Jsmith1990

So I definitely don’t have all the tools required to make this process a lot easier but these are two of my best lures so far. Made out of cedar. Any questions feel free to ask.

Hey guys! Just got into wooden lure making and having some real fun but also some trouble... I’m using cedar to make some jerk baits and keep running into issues while drilling holes for the lead shot I’m putting in the belly holes. When I’m using my drill bits (starting with smaller drill bit), I start slowly increasing the size and the wood starts splintering around the holes. I’m not being careless and am really taking my time. Luckily I can repair most of it with CA super glue and baking soda... One odd thing I found is that when the bait is sealed with CA thin super glue, it doesn’t seem to split as much. Thought this might not be the “correct” way to do this but found this out when having to add extra holes for lead when it was too buoyant. Any advice is appreciated. p.s. I’m doing this with a hand drill and a bench grip. Not a drill press.

All great responses. I know it was an open ended question and that was the point. I would have to agree that anything over 10 mph and I definitely contemplate whether is worth it. I will usually throw an anchor off the side but with one anchor sometimes you just spin in circles ?

How windy is too windy for you to decide it might not be a great day to take your boat out? And what do you have for a boat?

Here’s the thing Jeff. Your not buying the boat for the motor. Your buying the boat for the boat. Do your obvious checks under the motor cover, compression checks, run it in a tub of water (I prefer this method over the ear muffs any day) so you can see if the impeller is working and it’s got good water output, check behind the prop for fishing line, see if he could drain the lower unit oil just to see if it’s got a bad seal. Just the real basic once over. worst comes to worse you could find another newer motor. Whether you finance it or find another used one since you’d be saving money on the boat. And biggest thing. Talk to the guy and ask if it’s been stored indoors, about how many running hours it has, and if it’s taken a beating. If it seems to good to be true it probably is. You can usually tell what kinda person someone is after a good 10 minutes of casual conversation. Don’t jump the gun and buy something just because you need a boat ASAP. Take your time and consider the seasons, usually fall or end of summer, and why people might be selling it in the first place. you’ll find a great boat soon for you and your family. Just go with your gut and check off the basics.

I think I have a case of FOMO ...or maybe more just MO. its disheartening when you hear of all these great bass lures for all these different applications knowing that it would be hard to apply them around my home fishing waters. Baits like jigs, Bladed jigs, crankbaits, jerkbaits, basically anything with an exposed hook just do not work due to the copious amounts of milfoil in basically every body of water I fish. In the dead of summer they even grow out of the water. Even a Texas rig with a pegged weight brings in a couple pounds of this sh**. I find myself throwing either top water (in the summer) and weightless Texas rigged worms and creature baits. All in all I feel like I miss out being able to catch fish with some of these bass lures and it frustrates the hell out of me. End rant

You could buy used. Doesn’t necessarily mean you would dumping money into it if you know how to inspect it before buying. Many times you can find good deals on Facebook marketplace. People sell their boat because they can’t use it as much anymore or they need the money. Think about this, whoever you sold your old boats to, do you they think they had to dump a bunch of money into it?

Every new baitcaster requires some tuning out of the box or if your casting on a windy day. I’m sure Shimano’s instructions were close to the settings you found after you tightened the spool tension. Many experienced anglers are able to get away with a looser spool and better thumb control. I’m still working on that... p.s. always wanted a SLX but I think my wife would make me sleep outside if I bought another casting reel.

This made me laugh quite a bit

65 lbs braid could pull a 10 pound bass out of thick vegetation. You most likely had your knot break or the line was damaged.

I live in the NE as well. If you are fishing a river right now I can’t imagine the water temp getting over 40 degrees since most nights are below freezing . If you keep going back to that spot because you have/had some success you should take note of weather conditions/outside temperature/water tempts. Just pay attention next time your having a good day at that particular spot.

Tell me about it. Snowed here this morning. And thank you!

Well the hardest part was stripping off at least 4 layers of old paint. I went through a whole thing of paint stripper. used a hand sander (80 & 120 grit) and a wire brush to get around the rivets. After cleaning i was done with that I power washed it and hand dried it. Once dry, I added two coats of totalboat aluminum paint which is primer and paint together. This paint covered well and dried fast in about 1 hour in 50-60 degree weather. Here’s a couple pictures to show you how difficult stripping the old paint was. I just didn’t want to take any short cuts. Thank you!

Hey guys just wanted to share how proud I am of all the hard work I put into my boat to make it look a bit nicer for the season. Probably put in over 40 hours. first picture is the old color. Second is the new color.

Hi everybody. New to the forum but have been coming here for advice for a long time. I’m from New Hampshire and lived here my whole life. I have been fishing for 20+ years. Excited to learn from all of you! John