Fish Fast

I agree about the GREAT MARKETING MACHINE theory. You can't watch a hunting or fishing show nowadays without them plugging their products. KVD swearing by fluoro line, etc. What I wonder is....and this is a little off topic, but with a product like line, you wonder how many of them try and use different products when they are sponsoring someone else. For example, an angler that agrees to plug say, cxx, but cant stand it, so they spool up some other manufacturer's line and just tell the cameras that it is cxx?!? This will be my first year fishing with real fluoro (viscous elite pro)...so the verdict is still out. My buddies tell me I will hate it!

Thanks..that helps a lot as I am sure I want at least an 80#er for the current I am going to be in. I just read a similar thread after searching a 2nd time and have heard that they have had issues with water leaking in. Hopefully in the next year or 2 when I buy mine those issues will be resolved

Whats the best/most comfortable butt seat/hydraulic seat system out there. I currently have swiveleze seats. None of them are hydraulic. They have the "larger" footprint and pole. I would like to add an adjustable butt seat to the front. What do you all recommend?

Has anyone used both? Did you like one better than the other? I am looking for comparisons on an 80 pounder with I-pilot and built in transducer. Which would you get and why. My boat is a Crestliner 1850 fishhawk 2006. I currently have a motorguide wireless digital 55 pounder. Just need some more torque to keep my jigs vertical when walley fishing on the Detroit river. I would be open to sugguestions for Motorguides too...just need something at 24v and at least 70 pounds.

Make sure you handle the veritas rods before you buy one. I was surprised at how stiff the tip of the 70-5 MMF Veritas rods were. With that being said, I think it will make a good rod for traps. I plan on getting 1 for the same and also using it for some other applications. For $100, I figured it was worth a try. I just wish they made them in a 7'3" or 7'6" length in that particular power/action!

I would check the St. Croix Premier rods out (or the triumph series for that matter). Another rod that I just picked up and handled that really impressed me was the Abu Garcia Veritas. Very light, very sensitive, and supposedly very durable. For $99.95, they will be hard to beat! Tight Lines, and let us know what you get!

For $4500 I think I would rather.....upgrade my trolling motor..batteries..charger..and buy a Kicker motor for walleye fishing...maybe even have money left over for another fishfinder or side scan!

Thats the plan Jacobk...just have to find the aforementioned rods in stores. Hardly anyone around has Dobyns. The St. Croix rods I have tried dont have the the same power ratings that people have been recommending to me, which makes it hard to judge. You hate to spend $200 on something that you "think" you will like and then have it turn out not to be what you thought. Oh well, will take my time. I am in no rush.

I agree! I will do that!

Decisions....decisions! I am not opposed to a great VALUE...meaning, i dont have to spend top dollar to be happy. It just seems like, in fishing, as with a lot of other hobbies, you get what you pay for. I need to go somewhere that I can get my hands on a dobyns or powell and see what they are all about. I am constantly reading about their quality and customer service. The really hard part is, you don't know until you buy it..take it out and use it..whether you will like it (for example comparing a glass to a graphite cranking rod you almost need to try a few different lures...catch a decent fish to get the whole idea on whether its goint to work or not). To be continued. I will keep researching. Going to try and get down to bass pro shops this weekend. Will check their inventory before I go though. Thanks a lot you guys, I appreciate everyones input, ideas, and critiques!

I appreciate everyone's input. I know everyone likes a different feel and uses their cranking rods in different settings and applications. My Kistler is a 7 foot composite and is not a Mg. When I am tossing 3/4 oz wigglewarts or DT 16s it does feel a little outgunned. Most of the time though, I am throwing 1/2 oz traps or 1/2 oz cranks with it, that run in the top 6-10 feet of the water column. I did check out the St. Croix cranking rods today. They had a 7 foot MHXF, and a 7 foot MHF (the aforementioned were avids) ....and a 6'6" MHM Premeir. Of course they did not have the one I wanted to try (Avid 7 ft MHM). I also looked at the skeet reese rods (I believe these were glass). The premier was a beefier blank than anything I own and I imagine it would work better for the deeper diving lures and ripping lipless cranks than anything I currently own. Was not sure about the quality of the Reese rods (wright and mcgill?...haven't seen a lot of feedback on these?). Unfortunately they did not have any Powells or Dobyns...no top end shimano either. I think a trip down to bass pro shops is going to be in order to get a hold of a little better selection. Either way, I will continue to put the time in searching. I have at least a month before the bass fishing takes off. On a side note, most of the bass I catch throughout the summer are not that big. We are talking...on average...2 pounders...maybe 12-16 inchers. An occasional 3 or 4 pounder. That is one reason I am hesitant to get a GIANT glass rod..those big 8 footers I see seem a little overkill for what I will be doing. In the spring however, fishing the saginaw bay (lake Huron), and the St. Clair river, the small mouth fishing is PHENOMINAL! 3-7 pounders are common out there. Most of the time we are fishing rockpiles, stony points, anything with a hard bottom. That is another reason I am leaning towards something graphite. I want to be able to feel the bottom. Keep the feedback coming and I will try and check out some of the rods you guys have mentioned! I will also check the classifieds.

Thanks WanderLust. A local tackle shop carries St. Croix...I will have to check that out. Anyone else have any suggestions to add to my list of rods to try?

So would you choose the Avid over the Powell?

I am looking to pick up a new cranking rod to pair with my Johnny Morris pro qualifier 4.7 to 1 baitcasting reel. My current cranking rod is a Kistler composite rod. It is 7 feet in length and I like it but it is a bit whippy at the tip. I will continue to use that rod but probably save it for my smaller and shallower cranks. I am looking for something a bit beefier...something with a little more backbone that I can expanding my cranking arsenal with a bit. I don't do a TON of deep cranking...at least yet anyway...but I would probably use this second cranking rod for ripping lipless cranks above grass (ala KVD) and for 12-20 ft. ddcb's. Most commonly 12-16 footer. Prefer 7 to 7.5-ish feet in length...around $150-$180 in pricepoint. I am intrigued by the Duckett micro magic rods. If anyone has any input on these, feel free to let me know. I am a big fan of St. Croix as they are made in the USA and have had great luck dealing with them. I have also read a lot of great things about Dobyn's but it seems they are a little out of my pricepoint goal. Let me know what you guys like...I am open for sugguestions!

80# sounds like a safer choice. Trying to keep jigs vertical on the detroit river when walleye fishing...where the current is really moving..is my biggest challenge. I am just worried the profile of my boat provides more drag than that of a bass boat. I would hate to go 65-70# and have it be too underpowered. Thanks for your input, wasn't trying to hi-jack your thread. The problem with this whole situation is not lack of selection but cost!!!! If I would have known then what I know now, I would have negotiated all of these upgrades b4 I purchased the boat. Now I am looking at over $1000 for trolling motor, batteries, and new charger system. Not to mention I got cheap electronics and had to upgrade. Oh well, you live and you learn! Good Luck!

I am in the same situation as you. I have a 55# motorguide digital. It is a 12 volt setup. I have it mounted on the bow of my 1850 fishhawk (crestliner). It is great for creeping around the lake on non-windy days; however, for vertical jigging in any current or fishing in a lot of wind....it is underpowered for a boat of my size/profile. I am guessing I will need at least a 70-80#...minimum of 24 volt setup. Pretty sure I would not be able to get a 3rd battery in my battery storage area. I am not sure I would want a 100# thrust because I think they would suck the battery even faster. I am interested to see what input you get here as well. It probably depends a lot on the type of fishing you do too. If you fish tournaments... or vertical jig on rivers for walleye or anything, your are going to need the extra batteries and thrust.

At least once a year, and before any long trips, I will jack each wheel up and grab the tire tread and try and wiggle the tire. You want to make sure there is a tiny bit of "play" but no more than that. If there is too much "play" you can tighten them a 1/8 or a 1/4 of a turn...or however much it takes to get them so they only have a tiny bit of wiggle. Afterwards, I grease them up good and then put the covers back on. A little bit of simple maintenance goes a LONG way with bearings nowadays.

Sounds good. Just gotta save some money for everything!

Yeah, I have had no issue with my interstate battery. It has performed well. I am debating on just waiting on the battery upgrade. Right now I have a 55# motorguide digital on the bow...which is fine for bass fishing. I want to upgrade to at least an 80 pound trolling motor because I would like to do some walleye fishing (vertical jigging) on the detroit river. When fishing on the river, you have to have enough power to keep your jigs vertical...which is going to require at least two batteries and an 80 pounder, if not more on the bow of my crestliner 1850 fishhawk. The above upgrades are going to cost me considerably more than I want to spend this year. I just thought that maybe, just maybe if I bought 2 new batteries that I would extend my runtime on high power and that the boat would be able to "hang" on that swift of current. Probably a stretch to think that my size boat could keep jigs vertical with a 55 pound 12 volt on the bow! I may just have to save for another year and deal with the dilemma next year. Thanks for your input guys.

Thanks, I will do that.

Just was looking at the agm batteries from cabelas. The get pretty good reviews based on cabelas website cutomer reviews. I currently have a interstate mega tron marine rv deep cycle battery. The numbers on it are as follows: srm 27 600 cca 750 mca spr How does my current battery compare to cabelas agm batteries in quality? Longevity? etc. Also, I noticed on cabelas website that the agm 24 and 27 series are nearly identical in performance but there is a 10 pound weight difference! Would there be any reason to go with the bigger battery? I realize there are probably better batteries out there than both of these brand (like Trojan, etc.). But for the amount that I fish, I am more interested in an affordable lower maintenance battery (thus the interest in cabelas AGM series). Please chime in with your thoughts....especially if you have some knowledge in the battery arena!

Roger that....thanks guys!

If I wire to the fuse panel I can use a flat prong type fuse that goes with the fuse panel correct???? These would serve the same function as an inline cylindrical type glass fuses??? Correct???? My last fishfinder was wired to the fuse panel and I had no issues with interferance. It had the flat fuse. I decided since i had an extra fuse spot on the fuse panel I would rewire to that and check for interferance. If I have interferance, I will go to the battery.

Doesnt that just P*ss you off. Spend all that time and money on something and some j@ckas* has to come ruin prob. half your fishing season. I have that same problem with treestands here in michigan. People walk around at night on our private property, climb our trees, steal our stands, and take the steps on the way down......Is it wrong that I hope they fall and break there legs?! >

I guess running wire back there wont be too bad! I just hate to pull the flooring up....or try and pull wire all the way down the gunwall(sp?) on the port side. There are no wires to zip tie to on that side. I may just try to hook into the plug (after attaching a fuse of course) and turn on the trolling motor and see what it does to my screen. It would just take a second and would prob. save me a couple hours of PIA pullin floor boards or running wire. I appreciate the insight! Keep it coming!