Jig Man

You don't have to have spinning setups for smallmouth fishing. I catch a many on baitcasters as I do spinning. If you are going to go spinning then like stated a 2500 series reel in your price range with a 6 1/2' M rod will do you a good job.

It is bent but can be fixed by a good welding shop. If you try to straighten it without some heat it will probably break.

All the new stuff has screw in blue connectors. You'll have to change out the wiring and the xducers.

That 19' BC is a real good boat. On of my buds has a 1994 Pantera. I have ridden and driven it in all kinds of weather. It is a good ride. I agree that you need more than 67# of thrust on the tm.

In that age group, I'd stay away from John L's boat. His newer ones are supposed to be a lot better quality.

If you really want to go nuts, visit about 5 or so different dealerships in one afternoon and look at 6-10 different boats at each one, both new and used. Then go home and try to figure all this out. Be sure not to drink any beer before or after this trip or you will really get confused.

There could also be something jamming the impeller.

You are asking for a lot of info in one post. First off my ranking is Champion (ride and good fishing platform), Bass Cat (ride), Ranger (good fishing platform), then all the rest. Lots of guys will have different opinions. The Javelin was a pretty good boat in its day. Genmar cancelled it when they bought out Champion and moved it from AR to the Stratos/Javelin plant in TN. Stratos is an ok boat but not top of the line. Check NADA for the pricing of the Javeline. Towing isn't as bad as stopping. Be sure you have good trailer and tow vehicle brakes. My wife pulled my 21' boat all over MS, AR, MO, and TX with a Ford Winstar mini van. She is now pulling it with a Jeep Liberty CRD.

If you are going to be serious about jerks then get more than one brand, size and color. Last spring my LCs got me beat down to my knees. My Smithwicks also didn't produce that day. I got down 8/0 with my baits and I had to borrow and Xrap from my bud to get any action at all. Now I own some Xraps.

Find off shore structure and channel swings that don't get much pressure or make your own cover in deep water. Lots of lakes have 2 different populations of bass. The shallow dwellers see lots of baits while the guys who live deep don't see nearly as many.

They usually start hitting buzzbaits in May around here. I am still waiting. My best day so far has been 3 and most days none. I'm about to give up for this year.

Try fishing during the day with your eyes closed next time you are on fish. That will let you know whether or not you can highten your other senses to get the job done at night.

I don't know where they go but weekends sure do shut them down. I'd think with all the 50'+ boats on your dangerous big pond that they may crawl under rocks.

My two most fav. ways to fish tubes are: let them go to the bottom and hop the off, then let the fall back (expect the strike on the fall) and toss them out, count down and slow roll it back with some stop and goes along with rod tip twitches. Just about any game fish as well as a occasional big old flat head will climb all over a tube. BTW: Your color choices are fine. Just keep on throwing them and you will connect.

X2 Even a 20' F&S has very little room for storage and almost no front deck.

Where I fish the life expectancy of a jig is one cast. That is why I make my own and carry hundreds in the boat. I don't even bother to try to get one back when it is hung up. I will give it a couple of bow and arrow tries then I break it off. I plan on losing from 5-10 jigs on each trip because I fish rock piles much of the time. That said, there are a few things which will lessen your chances of getting hung up: lighter weight jigs tend to hand up less than heavier ones, football heads work rocks better for me than most others, swimming the jig just off the bottom will catch fish and keep your bait on the line. I'm sure some of the other guys here can give you some more ideas. If all else fails, look for a cheap source for jigs.

We have been using 1/2 oz brown swimjigs. Cast out count down and do a steady retrieve. Be sure to count like 1001, 1002, etc. Try different depth till you connect then repeat the successful countdown. We have been anywhere from a 5 to a 15 on the count and since they aren't tied up the count is subject to change.

Yes it is a crappie, a white crappie.

G those are good looking jigs. I told you Gman would do you a fine job on heads. Now that you have been exposed to the makin' disease, you better get a raise in your allowance or look for an after school job. ;D

I have used 30# PP on spinner and buzz baits for quite a while. You can seem to feel a bass looking at the bait. ;D I'd way much rather have it for those applications than any other line I have ever used. The only drawback for me is the hook set. I have really had to watch that and have even gone to rods with less power to help keep from ripping their lips off.

You never can tell just what will work at a particular time or place. You really should have a variety of sizes, colors, and styles if you plan to do well with the jig. For example, Tuesday night my pard was waxing my butt on a pbj football head with rootbeer trailer so bad that I finally switched over. About 2 am I broke the pbj off and was too lazy to retie. I picked up a black Arke with a smoke trailer and caught 4 keepers on one point while the pbj didn't even get a smell.

1) Texas and Carolina Rig-- 7' mh 10#line 6-1 reel 2) Spinnerbaits-- 6.5' mh 15#line 5-1 reel 3) Jigs-- 7' mh to h 30# braid 7-1 reel 4) Cranks-- 6.5' m 8-10# line 3.8-1 reel 4) Topwater-- 6' m 8-10# line 6-1 reel

Breaking in a new motor slowly by factory recommendations and letting them warm up before take off goes a long way toward keeping a motor going. Around here some guys break a motor in from the ramp to the nowake bouy. Then it is wot and before long repower.

My guess is 1979.

The 12" tires will rotate faster and get warmer as you tow the boat. I don't run radial "car" tires because they have soft sidewalls and I don't like the way it makes my boat feel behind the truck. I get tires made for trailers with 8 ply sidewalls but I think they are still radials.