K1500

Congrats on the new boat!

Your setup is beyond the scope of my experience but I can attest that my Mercury has a plastic ‘blowout’ ring that wears pretty quickly and the prop cavitates when it is worn. I go through roughly one ring every 20’ish hours on the motor.

I have a 20 foot bay boat with a big front deck. It can be done but it can also be dicey, it just depends on the anglers, what they are fishing, etc.

I fish a fair amount of the time for smallmouth deep as well. Vertical jigging is a favorite technique of mine, and it seems to do pretty well when the fish aren't shallow or if they have lockjaw.

One observation is the open area around the CC is actually really nice. It reduces crowding and gives a great place to stand that is lower than the decks, especially in rough water. For any kind of vertical or pitching presentation it is a great place to fish from. You can cast from there as well but you do have the CC in the way depending on how you are casting. I also really like driving standing up with a leaning post. I don’t have a lot of experience in a true bass boat but visibility is phenomenal and it takes almost all of the sting out of rough water because your legs act as giant shock absorbers. If it is really rough, my passengers sometimes elect to stand and use the grab bar next to the CC. My boat isn’t near as big or fancy as the Whaler mentioned in the other thread, but I could see the same advantages apply to a larger CC.

I figured I would bump this thread with a 2-year (ish) update for those who are interested. The boat has been phenomenal for my use. I have about 110 hours on the main motor, no telling how much time on the trolling motor. The boat has done everything I asked of it. It pulls a tube great with the 115 and a 17 pitch 4 blade prop. I also bought a 19 pitch 4 blade which gives me more top end when fishing. It handles 6 people onboard for a pleasure cruise plus tubing no problems at all. Rough water handling seems fine to me. I do notice the wind when on the trolling motor, but anchor mode and track lock make the wind less of an issue. The Mercury motor has been trouble free and gets good fuel economy. The trolling motor did have issues that were covered under warranty. The front deck is large, and fishing off the back is fine. I can fish anglers off the sides too if needed, but I usually fish with just 2 anglers onboard. The draft is also shallow enough to get into tight spots. Storage is fine for my needs. I have 15-18 rods on board with room for more if needed. I do use rod socks on all my rods to eliminate tangles, and I believe this makes a huge difference. The main storage limitation is tackle. I use a bag and a backpack that fits all I need and put them on the back deck beneath the chair out of the way. It does fit four Plano boxes in built in storage behind the back seat. I use the under deck and console storage for other things. I also use the baitwell as dry storage for miscellaneous items. I really like the worry-free nature of aluminum for my needs. The Lowe is 25% thicker and has around twice the foam as compared to the Ranger bay I was looking at. It seems like a really quiet boat when fishing, no 'aluminum' slapping noises when fishing. Bottom line, if I had to do it all over I don't think I would change a thing.

I can’t comment on the listed boats, but I when through this a couple years ago and picked a Lowe Bay 20. It has a Bimini top, nameplate capacity is 8, tows a double tube no problem with a Mercury 115 pro XS CT. I mostly bass fish, but I do cruise and swim and tube with the family. The bay boat isn’t really common inland, but it makes a great bass boat and I get tons of complements. The center console that has a lower footwell also gives more stability for folks that don’t have good sea legs. I have around 20 rods on mine, so locker capacity seems fine to me. If I had to to do over again I don’t think I would change a thing.

Are you using one of the red Harbor Freight free multimeter to test the battery charge? The ones I have are been far enough off they were worthless for testing batteries for ‘state of charge’. They are ok for continuity or voltage on/off, but are untrustworthy for anything that requires an actual accurate reading.

I have done this as well. I didn’t like it on my rod, but I flipped once and lost a rod. I got it back by snagging the line (it was hung up) but it was a pain.

Does your 12 volt motor so the job? Are you looking for more battery life or more power? If you just want more battery life I believe you should be able to wire two 12v batteries to feed the trolling motor in parallel, providing double the battery life without having to rewire the trolling motor feed.

Bank or boat? in a boat, as long as they fit in a locker feel free to fill it up. I have maybe 15-20 on the boat between two people. Bank fishing I can’t imagine dragging more than two along, and I would only bring one if I planned on moving around as I fished (vs sitting in one place). If I am bank fishing I will have an extra setup in the truck in case conditions change or my primary goes down.

Mountain Home AR area has Bull Shoals, Norfork, and the White and Norfork trout rivers. Beaver is about an hour or so away. It is close to Branson and the fishing up there.

I’ve got a 20’ bay boat with a 115 pro XS CT and I went from a 4 blade 17 pitch aluminum to the same blade in a 19 pitch and gained around 6-7 MPH. I did lose a little bit of hole shot. Although I haven’t pulled a tube with the 19 pitch I can tell I will be way better off with the 17 pitch for that application. There are charts listing prop recommendations. You will do best if you know your boat motor max RPM and your speed when running at max RPM (or max the motor will go). Mercury has a pretty good calculator and they were spot on in the RPM drop and MPH gain I saw when switching props.

When I flipped my kayak a few years ago, the tackle bag floated like a cork. I would always tie it in with a piece of paracord, just in case. The rod sunk like a rock.

This. Over your battery owning life it will pay off many times. Get a carbon pile tester and you will have a better tester than most parts stores use. I have over 10 batteries in service, so I wind up doing battery work pretty often. Your needs may be more modest. You could also take it to an auto parts store for a free battery test.

Objects are more buoyant in cold water, as it is more dense than warm water.

Regardless of the continuing support from BRP, I would imagine that at the very least the value of an Evinrude equipped boat would/should be quite a bit less than a the same boat with a currently manufactured power plant. You should get a really ‘good deal’ on price to entice you to buy an Evinrude powered boat.

The guys that slam you for thinking about fishing with live bait are probably the same guys that fish tournaments every weekend, hauling bass around in the live well all day with floats clipped to their lips, culling as they go, and then dragging them to a weigh-in miles away from where they are caught, pretending they don’t cause fish mortality. I doubt the OP fishing bait is going to put more of a dent in the bass population than tournaments do, and live bait fishing has a long tradition. Although I don’t have experience fishing for bass with bait I am intrigued. Give it a try and report back.

The best ‘low end’ sunglasses I have used are the HUK brand. Surprisingly good for the price.

My first (and only) trolling motor is and Xi5. The spot lock is great, track lock and cruise control is also wonderful (when it works). The wireless foot pedal isn’t my favorite, but I haven’t given it a real fair shake. The remote is fine, but I have to take my hands off the rod quite a bit. I can see the benefit of a responsive cable steer. Spot lock is absolutely wonderful.

Great video, thanks for the help.

I’ve got a Motorguide Xi5. I love the anchor mode (spot lock) and heading lock (when it works, which isn’t all the time). I don’t have power poles or talons, but don’t think I would want to be without anchor mode.

This

Pretty sure they all flow into the lake except the big one below the dam.

After using lots of cheapies I can certainly say that the view through high end glasses like Costa 580G lenses is definitely better. That being said, Huk makes a pair for around $50 with plastic lenses that work way better for me than their price point suggests.