Bankc

I'm pretty good with electronics. In fact, I trust myself more than most "professionals" in my area. A few times in the past I have taken stuff in that needed electrical work because I didn't have the time or patience to diagnose and fix the problem. Every single time, and I mean EVERY SINGLE TIME, I get a call back saying either they can't fix it, or they'd have to replace a bunch of parts that I know aren't the cause of the problem. And every single time, I'd go pick it up, bring it home, and fix it myself. Motors and transmissions aren't my thing. While I can almost always fix them, it always takes twice the money and four times the hours of what I thought it would. And if I think I'm clever and multiply my initial time estimate by four, it somehow takes an additional four times longer than my initial 4x longer estimate. I get there in the end. But every time I regret not taking it in.

It's up to you. Personally, I looked at them for a while, and decided it wasn't what I wanted. I figured they would make it harder for water to channel out and require more cleaning and maintenance. Plus, the regular deck wasn't lacking anything. In the end, I decided to keep with the K.I.S.S. principle, and that just seemed like one more thing to go wrong without a significant upside for me. I also thought about grip tape. But same thing. I've never actually slipped on my deck, or had a fear of doing so, and that would just add noise. But just as I couldn't see a significant advantage to them, I didn't really see any significant disadvantage either. So I might still wind up with some one day.

Sounds like you're in the market for cargo pants. I keep all of that stuff in waterproof containers, except for my knife, whistle, and pliers. The pliers I keep next to me in their own holder, and the knife I keep in my pants pocket. The whistle is attached to a string attached to my PFD, usually clipped to a strap to keep it in place. None of that other stuff needs to be accessed immediately.

I haven't been to the Bass Pro in Springfield in many years. I'm going to say it was probably around 1995. But my memory of it is pretty ridiculous for how big it was, and how it seemed to have 50 of everything ever made to get wet. Supposedly the Pyramid in Tennesse is supposed to be even bigger than it though. Otherwise, in recent memory, it's going to be like a 20 way tie between a bunch of different places, all about the same size. Basically, your average Bass Pro or Cabella's. I don't think I've ever seen a Walmart, DSG, or Academy come close.

I hate PFD shopping. You always feel pressured to consider safety to a degree beyond what's practical. For instance, is a manually inflating PFD doing me any good other than skirting the law? I'm a strong swimmer. If I'm conscious to pull the cord, then I don't actually need the PFD. Do I trust an automatic inflating PFD with my life? Lots of things can potentially go wrong, and there's no easy (and cheap) way to test it regularly. Will a bulky foam PFD be so uncomfortable that I won't wear one? Do I need pockets to store stuff? I eventually gave up and just bought a cheap foam one until I could resolve all of my questions. Turns out, for me anyway, you get used to wearing even a bulky PFD's, so long as it fits well. You learn to take the thermal insulation of the PFD into account when dressing for the day. And I tend to use my pants pockets even if I have others available. So it seems like I made the right choice. My old PFD is getting up there in years, and I should probably buy a new one in a year or two. I'm not looking forward to that. I'll have to revisit all of those old questions, and I've got a feeling that the "lessons I learned" from last time will all be forgotten once I start digging a little deeper and reading reviews. Ugh.

Agreed. Replacing the shaft isn't too difficult. It might take a good afternoon, and maybe about $50-75 in parts. There are videos online of how to do it to give you an idea.

I primarily fish from a kayak. To me, the differences in how you fish from a kayak versus a boat or bank don't really effect the gear selection. They do have an effect on your technique, however. Like I set the hook a little bit quicker and sharper from a kayak and hold the rod in closer than I would in a big boat. But I don't select special rods and stuff just for kayak use. What platform I'm standing on doesn't really effect my decision. However, due to the space limitations on a kayak, I am forced to bring less gear. So most of my rods will have to pull multiple duties. So I probably prize versatility a lot more than your average boater. But that's not unlike bank fishing. Or a frugal angler from a boat.

Most of the lakes I fish are pretty heavily pressured. So you don't have a secret spot, unless you only go there between 2-4 a.m. in the wintertime on a new moon. It's extremely rare for me to be fishing somewhere without having at least a few boats close.

I took it to be more of a gross generalization. The resolution is so low, that I wouldn't take it too seriously as far as square by sqaure. I'd read it more like there the north end is probably a degree or two warmer than the southeastern section. I'm sure there's all kinds of things that can throw off what the map is reading, like cloud cover, rocks and trees, probably waves, humidity, water clarity, and who knows what else. My assumption is they're using satellite data from a satellite that was never intended to be used for this, as it seems that it would be crazy expensive to launch your own satellite just to do this for a free site. They're probably piggybacking off some university's or corporation's satellite that's collecting information for something else. I really have no idea though. So far, it's been helpful for me for choosing which lakes to fish and where to launch (because being in a kayak, I typically can't explore an entire lake in a day). I wouldn't put too much faith in what it says. I'm definitely not going to be looking at it while on the water. I trust what my fish finder says more. I've got no association with this site. I just ran across it on a Google deep dive the other day and thought it looked interesting. I've only ever tested once against real world number. And it seems to me that it's really only going to be of much use to me in the wintertime, when the temperatures are in the 30's-50's. After that, I'm not too focused on water temperature.

Wind and water clarity will play a big role. But I don't think I'd feel right fishing this time of year without a Rapala Shad Rap 05. I'd probably grab a jig too. Jigs are never a bad idea.

Just tried it against a local lake today. It was spot on! some of our lakes have their temperatures regularly published. Others do not. And even the ones that do, this site shows you where the warm and cool spots are. So I think I'm going to add it to my list of prefishing sites. And yeah, I can't figure out where they get their data. Some thermographic satellite. But I can't find out which one or if that information is generally available to the public.

Agreed.

So I might be late to the party, but I just recently noticed a website called lakemonster.com. It appears to have low resolution thermal satellite imaging of many lakes and not only gives current(ish) temperatures of various lakes, but also shows where those surface temperatures are distributed. I haven't gotten a chance to verify its accuracy yet for myself. Maybe it's just fiction. But if it is even slightly accurate, it could be a valuable (and free) resource, especially this time of year when the water is just starting to warm up. The last recording on one of the lakes I was looking at was Feb. 10th. That makes it 8 days behind. So it's not real-time information. But it's still recent enough to be useful. Maybe.

Not necessarily. Most have a level wind just so the line winds up level. Thin diameter braid will still dig in. It's just the nature of thin, braided line.

I use Google Earth for lakes I'm already very familiar with! The wind here is always a factor. So I'll often use it to see how the wind is going to effect the lake that day. I also use GPSnauticalcharts.com all of the time. And if they don't have the lake or pond I'm thinking of, I'll check CMAP Genesis Social Maps.

I looked at building my own, but it was a lot cheaper just to buy a premade one on Amazon (at the time, who knows now). Be careful with the one's on Amazon, however. A lot of them don't last long and overheat easily. Counterintuitively, look for the ones without a cooling fan, and smaller SMD components. They create less heat and seem to last longer.

I've got a few rods that I would say have a "soft tip". I think it really matters more for heavier and faster rods. For lighter and slower rods, a soft tip can make setting the hook more difficult. But on a heavy and fast rod, the soft tip can make casting easier. But as with anything, it depends. If you're fishing heavy lures for big, heavy fish, then you may not want such a soft tip, as you'll likely overpower it. So things like trolling, catfishing, or trying to catch big bass on a ML rod, you'll likely not want a soft tip.

I'll often target some white bass if the fishing gets slow. They're usually easy to find and catch. If it's bad enough, I'll throw on a crappie jig and hit the docks for a bluegill or gizzard shad. Though I don't often mind getting skunked. Most of the lakes I fish are extremely pressured and not good habitats for black bass anyway. So getting skunked is fairly common. There are better lakes further away, but then I'm spending more time driving than fishing, and I'd rather not catch fish with my pole in the water than not catch fish in my car.

Only you can say for sure. Some people don't like longer rods on kayaks for obvious logistical reasons. However, those are reasons that can easily be worked around, and with some experience, it won't even bother you. And a lot of it will have to do with the layout of your kayak. What works for one person may not work for another. Personally, with my setup and habits, I'd be fine with an 8' rod. I have rods ranging from 5'5" to 7'4" and they all fish fine to me.

It lasts forever (and thus cheaper). It doesn't have line memory. It's thinner. It casts better. It doesn't stretch. I use it for most everything, sometimes with a leader, more often without. I only have two reels without braid. One with mono for topwater treble hooks, and one with Yo-Zuri Hybrid for shallow to mid depth cranks. Though, like the video states, braid isn't good for rocks and shells. However, I don't often run into rocks or shells. So that's not a concern for me.

Nope. Thrust is a measurement of propelling force. It's how much weight it can push in the water. The speed, RPM, all of that stuff is largely the same. Sometimes, higher thrust trolling motors will have larger props, but that's mainly just because the motor itself is larger. And the prop size doesn't matter as much as the pitch when it comes to speed. Thrust can sometimes make your boat accelerate faster. And if the thrust provided by the trolling motor isn't sufficient to push or pull the boat, then moving to a higher thrust trolling motor will increase top speed. But once you cross that threshold, going up in thrust doesn't provide any additional benefits. Think of it like a linebacker in American football pushing a sled in practice. A stronger linebacker can push around more weight on the sled. And if the weight is a significant amount to them, then they can push it faster if they're stronger. But if the weight isn't a significant amount, then the speed at which they push that weight doesn't have anything to do with their strength. It has to do with how fast they can move their legs. And here, most trolling motors will do about the same speed, so long as you're not exceeding their recommended weight and boat size (because it's pushing against drag forces created by the water). Though, sometimes changing the prop can increase speed. And, as I understand it, Motorguides typically run a bit faster than Minn Kota's. But here we're talking about fractions of a mile per hour. If you really want a faster motor, then find an electric outboard, like a Torqueedo. They're made for speed. Trolling motors are purpose built to go slow, as they're designed to compliment a large, powerful, IC engine.

It looks like it's the same as the PQ2, only with a different paint job. Probably made in China instead of Korea, as the last few years of the PQ2 were shifted to China, I believe. I have a PQ2 that's about 4 years old now. It's a bit geary, but still fishes well. Not as well made as my other reels, but it hasn't failed me yet, so I can't complain. I did upgrade the drag though and do a complete tear down and rebuild every year. So that helps to keep it going.

Ditto. Only I've gotten away from straight fluoro but will occasionally do straight mono or straight Yo-Zuri Hybrid. FG knot for leaders if I'm tying at home. Double Uni if I'm tying on the water.

I just got the new BPS catalogue in the other day. I couldn't help but notice how many things had gone up 20% from a years ago. But it's fishing stuff. I can live with price increases there. Skill trumps gear anyway, and skill is free. It's price increases everywhere else that's killing me.

You got no idea! And I am quite proud of my record. 1,246 DIY projects. $14.37 lifetime total saved versus buying new. 0 significant structure fires.