fuse that's overheated and not conducting properly or something? HELP!!!

I'm graduating from graduate school this coming may, and I hope to buy myself a new boat. I'll have about $2000 to put down on it, but I want to spend less than $6000, preferably less than 5000. I'm debating between 2 different types of boats, and I'm looking for some input. I live in NE Kansas, and fish everything from 30 acre ponds to Milford Reservoir, which is 16,500 acres. Currently I fish out of a converted 16' semi-v. It works okay but was never more than a holdover boat. I mostly bass fish, as in, about 80% of the time. However, I also occasionally fish for wipers, crappie, and walleye. I am a recreation only fisherman, no tournaments anymore, but do fish about 50-60 times/year. I am also a high-school english teacher, so needless to say, economy is important to me. I want something I can pull with my 4-banger tacoma and power with a 50hp or less 4-stroke. It needs to be comfortable for 2 fisherman and a child, or 3 adults in a pinch. I also go to Canada (LOTW), SD, MN or ND 2-3 times per year to pike/muskie fish. I am considering 2 types of layouts: a 16-17' tiller v-hull like an alumacraft lunker, sylvan backtroller, tracker guide special etc., or a 17' aluminum bass boat like a Skeeter sx17, G3 175, Ranger 117 Cherokee, Xpress sv17, etc. Either way I want a 40-50hp 4 stroke outboard. Both types can be pulled with my truck easily. I go back and forth almost daily on which to get. For most of my fishing, the bass boat, with its superior casting space and rod/dry storage seems like the best choice, but when I think about running across miles bay in a skeeter sx17 and its low sides, I kind of pucker, and then I want the v-hull. Those of you who've fished LOTW will sympathize. I know every boat is a compramise, I'm just trying to find the boat that will be best for me 90% of the time. What do you guys think?

I have a 16' aluminum v with a 36 lb. all-terrain on the front. I have fished a big reservoir for 7+ hours with it in 5-10 mph winds. Just get at least a 29 series battery with a smaller motor. Also, I am a bit scared of more thrust, as speed 5 would definitely pitch me out of the boat if I hit it by accident. I actually use speeds 1 and 2 almost all the time.

Not to buck popular wisdom but I find I get LOTS more bites on a 2.75 inch tube, even over a 3.5 inch. For me, more bites ultimately also means larger fish eventually, although I'm quite certain someone one here will disagree with me. That said, this is coming from the guy who's #1 confidence bait is a 3" senko bitten in half to make 1.5" and fished on a 1/32 oz. jighead and a L action g-blanks spinning rod. To say I'm a finesse fisherman would be like saying Shaq is a pretty big guy.

4" zoom small tube, usually either electric grape or green pumpkin, 1/8 oz. gami jighead. If it's really snarly I'm usually throwing something else.

Can anybody find this tutorial? I'm very interested but I can't find it.

I've actually been using the Water Gremlin bull shot, which are crimp on bullet sinkers, in 1/4 and 3/16 oz. They work awesome for me.

x2 on all counts. Except I use a rod made by Scheel's All Sports.

I am pretty new to the board, but am I the only one on here who NO LONGER fishes in tournaments, unless a buddy asks me to fish a buddy event? I got unbelievably tired of skating 2lb. bass across the surface and fishing ALL DAY on a bad fishing day to MAYBE catch 5. Maybe I'm weak sauce here, but since I quit tournament fishing, I own 2 MH rods, a spinning and a casting in 6'6", and everything else I have is M action or lighter. I carry 4 L or UL rods in the boat. I rarely use OVER 12 lb. test (actually, never). Why? Because it's a lot more fun and I hook a lot more bass on 6lb. test. When I was a tournament angler, things were different. 15lb. was my normal line and I used a lot of mh and h rods. It just got old, and didn't feel very sporting.

A bait people used to throw all the time in that situation that seems to have fallen out of favor is a slug-go. You could also use a zoom fluke. Won't get snagged, and doesn't pick up too many weeds.

I'm with you on the #1 location. We don't have current in our resivoirs, so we look for deep drops, channel turns, humps, rockpiles, and the deep end of points and riprap (or riprap points ) I like a hair jig, a drop shot 3" senko, a 4" zoom tube, and a carolina rig with a 4" baby brush hog. I will also be dropshotting and jigging 2.5 and 3 inch gulp minnows this summer quite a bit. Also don't neglect to throw a topwater on and over points and bluffs periodically.

I'm experimenting this season with the Lake Fork Magic Shad swimbaits. The 4.5 and 5.5 inch are big, bulky baits and have a really neat swimming action. I throw them on jigheads in the 1/2 ounce range as well. http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_103201?cm_mmc=froogle-_-100-7-10-_--1-_-38-250-086-01&hvarAID=froogle&mr:trackingCode=254A691A-1521-DD11-98CA-001422107090&mr:referralID=NA

I like fishing with a buddy if he's also a good fisherman. Fishing with amateurs (unless they are kids) is just more work than fun.

I'll preface this by saying: I am that guy who has buyers remorse about EVERYTHING, and usually I turn out to be wrong- that thing is just fine. That said, for $125 I just purchased a 33 lb. thrust MK All Terrain in mint condition to go on my 16' semi v, and I am worried that it will not be enough thrust. I know I'm not going to be pulling into a 20 mph wind on a big lake with it, but when the wind is blowing hard, I'm usually on itty-bitty lakes anyway. I'm not a tournament fisherman anymore, just fishing for fun and broke, unfortunately. What do you guys think? I bought it on craigslist, and its probably not too late to get out of it. Thanks

Yeah, I should have done some research first. Turns out Iaconelli loves this bait for drop shotting smallies, and Aaron Martens used it in the Pittsburg classic and it was good for 2nd place. So for any who have been following this thread, apparently the answer is: yes. I'll be trying them this summer at some offshore haunts.

I have used one flipped and on the BACK to backtroll for crappie/walleyes. The nice thing is you can spin the head around (if you can reach) and still go forward with the forward speeds to get around the lake.

In the last 4 days I have made 2 purchases to augment my boat project, found both on craigslist. First I purchased a 5 hp Sea King for $85. It is a 1 pull starter with a 1.5 gallon internal gas tank. Second, I bought a 36lb. thrust foot controlled Minn Kota All-Terrain for $125 shipped. It is in mint condition. No nicks even on the prop. Beautiful. I now sit at $860 for this project. I still have some additions to make (rear trolling motor, fishfinder, rod rack) that will put me over the $1000 mark, but I can at least go fishing now.

Oh yeah. I'll be carrying a 3 gal. can with me whenever I'm on a lake bigger than 200 acres. Nobody wants to get stranded.

Well, I went to see it. Guy said he hasn't used it in 2 years but he rebuilt it completely. Sticks it in the water in a trash can, and it starts on the first pull! Ran smooth, pumped water well. Holds 1.5 gallons of gas internally. No reverse, you just spin it around, but long story short, I paid the guy his $85 and mounted it on my boat. Really nice older motor.

Just what I was hoping to hear. I'm going to look at the motor and see it run in about 10 min. If it runs good and starts well I'm going to buy it.

I have a bunch of 2.5 and 3 in. gulp minnows that I usually use for saugeye and walleye. Anybody drop shotting these for SMs?

Yeah, I got the boat/trailer for $400 too, so this is shaping up to be a really nice fishing boat for very little $$. I also have a 50lb. MK endura for the back and a 40lb. Edge for the front. I was going to get the 40lb. endura, but with the rebate going on right now I decided to go for as much thrust as I could afford. She should be ready to fish out of in about 1 wk.

I have a 16' short transom sears v-hull. A local man here in Kansas is selling a 5 hp internal gas tank sea king for $85. I would like to buy it, but am wondering how well it will do with my boat. I'm not looking for a lot of speed (mostly fish 50-500 acre lakes, and when I do fish bigger water tend to launch near my spot) just something reliable that will push me faster and more efficiently than my 40lb. trolling motors, and some safety for windy days. What do you think? Seems like a pretty cheap deal.

You're totally correct there, I'm just always astonished when I see one that size how just truly WIDE they are. I love smallies. Spots kind of are the same in that regard actually... Short and powerful.