AmmoGuy

Yep, if you sit most of the time, foot control all the way.

Do you stand to fish in your 10E? I thought about a foot control, but I stand in my Pond Prowler, and it's not nearly stable enough to be doing the one foot balance.

Well, the AGM setting doesn’t work either. After 15 min it was bubbling again. Says the battery is 99% and is charging at 15.1 volts. If I use the “GEL” setting, it says the battery is 97%, and seems to be charging at about 13.6 volts. The “technical assistance” at Schumacher barely exists, the woman I spoke to today seemed annoyed and Just kept alluding to the battery being bad. She also insisted the manual says to use the AGM setting for deep cycles (it doesn’t). Unless someone chimes in that the bubbling is OK and normal (I’ve never heard it with other batteries and charges in the past) I’ll return it and never buy another Schumacher product again.

Update. I just talked to someone at Schumacher that suggested charging the deep cycle battery on "AGM" or "Gel" setting. Well, uh... It would probably be a good idea to mention that in the manual somewhere? Also, they said "try it on "AGM" setting for an hour or so and see if it boils the battery, if it does call us back". Um, sorry. I don't think I'll use my brand new battery for your testing purposes. Now to figure out what charger I should swap it for.

Bought a new Schumacher SC1360 charger, and hooked it to a 3 day old Everstart Max Deep Cycle. Came back to check on it a few hours later and the charger read 95%, but the battery was boiling and hissing (not good!) Voltage immediately after disconnecting the charger was 13.6. Really, really hoping it didn’t damage my new battery. Guess the charger is garbage? Anyone had good or bad experience with this charger?

22.25” this morning on a DT4.

What is the point in carrying a handgun with non lethal ammunition? If it’s for any kind of defensive purposes, it’s a terrible idea. it’s it’s for some special, non defensive reason, then why not I guess.

I've heard that. I fish all 7 speed reels pretty much, so don't have much first and experience with the faster ratios. I'm guessing the Alphas SV TW is an aluminum frame supported pinion design? How much smaller are the Alpha reels? I have bear paw hands and even the 100s feel pretty small to me.

This is unfortunately proving to be the case for me. The 2021 Zillion SV TW is definitely a sexy reel, just a shame you have to spend $350 if you want a non-noisy Daiwa. It would interest me to know WHY the Zillion is smoother and quieter than say, a Coastal SV, on an objective level. Part tolerances? Gear design?, the sum of better parts? Just more care? ect... Yes, the Coastal is a tatula 100, but the gear set design differs a little from the Tat 100. The Zillion parts diagram doesn't exactly diverge in a large way from the Tatula mechanical design, and actually the Zillion 10 SV gear set design seems closer to the Tatula 100 than the Coastal SV does (I haven't seen the 2021 diagram). Maybe the supported pinion gear has a lot to do with it? That's definitely one way the Zillion differs. So I just always wonder what makes something like the Zillion noticeably and more predictably a smoother/quieter reel.

So here's my thoughts... While I like Daiwa reels, and have bought at least 6-8 of them over the past 12 months... A lot of them just aren't smooth or quiet reels. I started off with a Tatula CT. It was so noisy and annoying I exchanged it for a new one (I believe there's a video of it around here somewhere). The second one got noisy during retrieve after about two trips. Returned it too. I was done with those. After that I bought one of the Coastal SV TWs when SO had them for $175. Used it for a couple of weeks and bought a second one. The second one is bad noisy casting and retrieving. The two reels sound/feel COMPLETELY different. It's been oiled, greased, etc, to no avail. I really like those two reels and use them alot, but they are NOT what I'd call smooth or quiet. I'll probably try a new gearset in the noisy one soon, and see if that helps. So then I bought a plain old Tatula 100. It seemed good out of the box. Added a little oil to the spool bearings and re-greased the gears for good measure. Used it for a trip or two, and it started getting the whirrr noise and geary feeling during retrieve. Returned it for another one. The second one has been the quietest Daiwa I own. Even quieter than my "good" Coastal (a $250 reel). I fish two Revo SX's weekly as well, and both of them are smoother and quieter than any of the Daiwas I own. So make of that what you will. All my Daiwas FUNCTION great, and have never given me any mechanical issues whatsoever, but they've been very hit or miss, and none of them are what I'd call smooth or quiet. I think I may try some JDM Daiwas in the future. Some around here seem to think that's the ticket to getting smooth Daiwas. @Delaware Valley Tackle is spot on when he refers to your Fuego as a "workhorse" reel. It will provide you a lot of trouble free fishing, but don't expect it to be smooth and quiet.

Well. This is just freaking awesome. New motor came in, and this is what I found when I unboxed it. Going to ruin my fishing trip this weekend. Great.

Have to put Tatula- XT and Ark Cobb series on the $100 list.

Yep. At the $50 price point, the Aird-X is going to be hard to beat.

I have 2. 7' M/F 7' MH/F I throw shallow crankbaits and spinners on the M, and the MH is my chatterbait rod. They are pretty nice rods. My only grip is the silly line weight dial. I wish they had regular butts instead.

I've thrown quite a few CBs this year in different colors. A "Project Z" Dark Green Pumpkin with a GP swim senko trailer is the only one I've caught fish on.

Anyone have thoughts? I want to go ahead and get it ordered. I've takin the Traxxis out of the running. They aren't available at BP. So it's between the 36" and 42" Endura Maxx. It's just hard to decipher exactly how high a 42" will be. Update: I ordered the 42" 55lb. I figure if it's too long I can cut the shaft down. However when standing I think it's going to be about right. Based on my rough measurements, the handle should be right at my palm when my arm is hanging naturally.

Does anyone use a Minn Kota Traxxis? It's time for a new TM, and my current motor is a Motorguide 30" shaft. I hate having to hunch over every time I need to use the TM (I'm pretty tall). I thought the best bet would either be a 36" Traxxis with the tilting handle, or a 42" Endura Maxx? Thoughts? The only issue is the Traxxis doesn't seem to be available many places? BP/Cabelas says "this product is no longer available"?

Tried out the rudder. Wow, the boat handles 1000% better. It’s a game changer. I need a favor from someone that has an Endura Max motor. If someone could measure the distance from the mounting surface (red line) to the shaft, I’d appreciate it.

KISS is usually the best answer. I’m intrigued to see how much difference the rudder makes.

That’s a good idea. Nicely done. I have a machine and fab shop at my disposal, so it makes sense to just build from scratch. If I didn’t I’d definitely go the paddle route.

Threw together a prototype rudder this afternoon. If it works well, I’ll clean up the design and attach it via a TM tilting mount.

The PB&J football jig and Texas Craw Pro model are my heavy hitters right now. For like $3 with a couple of Rage Craws you cannot beat them.

Does anyone else buy a couple of the Walmart special Strike King Pro Model jigs every time they walk through Walmart? Ugh. I cant resist.

The bow mount area on the larger Pond Prowler 2 is almost identical. It is not wrapped with aluminum either. Raising the motor wouldn't help. It needs to be spaced away from the bow. I tried a piece of 1/4" plywood and that KIND of works. The shaft still touches the rub rail, but it will at least click into position. I ordered some stainless sheet. I'm going to sheath it like the rear transom.

This. I grew up kayaking in the Ross Barnett and Pearl. BIG gators are just part of it. I live in the MS Delta now, and it's about the same. It's strange if I DON'T see a gator when I go fishing. I'd rather see 20 gators every trip than one big cotton mouth.