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Love that floor plan! I have the pods in the back of one of my boats. Pretty nice!

Are you sure you were on Fork? The second picture is missing a boat in the background ;D Just ribbin ya, nice fish and report, thanks

This is sweet offer! Look up the lodge on the world wide web, looks nice.

Seriously: You completely described the new Lowrance GPS units. Buy a RAM mount for it and put it right next to your dash graph. You can buy another RAM mount for it up by the TM so you can move it and use it stay on submerged bridges, piles, etc. when you our out of the console and running the TM. You can do like you said above - I think they allow you to mark 1,000 spots plus it will allow you to store 100 routes (showing where you started and tracing your every move with a black line). I Like the route feature so you can run in the dark and feel confident you are not going to bash into a stump because you have already gone that route and didn't have any problems - It doesn't have radar so you will still have to watch out for other vesseles. To have the contours you will have to buy a card for your region. The Navionics are good/popular and this unit will allow you to use them. Typically the base map that it comes with just shows the shore line, no contours. Cost of the unit: www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/pod/standard-pod-wrapped.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/pod-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat602025-cat21350&rid=&indexId=cat21350&navAction=push&masterpathid=&navCount=1&parentType=index&parentId=cat21350&id=0028183 (you may have to copy and paste this into your browser box) You can black and white and get it fairly resonable plus I think you can use the same unit in your car, hiking, etc. Good luck Javelin

Can O Worms I practice and CPR most of the time, ypically always on public land and in geneal 90% of the time on private, but like mentioned seveal times above there are certain fisheries that could stand some controlled harvest. I am fortunate to have access to many KS private watersheds and the fishing can be quite easy to catch just bass. Many of these owners have paid bioliogists big bucks to come out, shock and make a report on the health of their lake. There is not one report that has ever come back that doesn't say you need to remove X amount weight per every acre. One in particular we caught and kept over 600 14" or smaller bass in a one year period. This is the same impoundment where I caught a legit 9lb last year! It's all about biomass and how many pounds of bass each impoundment can support. A lake could support a ton of small bass and most will remain fairly small with a sluggish growth rate or you reduce the amount of small fish and support a well rounded population bass that gives them the ability to grow to their full potential. I think the C&R is lake specific, I don't think you can paint it with a broad brush. Just my .02

We have had many discussions about polarized glasses on this board. I think this article illustrates and discusses the differences fairly well. Enjoy Chances are, every serious fisher-person south of Canada either owns or has heard of these miracle shades that let you see tens of feet into the fish's watery world. They are known as "polarized" sunglasses and have become more of a phenomenon than just a way to block out the sun. For those of you who do own polarized sunglasses, you know what a valuable resource they can be, and for those of you who don't, you are missing out on a great tool to catch fish. First off, the idea of polarizing lenses is not a new concept. It has been around for nearly two decades. But until recently, it was only applied to high end rifle scopes, binoculars, and camera optics. This due primarily to the fact that up until recently, the process of polarizing a lens was very costly and time consuming. Though with advances in the fields of optics, it has become practical and worthwhile to apply this polarization process to sunglasses and in some cases prescription eye glasses. Polarization by definition means that the glass is treated by aligning the molecules in the glass in one direction, which eliminates the refraction of light and drastically reduces visible glare. It's in this reduction of glare that produces the effect of "seeing through the water". By removing the surface glare, the wearer gets a clearer picture and a wider field of vision on and under the water. Of course, the lighting conditions on any given day will determine exactly how effective the glasses are. The sun directly overhead, provides the wearer with the best possible results with these glasses, most of the light is directed upwards and not on an angle where it would shine directly at the lens, such as during sunrise or sunset. Like any other product, quality comes at a price. The cost of these polarized sunglasses can run anywhere from ten to fifteen dollars for Wal-Mart discount rack types, upwards of three hundred dollars for premium optics and designer names. I like to designate them into four categories: Low End, Lower Mid Price, Upper Mid Price, and High End. Each of these categories have their pros and cons. Low End: Lower end polarized glasses can usually be found on either discount racks at Wal-Mart type stores or in the discount section of outdoor catalogs such as Bass Pro Shops. Whilst the packaging may say polarized, chances are that for ten to fifteen dollars they aren't. Rather, they are regular lenses with an anti reflecting or anti glare layer of cellophane. This gives the illusion of being polarized and in many cases does offer some of the features of having polarized lenses. However, there are two major pit falls of units in this price range. Number one, there are usually limited styles. Number two, The cellophane coating on the lens has a nasty habit of peeling up or bubbling after a few months of use. Use in heat can speed up this peeling and bubbling as well. Lower Mid Price: Units in this category usually fall somewhere between twenty to forty dollars and offer several significant improvements over their low end competitors. First major improvement and possibly the most important is that in most cases the lenses are actually polarized. There is no cellophane or film on the lens, rather it is treated when the lens is formed. The next major improvement lies in the fact that there is far more styles in this category. Quite possibly the best deal in this category comes in the "store brand" glasses that Cabellas or Bass Pro Shops offers. They are well made, have polarized glass, and in many cases offer attractive styling. Another nice deal in this category is the Remington/Stren Fisherman sunglasses. They offer a wrap around design, as well as interchangeable lenses. The set comes with two different lenses one smoke colored and the other in an amber color. This allows the user to select the proper tint for the lighting conditions on any given day. I have owned these before and I will attest that for the price, you will receive a very unique and functional product. Upper Mid Priced: Those units falling under this category usually range from fifty to one hundred dollars. Undoubtedly most of the good deals on this type of product fall somewhere in here. Here is where one will usually find the best product for the money. In this category all the glass is always polarized as it is formed, and will sometimes offer a non scratch coating. Also in this category look for metal components such as hinges. Sometimes, glasses in the price range might offer extras like a cleaning kit or a "croakie". Another bonus to this category is that nearly all the current styles will be offered and in many cases can double as "off the water" sunglasses as well. A great producer of glasses in this category is Coasta-Del-Mar. They offer great styles as well as a truly incredible lens, that in many cases puts high end models to shame. As of now, I own the Coasta-Del-Mar Ex-Frame model, and needless to say, I am absouloutly thrilled with them. I also wouldn't trade them for any other brand. They are extremely comfortable and in driving situations, actually cut the glare from shinny pavement surfaces as well, which is a nice feature when driving into blinding sun. As far as on the water performance, they offer everything a buyer could want in a pair of fishing sunglasses as well as serve as eye protection when running up or down lake at full speed. High End: The glasses in this category normally range upwards of a hundred dollars and usually are from a designer name. There is very little I could justify for paying more than a hundred dollars for a pair of sunglasses, when the upper mid price units offer all you could ever need and more. Runway designers such as Calvin Kline or Versache do produce several lines of sun protective eye wear that are polarized and are considered for "sport use". These designers could run upwards of three hundred dollars. A bitter irony is that many of the upper mid priced models are specifically designed for fishing and water sports, and come with a better polarization treatment than do the designer sport glasses which are usually designed for "general outdoor use". There are however some high end glasses produced specifically for fishing, that are retailing above the three figure range. One of these is Ocean Wave sunglasses which are a similar design to Coasta Del Mar, but feature an exclusive "mirror blue" feature which is said to cut nearly 100% of surface glare. Also, it should be mentioned that on certain upper mid priced models that added features could drive up the price, like mirrored lenses. For instance, a pair of Coasta Del Mar glasses with smoke finish might retail for $99.99 but add mirrored or specialty lenses, and you're looking at $149.99. It should be noted that mirroring a lens does tend to cut a little more glare away, but is usually more for cosmetic and appearance than anything else. A good way to attempt purchasing your eye wear, is to evaluate your needs and then go on looking from there. Unless you know exactly what you want, I would stay away from mail order catalogs and stick with eye wear retailers or sporting goods stores, where you have the chance to touch and try. Also, be sure of your retailers return policy, in case you wish to return your purchase after you give them a shot on the water. It's not uncommon to have to try two or three pairs to finally settle on one pair you are truly comfortable with. Remember, it's best to consider your sunglasses another piece of fishing tackle, and not something that's to be taken lightly. Oddly, a fisher-person who is willing to spend two hundred dollars on a reel, gives you a look of utter disgust when you suggest to them to spend half that on something that will protect their eyes from harmful UV light, act as eye protection at high speeds in a boat, as well as help them to see structure and fish they would otherwise have missed. With that in mind, perhaps it's time to evaluate your sun protective eye wear, and consider it's many functions.

Klak R JaK if you can find them. I think they were made by lunker lure. I love those baits. I just re-skirted the few I have left. Spook - simply catches a bunch of fish and very exiciting strikes sometimes.

I agree with the above. My thought is the city would have fixed it if they had the money. I think this may end up being all about the money. Therefore my answer would be where are you going to get the money to fix it? If you can find the money, I bet that will help your cause a lot. This is where the challenge lies. Great project, maybe you can double it into some kind of school project or something. Good Luck with it.

outstanding!!!!

SWEET! WELCOME, this is the only place to talk BASS.

THAT LOOKS LIKE A GREAT RIG! KEEP US UPDATED AS YOU ADD TO HER.

[move] C H U N K A L E R T [/move]

Welcome Hammer and a big THANK YOU for going over and defending our country! There are some great guys on here that will help you with your question. I am not the best boat guy on this board but it may be the way or how your transducer was installed? Is it through the hull or a transom/skimmer type? I do know the through the hull transducers can be a little particular about how they were installed. I guess they have to be almost perfectly flush - no air bubbles etc. My flasher on the dash is through the hull and it won't work right unless I have an inch or so of water down there. Then it 'seals up' and works close to right?? If its a skimmer - sometimes they get knocked around and just need to be readjusted - very easy fix. I was trying to buy a 520 C all last week and couldn't find a new one. Gander Mtn told me they were having some issues on getting some certain components into the U.S.?? anyway - I have heard great things about these units. Either way, I hope it's an easy fix! Nice work on the new SKEETER! MODS - perhaps we can get this thread over to boats and out of tackle for this military man?

DROPPED THE BOMB THIS MORNING. In case anyone else is searching as well. After weeks (possibly months) of researching all these things I ended up buying Eagles. I was originally going to buy the new Lowrance 520C (2 of them) and then I found out everyone is out of them! I called and called anyone I knew who fished and bounced it off them. I also called both Cabelas and BP and talked to their 'product specialist'. In the end: I purchased the Eagle FishElite 480 for the console - it's a monochrome unit w/external GPS antenna. It can take the Navionics plug and play underlay map. I figured on my console, I could see the mono screen just fine plus I saved about $300.00 over buying the Lowrance 520C (the biggest advantage I found to the 520C would have been using Lowrance new - 'networking' system). I purchaed the Eagle FishElite 640C for the TM. similar to the 520C by Lowrance minus a few features that I wouldn't have used anyway. Mounting hardware, two antenna mounting plates (they go under the unit when mounting and you can put the antenna on it and not on your boat), 1 ram mounting system, one skimmer transducer TM mounting contraption. total about $1,000.00. Ripping up and down the lake not worring about smacking a hidden island ...... priceless. Needless to say - I am excited. My boat is scheduled to go in on Monday. I only hope they can git r done soon so I can go fish!

Don't know if this thought helps. Size of each unit could be a determining factor? I have about 3 different kinds - the Schmaucher (sp?) is my favorite. It has a digital readout and tells you how much charge your battery has before you charge it. Good luck!

Howdy Javelin, My disclaimer: I am not an expert by any means of the word. I have been shopping electronics for a couple of weeks for my boat. I am assuming affordable is your key word? For 'permanent' full size boat units I would think Eagle may be your best bet. They offer a close to 5" diag screen, in monochrome for around $299.00. There is also a 'cuda' sized unit offered by Eagle. I think its called the Eagle Cuda 250 should be around $250.00, the screen is around 3 1/2" and its also monochrome. H-bird has a gps/finder for around $350.00 - the 580. It's also Black and white screen. The only way to go less money IMO is to go with one of the handheld units. You can basically get as cheap as you want. Ultra inexpensive would be to buy a hand held on ebay or a discount store that doesn't show any contours. As stated in other posts you can usually attain these now a days for around $100.00. Lowrance came out with some real nice hand helds that have base maps factory installed AND can accept the 'plug and play' navionics charts that show channels, contour lines, ramps, structure, etc for around $170.00 new in gray scale and they go up from there. Well, that is about all I can tell you. Good luck!

PM sent Thanks TX Bass Pro

That is great news! Thanks for the info. being a pilot; I figured you guys would be buying Garmin. LOL

great info guys. Dhuff - - - - I was heavily considering the 520C, everyone is out of them I have contacted! I like the idea of networking both of them together and using one external GPS antenna - - this way I could also use one 'plug and play' lake map for both units correct?? I just came back from our Gander Mtn and they are out also - he said Lowrance was having issues getting some parts in the U.S.? anyway - I am now thinking about getting a lesser (new wise anyways) Eagle and just get 2 cards. But the issue about tilting the TM so you can see it (which I would do) and blocking out the GPS is another great point I hadn't thought of! Thanks again guys, keep the information highway open!

THAT IS ONE SWEET RIG!!!!!!!!! CONGRATS AND ENJOY! PS - For a 100 a day, I think you did the right thing!

REDNECK ;D ;D!

I am a certified duck junkie and I use Wirehairs. I have had 2 labs and love them as well. I am really in love with the GWP. Most versitle dog I have ever had and easy to train (at least the 2 I have had). Mine have been excellent retrievers, were both easy to break to wing and shot and have some of the best dispositions I have ever had the pleasure to be around. Retrieving ducks in the morning and pointing quail in the afternoon

I have been studying all the new fangled electronics out there and for what its worth my head HURTS >! anyway - I was considering a hand held in lieu of GPS/sonar combo. Lowrance just came out with a pretty good looking set of handhelds designed for lakes. They even take some of the 'plug and play' navionics cards. I would be considering them more if I already had a decent sonar on board! They start around $170.00 and go up - - and that is color! http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catalog.TextId?hvarTextId=58894&hvarDept=200&hvarEvent=&hvarClassCode=1&hvarSubCode=3&hvarTarget=browse Good luck. after thought - even if they don't have lake maps you can trace your route back to the ramp, etc. This is the way we used to do it on the ocean. no map - just a starting point and a squiggely line.

E IS FOR EGGS AND R IS FOR ...................................................................................

Thanks Garnet, that is something I hadn't thought of. The gentleman I was talking with said the external is more accurate. Another said he didn't notice any difference???? Electronics are maddening!!! I am thinking about going for the external on the console and internal on the TM. If there is any conclusive evidence of one being more accurate or not??