Al Wolbach

I suggest you go to a local BPS, Cabelas, Gander Mountain or other sporting goods store and compare them. This will allow you to look maps of local lakes you will be fishing. Mapping details vary from lake to lake so you should only listen to local fishermen, not someone from Tennessee or North Carolina etc.(imho) I work at BPS part time and we have all the chips and will load them in a display unit for customers to compare.........................Al

Rhino, I believe the strap is in the travel position(locked onto the ball) in the picture. When a lock is installed it prevents the strap from rotating up and open for trailer removal...............Al

Berkley recommends a Trilene knot. Most on this board will recommend a Palomar knot. Actually an improved cinch knot should be good. Whatever knot you choose be careful not to generate heat when cinching the knot. Heat will weaken the knot. And be sure to lube before cinching down the knot...............Al

At some age you don't have to buy a license any longer. Anyone know what that age is? RW, you must be getting close, lol........................Al

Thanks for the reminder RW......................Al

Someone gave me a tip about fishing Santee-Cooper regarding the snakes(not sure who). The advice was to place a portable radio on the bow facing the direction of travel. The theory is the snakes hear you coming(because of the radio) and drop into the water before you get to them. When you are slowly fishing in the swamp you actually sneak up on them without the radio. I don't know if this works or not but I'll know after my next visit in April. For you young guys- I don't think this works with I pods(lol)....................Al

In the press conference, he said that he spent a lot of time with SK getting the 1.5 and 2.5 just right. He wanted a bait that was very erratic and didn't just move in a straight line with a normal wobble. I remember watching a video with Patrick Sebile (may have been on Tackle Warehouse) where he talked about the engineering of crankbaits and how fluid hydraulics and pressure influenced the way they ran. It's been a while since I've watched it and perhaps that wasn't even where I've heard about the erratic movements. If memory serves, the thinking was that pressure would build on one side of the bait until it overcame the pressure from the opposite side, which would cause the bait to dart wildly to one side. As I've spent more and more time fishing crankbaits over the last couple of years, it has become obvious to me that for the most part it is all about the retrieve. Banging into rocks & wood, starting and stopping the retrieve, giving the bait a good jerk to one side occasionally. Regardless of the engineering and what limited skill I have with a crankbait, it is obvious that VanDam is nothing less than a true master of the reaction bite. Hey Burley, he's not a bad salesman either.........just sayin..............Al

Infested with snakes and no one mentioned alligators.................On a positive note the town of Santee is beautiful and the people are very friendly.......................Al

I don't try to talk anyone into buying a Ardent reel but I have several and love them, but I use right hand reels. I spoke with the president of Ardent reels several years ago and he said the cost of a mold for Magnesium is very expensive. He told me the actual figure but I can't remember for sure but it was in the high 5 figures or low 6 figures, and that was each. They will in time make a left hand reel, just not sure when. It takes a great deal of money to start a business that competes with Shimano, Pure fishing etc. and the only way to stay in business is to make smart decisions as you grow. In time they will make one............Al

I also tried them on crappie jigs and really liked them for crappie fishing. I also tried some treble hooks on jerkbaits and topwater baits. The reason I remember is I nearly bled to death changing the hooks, d@@@ they're sharp. The hookup ratio seemed low to me so I quit using them. Nothing scientific, it just seemed like I lost fish I should not have lost. Lost confidence in them.However they are as sharp as any hook I have used...........................Al

I have brakes on my bassboat and last year ordered a new pontoon boat. I ordered a tandem axle trailer with brakes(because they tow better). The trailer manufacturer will build a single axle with or without brakes, with 10 inch to 15 in wheels. Pretty much whatever you want. To respond to the your question, this should help: http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200338664_200338664

Hey Mac, welcome to the site. I think you will love the area. Fishing advice about that area is hard to come by on this site, just not many on here from that area. The weather there in March is iffy like much of the south and April may be really hot, makes for hard planning. Several guys on here are planning trips to Santee-Cooper in April but can't really help with fishing advice. Sorry. If you are interested in hiring a guide I can suggest someone, don't have the info handy now. I was stationed there in the 60's and 70's for about 9 years total. We lived in Summerville and Goose Creek. Still love that area and wish I had retired there. I still visit that area a couple of times a year. Summerville has grown so much I'm not sure I would settle there now, just to many people, not the slow, small lovely town it once was. You may want to look in the Monchs Corner area. My last visit it did not appear to have grown as much and is only 10-15 minutes drive to Summerville. Didn't mean to ramble. Good luck..........Al

When that happened to me I bought replacement composite boards from C&O Marine. They cut them to size and carpeted them before shipping. As best I remember it cost around $100.................Al www.candomarine.com Search their parts dept.....They also have pictures of many of their parts.

I have both and prefer the supreme..............Al

If you want to Crappie fish this is one of the best lakes in the country and mid to late March is a good bet fishing wise and weather wise. just remember it could be snowing also. This lake is not a good lake to take a fiberglass bass boat. You can't avoid all of the stumps, you just can't period. You've been warned. If you have a jon boat take it, you'll be glad you did. If you have a jet outboard even better. A lot of boat rental, resort/fishing lodges went out of business in the last couple of years so I'm not sure about rentals. Most of the local guys including the guides fish a spider rig shallow just slowly bumping along looking for bites. But you can also fish for them under floats with good success using a hair fly tipped with a minnow. Success is usually determined by weather and lake levels..................Al

If you are sure that you won't be adding any side imaging etc. then the Eagle unit BPS has on clearance for $209 is a great value. Just a few years ago this was a top of the line unit..............Al

Good advice. Heat would be my concern. Heat can actually make the rubber become harder which can lead to all kinds of problems................Al

I saw one of those on a boat at Santee-Cooper(in the river). The owner said he could run in 3 inches of water. I believe he called his a "go-devil". He used it to run the old rice fields that are just off the Cooper River. I didn't hear it running, it was on a trailer in his yard................Al

Bass Pro Shop has the Pflueger Supreme Xt on sale or clearance for $69.88, reg 129.99.. Good price for a good spinning reel...............Al http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_98349_100001002_100000

Same in Tennessee........

Not to many guys run a bounce buster here in East Tn but if I ran a lot of rough water $30 would be cheap insurance.............Al

Thanks to everyone for your input and quick responses .............Al

I have never had a Honda outboard but I have asked many people that do have them and they all have loved them. They are so quiet you can't hear them running. One man told me they were heavy but he wouldn't trade it for any other outboard. Most have raved about the gas mileage. I have a 115 Yamaha 4-stroke on a pontoon boat and it is much louder and I don't think the gas mileage is great either. I believe if I were you there would be a Honda in my future.........Al

We are going to stop on the drive down to fish a tournament on Lake Murray near Columbia. We are driving down the rest of the way on Sunday. If I remember correctly Blacks is on the upper end of Lake Moultrie. That is a good location to fish either lake. We will be there the entire week also. I'll touch base with you as time gets closer, maybe we can get together........................Thanks, Al