SFL BassHunter

Yeah I'm catching bass on every outing now. It's a good feeling not getting skunked every outing. Something I have noticed though at tropical park is I only catch a fish after I've changed my bait. I've been trying to figure them out and generally the first bite comes within the first few casts. I was using a Pit Boss Jr in Okeechobee Craw color (Blue and Green). I then continued using that same Jr for about 15 or 20 minutes without a bite. After I lost it in the cattails I obviously had to put on a new one, and I switched to a white and blue Pit Boss Jr, after 2 or 3 casts I caught the second fish. Then another dry spell came. Eventually I switched out of the pit boss and went to a bitsy bug with a large paca craw trailer and got no bites for a while. So I switched the trailer for a small paca craw and caught my third fish on the 2nd cast. After that nothing till I called it a day. I guess what I am getting at is, can the fish smell the other fish on a bait that has been bitten? I mean after grabbing a bass with my hands the smell stays on for a while, so would it stand reason that the fish can also smell it on the soft plastic and maybe not go for it?

I have been using the bitsy bugs and they dont have rattles. I've switched to a similar jig with rattles in almost the same color right after catching a few on bitsy bugs and the bites stopped. Switched back to the bug and got bites again. So now I tend to stay away from the ones with rattles though I still have a few in my arsenal in case I run out of other stuff to throw at the bass. I also find that most of my bites on jigs seem to come on the initial drop after the cast.

Hooked 3 shorts.

Think I'll be hitting up Tropical Park later today. Don't really feel like driving far today.

Shaw Grigsby! I think his personality is awesome, he is so likable. He is also a Florida guy. He is so easy to root for!

Alright so I received my inflatable yesterday. Got around to opening it up and pumping it up in the house today. Good news it has no holes from the manufacturer lol. Now I just need to register it with the DMV, I did verify that I need to here in Florida as long as it has a motor on it (including trolling). I hope to do that on Monday and I should be all set and ready to hit the water! The next quest is, finding a park that allows boats on it.

Happy to hear it MainelyBASS! Hopefully you'll get another chance to come down to the Big O and have a good time!

Been on em with stick baits. Got a bunch up in Orlando with senkos.

Guess not...Oh well guess I'll have to pick one near miami. Anyone in any Bass Clubs near Miami that are looking for members?

Very true South FLA! I am very happy to have come across bassresource.com it is a great forum with great people on it. So far everyone has been real nice and given me great advice!

Yup the weight limit is 1000 lbs which should be plenty for 2 people and all my gear.

Yeah I had some folks tell me to go smaller but it was just a combo of things that got me. The price was 200 for a saltwater rated motor, that really drove it home for me. It has a battery meter, it's something I can put on a bigger boat when I get one, and I figure I won't be running it on full speed most of the time anyways. It will be more for moving locations at a decent rate without having to get a really expensive outboard. I plan on having an extra battery on board anyways, just in case.

How about how far did the trolling motor get you? How much thrust? How heavy is your boat?

K thanks!

Boat Rentals in my past experience have never been good. But now I know what to look for and what to ask for when calling about boats. For example I won't touch a jon boat rental unless it has a trolling motor or at least an anchor. I ran into a place where my friend and I rented a skiff at a great price, then as the current was taking us down the canal we realized well we don't have an anchor. We spent about an hour and a half trying to get the hang of course correcting with the outboard motor so we wouldn't get pushed into the mangroves. Eventually we decided to look and see how much gas we had. So we left the motor on the entire time and would course correct constantly. At that point we didn't feel bad at all about wasting all their gas. On top of it the skiff was very unstable.

Yeah you get what you pay for! I didn't want to spend to much money on an inflatable at the moment because when I get ready to turn in my lease I'm hoping to get something I can put a hitch on and then just get me a nice little jon boat.

Anyone know if I need to register it with the DMV?

Well guys I don't think I will be having much of a problem getting to the fish now! I went ahead and got me an Intex Seahawk 4 Inflatable. I'm excited about it mostly because its only 129 bucks, even though in total I've spent more. The trolling motor is 200 and all the other nice additions will rack up to a bit more. But in reality all those other things including the motor, battery, charger are things I can use in the future for my next vessel. The trolling motor is a Newport Vessel 55lb thrust rated for salt and freshwater. Till I can get something something decent like a jon boat or better, I hope to get out on the water with this!

Sure thing! I promise you it won't be much originality. With so many people already doing this and youtube videos I might just take what I think is best from each and do it. I'm expecting some hawgs as well! I've yet to get me one of them. 2.8 lbs is currently my PB, I'd like to change that with my new "bass boat".

Thanks for the advice and help with the photos of your setups. I went ahead and pulled the trigger. Made a few changes but I did go with the following: Intex Seahawk 4 for $129 Newport Vessels 55lb trolling motor for $199 rated for fresh and salt water Schumacher SEM-1562A-CA 1.5 Amp Speed Charge Battery Maintainer for $20Intex 12v electric pump $10 Onyx life vest $20 Now I just need to buy a battery and a few small items. I'll pick those up at Walmart.

How is the stability with the floor it comes with? About $269 Wind is sometimes a factor, sometimes not. Sometimes the day is fairly nice and then starts to rain and becomes nice again within the hour. Other boats are always a factor on canals and lakes with boat ramps.

The mariner 4 was my first option then i started looking at cheaper options. I really like the mariner and I guess I wanted to know how stable it is for fishing standing up?

Good point. I do figure though, I would have more weight on the boat, mine will be bigger than yours and I am close to 300 lbs myself. The main reason I am considering the intex 40lb thrust is because it is rated for saltwater and freshwater. On occassion I may take it out to some flats. For example snake bight down in Flamingo Everglades to do some redfish and snook fishing. Those flats are a no motor zone and require only a trolling motor, push pole or oars. It would be like fishing a lake with maybe even shallower water. I'd love to go with a Minn Kota that is rated for salt and fresh but they are far more expensive.

You make a great point, even better with your 40 dollar set up. You have sea hawk 2, and I am looking at the 4 just because I am a big guy and if I want to get a buddy to come along 2 can fish it. But I thought the same thing, its 129 with the motor mount. If it turns out to be crap, well I'm out 129 bucks but I still have the battery, the motor, and everything else. I do think about the darned thing deflating while I'm on the water and it's the only thing keeping me from pulling the trigger on it. I don't mind being on top of water, but not really interested in being IN the water.

Yeah thats kind of the set up I was going for. I wasn't really planning on the rod holder but that is a great idea. I was actually planning on putting the battery in the cooler, but making it a live well also works! Displacing the body weight with the battery up front is a great idea too. It's good to know that a 30lb thrust moves it pretty good. I do plan on getting something with more thrust. Thanks for the set up info and advice.