J Francho

Got $75 in BPS gift cards, so we made the trip out to Auburn to redeem them. It's VERY hard to buy things, since I have pretty much all I need and then some, but came up with a few redundant tools plus some baits and boxes.

Lol

Not under 7', but close - mine is a 7'3" H/F. I was using much longer flipping sticks, but now use a high end rod, and I love it. I bet if you can find a 6-10 H/F rod you could easily get away with it. https://www.bassresource.com/fishing_lures/primmus-reel-dhc-7-rod-review.html

I think it's fair that only publicly accessible waters are allowed. I do wonder about ramp fees. Some lakes, the only way to fish them is through a launch, and even public launches have fees. Not a big deal, since NY isn't going to be a contender.

This is the very best in deployment arms. I have the older version and it's excellent as well. https://www.yakattack.us/switchblade-transducer-deployment-arm/

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In your price range, probably are mostly fast. There are some in the slightly more expensive Avid line that are graphite. I have both the AVC70MM and AVC70MHM, and they cover 90% of my cranking needs.

FYI, Skeeter is Yamaha. For the OP, I'd say get some seat time, even if it's just at the dealership. Poke around, look at the storage, features, and learn what options are out there for that boat.

I have a similar story. I ate around a 6 lb. bass I caught on a night crawler off my family's dock. I was sick to my stomach after eating it, and it tasted gross - nothing like the delicious panfish, bullhead, walleye, pike, and trout I was used to. I generally switched to catch and release for bass, and released most other species as well. I will admit, I keep walleye when I catch a legal size. It's pretty rare that happens. Thanks for sharing that story. You were way ahead of your time, catch and release in the 50s was not common.

I have no idea, but I'm headed to a neurologist next week for numbness in my toe. Maybe you can get a referral for one?

This is Rocinante. 2010 Sierra. Over 150k miles, still running strong.

You can get a sealed 12v 7-8 amp hour battery and Schumacher charger from Walmart for around $40. You can make a pretty spiffy power station using this member's DIY:

Get you a Chevy!

From the article: I'm gonna disagree with this. It's more of a problem in the micro guide rods I've used. I think it's the shape of the round guide and small single foot.

Great to have you back.

This. I've dealt with Big-Bass before. That reel would be a perfect swimbait reel.

I think we're a much more discriminating bunch than the average angler.

My Bullet has a 15" setback manual jackplate. It took some dialing in, but it is set about 1" above pad, and along with the Barry's plate aluminum hydrofoil, I have great holeshots, and plane around 16-17 mph. I do not need to adjust it, since it's performing as I want now. The hull on my boat pretty much predicates a jackplate. The amount of set back and prop height are variables in performance. I'm getting added lift, and top end speed by using one. Again, these are a per boat set up - every boat is different. I'm just explaining why someone would use a manaul jack plate. A-Jay and slonezp gave you some good advice about Lunds. Lund will likely be my next boat as well.

We're so glad you're on the mend. A lot of us were pulling for you!

Nice! Have a chat with @Paul Roberts about putting a graph on it.

Looks like a Conesus bass - Big body small mouth. Means it is well fed and grew fast. You can safely call it a 4.5. Get a decent scale!

Wiha are the best, hands down. You can get away with a precision set from Lowe's or Home Depot. You want a 1/8" slot, a #0 and #1 Phillips. For that Daiwa screw that holds the main drive to the frame, apply some heat from a soldering iron to the head to break the thread locker. 10 seconds is plenty.

Exactly! I pitch cast with every setup I carry, spinning included. Very useful skill. I don't even get fancy with a special "pitching rod." I pick the rod that will fish the bait and cover. From there, just learn to pitc\h with it.

My point exactly, you aren't catching a speeding boat with an air boat.