SCJW

Thanks, I will give it a try.

The OP is talking about MLF where every scoreable bass counts. Those dinks would really add up as long as they measure.

I see you fish Hartwell. I've had decent luck on Hartwell in the Spring and early Summer with the Alabama rig. I've never tried it in the Winter, but I hope to this weekend. Water temp is low 50s to high 40s right now, so slower is better. Try to keep it off the bottom as much as you can, because it snags on EVERYTHING.

I have a Lowrance Elite 4 HDI at my console and couldn't be happier. It has sonar, down imaging and chart plotter and since the new Chirp has taken it's place you should be able to find one in the $150 range. Academy and Gander Mtn has the Elite 5 HDI, which has a slightly larger screen, for $299.

I killed my biggest buck to date, this past season. I hunted him all season and finally got my opportunity on 12/19/14. He scored 162-3/8" gross and 154-4/8" net b&c. He made top 100 typical all time, in the SC State Record Buck.

I have an Elite 4hdi and it does great in the daytime. At night it seems to pick up a lot of trash and is unusable. I don't know much about fish finders. Does anyone know what could be wrong?

Where are you fishing? It doesn't sound like you are fishing where the catfish are. If you are lake fishing, try fishing creek channels and shallow flats near the creek channels at night.

I agree with Power-Pro Slick 8.

I love going to BPS, but the closest one is 1.5 hrs away. We have a Cabela's about 45 minutes away, but it sucks compared to BPS. A lot of my tackle comes from Walmart as it is only 15 minutes away and surprisingly they have a good selection of lures and soft plastics.

That is a spot.

Caught my personal best spot 4.5lbs.

I caught a gar on a zara spook last year.

I took your advice and ordered an Elite 4 hdi. It should be here by Friday. I can't wait to try it out.

I don't mean to hijack, but I have to ask. What do you mean by "slowing down"? Do you leave it on the bottom longer, drag it slower? Define "fishing slower" for me.

Whitetail hunting is my passion! I turkey hunt when I have time, but I'd rather bass fish in the spring.

I almost always dip in the stand and spit on the ground. I have never once saw a deer react to it in any negative way. Forget about the bottle, keep the wind in your favor, and enjoy killing deer.

I shot this one on 9-18-13. He came in at 7:00pm and presented a perfect 12 yd, quartering away, shot. My nerves got the best of me and I hit him a little further back than I wanted, but I got lucky and clipped the back of one lung. He went approximately 150 yds and crashed. He scored just under 120" and is in close running for my best archery buck to date.

Ok. It will be going on an old procraft 1650v. I will be using it to fish lakes that are no deeper than 500ft. Let's say I want to keep my budget at $500 or less. After researching and shopping different websites, I have the Lowrance Elite 5 HDI in mind. I found one for $450 on the bps website that comes with the transducer and lake insight map card. What do y'all think? Here is a link. http://www.basspro.com/Lowrance-Elite5-HDI-Fishfinder/Chartplotter-Combo-With-Map-Card-and-Cover/product/1403051713/

Do they have gps?

What do y'all think about this one? http://www.ebay.com/itm/LOWRANCE-ELITE-4-GPS-DEPTH-CHARTPLOTTER-FISHFINDER-W-TRANSDUCER-000-10491-001-/251541188847?pt=GPS_Devices&hash=item3a9105f0ef

Thanks for all the warm welcomes!

Thanks for the response. Would you recommend spending a little more for the gps?

I use 15-20 lb braid on my bait casters just because I don't like the idea of mono stretching when I set the hook.

I don't have a fortune to spend, so keep that in mind. If someone could recommend a decent fish finder for the money, or tell me what features to look for when I get ready to buy one, that would be great. Right now I'm using a cheap hummingbird that isn't much good for anything, but telling how deep the water is.