Skwerl

When I had a canoe, I bought a troller bracket and the cheapo 30 lb thrust from Wal Mart. It worked great and was plenty of power and easy to use. I put the battery all the way in the front of the canoe and made up wire extensions to reach the troller. This made my canoe much easier to steer and more stable in the wind since I had the nose planted in the water. I seem to recall getting 6+ hours on a fully charged battery. Can't comment on the foot control as I've never been comfortable with them, never owned one.

If I'm going out to fish and relax on the water, usually only two things will make me come back in- darkness or hunger. If I bring food then I'll stay out longer. I have never caught a decent bass after dark so I have no incentive to stay out at night.

That would be more likely than a short in the battery, although batteries can short out as well. Can you test the troller on another battery? Or take the battery to your local auto parts store (like NAPA) and get it tested. It's either one or the other.

Yup, bondo won't be structurally sound enough to hold up. Just keep your pinky finger in the hole and you'll be fine! ;D It won't leak unless you remove your finger.

Sounds like you got a short somewhere. Is there boat wiring involved or are you connecting the troller directly to the battery? I'd check every inch of the positive wire from the battery to the troller motor and find out where it's grounding out.

For the $200 range you can get pretty much any brand high quality black and white fish finder. For more money you get color and/or GPS. I just replaced the Humminbird on my boat 2 days ago with a Garmin 250. The other unit I was looking at was the Eagle 320. The best feature I like on the Garmin is the swivel mount. I can spin it around for when I'm sitting up front fishing from the bow.

With a solid hull it can be feasable IF you can find a good motor at a decent price. Find your motor first, there's lots of cheap (or free) boats out there. I bought a 'project' boat once, paid $500 for a bass boat hull with no motor. It sat in my back yard for 2 years and I dumped many days as well as several hundred dollars in it before finally giving up and hauling it to the dump. That was a tough day, but I was still thousands of dollars away from getting it on the water (electrical was completely trashed) and I was no longer willing to keep dumping time and money into it.

IMO I wouldn't trust either of those motors. Even if you get it running, will you be able to trust that old antique motor to keep running and get you home safely? Last registration is '03 so it's been sitting at least 3-4 years, I'd say don't even consider trying to salvage the motor(s). The boat itself looks like it might be decent. Is the transom solid? Stand on the fin of the outboard and gently bounce up and down on it. Does the transom flex? If it's solid with no soft spots then you might have a decent fixer-upper there. You can count on spending a fair amount of money though, all your electrical wiring and rigging will probably need replacement. You will need to repower it (which will also involve new throttle controls and possibly new steering controls). The hull looks like it needs a bit of TLC to bring it back. But it's got nice lines and could turn out to be a nice restoration. I'd budget about $2K plus whatever you spend on a motor. Don't forget the triler also. If the frame is not rusted out then wheel bearings (or even replacement hubs) aren't too expensive. New lights, tires, figure $200-$400 on the trailer. On the other hand, if you just want to go fishing then I'd pass on the antique restoration project and find a fishing boat. You can pick up a reliable, solid, running boat for less than it will cost you to fix up that boat.

Well I got antsy and installed the new Garmin 250 fishfinder today. wasn't going to go driving around trying to locate the 5200 so I started digging through my toolbox and found a brand new tube of clear silicone RTV adhesive sealant. Actually it is the same stuff that was used on the previous fishfinder. I used my air compressor with a blower nozzle to blow out the holes good and stuffed them with the RTV. Also squirted it in the new holes and coated the screws before running them in. I think it'll be just fine. Why does every single manufacturer of fishfinders need to create different size brackets for their transponders? :-/

Start with checking the transponder and making sure it is level (pointing straight down and not at an angle). I have an old Humminbird that does the same thing but usually only when running full throttle. I just upgraded to a new unit, gonna attempt the install today.

Spinnerbaits. Other than a beetlespin many years ago, I've never caught a fish on a spinnerbait. They are obnoxious and clumsy to cast, and every 4-5 casts the line wraps around the lure so I have to stop and untangle the danged thing. I recently bought another spinnerbait hoping to improve my technique (and tolerance) with them but no dice.

I'd be slow twitching a fluke through there, weightless on a 4/0 EWG hook. If you aren't comfortable fishing a bait that slow, get some Zoom horny toads (or better yet, Stanley Ribbit frogs if you can find them) and use the same size 4/0 hooks. Be sure to mix up your retrieve a bit and let the bait stop and sink every few feet. Most strikes will come on the fall. For colors, my favorites are a watermelon seed (mossy green with black flake) or watermelon red (green with red flake) for daytime, mostly sunny conditions and a junebug color for dawn or dusk.

I picked up a new Garmin depthfinder yesterday. I need to remove my old transponder (from the dead Humminbird) and install the new transponder on the transom. It's a fiberglass hull. Exactly what specific sealant do I use for sealing the screw holes? My local dealer told me to head up to Home Depot but couldn't tell me exactly what to use. The only thing I can think of is 3M tub and tile adhesive caulk, but there has to be something better. Or is there?

Chris, you might want to swap out those nuts and bolts for stainless steel hardware, otherwise you will have rust streaks on your brushed aluminum tag frame by the end of the year. Looks sharp!

Go to your local mower shop and get lawnmower starter rope. No need to pay Cabela's prices for a hank of starter rope. BTW, I just recently picked up a MK trolling motor and the first thing I did was change out the crappy plastic pull handle. Every time you bumped it with your foot the sound would telescope straight through the fiberglass deck and it made a racket. I got a wooden handle on there now which is better, but am looking for a good rubber handle for comfort and quietness when dropping it on the deck.

'02 F150 Lariat, 5.4 automatic. What boat??? 8-)

As for the guys in bass boats with 200+ hp motors that like to power load onto their trailers, they create huge washouts in the ramp. Then when the water is low, nobody can use the ramp because it's just a big hole. I idle my boat 3/4 of the way on the trailer and use the winch to snug it up the rest of the way. Running your motor full throttle with your boat half on your trailer is rude ands tears up the ramp.

I think KU meant to say 'cautious'. If you've got an old beater trailer and the lights have been busted off and replaced with El-Cheapo utility trailer lights from the local Discount Auto Parts store, then unplugging them may be necessary. Boat trailer lights are designed to hold an air pocket and prevent water from coming in contact with the bulb or socket. If your lenses are loose or broken then water gets in and you can get an instant short when submerged.

There are morons at my lake that honestly believe that by putting their boat in front of the ramp and tying it off, they are next in line to use the ramp. I had to pull my truck and trailer out of the way one day because those people were chewing me out and accused me of 'cutting in line' even though their trailer was still in the parking lot. :

by sheer numbers, I have noticed MG is more popular for fresh water but MK is more popular for salt water. Perhaps MG is generally cheaper so freshwater guys tend to buy them, but maybe the MG saltwater versions don't hold up as well so the saltwater guys buy the MK's? Idunno.

Great bait and a most excellent color choice. Watermelon red and watermelon black flake are two of my best colors for frogs and flukes. How were you working it? Were you buzzing it across the top or going a little slower and letting it sink down below the surface? Seems like most of my hits on frogs are immediately after landing in the water (boinking them on the head).

How does the Eagle 320 compare with the Garmin 250 (or even the 250c -color- which is $100 more)? I'm in the same situation where I would like a decent fishfinder without the pricey GPS or other unnecessary extras. Most lakes in FL are less than 35' deep, I don't need something 99.997% accurate to 1500'. BTW, some people would consider a speed indicator as a desirable feature. No speedometer on my boat. :-/

You are mistaken about the law. It is illegal to NET gamefish, it is not illegal to use them as bait. If you were throwing a castnet and pulling up a dozen bluegill and then using them as bait, that's illegal. As long as you catch them on a hook then you can do whatever you want with them.

Sounds like he spun the prop. :-?

My home lake is actually a chain of lakes, 6 lakes connected by canals. I only fish a couple of the lakes due to jet ski and boat traffic, but I'm getting better at locating and boating fish consistently. I'm looking forward to fishing this chain for many years to come.