A-Jay

Always very interesting to read about super foundational bass fishing subjects like the relationship fish have with structure & bait. This one could go on for a while & just might very well do that. The thoughts of some very accomplished bassheads from far & wide; including Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Iowa, California, North Carolina, Tennessee & even Mexico seems to indicate that bass living hundreds of miles apart can display behavior that can be so similar & perhaps so different, maybe even at the same time. Might even explain how/why Pro anglers from TX often win derbies in NY and Anglers from Michigan sometimes take the top prize in fishing contests in Fla. In the end, I have a lot to learn about both of these topics and the northern Michigan brown bass prove that to me on a regular basis. Just when I think I have some of this 'figured out' and I might even get a few, they pull their famous disappearing act and it feels like I'm starting from scratch again. Being in the right place, at the right time and doing the right thing at times seems almost too easy. Other times it feels like playing Powerball. I know someone's going to eventually win it, but I'm pretty sure it won't me . . . . . A-Jay

A true friend leaves Paw Prints on your heart & teeth marks in your face ~ #tankslife A-Jay

My view from the cheap seats has shown me that we're all immortal, until we're not. Life is fragile, fleeting and cruel. I have always imagined I had more far time than I've actually ever had. Life is the ultimate challege and no one wins. So we play the best game we can. A-Jay

Hello Doc and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ A-Jay

Hello and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ Interesting first post. So is this more silly ideas and do I take it with a grain of salt ? A-Jay

Instead of a water soluble bobbin/trigger, higher quality survival equipment uses Hydrostatic Inflator Technology (HIT) automatically inflates under water pressure, while the manual inflation handle enables you to deploy the vest at any time. When inflated, the vest displays high visibility contrasting fabric for increased safety in rescue situations. For my inflatable life vest, I use this model for a couple of reasons. https://mustangsurvival.com/collections/inflatable-pfds/products/elite-28-inflatable-pfd-auto-hydrostatic-md5183 A-Jay

Workout one this morning. Seeing slow but steady progress for several weeks now. Can't really ask for more than that. #borninfiftynine A-Jay

There is a tilt bracket available for the Talons. I use them getting in & out of my garage. Works great. Check them out here ~ https://minnkota.johnsonoutdoors.com/us/shop/accessories/shallow-water-anchor/talon-tilt-bracket A-Jay

I think it's a mistake to lump bass into any one or two categories based on what we think they eat. Some fish puke up their chow along side the boat and or in the live well, so I get to see what "Those" particular fish ate. But I never know when or where that happened. Fish that don't give a clue as to what they've been dining on would need to be gutted to find out and I don't do that anymore. So at times that could help but not always. If I get a bass on a jerkbait and if pukes up 3 crayfish, am I changing my locating and or presentation? Not right away I'm not. The single biggest deal when it comes to bait selectin for me is confidence. I need to be fishing something I really believe they will eat that day. The more I fish, the more I catch with different presentations at different times with different baits, the more confidence I have. Doesn't mean I can't/don't completely blank on any trip, but it pay off enough to keep me in the game. If you don't have confidence in your baits, go fishing and get some. I'm betting it will help you catch more quality bass. Good Luck A-Jay

"Match the Hatch" in bass fishing to me means as much about bait size & profile as it does about color/pattern. Presenting the bait in a place (depth) bass are expecting their food to be at might play a role in this as well. Either way, color isn't always a big deal, until it is. Like when I run out of something the fish have been mauling for 2 hours. Rarely excites me. When all else fails, I'll throw Blinky the rest of the day. A-Jay

You're welcome. But you won't be seeing me there. Enjoy the circus. #misdirection ? A-Jay

Thanks ~ Between the you tube fiasco and then this deal, I was getting 'stale'. Needed a new 'challenge'. Hope I didn't bite off too much . . . . A-Jay

LOL ~ It's something J. Breakfast of Champions perhaps. A-Jay

Hello Zack and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ Nice Intro A-Jay

X2 ~ Seen it many times. In the early stages of my hard bait fishing, this was often more of an accidental discovery, than anything else. But now I am a firm believer. Seems to come into play with many rattling topwater baits as well. Folks may wonder why I purchase several of what is essentially the same hard bait. THIS is why. YMMV A-Jay

Thank you very much for the thoughtful response & the support. And I especially appreciate the info regarding power consumption. Until I get a 'feel' for how that is on my configuration, I'll be setting up the low voltage alarm as a precautionary measure.. Finally, this is why I share these types of posts on BR. You just never know what type of magic/valuable little nuggets you'll get back. Thanks Again A-Jay

LOL ~ You saw right through my mostly shaded reasoning. Good on you sir. A-Jay

I could guess but beyond that I can't answer with any real confidence of being correct. Seems I blame the aliens for everything. I briefly considered having the newer one repaired. But for the $300 plus American Humminbird wanted to do it, add in the shipping & insurance both ways, and then the time without a unit at the console ????? didn't feel right investing in an older unit that could do the same thing again in a year or two. Besides, I got way more satisfaction from the two 55 cent bullets I put through it. I'm a little wacky that way. A-Jay

Thanks but no can do my friend. Truth is both busted units received a lethal dose of lead from a CZ 75 SP-01 Phantom. No coming back from that. Felt pretty good though. ? A-Jay

I’ve been getting a variety of questions regarding why I changed out the units on my rig, what I went with & why I chose them. @DaubsNU1 So I’m going to go through that here. I was going to use the word ‘briefly’ but it’s raining like a basstard today and I’ve got nothing but time. So that’s probably not going to apply. First off, this is not even remotely any type of a special set up. The units themselves are nice and work well for my style of fishing but pretty much run of the mill; especially considering what’s available in today’s market. I’m a Humminbird guy. That’s what I’ve always had. I ‘understand’ them (sort of) and I’m OK with that. The down & dirty is both my bow & console units croaked a couple of week’s apart last month. There was an abundance of sadness (insert sailor language). The bow unit was a Helix 10 DI KVD (2016 vintage) that came with the boat; served me well. The transducer for this unit was running through the Fortrex. The Console unit was also a Helix 10 SI GPS G3N using the appropriate transducer at the stern. That unit was ‘only’ 3 years old, so I wasn’t exactly thrilled, but it was totally toast. Had power but that was about it. I back up my way points when I pull the boat at the end of every season so I was all set there. A little more about this later. Over this past winter during the FFS frenzy, I had seriously contemplated heading in that direction. And I mean seriously. Did tons of research, check & measured my rig for possible fitment & configuration concerns, it was a whole deal man. Even considered trading out the perfectly good Fortrex for an Ultrex. In the end and being completely honest with myself, it’s just not for me; especially when considering the cost. So back to reality. I really prefer the flush mounted heads both at the console & the bow. It’s a clean look that doesn’t obstruct my view while barreling across the lake. That’s what I had and that’s what I went with. So no change there. Didn’t feel like the touch screen units on the Solix line were for me either. Between fish slime & Megastrike, those screens would be a wicked mess in short order. Another vote for Helix replacement units. New stuff is Humminbird Helix 10 CHIRP G4. MSI+GPS at the console and MDI GPS G4N CHO (control head only) at the bow. The transducer on the Fortrex was not going to be compatible with the newer technology so the Helix Mega DI+CHIRP Trolling Transducer w/ Temperature Sensor was mounted onto the trolling motor. Re-used all the in place wiring throughout the boat with the exception of the new SI transducer & cable at the stern. Super basic. Been on the water with this stuff once. The images are just redonkulous; super clear. Not that the older gear wasn’t decent, but this is just better, in every way. I'm still able to use my 360 imaging, (first edition 2017 I think) so that's a bonus. I’m pretty pumped moving forward. I added a few pics below. Finally, and this is a little off topic but I decided NOT to re-enter my way points. I’ve mentioned it here before and had accumulated well over a thousand ‘numbers’ over the past 6 years. Decent chance at least half of them were total bunk. But you have to know some of those suckers were pure money. Well, that’s old news now because I erased/formatted that SD card, so that I couldn’t double clutch. Starting with a clean slate and we’ll see how that goes. If you made it this far, thanks for reading this through and I hope it helps someone out somehow. Fish Hard A-Jay

Nice ~ Congrats I have some experience on those Michigan roads. It's one reason I trade my rigs in before they need wiper blades. #feb24 A-Jay

Hello Kevin and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ A-Jay

Workout 3 this morning and I got straight down to business. There is almost always a HUGE difference between the way I feel before my workout - and After. The after is highly recommended. #borninfiftynine A-Jay

Initially I'll locate spots on mapping that I want to 'check out'. Then I go to them and graph the areas with side imaging & the 360. This is so I don't have to 'drive over' possible fish, I can look at the area from a distance. The shallower the water the farther away I start 'looking'. I don't graph entire lakes. I know what I'm looking for as far as structure is concerned & mapping eliminates at least 90% of the lake. Hard & or soft cover on structure that is at the right depth. I'll 'mark' spots of interest (way point) making them easier to relocate later. During the right conditions, (like yesterday for instance) on mid summer, bright sunny flat middle of the day, when there's no bite to speak of, I will run / graph big flats looking for hard cover. Depths of 10-25 ft usually. In the end my graphs help me find areas & spots - then it's up to me to find out if & when those places hold fish. I'm not a huge electronics guy, I don't love them, but do use them. I'd rather just fish if I could but the graphs save a ton of search time for me. A-Jay