shady oaks

The bites were almost always on the dive down, so from 0 to 3 feet down (was using a KVD 2.5 square bill).

Looking for advice on how to read input from the fish I catch. Last night was a post front condition, 20 degrees cooler than day before, 20+ mph winds with blue bird skies. Water temp was 74 degrees. Throwing crankbaits, every fish was hooked in the lower lip. I thought hooking them in the lower lip was showing me they weren't very active, but on half the fish we caught they were hitting the lure within 5 seconds of landing. Was I on the right path, or reading it the wrong way?

I recently fried the circuit board in the head of my trolling motor (BPS Prowler 50, which if I were to do again would not buy) under normal use. Normal use is a sunny day, low 70's, with light weed growth here in michigan. There was no arch marks or any other visible sign of any contact inside the head. Which leads me to believe it was a possible power surge. I want to put an inline breaker to see if this is the case, or if the problem is in the unit itself. The biggest I can find at Tractor Supply is 30 amp. Is this too little, too much or just right? On a side note, I will spare BPS of any negative remarks based on helping me out with a used part from their repair shop since nobody, including them, can get new parts. I love BPS, will continue buying from them and there brand, but can't recommend their trolling motors based on parts availability.

Completely agree, the Veritas is an excellent rod. As for the reviews of snapped tips, I would say 99% of the time it's owner mishandling that leads to this. I too will be buying a few more as time goes on.

Not nearly enough!!! With my work schedule, one week I can get out 2-3 days a week then the following week just 1 day available.

I was just talking about this with my wife last yesterday. I agree with the sales pitch, makes me go from liking someone to thinking they'll say anything for a sponsor. I personally would love to see them spend more time on explaining WHY they are using certain equipment, the benefits of this rod and reel combo versus another for example. They could cover each topic to help a complete novice to a seasoned pro. Trust me, it's possible.

How would you describe the proper rod position while fighting a fish and then at the edge of the boat preparing to lip or net them?

Here in Michigan, many (if not almost all) lakes in my area hold a fair amount of pike. One lake in particular that holds hog smallies is a great musky lake as well. My question is when fishing these lakes, would using a very short wire leader be doing more harm than good when fishing cranks and/or spinnerbaits? I'd hate to lose a small fortune in lures if I can prevent it. Thoughts?

That's understandable, even more reason you shouldn't have felt too bad about it. It's going to happen, don't let it change your game plan if you've got it going.

If you feel guilty for catching fish off beds, don't fish the beds. It comes down to a personal decision, I wouldn't loose too much sleep over it.

Exactly as stated above. You still have to hook them, you still have to fight them in AND land them. Feel fine in letting everybody know what you caught, as long as you don't say it came from so and so lake that is public waters.

More often than not the BPS deal of the week items are going to be closeout, or discontinued, items that are being replaced in their respectable product line. Not everything is junk in those deals, for example a couple weeks ago they had the JM black reel on there.

One word of advise would be to take any weeds picked up off by hand vs. slapping the water. Unless you like replacing them more often than needed.

Pop, water, or anything anything along those lines to wet the whistle. And sunflower seeds.

hooked and lost means you've located them and doing something right. Never hooking into one means your still trying to figure everything out. And seriously, everybody enjoys telling a fish story with a fish in it (at least for a minute!).

I generally buy the best that I can afford. With that, I allow the dutch in my wife to come out of me and generally buy closeouts and sale items only. It's usually a discontinued model, but it's new to me. I agree with the comparison to buying cheap tools, and although they do work, you usually won't see those tools used by people who do it for a living and use them hard and daily. Does this mean I'm automatically a better fisherman, absolutely not! I still struggle to learn how to piece together the puzzle, but when I figure it out, I can feel confident my "tools" will be ready for the grind when I do. One last thing. Several years ago I went to Race Tech, a high end motorcycle suspension company, and the owner Paul Thede said "the best you've ridden is the best you know". This applies to everything in life. The best you've fished is the best you know.

I was guessing on the difference in actions to be honest. I'm just getting into crankbaits and have only kvd models currently. Looking at saving some money, unless it's money worth spending at which I'm fine with.

If you go to a Bass Pro shop, a high percentage of their mounts are replicas. They do great work, google Bass Pro Shops replica mount for more info.

What's the big difference between the two models, is mainly the action? Bass Pro has a 20% sale on regular Pro Models right now but the action on the KVD models has me sold. Thoughts?