Jig Man

5 people will fill a fish and ski up the the bigger they get the fuller it will be. Have you given any thought to a deck boat?

I did not see any spinner baits or buzz baits.

I buy the Shakee blade from Barlow's and use jigs for the heads.

I don't have a K but have 3 70s I use one for shaky, one for ned, and one for cranks.

You won't have any trouble pouring that mix. It melts about 100° cooler than lead.

I don't know of any bait caster and rod that will do what you want and be in that price range. Lots of spinning combos will do that job very well.

It sounds like you need a larger battery (27,29,31 series) depending on how much space you have and how much you want to spend. The larger series and more CCAs will help you with this problem. I am running 3 units, power poles, aerators, off my cranking battery. If you don't have an onboard charger with banks for all batteries you would be better off to buy a charger for the cranker and hook it up after every trip to make sure it is always topped off.

I think you should all 4 get in a boat and see how it does size wise. Think about what each person will bring along as well as the fishing equipment needed and how much space it will take. I'm betting even a 17' will be tight quarters. Get a 24 volt trolling motor and an onboard charger with banks for each battery. Get the bigger gas motor you can always back off on the throttle but can't make a smaller motor go faster.

I drove to a Cabela's to buy the guide wear. I tried it on and could not get a comfortable fit. So I went to Bass Pro and tried on the 100 mph. It was really nice. I couldn't swing bibs and jacket on the same trip so I bought the Jacket and got the bibs later. It is the only rain suit that I have ever had that keeps me dry.

No it is Ruby Red. Race was a bit too light for my boat red.

Don't worry about what you have heard. How does that rod work for you? Different people will have different opinions of what is best of all around use. Use it for various applications and see how it does. Then you will know if you need more or less power and what type of action.

Here is what I went with. I don't have a pic together as I just got the truck and we have had slick roads. Hope to pair them up on Friday.

I soak my fish in milk, mustard, egg and sea salt. The milk and egg are so the corn meal sticks on well. The mustard is to add a little flavor and color.

I was in a similar situation. I took the boat to 2 different dealerships (Chevy and Ford). I unhooked the boat in the lot and had a salesman park different colored trucks in front of it so I could see what I liked.

www.clearcastmarine.com

I switched to AGMs about 5 years ago. They are completely maintenance free. I don't ever want wet cells again.

You can tell them you want to test drive it also. While you are at it ask for a written compression test.

I ran a Dual Pro 3 bank in my Champion for 14 years.

You seem to be getting some pretty sound advice. If it were me I'd concentrate more on the aluminum than the glass simply because there are lots of older glass boats on the market that have transoms rotting from the inside out and you for sure don't want to get stuck with one of them.

I expect you will have to contend with your boat porpoising with that much extra weight in the stern.

You might want to consider a deck boat. Lots of them have flat floors with trolling motor, front and rear fishing seats as well as a table for eating and a bimini top to get out of the sun. My wife had one for several years. She loved that thing.

Just don't over power. Insurance and liability would be major concerns in this day and age.

X2

I don't know how widely it is recognized but we have what they call MEANMOUTH here in MO. They showed up about 15 years ago. They are a natural cross breed of spots and smallmouth.

Get you a pair of gate shears and cut the spru off instead of trying to break if off.