Brian6428

If you ever want to get out on the water whenever you don't have your boat just shoot me a message, we could find a time to go on my boat if you want.

I'll give you some help on setting the brakes and spool tension. Take off the side plate and on the side of your spool you will see the centrifugal brakes. Push them all in towards the middle of the reel. To set the brakes, it must be balanced. For example, if you are to have 2 out of 6 pulled, the two must be opposite of each other. If you pull 3 they must form a triangle. This is what I would suggest to do. After pushing all the brakes towards the center, pull 3 brakes out in the shape of a triangle. This sets your centrifugal brakes on half power, which is pretty strong. For your magnetic brakes, I would turn the knob to 6 or 7. Work it lower as you improve. For spool tension, you must adjust it each time you change a lure. It will become second nature before too long. Just set it just tight enough that your lure falls slowly when you open the bail. Also, get some practice casting plugs from BPS. When you get on the water you will be rushed and want to fish, resulting in more backlashes. Get in some good practice at home and it will make you better on the water. One last piece of advice: use braid if your problems persist. I learned to cast a BC with mono as well, but now I use braid. Even the worst backlashes (like hitting a tree mid cast) pick right out with braid. Brian

Thanks for the replies, guys! I will do some research on all the options you guys gave me.

I saw that and it looks great, but is it too warm to wear during a summer rain? I could always layer up underneath a thinner jacket when it is cold.

Hey guys, I am looking to get some rain gear soon. Eventually I will get both pants and a jacket but for now i will just get a jacket. Do you guys have any suggestions? I don't want to spend too much but I want to get something good that will last for a while. Thanks! Brian

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You guys sure do assume the worst. I can't think of any kid I know who wouldn't feel horrible about the situation after a stern talking to from a stranger. Most likely the kids felt bad, and won't do it again. I think you did the right thing by talking to them, but I don't like how everybody here assumes it went in one ear and out the other. When I was their age (which was only a few years ago!) you can bet that one stern talking to would have assured I never kept a fish out of the water longer than necessary. Good job talking to them! Brian

Most guys here don't, but ultimately the decision is yours. Just don't play it loud enough that others can hear. I listen to it every once in a while whenever the fishing is slow, but normally I prefer the silence. Just personal preference.

My limit for a rod is $100. My limit for a reel is $150. My limit for a lure is $10. These are all pretty low but I feel that I can get quality, durable gear in these price ranges.

That is a really good question that I have often found myself wondering. In my experience bass are found shallow in the morning and evening, but I normally struggle to find them during the day. If I do find them, it is normally one or two fish holding tight under docks or in deeper water. That said I am looking to catch more bass during the day in the summer. I have never heard about bass staying within 300 feet of their "homes." Where did you see this? I will stay tuned to see what others have to say.

My current summer spinnerbait tactics are as follows: 1. Grab scissors. 2. Cut spinnerbait from line. 3. Place in tackle box until next spring. I have no luck on spinnerbaits in the summer or fall! I will stay tuned in to this thread to see what others have to say.

Casting deck, sit shallow in the water, fast, rod locker, tackle storage, live well, normally include electronics, normally include a foot-controlled trolling motor to let you keep both hands on your rod. In short, you don't need one to catch bass (search "russe048" on youtube), but it sure does make catching bass easier and more comfortable.

Not trying to derail the topic here, but are you still doing that "in pursuit of giant bass" thread, A-Jay? I really enjoyed following your experiences learning to stitch but haven't seen it for a while. OP: Ultimately I think it is more about the "where" than the "what." Big bass can be caught on a 5" worm on a drop shot, or a 3/32 shaky head like shown above. I find that generally there are places where only little bass live. There are other places, normally nearer deeper water, where little AND big bass live. I think if you throw any lure that is working where the big bass live, you will catch some. That said, however, I would suggest getting a copy of "Big Bass Magic" by Doug Hannon. It focuses on shallow lakes like those found in Florida, however it spends a lot of time discussing lure choices for big fish. Here are some notes I took on the book: Common attracting qualities of lures: large size bright color compact shape (short and squat is more visible) Slow retrieve (more time) Unnatural noise Mechanical Action Common triggering qualities: Small size (less likely to see flaws) Natural colors and Flash Eyespots Fast retrieve (reaction strike) Long, thin shape natural noise (silent!) Silver or gold color random action Hannon then states that to catch big bass, lures should have more "triggering" qualities than "attracting" qualities. In general, lures that crawl along the bottom, or come in contact with many objects, appear more like living prey to the bass due to their random action (which can be partly attributed to randomness/differences in bottom composition). In conclusion, Hannon states that these lures are "big bass lures": Plastic worms (it sounds like the ones you are using are too small) Swimming worm (like the snake, which he coincidentally sold) Original Rapala Jig Spinnerbait I would highly suggest getting the book. He talks about lunar phases, best times of day, and many more things. Brian

There is quite a bit of standing timber. You aren't missing much, Jacomo is probably the best lake in the area anyways. I've caught a few decent sized fish from Prairie Lee but it is pretty difficult to pattern. Only been to Blue Springs once and got skunked.

Awesome! I live about 2 miles from Jacomo but can't fish it now due to the hp limits. You should look into the buddy bass tournaments they have there occasionally. Now that you have Jackson Co registration, let me know if you ever fish Blue Springs Lake. That place has got me stumped (literally)!

Topwater in the moorings and evenings. The earlier/later the better. Frogs, spooks, poppers, and occasionally buzz baits. Midday is tricky, I use worms and jigs and look to deep water or shaded areas. Never been night fishing but I hear it's good in the summer.

Zoom ol' monster in green pumpkin.

Thanks Todd, that makes sense. I will get around to doing this as soon as I have time.

Thanks for the help, guys. The issue is I am beyond lost when it comes to wiring, and have hardly any knowledge of how this stuff is wired up anyways. So, I will trace the Yellow power wire from the structure scan box and disconnect it from wherever it is now, correct? Then I will connect this yellow wire (LSS power) to the yellow wire in the HDS8 power cable, correct? Is the yellow wire in the HDS power cable currently connected to anything? What do I do if it is? Sorry if I'm being slow about this, but I'm not good at this stuff and don't want to mess up.

Thanks a lot, this is exactly right. I gave Lowrance a call and this is what they said, however the guy on the phone seemed to be in no mood to explain it. Is it alright to leave the ignition key turned when the outboard is off (like the accessory position on a car) when I am using the trolling motor? In other words, I turn the key, hear a loud beep, and the side imaging works. Is it ok to leave it like this? Thanks!

Thanks for the reply. I have checked all the wiring and it all looks good, however I didn't install it so I don't know exactly how it works. The transducer is mounted off the stern below the waterline. Is there any way to check if the 520c ducer has a temp probe? I think it may not, since local time and depth both work perfect but temp doesn't work at all. Thanks!

Hey guys, I recently bought a used '07 Triton Tr176. It came with an HDS8 at the console and a LMS520c up front. I have a few questions regarding both, and any help would be appreciated. HDS-8: 1. I can only get StructureScan to work when the outboard motor is running, and it only reads correctly when it is idling. When the motor is turned off it says "No source." Is this how it should be? 2. I can only get water temp to show on the Structure Scan screen, not the sonar screen. Any way to fix this? LMS520c: 1. I just can't get the water temp to work at all on this one. When I go to turn on digital inputs, water temp appears but it shows as a flashing "32 degrees Fahrenheit." Pretty Sure that isn't right. Any advice? Both: How do you guys fine tune the sensitivity and color line? I want to reduce the screen clutter but still show all the fish and schools of shad. Thanks a ton!

Yeah, I know. Just not completely confident in my boating skills just yet.

That is clearly a common cause of (secret). You have to watch out for it or it'll get ya. I'm just messing with you, man. Try out 50lb Power Pro braid. Ive had it on for a year with no complaints.

Do you have a wrangler now?