Tennessee Boy

Ask yourself where would you take the outboard for service if required? Would you ship it to onlineoutboards.com or take it to Bass Pro? That's where you should buy it. Personally, I would look for a local marine dealer with a good reputation and buy from them if they can match the price.

I'm not a Garmin user but I am a retired software developer so I've spent much of my life debugging issues like this so I'll offer some thoughts. My first guess is that the processor in your unit is having a hard time keeping up when it has to both process the sonar returns and load the map. It prioritizes the sonar so the map load lags behind. I assume you can change the orientation of the map. If so set it to "North Up" so the unit does not have to adjust the orientation of the map while loading it. If this helps then my theory is probably correct. Does the map perform normally once it loads? Try running a split screen on one of the console units to see if you have the same problem. If not and the units are the same models or similar then I would have less confidence in my theory that the processor is overloaded.

If you don't have 360 imaging or FFS, I can see how it could be useful in certain situations. You have to be able to comprehend what you're looking at. For instance, it could help you gauge the distance to a submerged weed line.

The golden era of bass fishing started on April 14th 2022. The day I retired.😆

If this had happened in my old club that I fished in the 90s, I would not have an issue with it. It was a friendly club where everyone trusted the tournament director's word. There were a few guys that took themselves too seriously that would have complained, but they complained about everything. The tournament entry fees were $20 a person if I remember correctly. Now, if it's a big money for-profit trail, the tournament director should not be fishing to begin with.

You are correct. The waypoint’s coordinates will be the GPS position when the ping was made from the transducer for the data you mark in the sonar history. I have done this countless times.

Every modern fish finder that I've used records the GPS position when it pings with the data returned from the ping. If you mark something in the sonar history it uses that recorded position and does the math on side imaging to estimate the distance out from the boat. As @casts_by_fly noted, the position is where the GPS is located which is usually the console and the ping happens at the transducer which can be a few feet away. There is also the error that @Team9nine referred to that can be significant with side imaging. You also have GPS position error which can be up to 16 feet but is usually within 5 feet. All this can add up and can be a challenge if you are marking something small like a brush pile. The modern solution is to use the waypoint to get close and use 360 imaging or FFS to find the exact location of the object after you drop the trolling motor. All it takes is more money. 😁

This thread is heading in a bad direction.

I didn’t choose bass fishing. Bass fishing chose me.

RIP Ben

I fished tournaments in the 90s. In those days technique specific rods were not a thing. If I’m on a worm bite I almost always want multiple Texas rigs with different weights that I can switch between. Sometimes I’ll have three different weights with the same bait. If the goal is the perfect setup for a presentation then I would need three slightly different setups for each T-rig because they all have different weights. I would need 50 rods for all of the different options with all the different baits if the goal is to have the perfect rod and reel for a 6 inch Zoom lizard with a 1/4 oz weight. So I don’t have a Texas rig rod in my boat but I might have 6 or 8 rods that I can fish a Texas rig on. I chose flexibility in my presentations over perfectly matched equipment. I’m far more concerned about dialing in the bite than increasing my landing percentage by a few points as you stated. That’s just me.

I don't need 4 rods just for that because I don't dedicate rods to one technique. Technique specific rods are a popular trend that is baffling to me but to each his own.

I usually carry about 10 rods. I don't play the technique specific rod game. I usually have from 1 to 4 rods with a texas rig tied on. The number depends many factors. I might have between zero and four Carolina rigs tied on at other times. I don't think it's possible to truly dial in a worm bite with just one worm rod.

A typical day on bassresource.com.

I’ll speak to the places I’m familiar with. Nashville - I grew up in Nashville and now live east of the city. The city is booming. It has a lot to offer culturally. It is experiencing a lot of growing pains. Expect to pay a half million more for a house on the lake compared to one across the street. The area lakes offer decent fishing. They are impossible to fish on the weekends during the summer but if you’re retired it’s not a problem. If you’re willing to drive a couple of hours you’ll have access to very diverse and world class fisheries. Chattanooga - I love the city. You should visit there to check it out. The fishing is good. Chickamauga seems to be in decline back to where it was before it boomed a few years ago with the introduction of Florida bass genetics. Any lake on the Tennessee River offers good fishing. There are some good lakes within a couple of hours. North Alabama - I lived in Huntsville for 12 years in the late 80s and 90s. It’s a good sized affluent city full of engineers that work for NASA and the military. The fishing is fantastic on all of the North Alabama lakes on the Tennessee River. The cost of living is reasonable. I always recommend that people take a look at Wilson lake if you’re looking for a home on the lake. It’s a beautiful lake with very nice homes that are reasonably priced. The nearby towns in northwest Alabama are small but full of charm. Take a vacation to Mussel Shoals and you might fall in love with it. I love fishing on Wilson Lake. It’s a unique lake on the Tennessee River and has great smallmouth fishing. Pickwick, Guntersville, Wilson and Wheeler are world class lakes that are within a 90 minute drive from anywhere in North Alabama. You can also head south to Smith lake or one of the Coosa river lakes. It’s all good and offers a lot of fishing diversity.

If you do something that a manufacturer says not to do you accept the risk. What will actually happen if you do it? It depends on how many amp are needed to start your motor. It depends on the specs of the lifepo4 cells in your battery. It depends on the quality of your BMS and how it’s configured. A quality BMS should be able to protect your battery. You should be able to directly short the battery without damaging it. Can you trust the BMS in a cheap battery you bought on Amazon? I don’t know. You can check the battery’s manual to see what its short term current limits are. My BMS will shut down at 500 amps after 1/2 a second. It will shut down at 200 amps after 30 seconds. I think that would start my 90 hp Merc but I’m not sure. I carry an emergency battery pack. It can be recharged with my LifePo4 battery if necessary. If it failed I would use my LifePo4 to start the motor and take the risk if I was stranded without any other options. I have a Battleborn battery and I trust the BMS.

My first reel as a kid was a 202. Caught a 7 lb catfish on that reel. There was one of the original Zebco models introduced in 1949 in the family at one time. I don’t know what happened to it.

30 years ago I preached the importance of rod sensitivity as loud as anyone ever has. Today, I’m convinced it was all in my head. Detecting bites is a skill you learn. You cannot buy it.

I say get the best boat you can afford. The best way to know you can afford it is to pay cash.

The hook size is not the same as hook diameter.

https://10best.usatoday.com/awards/travel/best-college-for-sports-fans-2024/

They teach boat anatomy in the 4th grade in Tennessee public schools.

I say con as in conman then sole like the bottom of my shoe. That said, Yankees have the right to say it wrong if they like and I respect that. 😁

Glen used to upload an AI generated image to celebrate each holiday. I don’t know why he stopped. Guess I’ll have to do it myself. Happy Halloween everyone.

BASS is only contributing an extra $200,000 in 2025. The total is now 4.1 million. 4.1 million divided by 100 anglers is $41,000 (I minored in math in college 😆). The entry fees are gone and the payouts will drop to accommodate that.