S Hovanec

4200. Not as permanent as 5200, just in case you want to take it apart again.

IMO, 5/16 won't load that rod properly to cast very well.

It doesn't look as green in the pic as it really was. I don't know what the goofy expression on my face was all about either?

Met Lucky Craft Man at the ramp at 5:30 am. After prepping the boat we launched and motored to out first spot a couple miles from the ramp. I get on the trolling motor and he makes a cast. Immediate hook-up. I make a cast and hook up too. First cast double! Both were keeper smallies. We should have ended the day there cause it was downhill after that. We dabble around that spot a little more with dropshot and get nothing. He grabs his topwater rod and casts towards a dock corner. BOOM......smallie explosion. gets it up to the boat and it hops off. we work down along a bunch of docks and pick up a couple more little smallies. Decide to run a few more miles down lake to a spot near the dam. Here's what we run into.......at 9:35am. The spot we left was sunny and clear. We kinda have to slow down a bit, so we start watching the electronics. Smallies or walleye? My guess is walleye. Get to another spot that typically doesn't produce all that well and he starts throwing topwater again. We're now in 40' and BOOM, another explosion. big mouth, green fish comes out of the water. gone again. I throw to the spot with a dropshot worm and let it sit. Dead sticking it and my rod just about gets ripped out of my hand. I'm thinking channel cat. Get it to the boat and its a green fish. Same one he lost?...maybe. Get it in the boat and it's a smallie? a really green smallie. He has a pic of it, i do not. Really strange markings. We work down the shore/cliff a little more and pick up a couple more small fish. Head to another spot right at the dam. We start sight fishing for fish on the screen. This is a pic of one I lost Hit one more spot before calling it quits at 11:30. Got a pretty nice bluegill and had a toothy critter bite me off. Got off the lake before we got overrun by more azzhats. There was a plethora of them on the lake today.

I was on 5 waiting lists this year for it. Got a call from all 5!! I turned down 2 of them.

Lucky Craft Man claimed the seat.

Early morning excursion to Yough Dam. Gonna fish til 1 or so, or until the lake lice tick me off. Anyone wanna take the back seat for some dropshotting?

Heady is my favorite DIPA. Haven't had any in over a year......and that makes me sad. It's so hard to say what my favorite is. Kinda depends on the season and my mood. I hit the jackpot in February and located 3 cases of Hopslam. That's just about gone now. It's hard to go wrong with anything Southern Tier makes. Pumking is #1 on my fall beer list. ALL of their Blackwater series beers are tops, if you're into stouts. Great Lakes makes some good brews. Edmund Fitzgerald is my favorite porter. Lake Erie Monster and Chillwave are great DIPAs. Their Blackout Stout is pretty darn good. Been on a Founders kick lately. Breakfast Stout, Rubaeus, Dirty B a s t a r d and Backwoods B a s t a r d. Had Double Trouble for the first time a couple weeks ago and it was good. Managed to score a case of KBS this spring, so I've been rationing it. It was good when it was fresh, but i think it gets better with some age on it. Can't forget Troegs, the makers of my favorite Christmas beer......Mad Elf. They're also responsible for the magical concoction called Nugget Nectar.

Fx sculpin....natural shad or baby bass.

I've had a 100% failure rate when shipping in cardboard. I figured id save some money and reuse those hewvy walled tubes that St Croix ships their blanks in. I was soooo wrong. PVC only for me from now on.

I say nope. IMO, for a fish like that to come out of any lake, that lake needs to be putting out consistent 9# and 10# fish. That's just not happening. Lets look at the current smallmouth records in states bordering the Great lakes. NY - 8#4oz PA - 8#8oz OH - 9#8oz MI - 9#4oz IN - 7#4oz IL - 6#7oz WI - 9#1oz MN - 8#0oz Only NY and OH have been caught out of the great lakes. That's a nice fish, but it's no 11# and I have my doubts it's even 10#.

I'm a big fan of Alconites. For freshwater applications, they work equally as well as SiC for much less money. I believe that Alconite is lighter than SiC too. I read that somewhere, but can't recall where. I have a few sets on Microwaves, but haven't completed a rod with them. I wrapped up a set just to try for a day and they seem to work as advertised. I'll have to put finish on that rod and give it a season before I can comment on them.

I've had 3 different tin boats and even if money was no object, my next would be tin too.

Both of my Hondas (20 and 135) had a 10 hour break-in, from what I can remember. I wouldn't think Merc or Yamaha would be much different.

Cause then its a used motor, not a new motor. I would be ticked if my new Honda had 10 hours on the meter when I took delivery.

If that's what it is, I wouldn't worry. The pin is probably a little loose in the shaft, or there is some plastic wear where the pin sits in the prop.

My guess is some play in the shear pin.

It was quite smooth, but had the worst memory after a day or two.

When e-free gas was available here, I would run the pink sta-bil in it.

The 2000HG is only $674 online at PLAT.

Never really wanted one til now. That would look nice on my new SCV dropshot rod.

In clear water, absolutely. Stained water, not so much.

If the motor is moving on its own like that, I think there is something wrong. The only motors I've ever had that flopped around were tillers.

Hotfishpro Shad worms in a color that I shall not mention.

Been running a Promariner ProTournament 150 for 9 years. Its a 3 bank, 15amp charger. 5amp/bank.