A-Jay

Between the free 1st dealer oil change that come with the initial purchase, and then the GM 'reward points' that can be used for service/accessories and can even be used toward the down payment of the next vehicle, I haven't 'paid' for service in a while. I do my oil changes at the dealer in the spring & fall about 6 months apart. Weather's often at least reasonable - oil might have 4 or5 k on it. A-Jay

I don't fish much up here for LMB, mostly because the SMB are bigger. But they certainly get bites . . . A-Jay

Workout Day 4 this morning. Knocked out 3 working sets of the scheduled 4 movements. Went pretty good. Gotta keep moving, whatever the cost. #borninfiftynine https://youtu.be/knbLlpXifVU?feature=shared A-Jay

I am a POP MAX Fan Boy ~ Big time. I won't even get into what happens with that bait in Mexico. But up here in the north woods, the brown bass crush it. Need to be fishing it in the right place and at the right time but still, it's a big fish magnet for me. I do best on Flat Calm Flats, late summer, - hot, sunny and clean water 5-12 feet deep. The 'retrieve' is no retrieve. Just an accurate cast, maybe a single pop or two and then wait. Wait some more, wait some more and did I mention, wait some more. It's a stupid slow way to fish, but it get's big bites when almost nothing else will. https://youtu.be/sITpRNLz_04?feature=shared&t=347 https://youtu.be/6Ds4Z22ywnY?feature=shared&t=119 A-Jay

Nicely Done ~ Fish seems almost as round as she does long ~ Congrats A-Jay

Scuppy McScupperson has been politicking hard for Dave Mercer's job ! A-Jay

While I can certainly applaud your willingness and enthusiasm. Remember that although night time does hide some of the boat’s & the lures negative cues, please know that night time is not some magic witching hour for bass where all the trophies become suicidal and will attack any & every lure with reckless abandon. This is simply not the case. Lures still need to be presented with the same Stealth & Care at night as they do during the day to be effective. And well before you recognize any benefits that being successful at night can offer, you'll need to actually get good at fishing at night. And in the beginning it's not 'easy'. If it were, everyone would be doing it, but the truth is, they don't. And believe me, it's a whole new kind of ball game. Totally doable but certainly not "rapid" by any stretch. It's just different and forces us to use skills that we might not really & totally key in on during daylight fishing. But at night, some of these are all we have. So going out and night fishing IS, IMO, very beneficial, but please know that there's a learning curve. Good Luck & stay safe. A-Jay https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/176285-night-bassing-~-a-jays-version/

Thanks ~ The max screen size I can flush mount on my rig, which is what I prefer, is 10 inch screens. That's what I started with and that's what I replaced the first units with. Both at the console & the bow. I am NOT a huge 'electronics' guy, mostly using the basics. I use mapping & 2D sonar the most. Don't use much split screen either, especially with SI or 360 displays. Half screen loses too much detail. If I could have flush mounted 12 inchers, I probably would have; especially as my old guy eye sight fades. A-Jay

You're welcome. I realize it's a tricky decision and can be pretty stressful too. But you know what's Not Stressful ? Why you're doing this . . . . https://youtu.be/MRZZqbN03Jg?feature=shared&t=11 A-Jay

You named the title of this thread 'Used well made bass boats recommendations'. Which rig fits that best ? Perhaps keep in mind that the Bitterness of Poor Quality Remains Long After the Sweetness of Low Price is Forgotten. btw, IME, you'll spend at Least 5K the first year on ' needed accessories' for your new rig. This list of item varies for each new boat owner and can end up being quite a bit more. So in the big picture of buying a rig, that $$ is already spent. You just don't know it yet. Good Luck A-Jay

No question @Dwight Hottle jerkbait selection dwarfs my own. I also made a concerted effort to narrow my own collection down a bit. Megabass (of course), Strike King, and a few special Lucky Craft baits, make up most of it. Personally, I still have way too many and although I try to fight the urge to do so, I'll still pick up a new color or pattern on occasion. But I'm better than I was. For the OP ~ I store all my hard baits in some type of Plano Hard box. Mostly 3700 size - some deep and some thin. Boxes are stored in the Pro-V bass side by side and on their ends. So labels go face up for easy ID. Baits are indexed all by type (silent) Running Depth (Reg or Deep) and each brand get's it's own box. (for the most part) ****Important tip - consider positioning all the baits that have plastic lips/bills (like jerkbaits), so that they ride around with the BILLS UP. Rattling down the highway & slamming across the lake takes a toll. When ALL the baits are positioned bottoms down in the box, and the bait's bills are not taking the load, they will last longer. If the boxes are stored "Flat" it may not matter all that much. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. This may or may not be all of it 😎 A-Jay

The crazy no snow - stupid early open water winter of 2023/2024 seems to have taken it's toll on many of the waters I frequent early season. Water levels are way down (no snow & I have to imagine some evaporation is to blame for that). Wild & often historic variances in both air & water temps have been head shakers. Either way, I've been getting out when I could and for the most part, it hasn't been pretty. Some of my very best stuff is either bare ground or just barely covered with water at all. It's had me scrambling to say the least. Had to come up with a whole new plan hope for the best. Took a few trips, a couple of different lakes and almost a month of bizarre fishing but yesterday I managed to get on something decent. If nothing else I learned a bunch, mainly that I like & want Lots & Lots of snow. And hard water that last's until mid April. Every winter. Because if this continues, it's going to get ugly. These ladies were not ugly however, a little plump perhaps, but not ugly. A-Jay

Spent my scheduled day off yesterday on Lake Menderchuck. That was fun but it was back into the home gym this morning. Workout Day 3 for the win ! #borninfiftynine https://youtu.be/8QsaYnSDeAY?feature=shared A-Jay

Thank you for your service @ButchA and Congrats on your pending retirement. Good Health & Happiness to you & yours moving forward A-Jay

I'm sure through all your years of wetting a line, you've come to your own conclusion. Personally the wind for me is neither a friend or a foe. When it comes to locating biting brown bass for me, on it's own, the wind is just about meaningless. It's ONE Single factor that when combined with the many others, might determine if I'm using my net or if I'm even on the water at all. Structure, cover, seasonal pattern, bait & boating traffic, just for starters, trumps whatever the wind is doing. At least in my book. Using this trip as a specific example: I believe the wind was helping to 'position' the fish I was looking to catch in very small specific 'spots'. These spots needed to be a certain depth, they needed to be oriented a certain way (especially if there was sunshine), the water temp needed to be at least 45 degrees, the angle of the drop off had to be a certain way, having a defined 'edge' where dark bottom (emergent weed growth) met clean sand, seemed very helpful and the WIND had to be blowing Right On it. I feel confident listing all that because most every fish I caught yesterday, came from such a spot or something pretty dern close. Areas missing much of that were fishless for me. Requires covering water, the 'spots are small' and usually quite a distance apart. Each held one or two biters. That's what was happening on this trip, the next one will most likely be completely different. Finally, when it comes to hunting down big brown bass here in northern Michigan, I will admit to 'using' that type or style of fish locating procedure, in every season and on most every body of water I fish. Sometimes it's repeatable and sometimes it's not. A-Jay

@Tom Rust Holy Smokes Tom, what a nice thing to say. I really appreciate the kind words. So happy that you found this material helpful. A very big aspect of my duties in the service was training. Which is essence is 'teaching'. With some experience, my favorite part of all of that was being able to 'train the trainers' how to be effective. Very satisfying, guess some of that stayed with me. Additionally I was a drill instructor and later trainer them how to make it happen. All pretty intense. Thanks again A-Jay

Habitats change continuously; month to month and especially year to year. Clearly a special piece of cover or section of structure might not change a ton, but the bait, water depth and a few other variables certainly can & does. That often changes how the fish set up or even if they continue to use it. Starting with a clean slate, forces me to relearn how all that relates. Sort of turns an old 'familiar' body of water into something new again. Todays was a perfect example of that. Finally, I will say that I freaking love the feeling I get when I find 'the right water' when I'm casting. And then 2 seconds later, I'm hooked up. Just doesn't get any better than that. Well, it does help when the camera operates properly. Fish Hard A-Jay

Spent most of a killer a day out on Lake Menderchuck today. I was on the water early and had the lake to myself, big fan of that. Air temps were in the low 40’s as was the surface water temps. An on & off NW wind and cloud cover kept me company most of this trip and seemed to increase a bit as the day wore on. I was dressed for the wind chill which was right on the edge of uncomfortable. The previous night’s rain had added just the right amount of ‘color’ to the water. I arrived early and already rigged up with a selection of jerkbaits so that’s where I started and stayed. The Megabass Vision 110 + 1 in perch did most of the heavy lifting. I was fishing edges & inside turns of some main lake points & drop offs – ALL in the wind. Fish were hitting the bait near the bottom in 6-8 feet. For whatever reason my stern GoPro decided not to record any sound. Both my cameras have been operating somewhat sporadically, and I’ll need to address that sooner rather than later. Either way all the views from the back are coming to you in radio silence. Once the fish gets on deck its ops normal. Overall I enjoyed this one. Got a couple of dozen brown bass to pull my string. First two ended up being the Best two. They went 5.58 lbs. and 6.48 lbs. Still trying to get the math right when it comes to taring out the weigh bag weight but I’ll get there - Eventually. Point of interest; After upgrading my electronics package late last summer, I decided to dump all my way points and start from scratch. And so this was my first adventure out on this lake since dumping my pins. It was interesting fishing it all new & free. Even managed to drop a few new points of interest as I went. Fish Hard A-Jay

Seasonably Cool & Windy on #lakemenderchuck this morning. Of the couple of dozen landed, best two went 5.58 lbs & 6.48 lbs respectively. A-Jay

Boy you really got me with that one. A-Jay

So, I've been mostly hesitant to add an update here. Reason being, all things considered, Lynn's better than she has is a while and I didn't want to jinx it. Results from the latest and continued Hematologist & Cardiac DR appointments have been OK. Monthly infusions are helping more than hurting. Blood work remains a little Touch & Go - but mostly OK. Side effects of some new meds are manageable (easy for me to say here in the cheap seats) but I can tell when they are wearing Lynn thin and we haven't been seeing too much of that recently. Our dogs totally give her away when she's trying to 'suck it up', they always know. Experience has shown, that can not continue without often grave results. We're both feeling very fortunate and doing EVERYTHING we can think of to keep this roll going. There's even 'talk' about getting out in the Old Town together again this summer. Something that hasn't been possible for a couple of years now. We celebrated Lynn's birthday last week. At this point these things are milestones. Thank you all again for your positive thoughts & well wishes. A-Jay

That link is Toast A-Jay

Workout Day 2 today. I'm addicted to the grind and I love it. #borninfiftynine https://youtu.be/RtqrCOs9ims?feature=shared A-Jay

All righty then. Moving right along Thanks A-Jay

I know who it is. Perhaps adding the above text to your inital post, rather than just the pic, would have helped the presentation. Otherwise, it's hard to know what was going on there. A-Jay