Long Mike

Ken, any waitress flirting with you has very poor eyesight and should be carrying a white cane.

Jenga, you are comparing apples and oranges The cheaper item is a fuse. The other is a circuit breaker. Both work equally as well. The difference is that the circuit breaker is more convenient to use because if it pops all you have to do is push a button to reset it. The fuse needs to be replaced if it blows, so you need to carry a spare or two and be prepared to break out a screw driver to replace the fuse. On my boat I use a fuse. IMO circuit breakers are a waste of money. That said, if you are a tournament fisherman and time is of the essence, then the circuit breaker would best suit you. Whether or not you use either one is up to you, but you will void the warranty on your TM if you do not. BTW, mount it as close to the battery as possible. This will help protect the wiring going to the TM.

Yeah, Big-O is ONLY about four foot tall - at his waist line. My best guess is 6' 4" and about 240, but he's carrying a lot of body fat- say three pounds. For those of you who have seen the commercial featuring "the most interesting man in the world," I can say only that they forgot to interview Big-O. Drink wisely my friends

X2 on Jeff's response.

Why don't you ask your parents what they plan on doing with the boat? After all, it their house, driveway, and yard.

I agree with those who say you should buy a good used boat. With the economy the way it is, you can get a lot more boat for the same amount of money. Just make sure you have a reputable mechanic check it out before you lay out the cash.

106 here in Tulsa yesterday.

Back in the sixties and seventies, when I lived in the heart of Cajun country, many store owners had the sign "Ici en parle francais" in their windows. Based on the observations made during my last few trips back to Cajun country, no one has that sign in their store any longer and it seems that no one is speaking French any more. When I watch the series Swamp People, I see a people that are as Cajun as can be, but no one has uttered a word in French. Has the French language completely died out in only two generations?

Just in case you don't know, the positive lead is the red wire.

Back in the days when men were men and sheep were nervous, I rode a Schwinn.

With one exception, every rod I own has braid on it. Unless I'm fishing in the slop, a six foot flouro leader will be attached. I often re-tie the leader, but the braid just gos on and on.

Basslsover, I am the editor of many of the articles submitted to BassResource. I have read your potential submission and will PM you with my recommendations in the next day or so. In the meantime, stay in school. Who knows? You may be the next Ernest Hemingway - but not yet.

Welcome to our little club. Lots of nice people and lots of information here. Djibouti? Just another Middle East Shilthole. It's just across the street from Yemen. If you are allowed to say, what branch of the service are you in? I'm guessing that your are in the Navy and patrolling the straight.

Great bass Ian! My guess is eight pounds minimum. Terrific! Dripping Springs Lake is about five miles WSW of Okmulgee, OK. To my knowledge, it's one of the very few slot lakes in the state. It's a small lake, at only about 1,100 acres, but there's been more than one ten-pounder taken out of it.

Tom, I know how you feel. I lost my old buddy about a year ago. When he was a youngster he could jump up and grab a basket ball net at a dead run. He would hang there until I went to get him. Alas, time marched forward and we both grew older. At the age of twelve, there came a day when he could no longer get to his feet. I sat with him that evening with tears in my eyes, knowing that I would have to have him put down the next morning, and wondering how I could ever bring myself to do so. Being ever the good dog, he removed my burden by passing away in his sleep that evening. I still greatly miss him. I hate to admit it, but I have tears in my eyes as I type this.

Your on-board charger will not drain your batteries. It would be nice to know what the voltage is on the batteries now that you have the boat back in the drive. I suspect you have a short to ground in the cranking battery circuitry. Way2Slow should be able to shed some light on this.

Robert, glad we were able to handle it with email. BTW, your PM in-box is full, so you will receive no further PM's until you purge it. Dinner sounds great, but I hope we can get a day on the water.

Robert, I live in Tulsa. McAlester is about a ninety minute drive from here. I'll send you a PM later today with more info.

Addendum. I just saw my wife texting our daughter, who lives a mile away. I made the mistake of saying "Why don't you just call her. Texting is asinine." I am now officially in the dog house.

Snook, great minds think alike. My wife conned me into getting a smart phone. I kept it for two weeks and then swapped it for my old flip phone. Here's my philosophy. A cell phone is a device for making and receiving telephone calls. That's it. I have no need for my phone to do anything else. I abhor texting. If one wants to communicate with me, pick up the friggin phone and call me. If one wants to send me a text message, then send me an email. I'll read it when I get home. If I want to take a picture, I will use my digital camera. The photo quality is much better. I could rant further, but I would be preaching to the choir.

Ah, the ignorance and invincibility of youth.

Ian, welcome from a fellow Tulsan! PM me with your phone number and I will give you a call tomorrow at your convenience.

OH, HAPPY DAY! Grundlelove remotely logged on to my computer this evening and had my problem fixed within ten minutes. Adam, I can't thank you enough for your efforts!

Grundle, if Glenn says you are legit, then you are very much OK with me. I'll send you a PM this evening with my phone number and email address. And, thanks for your kind offer.

Grundle, it's not sorted out. The program is Windows Mail not Windows Live Mail if that makes any difference. My account is ...@att.net. Hope this helps.