Jig Man

You have to have power to the antenna as well as to the head. The NMEA must be powered with the red going to + and the bare and black wires going to _. Check to make sure the fuse is good. When you get that taken care of do a reset. Turn the unit off. Press and hold the pages key while you press and hold the power key. Release both buttons when you see the US map.

I use the San Diego Jam because it is the fastest knot I can tie.

X2 on the few lures. Pick them and stick with them until you catch fish on them regularly. Worms and jigs are enough to start with.

Gather up the pieces. That rod should have a lifetime guarantee. A friend of mine broke a 10 year old hmg and sent it in. They replaced it at no cost. At least give that a try.

In a perfect world you could take the amount of amps drawn from the batteries and divide that by the amp output of the charger and get the answer. One way to find out is to get a hydrometer and check the specific gravity in the battery cells as they are charging. Once it reaches 12.7 v you will know the amount of time.

I'd check my dealer and start using my warranty.

An important thing to remember is what you are seeing on the screen is not what is actually there. It is a record of what has been picked up. Fish shown are not always under the transducer. They may be off to one side or the other. The figure shown is not really how deep the fish is but how far away from the transducer that fish is. In the pic below the fish were actually located on a ledge right under the transducer and I was able to get one to take a grub.

I really don't know how long they last. I replace them after 4 hard years of service. Get large reserve amp capacity and maintain them and they go a long time.

San Diego Jam for me

Naptha which is found in cigarette lighter fluid is a very good solvent for cleaning bearings and other reel parts of oil and grease.

If it were me, that would be the last one of those babies that got into my boat. EVER!

X2 Good looking rig.

I use about 5 inches of rubber for one jig. So if you bought a 10' piece of rubber it would make 2 dozen jigs.

Since you are just getting started, I recommend Jann's Netcraft. You can buy small amounts of the rubber in the colors you want. All you really need is some jig heads and some rubber. You will need a way to attach the rubber (copper wire is great) to the jig. A pair of scissors for cutting and some pliers to pull the wire tight and you are set to go.

I catch a lot of fish in the wind. I like for the wind to be sustained for 2-3 days from the same direction. When that happens the entire food chain is set up. I can then concentrate on the windy banks and windy points. Changing wind can be very frustrating, especially this time of year.

No music for me. I don't even want the guy in the back to talk.

My wife wanted an new setup and bought an Avid to go with her 2500 Stradic. I used it and liked it so well that I now have 3 more Avid rods teamed up with the 2500s. I don't think you can go wrong with the Avid.

I have tried several. Power Pro is the one I like best. I have been using it for 6-7 years now.

Either the 36v or strongest 24v should do the job for you. When I was rigging my boat I opted to upgrade to the 82# 24v instead of the 36v because of battery storage and the on board charger banks. I added 3" to the shaft so I have a 45" instead of a 42". I can rip on high and hold into wind and waves till they come over the bow. The extra 3" make quite a difference in performance.

Here is some good info. Take time to read it. http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/Reel_Care_tips.html

Yes the barb does get in the way. You can not make a good looking finished product with a (lead shank) on the hook. If you can't find any without it, take a pair of gate shears or side cutters and cut it off the hook. You will get a much easier to tie and better looking product. What are are you looking to tie in what shape and what weights? I tie them from 1/16 oz to 1/2 oz and get a clean good looking bait. Here is a sample of some 3/32 oz jigs.

Not all shot leads are the same. Some like the AA trap and skeet loads contain antimony. That makes a better shooting load because it is harder and retains more of its original shape when fired. It also makes for a bit harder to pour lead, unlike the cheap dove and quail loads. The trap and skeet loads are somewhat lighter weight because of the antimony.

Of those three I'd buy the Stratos. If I decided to go alum. I'd look for something besides a Tracker.

I don't understand why you have to explain anything to anybody. You are participating in a hobby/sport that is legal and to keep or not to keep it an individual's personal option. I keep some species sometimes and other times I don't. I do what I feel like and don't have to explain it to anyone.

Braid I have had on for 6 or 7 years. Mono I change when it looses it shine. Sometimes that is every couple of weeks sometimes it is a month depending on how many casts that setup gets.