Junk Fisherman

If you are handy, a lot of guys build back casting deck extensions and get carpet that matches or just about matches. You could make it removable. For a long time I thought I was getting a Crestliner Fish Hawk and that is what I planned on doing. And in terms of advice, go with the bigger engine. If you think of how long you'll own the boat and what it would cost per year to have the bigger motor, it becomes an easy decision. Good luck with your purchase.

Just as I suspected, it was the action of the rod that was causing my problem. Since I posted this thread I picked up a Dobyns Champion 703 which is a 7' MH fast action just like my 843 GLX (the other rod was a 7' MH extra fast). This past Saturday I was pitching both of them and had no issues with accuracy switching from one rod to the other. The problem wasn't my pitching technique.

My great spring continues. Caught a 19.5" brute on a squarebill and a 20" bass on a creature bait at Whalen on Saturday. Caught another small bass as well. Talked to another angler and he said the bite was slow and he hadn't caught anything. I'll take a slow day if the couple fish I catch are 4 lbers.

I would at least tie it down with a couple bungees. Have a red flag too.

My 9.9 from the 90s has been a reliable motor AND I have not been very good with maintenance. I only run it once or twice a year.

My 17' '92 Lowe goes 5.5 mi/hr with my 9.9 kicker on it. I use that motor on the 10 HP and 25 HP restricted lakes that we have in Illinois. Some of those lakes are great and much better than the heavily-fished tournament lakes. I would never consider a boat like the OP is mentioning unless I lived in an area where I was fishing a HP Lake 80%-90% of the time.

Thanks for all the replies. Just placed an order for a 703. I know a lot of you guys prefer a 704 or 734 but I have always liked my rods on the lighter action side. Last year everyone said to get a 702 for dropshotting and I found that the 701 is what I ended up using for dropshotting. Plus, I am going to use this 703 when I am fishing for smallies with 4" swimbaits. Thanks for the all info.

Spent the morning fishing Rock Run Rookery. Temps 54-55 degrees. Only fished 6:30-to a little after 11. Slow bite. Only caught a couple 15"-16" fish and a 13" bass. I don't know why I don't fish there more. It's such an easy 30 min drive from my house. Fished Little Grassy a week back a had a couple great days. So happy I have a 9.9 on my boat!

I SUCK at knots. I just don't have the dexterity in my fingers. I watch Youtube clips and literally cannot get my fingers to do what I see on the video. With all that said, one of my major goals this year was to change from pure flourocarbon on spinning gear to a braid/fluor combo. So far, so good. I have been using the Seaguar knot this spring and have not had any issues. Check it out on Youtube. If I can tie it, anyone can. But I do want to experiment with the FG knot once I feel I have completely mastered using the Seaguar knot. I haven't wrestled with any 4-5 lb smallmouth yet. That will be the true test.

Sounds great! Plus, they have increased the mileage so it's not as bad as before. I want to get the 6' bed so I can get a cap and sleep in the back while camping.

Looking at upgrading a rod to a Dobyns Champion. This rod will be used for pitching plastics such as beavers, baby brush hogs, and chigger craws with a 3/16 to 1/4 oz sinker and 15 lb line. I have a 843 GLX that is my main rod for this application that is fantastic but I want to add a Dobyns Champion. I bought two Champs for spinning last year and I love them. What do you think? Thanks for any insight.

I haven't done that controlled of a comparison. I am using the same line and I have generally the reels set up the same way. I'll have to play around with it more. Thanks.

I am interested in this topic. I recently bought some 12 lb Red Label but was wondering if there is anything better. I fish for a lot of clear water smallies so the line has to be either fluoro or fluoro-coated.

Unless you don't want such a big truck. Why are they so big? I loved the Tundra from about 10 years ago. That was a normal sized full size truck. I had a POS F-150 with an 8' bed and a cap which was perfect for fishing and camping. But I live in the suburbs and would often drive in the city and the size of that truck was an inconvenience. For me, the best compromise is a 4-door Tacoma with a 6' bed. Still considering the Tundra with the access cab though.

So this is common? I've never heard anyone else complain about it. It makes perfect sense. My problem with efficiency is that I'll often use my 2nd pitching combo when I come up to a piece of structure and I've made a half dozen or so pitches with my primary plastic and then I want to give it another look before leaving. The first pitch is 6' up in the air and the bait falls 4' short from where I want it. LOL- I am not fishing for a truck but it is annoying. Thanks.

My main pitching rods for plastics are an 843 GLX and 7' MHXF Avid. When I switch from one to the other my accuracy is horrible. Either I pitch high or low. It takes a couple pitches to adjust. Obviously, this is a problem and it takes away from my efficiency. Anybody else have this problem? I am guessing it is because of the rod actions. Thanks for any insight.

Good info in this thread. With the Double Cab I can put 7' rods diagonal from the backseat to the passenger seat as long as there is no one sitting there. The access cab is definitely louder than the double cab. My dad has the access cab (we are a Toyota Family) and it is quite a bit louder than mine. He has often complained about it while I have no issues with noise in my double cab. Just a note- the new Tacoma offers a moon roof option. If I get another Tacoma (considering a Tundra), I will definitely get one.

I have a V6 Tacoma and I tow a 17.5" semi-deep V with a 70 hp and I can tell it's there. It tows it without problem overall but I feel it when accelerating or going up big hills. To get the OP's question, if you know that you are going to be upgrading to a tin bassboat in a few years, I would not buy a new 4 cyl Toyota. There's a good chance you won't be happy with the performance and want to get a bigger truck. If you are buying a used Tacoma then you won't take a big depreciation hit when you sell so you can upgrade your truck if/when you need to. Overall, I am a big fan of the Tacoma. While I agree North's premise about towing capacities, I wouldn't want to tow a 3000 lb boat with a vehicle rated for 3500 lbs. If it's a 1-time deal or you only fish locally, fine but not if you taking multiple 3-4 hour trips every year. I just think you are taxing the engine too much.

Of course you can find something in that price range. Here's an example- I am getting about ready to sell my '92 Lowe for 2k or less and if you put a new TM on there, it will be a fishing machine. Semi-deep V with a bassboat layout. Motor runs great. It will easily give someone 5 good years of fishing.

I did with a narrow 14' V many years ago. It was tippy but as long as I stood still, it was fine. Definitely better IMO than bench seats. Caught hundreds of fish in that little boat. A buddy I sold it to tore it out since he didn't like it,

Yeap

Anything going on in the far southern IL lakes? Headed down next week. Not sure what lakes I am going to fish yet. Egypt and Cedar are the lakes I have been hitting the last couple years. Thanks.

I've had a '92 Lowe 17' for the last 15 years and it has been very solid.

Surprised no one mentioned the article from Bassmaster about the fishermen in northern Michigan whose best bait is a small pink worm. He either fishes it wacky or drop shots it. It was either this past episode or the one before it.

8 lb P-Line Fluorocarbon has been my go-to spinning line for the past several years. I have been using Power Pro Super Slick 8 this spring and I love the sensitivity.