Junk Fisherman

After having this issue with Ned rig hooks breaking, I started making my own jigs with Mustad hooks. I haven't broken and hooks and have straightened a few out when hung in wood. Plus, the hooks are about 0.20$ each.

I've had issues with wind knots. For my small swimbait rod I went to straight 7 lb Gamma Touch. Without the braid/leader knot, wind knots are practically eliminated. Seems like my wind knot issues with braid are worse when I am trying to make long casts.

Dobyns Champ 792

Going used is a great option. Since you are a new boat owner you are going to have growing pains. Getting an older boat with some scratches and dings will make it easier when you run into the dock or have some other inevitable mishap. Obviously, you need to make sure the motor is in good running shape so you'll want to get a compression check at a marine shop before buying. Just running the motor on the driveway is not enough- trust me I know about this one. A 17' Tracker would be a good starter boat. They are a no-frills boat. As long as the motor is in good shape you can replace, upgrade anything else. But I'd go used and then in a few years upgrade once you are a more experienced boater. Good luck.

I have owned both and I prefer the 742 for dropshots. The extra 4” gives you extra leverage when fighting big fish and allows you to move more line when setting the hook set. Actually, the more I use longer rods, I don’t ever prefer a 7’ rod. My Dobyns arsenal is a 741, 742, 763, 792, and the Steez I use is a 7’6. I have an older 702 that is backup and it feels inferior to my longer rods. And to answer your question, the 742 is a little heavier than the 702. The 742 has the full handle while the 702 is a split grip. Initially, I returned the 742 and went with the 702 but after breaking the 702, I replaced it with a 742 and prefer it much more. The weight of the 742 is a non-issue as is the full handle. Good luck.

Congrats! It’s a beaut! For me, the 19.5’ish is the real sweet spot for boats. Definitely big enough for 2 guys but savings on the total price and a foot or so shorter in the garage makes a big difference (at least it does for me).

Looking forward to seeing the pics! Congrats.

Who gets pneumonia in June? I do. I left to go camping on a Tuesday while my wife and kids would come up the following Saturday after school was over to spend a week in northern Michigan for our yearly vacation. I felt great the first couple days and caught some big fish even though it was the heaviest fishing pressure I had ever seen in the area. Camping was excellent with great sleeping weather. But come Saturday I was completely exhausted and initially attributed it to spending 8-10 hours in a boat for 5 days in a row. I literally laid in my boat on Saturday twice since I was so tired. The sun was warm but not hot and it felt great just to lay down. But exhaustion led to a 104-105 fever by the end of the day and a trip to the ER where I was diagnosed with either sun poisoning or some virus. They ran a bunch of tests but everything came back negative. So for the next 4 days I primarily spent it in the bedroom of our rental taking Tylenol and Advil and a variety of fluids. Nonstop alternating between sweating and shivering, a yo-yo-ing fever that had a daily morning and evening spike, with some absolutely awful nights of sleep or lack thereof. Oh yeah- and there were some gorgeous days but I was so sick I wasn't really thinking about the fishing I was missing. Without any appetite, I lost 10 lbs from the start of my trip to the end. Thankfully, my wife and kids had a good time and were able to do most everything on their agenda except getting out on the boat and catching some fish. Then came the 5 hour drive home while towing my boat and still suffering from a 102ish temp. That was brutal! I spent all my energy focusing on driving and thankfully the traffic was very light. I literally had metal goals to reach throughout the drive which made it a little easier. Thankfully, I didn't have to pull over and rest or even get a hotel room and sleep. Got home, went to the ER again, and was finally diagnosed with pneumonia. Now I am on a couple antibiotics and on the road to recovery. Haven't had a fever in several days, am getting good sleep, and am feeling stronger everyday. Hopefully, I can get out next week. So how say you? Ever have sickness ruin a fishing trip?

Ralph Steiger specializes in smallies but he is multispecies. Nice guy too. I haven’t gotten a trip with him but I have gone to several of his seminars and he is extremely knowledgeable.

The trend has been going to longer rods. I haven’t used a rod under 7’ in several years and the last few rods I’ve bought were 2 @ 7’6”, 2 @ 7’4”, and a 7’9”. About the only time I would use a short rod is if I were skipping docks.

Had a fun day at Braidwood Wednesday. The biggest 3 were 17" but I caught a bunch of 14"-16" chunky fish. Probably caught 50 or so on the day. Had a couple flurries of fish on every cast or every other cast. The bigger fish came pitching weeds in the shadows early but as the sun came out that bite died. I was surprised how many fish I caught on a couple relatively small flats throughout the day. Caught fish on a Stupid tube, swimbait, and a dropshot. I caught so many on a dropshot that I was going through different dropshot baits that I had never caught fish on before. A half shell was a big producer. I did realize how nice it is to use the Z Man plastics since they stay on the hook so much better than a traditional plastic. Hell, I never even took the Ned Rig rod out of the box.

Northern Door Co (Rowley's Bay) 10 years ago. This is 30 miles or so north of Sturgeon Bay on Lake Michigan. 10 years ago was before they made a launch public and you had to either stay at the lodge to launch or make a 15+ mile run to get there. This is where guides would always take people to catch 5-7 lb smallmouth in 4-8' of water for most of the summer. Last summer when I launched there on a Tuesday, there was a Texas and Arkansas truck in the parking lot.

I had these issues and added a the SE Hydrofoil from BPS and it solved my problem. For $100 it was a quick fix.

I wouldn't want to go boatless for the rest of the year. Get it now and start fishing.

I was going to use my big motor but I would use the TM if that was most effective. This is something I only plan to do with my wife and kids.

Speaking of trolling, I plan on doing it in a couple weeks with my kids just to get them on some fish. I was primarily going to troll cranks on shallow flats and drop off areas. What speeds do you usually troll at? I was planning on trolling shad rap type baits. Any other tips? I have never trolled before.

Caracal with a Yamaha Give me all those fancy fishfinders that I am too cheap to buy.

There's a couple places I've decided to never go to again. A river that is close that is a popular tournament spot and a big lake in southern Illinois (Rend). If my club schedules a tournament on a body of water I don't like, I don't go.

I have gotten up a couple times at 1:30 to make a 3+ hour drive and be on the water at daylight. Not anymore. I am too tired while driving and lack energy throughout the day by waking up at that time. Nowadays, 3 AM is about the earliest I will wake up for the day. I'll leave the day before and get a good night sleep close to the lake if I want to be somewhere at daylight that is several hours away.

I have several reels in that price range that are 15-20 years-old that are still going strong. I do yearly maintenance and have had to replace a couple bearings but they are all still excellent. My experience has been that the Daiwa and Shimano reels in that $100-$200 range are very reliable if treated properly.

In the last 2 months I have spent on my boat: $272 for insurance $340 for relube my bearings, trailer inspection, 1 new tire $120 new starting battery $157 license plate sticker for the trailer That was kinda depressing adding that up.

Musky (never got one in the boat) Sturgeon

Didn't I see a big one that was just caught in the Ohio River?

While doing research last fall, a fella who owned both the Steez and NRX told me they are both unbelievable rods with comparable sensitivity. He slightly favored the Steez but said you couldn't go wrong either way. Granted, this was the previous model of the NRX. The Destroyer had not been launched yet. The wide range of 1/16th oz to 3/4th oz is what made me go with the Steez. It can handle anything I throw on a spinning rod. I originally bought the rod for 3/8 to 1/2 oz drop shotting but it was so light and sensitive that I started using it for Ned rigs. It is lighter, more sensitive, and with more backbone than my Dobyns Champ HP 741 and 742. Besides the Ned rig, I have only used it for 1/2 oz blade baits. Give me another month after I take my first long trip up north and I can tell you how it handles tubes and big smallmouth.

Steez 761 MML 1/16 to 3/4 oz I have used it primarily for 1/16th oz Neds but will use it for whatever is the hot bite. Many use it as a deep water tube rod. Do a little research on the rod. It had lived up to the hype for me. Easily the best rod I have ever used.