Further North

I stuck myself once, 4/0 hook, tried to lip a too-green bass that drove the point straight into the joint of my left thumb. Hard. I was alone, had to subdue the fish, get it in the water, cut the hook, back it out of the joint, then push it through past the barb to cut the tip off so I could clip that off and back it out. Backing the barb out of the joint darn near made me pass out on the first try...had to lie down, control my breathing, drink some water, and give another shot. Got 'er done, then had to force the point and barb through...more fun. These days, I pinch my barbs, and use a net when possible, or better yet, lean over the side and slip the hook out while the fish is still in the water with a pair of pliers on the hook shank... There is no fish, anywhere on the planet, that I need to put in boat enough to not pinch the barbs...don't care what anyone says, I don't lose 2 fish a year because I don't have barbs...

I've fished with him several times...he knows what bass are, 'specially smallies. He's even been known to catch pike and musky on purpose...maybe not while the cameras are rolling... Good! Glad I could help. The few times I've been out with a guide have been very helpful...just make sure you look for one that is more intersted in teaching than putting fish in the boat, and that you are specific that you are more interested in learning than catching. Mr. Uhrig's off looks pretty good, all the better if it is one-on-one, or a very small "class".

Sounds like the question might be more about what the goal is. If the goal is making a minimal presentation to the fish because they are not interested presentations that are not..."finesse" enough, then it's line diameter, and lure size that matters, not line strength. If the goal is push the limits of the equipment for whatever reason (it's what the person fishing enjoys, for bragging rights, line class records, or other stuff I can't think of), then the strength of the components does matter. Example of the first one: My BFS rig is set up with 30# Suffix 832 to a leader of 8# Lake Forks copolymer. Why? I strongly dislike braid thinner than that because it takes way to much to fill my spool and it slices my fingers...and most important, it is roughly the same diameter of the copolymer line I like to fish. I've never been a fan of trying to catch big fish on light tackle...for one thing, I dislike the stress it puts on the fish...if you land a 36" pike or musky on 6# test on a medium light rod...by accident and blind luck, because no one in their right mind does it on purpose, or with any real skill...odds are good you've killed the fish, even if you manage to get it to swim away. For another, the "fight" has never been the reason I fish. I like to "use enough rod"...and line and tackle, to quickly and efficiently get the fish to the boat so I can release it with a high chance for survival. I can accept that others enjoy that. Just my thoughts...

I like it. I thought I wanted tubes, but the boat I bought didn't have them...I futzed around trying to rig them up...and rapidly discovered they were a PITA, likely to damage line guides and drastically reduced the number of rods I can carry. ...you just gave me an idea about that strap...I'm gonna put my thinking cap on...

This is it, exactly... Only way to not drill new holes it not buy new gear... To the OP: You are correct, a 2x4 won't last. It'll look like on-site engineering too... Think plastic, aluminum, Stainless steel...stuff like that. I have this with a single arm, holding a Helix 12". Works great.

I wish I had enough experience to help with Garmin. With fishing electronics, I tend to get the best I can on the theory it'll be longer before it's obsolete... ...that said, I went with Helix over Solix because I had little use for the extra gee-whiz stuff. I'm 100% with you on the peace and quiet. There's not even a radio on my boat...

Yikes!

@J Francho Yeah...completely different kinds of lakes. I just looked at a lake near hear on Google Maps...at about the same resolution, I could count the number of docks in a similar area on two hands.

I knew we'd figure it out... We don't have miles of docks...heck, there's huge hunks of water without any docks on the lake I fish most often....and a lot of the others in the area. Also, I seldom look for fish: I tend to look for structure, and I mark it in the maps so I don't have to remember it, so one pass is good for a long time. We fish differently...probably because I'm usually looking for pike and musky with bass as a secondary target. I'm intrigued by Panoptix, but I just can't get used to the idea of one more thing bolted to my deck getting in my way and getting fly line wrapped 'round it. 360° is getting it done for now.

I'm about 90 miles east of the Twin Cities. Those Garmin units will work fine for you, and you can consider adding Panoptix later, which is some really cool technology. I love the Follow the Contour, and route following abilities of the linked HB and MK units, but there's a lot of people who don't have it do just fine.

Yeah, I knew this isn't your first rodeo...but there's something weird going on... Are you located in a place where your power is inconsistent or unreliable, or are you not leaving the chargers plugged in for maintenance mode to kick in? That you've had trouble with two of the top brands is weird... I am way out in the country, half way between two small-ish towns and my access to the power grid isn't perfect by any means...and I've had zero issues with MK units in 5 different boats for 14 years...my last two sets of batteries have made it 4 seasons each (starting the 5th season on the latest set now) with no issues. I'm not that lucky, so I'm left wondering what the root cause of your problems is. It's unlikely you hit the Monday/Friday thing twice, but it's possible. 6 amps seems light to me, 10 amps seems better, 15 is best...but if it's workin'...

You can, but you have to put some thought into it: I run transom mount 360° because... That's what came out first, and... That's what worked best with my then Terrovas and now Ulterra. That said, with a little work, you can run a bow mount 360° on a Terrova or an Ulterra, you just have to figure out a way to hang the 360° transducer. A buddy of mine has this nailed down. Going back to the transom mount 360°...not that big a deal for me as I can figure out the 18' foot offset in my head and cast to the structure... There are days on the water, here where I live, that half the day is devoted to Follow the Contour fishing. One of my favorite spots is a sunken island in a local lake where I set the Follow the contour to follow the 12' contour and I fire cast after cast after cast across the sunken island while the Ulterra does the work and I...just fish... There's another spot, same lake, where Follow the Contour has helped me nail down three muskis over 40" and who knows how many smallies, because I can...just...fish...while the trolling motor does the work, regardless of wind, current, or whatever... ...if you lived closer, and there was open water, I'd say, "Come on up, let's fish!" It may or may not work for you, but it works for me...

Mine could too...and my daughter. I'd rather read, or look for informative info about my hobbies on the internet...it's quieter that way. We don't miss broadcast TV at all, and one particular kind of advertising...the kind that seems to appear during election years...is blessedly missing from our lives. News stopped being news a long while back, so there's no loss there either.

I had that set up for years, hardly every used it. I tried it forts up in Canada, and I just didn't like the way it showed structure. That was Pre-MEGA, so maybe it's better now? Either 360°, or making a pass far enough out to not disturb the fish works better for me.

Good choice. We don't do broadcast TV either. I haven't seen a commercial in so long I've forgotten how annoying they are. Same with radio. I listen to Sirius channels that don't have advertisements... Life is good...

...you don't need thread sealer...

Yep. Same "box" different screen, higher resolution. The 9" Helix G2N MEGA is 800 x 480. Call it 7.8" x 4.4" The 10" Helix G2N MEGA is 1,024 s 600. Let's call that 8.8" x 5" That's 60%. 9.68 more square inches of screen, or 28% in round numbers... ...If can comfortably write the check, I'm all over that... https://tabersbestreviews.com/humminbird-helix-10-review-1-reason-size-matters/ That inch is a considerable difference in screen size...and resolution. ...and it's not a racket, the prices are market driven...the companies live and die by their reputation, and they all have good ones. Hmmmm... I keep my big screen - 12" - at the console, because when I'm moving faster...call it 6 MPH...I want the biggest screen I can get to look for structure I can come back to fish later...when I'm searching I want detail to study, sometimes I'll make two or three passes on SI well outside the range I'll be fishing from to get the structure nailed down in my head...then move in and fish it in detail from the bow... ...then I'm fine with the 10" at the bow, a little less detail because then I'm fishing not searching...detail isn't as important to me...I am most often on 2D, or DI, or sometimes 360°. I glance and fish, glance and fish... Fishing is as individual as fingerprints, so I never tell anyone they're doing it wrong, but I can state that your plan, for me, would not work at all. Mine wouldn't work for you either...and that's cool... IMO, SI on the trolling motor does little, but there's a ton of folks out there who love it. The hub's about $270, the cables ain't cheap either... Two map cards with Helix...Solix can share.

There is something else going on here causing you have to replace batteries every year. My batteries are on my chargers just about every minute of the year that they are not on a lake or on the trailer on the way to or from one...and my batteries last 5 years plus. I don't even bother to pull them over the winter, they stay in the boat at temperatures well south of 0° and they last just fine...and I do not buy expensive batteries. I happen to have Minn Kota chargers, but the other brands do just as well, if not better...I know all kinds of people using all of the main brands here and none of them are experiencing that kind of absurd battery life... You'll be fine. Plug the chargers in when you get home, every day, all the time and don't sweat the small stuff. There's some other factor impacting @Way2slow batteries. Run the chargers as intended and you'll be fine.

Nailed it. There is zero real difference between the two (or any other major brand)...what makes the difference is if the menus make sense to you so you can find the stuff you're paying money for. Humminbird makes sense to me, I have friends who love Lowrance and Garmin...they all work great. If you are linking to a trolling motor, there's some incentive to go one way or the other, but again, it's really preference. ...I'd compare the difference more to Mac vs. Windows rather than Chevy/Ford...but I'm a sports car guy at heart and neither really makes one...

It has more to do with the parents than the schools system, IMO.

Musky. Big one, about 54" IIRC. Feed 'im to the musky...

...and they strip away the fish's slime layer...which can lead to all kinds of problems.

I'da killed the doctor's appt....

If you only have three batteries on board, all you need is a three bank. 10 amps is plenty, unless you run the batteries down near dead and need to be back on the water fast...then 15 mps is better. I run 5 batteries: 3 for the trolling motor... 1 for my electronics... 1 for cranking the big motor and the rest of the boat. I use a MK 4 bank charger for the 3 trolling motor batteries and the cranking batttery, and a single bank charger for the electronics battery. Lots of people my view that as excessive...I can't say they are wrong, but it makes me happy and I'm about guaranteed to never find myself in a situation where I don't have a back-up.

MEGA is nuts, in terms of detail...witll it catch extra fish? I dunno. I went with it at my console (12") because it was time to update, and that's the biggest screen that fit the budget. I went with a 10" DI G2N at the the bow, again, biggest screen that fit the budget...and...shared the MEGA transducer at from the other unit. They both also share the 360°. ...all that said...the biggest reason for staying with Humminbird for me was the ability to use all the ways they link with my Ulterra. Your Terrova will do the same. ...as far as picking a Helix unit, I advise picking the biggest screen you can afford with MEGA...because you'll be crabby later if you don't and will probably wind up upgrading...