WIGuide

I use 12lb test Berkley 100% Fluorocarbon for all my spinnerbaits.

Generally that's an indication you're trying too hard. Coaching basketball all the time. I've got a great example from just a few days ago. One of the girls stayed after practice to shoot freethrows and I was rebounding for her. She'd miss a few and you could tell she was really focused on trying to turn the streak around. She wasn't relaxed at all and she kept shanking them. Then she started telling me about something that happened the other day and she made almost every shot while she was talking. When she went back to just shooting she made a few more and again she'd start a run of misses. The moral of the story here is just relax. It doesn't mean you can't focus on it a bit, but don't have that be the only thing your focusing on. The other thing to remember is have confidence and know you can put that bait where you want it.

I've got a few slower reels, but almost all of mine are 7.X:1. I don't usually crank real deep, but I'd still be using the faster retrieve reel if I did.

I'd try both to see which one they want that day. Either way if you're looking for more bites, the best thing to do is downsize.

It think it'll work just fine for A-Rigs. Shouldn't have any problems casting as the A-rig wouldn't be any different weight than a musky plug you'd be throwing with it.

I had the skimmer and the lss-2 mounted side by side on the transom with the lss-2 slightly lower down the V. What I was seeing looked a whole lot better than what your friend sent you. If that's what you're basing your rating of that feature on I can see why you feel the way you do about it. My previous boat didn't have a step so they were on the transom. My new one has the step and they are mounted under it to the right of the engine. That's where I'd suggest you mount yours as there they will be getting the cleanest water. Just remember to not mount them right behind or close to a strake as that can mess with the readings due to too much turbulence.

On my old boat, I had the transducers set up side by side. My downscan overlay was spot on and looked nothing like the picture Wayne keeps showing. It was a helpful feature since you could combined the 2D and downscan in one pane leaving more room for other panes.

I'll second what Todd said. There are no disadvantages to it. Since your s/s and d/s are being read off the transducers in the back the point 1 will be slightly more accurate if you get the puck over your transducers. If you had transducers on the front and back you'd want to install the puck on the back and only pull the heading off it for the bow. Since this isn't the case you wouldn't have to worry about all that.

You also might want to think about adding another power source running up to the bow. Even if you don't want anything up there now, eventually you probably will, so while you have access to it I'd put that in. You can run those wires to a power block and locate that somewhere easily accessible behind the bow panel.

I picked up a St. Croix LTB 7'2" M/M for my squarebills and lighter crankbaits. It definitely does seem to rifle them out there, but it's hard to say if it's farther than what you can cast with yours. What I can tell you is that I love the rod. It's super light and has a great action. Some people think it's to "whippy" when they handle them for the first time, but that allows better casting distance and it loads up well when a fish hits. Just because it has a soft tip doesn't mean it can't handle bigger fish either. It might be pricier than what you are looking to spend, but it's worth checking out.

If you're looking for a reel $200 and under you're going to have a lot of great choices. I'd check out any of the Abu Revo's or some of the Bass Pro reels. I've had great luck with them.

There's a lot of great reels in that range. I'd look into a Abu Garcia Revo SX or S or a Bass Pro Johnny Morris Signature Series "Bass Caster". They're all good work horse reels.

You'll be looking for a medium heavy power rod with a fast action. Length will be up to you with what you feel comfortable with. I'd look into a rod from the St. Croix lineup either a Mojo or Premier.

I use 50lb braid. That should be heavy enough for any cover around here. If you're thinking that stepping up the pound test to try to beat the northerns and muskies that will hit your frog, there's no point. They cut that stuff just as easily.

If I were you, I'd be looking at the new St. Croix Avid X rods. They're right on with your budget and will give you great sensitivity, not to mention they are American made and come with a great warranty.

There's no non-love for those who only use one rod. There are tons of fishermen out there that only have one rod and are happy with that. One thing you need to remember is though, that most of those people are not well represented on here. They go fishing for something to do. If they catch fish, they're happy and if not it really doesn't phase them. The majority of people on here take fishing a bit more seriously and generally spend more on gear than those who just do it for something to do. It's not that there isn't any love for those who only use one rod and reel, there's just a lot less of us here that do that. Nothing wrong with doing it though.

My pre fishing check list- boat hooked up once that one is checked off I'm good to go! Obviously this is for a normal every day trip if I was going across the country it'll be a little longer, but normally I keep everything in my boat so there's no need to go over any sort of check lists.

12 would be fine for what you're doing with it.

I really like having an extra fast action for my finesse applications. I know you said you were looking at the Mojo. I've got a few of the casting models and they aren't bad at all. I've really heard good things about the "wacky rig" rod. It's a 6'8" M/XF. I'd check it out.

As few already stated, it can be done, but it's not super common.

I'm sure they're nice, but for $80 they should be. Also seems a bit steep for what it is. I'd be tempted to pull the trigger at $40 or maybe even $50 but $80 just seems way to high for something that could easily fall in the water.

Theoretically you should be able to pitch farther and more accurately with a micro guide rod due to the fact that the tip is lighter without the full sized guides. In reality, I don't think it is going to make much difference.

If it had been sitting for a while before you got it, the gas in the line could have went bad, especially if it had ethanol in it. Congrats on the new rig though!

I always bring mine in and store them in the basement. Maybe it's unnecessary precaution but I'd rather have my batteries last. Also, being that we are in the far north, out boats our in storage longer than those who live farther south and we also deal with more extreme cold temps. Last year we had an entire month that the temp did not get above 0 degrees with many mornings being in the -25 to -35 degree range. Best thing you could do is to bring it in and store it in the basement. Put it on the charger periodically and you'll for sure be good to go in the spring. There have been a few references to an article here and the last line is this "At the end of the day, a good rule is that batteries like the same temperatures that humans do, between 60 degF and 80 degF." I'm willing to follow that rule

I used to have a very small one in an aquarium and noted the same things. When they weren't hungry it didn't matter how close the baitfish got to them, they just didn't eat.