Ski213

Get the prop to pad measurement as fishnkamp suggested, the rpms would be good as well. Make sure it's an accurate tach. You could just temp something up with it if you don't feel you need it long term and permanently mounted. When you hear about a boat like yours making more speed, first make sure the speed numbers are accurate, then try to get info on their setup. What outboard, what prop, setback, etc. If you can find someone with the same hull it saves a ton of time on getting a good starting point. Definately don't throw parts at it till you have more info. As an aside, I really like your boat. I've always wanted a Carolina Skiff. One of these days when I wise up move further south I plan to have one parked next to the glitter barge in the driveway.

Not specific advice for your lake but what I've started widdling my crank bait (not hard baits, just diving crank baits) collection down to is chartreuse blue back, shad pattern with black back, shad pattern with blue back, red, any kind of light brown with yellow in it and orange on the belly, and a bluegill pattern that I only use on shallow divers. That's where I spend my money anymore. I have confidence in those colors. Oh and I have a couple clear crankbaits that I stripped the paint off of. Every now and then those are money. The color is obviously important but my opinion is that the action is more important. That's why I've started trying to narrow the number of colors but expand the available actions that I have.

Some pictures would help. When you say clips I picture alligator type clips and im picturing ring terminals on the v2 wiring. Based on what you're describing the ring terminals from the v2 would go on under the nut on the post then the clip would go above but I'm with iabass8, switch the clips to ring terminals if the max isn't something you're taking on and off constantly.

I live in the country and mice and I are in constant combat. Keep the boat as far away from any outbuilding, fence row, or grown up area as you can. The boat being on hard pavement seems to make a difference as well. They seem to like cover and the more they have to be in the open to get to the boat the better for you. Those little guys are really persistent. I've had very little luck with any of the stuff I've read about. Mine will make a nest out of dryer sheets but im not saying you shouldn't try them. I think the key is to keep them from setting up shop in your boat. I'm not huge on killing anything that I don't have to but a trap is the best way to keep them from establishing a colony in your boat.

How you get to the bilge pump varies by boat. Mine is fairly easy but I've seen some that were pretty tough. It's entirely possible that the bilge pump is mounted such that you aren't taking on enough water that the pump is able to pick it up. You could flood the hull with a garden hose to test the pump if it's difficult to get to. You'll want to put quite a bit of water to make sure there's enough for the pump to pick it up. If you can't see the pump then I would add water till I was sure it was over the pump. (Be best if you knew for sure) Also make sure that the trailer is secured since the water will add quite a bit of weight. If it runs but no water comes out the discharge then I would assume either the pump is blocked or the hose is broken as suggested, or the impeller is damaged such that the pump runs but isn't moving water As far as where it's coming in there are a lot of possibilities. Any thru hull fitting, transom tie down bolt, bow tie down, motor mounting bolt, etc is a possibility. As are any connections or hoses within the boat. Just have to try to isolate possible problems. Don't overlook the seal at the rub rail. Quite a bit of water can come in if there's an issue there.

Depends on the conditions on the given day but generally a blade bait like a silver buddy in the dead of winter.

Not an additional suggestion but I'll second the slug-go getting a shot. That's the first bait I remember being called a stickbait. I haven't fished them in years but they worked back then. Unfortunately in my personal experience sometimes the most effective soft plastics aren't all that durable. Totally understand trying to find something economical that works though. I'd sure appreciate you reporting back on your results trying different baits.

Fish what works for ya. Don't disregard the seasonal lists of most effective baits, but don't abandon one just cause it's not on it. I don't think these dang fish play by the rules we apply to them anyway You'd be hard pressed to convince me that there is any fish able condition where the right combination of jig with the right presentation won't catch fish.

I've heard to heat the epoxy, take a block of wood, put it against the transducer, then tap the block with the hammer. I'd say you'll want to go easy on the heat and the hammer for the sake of the transducer and the hull. Ive not done it myself but when I was looking into doing it that's what I came up with.

Thanks Wayne. Makes sense about equipment marks since they were so close to where the old dam was intentionally breached. I didn't even think about that. The imaging is fairly new to me and I'm pretty excited about it. I'm just starting to gain some understanding of what I'm seeing and I have a long way to go. I'm just to the point where it helps me get a little bit of a visual of what's actually down there.

Sorry for the crappy picture. Screenshot off the go free app and I'm also just starting to learn imaging adjustments. Wanted some thoughts from y'all. I know that the structure is the old dam. I interpret the returns past the break in it as a group of fish. Are the "potholes" beds? Does the fuzzy line in the water look like the thermocline or would you interpret it as something else? Sorry if this should've been a seperate thread rather than under screenshots. Wasn't sure.

Glad you didn't get taken. Certainly sounds shady. For me to be comfortable with a transaction like that I'd have to hire an attorney and that's not something you should have to do to buy a boat. Its crazy to me that these scams exist. Hard to trust anybody anymore.

Yeah don't give up on it yet. It took me a bit to get where it was of much use to me. It helps to just go out and spend time not fishing, focusing only on adjusting settings and stuff. One thing that really helped me 1) gain some faith in SI and 2) gain a better understanding of what I was seeing was using the recording feature. Not sure if you have that option or not with your unit. I spent 2 hrs just trolling around a 100 acre reservoir where I know (or thought I knew) most of the underwater features. My buddy fished but I really didn't at all. I downloaded a trial version of a sonar viewing program and watched the recording like a movie. It helped me a ton. The program allowed me change palettes and contrast and on a 15" laptop screen. I used a view where I was looking at sonar DI, and SI. Because I was reviewing it in my kitchen I wasn't doing anything but focusing on the returns. I always felt like I was focusing on the boat but I missed a lot. After spending some time like that I started having much better luck using imaging while fishing. Once I convinced myself it actually worked I started playing more with range and stuff a lot of what I had read started clicking. Might not help you at all but it definitely made a huge difference for me.

Good advice above. Also make sure to leave the plug out of the boat if stored outside.

Are you having continued decent luck with the SK jig and looking for more, or is your action falling off with it? If it's the latter I would stick with what has worked and first change up retrieve, then colors, maybe go to a bluegill type color, then consider changing trailers, if you are using any. If you aren't then you should try a curlytail grub or maybe a small swim-bait as a trailer. In my limited swim jig experience it seems like the fish are extremely sensitive to the type of retrieve. If that doesn't do it then it might be that it's time to switch tactics altogether and abondon the swim jig for now. I don't fish a swim jig very often. As far as brand I love D&L jigs. They may or may not be readily available to you. They're local to me but I don't know how widely they're distributed.

I appreciate all the advice. I ended up with a couple issues. There was a breaker at the battery that had quite a bit of resistance across it relative to the other breakers on the boat and I had some significant voltage drop there so I replaced it. With a new DMM the battery read 12.8 at the terminals and the specific gravity of the electrolyte was good as well. Worked my way up the harness and had progressive voltage drop as I went. I ended up running a separate circuit to the bow unit and tapped the console unit off of it. I will be replacing the starting battery with a dual purpose 31 soon but I'm gonna try to make it to spring on that one since I need to replace the other two right now for sure. Again, I really appreciate the advice. It definitely helps a lot.

In my opinion the short answer is yes. Do your homework to make sure it's a solid boat. Especially the outboard as slonezp said. If it is you may find it to be all you ever need, and at the very least, it could be a great boat to start with.

As was said, do what works for you. Better to get bit five times and land five fish than get bit 10 and land 3. Excluding the creature baits, I'll only fish offset hooks with flukes and stick baits. Different strokes for different folks though. That's just me. If you are getting bit more on an EWG it's most likely due how that hook effects the action of the bait. Pay attention to the action difference and figure out how to accomplish the action with the hook that gets the most fish landed.

Just my personal experience but I think it's just a slow process. I used a little heat and a plastic scraper on my glass boat. Too much heat and it made it worse. Too little and it just wouldn't come off. I scraped the stickers and then used goo gone it think to remove residue. It was brutal but in the end it turned out well. It probably depends a lot on the adhesive used and how well the surface was prepped. Chemicals may work like a charm. Just have to have the right chemical for the particular adhesive. In my experience any removal, be it commercial flooring or decals, is a combination of mechanical removal (scraper, grinder, etc) and the proper solvent. It's never easy if the job was done right ahead of you.

Ok thanks. I'll shop around some. I think there is a distributor about an hour from me. Might be worth the trip.

I have a 98 201pe. I've had it about three years and been very happy with it. I really like the way it rides it rougher water. I have always heard that some Stratos boats went all composite in 97 and all in 98. As far as I can tell mine has no wood. I would imagine that the 97 201 also is all composite. Someone else might be able to give a more definitive answer though.

Based on what you described I would think you should probably be comfortable calling it around 5 to 6.5. Could've been more but probably wasn't less. Regardless of its actual weight it's a dang good fish and congratulations on catching it.

To make sure I'm looking at the right type of battery would the Deka DP31DT be along the lines of what you're talking about?

Thanks for all the battery info. I definitely had a good connection read directly off the posts so it sounds like it's smoked. My meter went nuts last night so I'm gonna double check with a good meter today. Most likely done for though. I will go to a larger group size. Thanks as always.

Thanks Mike. I hope so too.