BassB8Caster

I'm in western Maine about an hour and a half from nh. I agree. They are out there. Not a lot but there are some big old girls to be caught. I'm dedicating this year to big swimbaits to target the biggest fish of the waters I fish. I agree with catch and release of the big ones. It's imperative to pass those genes on.

I live in norway. Oxford hills area. Lots of small ponds around me. From my (limited) experience cruisers are very difficult to catch. I've committed this year to big swimbait (8" hudds, 7" real prey golden shiner, 9.5" trout glide, a rig, etc). Hoping big bait equals big fish. I'm fine with catching less. Heading out tomorrow. Gonna be cloudy with a chance of rain. Could be a good day.

Appears that boat dealers (lund atleast) in Maine and NH are not very good (on the sales side at least). Seem to careless about customer service and earning ones business. That def concerns me a little. Im not as concerned with the sales side as thats just a numbers game. Im concerned with good services, as issues can and probably will come up. One dealer (closest one to me) actually responded quite quickly. Unfortunately they do not have a renegade in stock and said they will not be bringing one in. I agree with you about concern with proper install of electronics (and any dealer installed item). Simple things like proper fuses for upgraded electronics. Im considering installing my own as well. As far as the Vexus goes, it is very similar to the renegade with length, motor options, etc. Not sure of specs as they are not listed online yet. I guess its old ranger guys making them / starting the company. I do not mind travelling to CT to buy the boat, my concern is if i have a warranty issue with the boat i would have to go to CT, then back to pick it up. I would think that if i have motor issues, any Mercury dealer will honor that, regardless where i bought the boat. The vexus also has hydraulic steering standard, a nice upgrade. The base price does not come with any electronics. I was hoping (looking to be wishful thinking as i look more) to be $30k or under with 2 power poles, upgraded trolling motor and some sort of graphs (console and bow). We will see when the time comes how much over that $26k a base boat and trailer runs (with dealer prep fees etc).

Thanks for the feedback. Yeah 30k is really the highest I want to go. I'm aware the Lund price does not include de the dealer prep fees. Just want sure how much that would be. Does that trailer you got have a braking system? What exactly is the upgrade? I emailed greens marine twice. The first time he quoted me for stuff I didn't ask for. Then I asked him what the boat price he gave me included and it had stuff I didn't want (crappie option, etc). If someone wants to buy something from you wouldn't you ask them what they want instead of putting options on that they may not want? That turned me off. Done with them. Never asked me one question about the order. Quoted me 26995 for boat and trailer. Im in no hurry to buy. Will see what dealer inventory is this fall. Ptices should come down some. Vexus is coming out with a pretty sick boat. 18'9 aluminum fiberglass hybrid base price around 26k. Includes 115 motor, trailer with brakes, hydraulic steering, fortrex TM etc. Pretty good deal. Closest dealer will be connecticut tho.

I'm a little further than you in western Maine. Heading out tomorrow to a new lake (300 acres) that has a good sm fishery. Assuming I'm just behind southern Maine activity (cooler temps up here), Where am I going to find the big females? Just off spawning flats? Drop offs? Are they still looking to fatten up before spawn starts or are they now focusing on spawn activity? What baits are best for the big girls?

I live in western Maine. I have 3 dealers (Lund) within 1.5 hours of me. One (the closest one) has an open house event soon. So I contacted them to see if they will have a renegade in stock to check out. Nope. Said they haven't even had anyone order one. The other two I emailed to get info about the buying/ordering/upgrading process. Got an email with a quote (NH dealer) with add ons I asked for (except they quoted talons instead of power poles. Not a word from the other dealer. Apparently they don't care to sell a boat. The quote I got was high (in my opinion). They priced the boat and motor (115 merc) at $26995. Then upgrading to an 80lb ultrex, one helix 9 mega si at console and 2 talons final price is $35989. I've seen this boat without the upgrades for 23 and change. I believe renegadebassin said he paid just over 23 for his. Def not the selling urgency like with vehicles. We will see this fall.

I appreciate the input. When one posts something like this on a forum like this one with 180 plus views (and also another big swimbait forum) discussing one of the biggest names (mattlures) in swimbait, to me, that speaks volumes. Im not getting feedback for a reason. I have yet to get one person say that it is a bait I need to hang on to and is worth every penny. That says it all. It's way too specialized for me. And there are many more other baits that can do the same thing (dead stick) plus do other things to be used more than the dead stick. Basically a one trick pony in my eyes.

The bridge cuts the lake into two parts. One part being above (north) of the bridge, the other below (south). I have not fished Moose pond but from what i hear or read, most say to go above the bridge (north) for great LM habitat.

Frog

spot on! thanks for that. I agree that it would probably work with a stubborn bass or follower. Maybe even cruisers as well.

I agree with all that. I'm not opposed to specialty baits. Having them is important. I would much rather slow roll a hudd or slammer (or rat) than sit and watch a deadsticked bait giving a lottle twitIm a little too impatient for it. Im not finding much feedback at all regarding these. That says a lot. Not saying they dont work. We all know a big bass wants the biggest meal for the least amount of work. That 13" is a beastly bait.

I agree. But that is putting all the value in being there on stocking day, or shortly there after. Not always possible. Makes bait really specialized imo. Maybe too specialized .

Anyone have any experience fishing this swimbait? I picked one up in a lot I bought. I understand the technique of dead sticking. My question is, how can this be effective? Best way would be to be on a body of water that gets stocked, as they do not all survive. Take that scenario away. I fish out of a kayak without any electronics. So I do not know 100% if there are fish around me. I can up my odds with depths, structure etc. Swimbaits allow you to cover water. But dead sticking this bait is much slower. So fish really need to be around. I would assume the clearer the water the better. Better flat calm or ripples? Worth keeping or better off with rof 0 hudd? Any tips would be great!

Are you talking about above the bridge on moose pond?

Check out the Jackall Dowz swimmer. They are taking pre orders on TW. $50. Looks like an awesome glide. I cant wait to get one. I already bought a Baitsanity Trout explorer. Next glide will def be a dowz. Watch the japanese videos on youtube.

Drive it home and dont stop grinding her in until she is in the net. If you let her turn her head you increase your chances of a spit bait. The more you play with the fish the more time she has to use leverage to spit it. If she swims at you thats another challenge. Crank crank crank.

Yes of course. I went back in my paragraph and put that on the wrong side of the 2. The 2 belongs to the power poles. Yes from all I've seen the xpress are more. If I remember correctly xpress does not build online. I also do not have a dealer anywhere close to me. But they are nice for sure. Plus have a thicker aluminum.

Im about 99% sure this will be my first boat (the 1875). I have pretty much priced out every brand online that can be priced and optioned, and IMO the best value is the renegade. Not to mention Lund's great reputation with building a quality alumuminum boat. What i also like about the renegade is its wide beam. There are other nice boats at good prices, but only have a 92" beam (VS 95" in the renegade). Now i have never owned a bass boat, but i would think the 4" of width would be important. As far as wind....depending on how windy you will still venture into.....pick up a MK trolling motor that has spot lock (i-pilot). Heard nothing but great things about the spot lock feature. IMO a renegade 1875 renegade with two Merc 115 4s, 8' power poles, MK Ultrex or Ulterra, HB helix 10 mega SI on bow and HB helix 9 si on console is a boat that will last me for many many years. And i would assume this can be had around or just under $30k. Look up posts/threads made by RenegadeBassin on here, he did a great write up on the renegade he bought.

@RenegadeBassin thank you for the follow up. The info i am looking for. I think the only down side i could see with the lunds (of course layout is personal preference) is the .100 hull thickness. it would be nice to see a higher guage here. But i dont plan on running into stuff. I was initially set on a used fiberglass but aluminum would be better for taking the family out and pulling up to a beach. Nice to see that the 1875 can hold 8' rods as well. I love how big the front deck is too.

@RennegadeBassin...great write up and thanks for keeping us posted with your progress. Thats one bad ass boat. Ive started looking at boats and for the price of the 1875, it really cant be beat. Your finished product is basically the boat i want. Looking back on how you went about everything, would you have the dealer set up everything for you so all you have to do is go pick it up? So have them install talons (are 12' available for the 1875?), electronics etc? I like the idea of saving money and it seems as though dealer prices for electronics (probably everything for that matter) are much higher than sourcing them through companies listed in this thread. Im in western maine and cant wait to see one of these bad boys. Mid-Maine marine shows a white one in stock @ just under $23k. Not bad. One other question, does your boat sit so the bow is higher than the stern? I see a lot of aluminum boats do this. From what ive seen online the renegade seems to side pretty level bow to stern.

Huddleston fish great slooowww. Savage gear do not. They need more speed. Check out real prey swimbaits. Very nice baits.

Exactly. I looked to see when fathers day was for the deal mentioned above and was like "no way, not waiting that long". Guess that's part of the game when using good the better pricier baits. Especially hand made customs.

That's a long time to wait, lol. Looking to buy before ice out. Oh well. Ebay it is.

Nice. My next 2 purchases are the 7" shiner (tempted to go with the mega) and a 9" slammer. Pumped for swimbait hogs this season.

I hear ya. trust me im all about getting the most for my money. I wouldnt buy there if i could get what i need elsewhere. I always try to find ways to buy gift cards at discounts then use them during sales to double dip to get more off. I HATE paying retail, and i usually dont. Problem is, the places i can get discounts (Dicks, bass pro etc) cost more than say ebay. So ill buy on ebay. Im asking about TW because i need to pick up an MS Slammer so i was hoping to get some $ off. I have a list of specific baits im buying, so i am looking around now / looking ahead. I picked up my tatula 200hd from them. Good prices.