JbroBass

A little more follow-up info: I am in the Custom Mode so all the settings should be visible. So I'm working with Hummingbird CS and they told me the setting is called "Course Projection Line". However, the G3 units have both a "Course Projection Line" and "Heading Line" selection in the Nav menu, so I do not think the CS agent is correct. Unless perhaps they just did away with the "Heading Line" in G4 units. I will post if I get this resolved.

Thanks. The first thing I did was put it into Custom Mode. ?

I should have mentioned this in my post, but I did set it to Custom Mode and I still do not have a "Heading Line" selection under the Nav menu.

I've had at least 10 orders from TW since last Nov all using PayPal and no issues so far.

I see you made the leap. I just got home yesterday and wired up my unit tonight. Maybe we can help each other learn these things... This is my first modern unit so I have a lot to learn.

I just started setting mine up tonight, also in my house. Let me know if you figure out how to toggle the "Heading Line" on and off. I cannot for the life of me find the setting under the Nav menu like it is for the earlier generation Helix models. Do I need a screen cover?

Does anybody know how to turn on the heading line on the G4 Helix units? I cannot find it in the Nav menu like it is in the earlier generations--see snip below of the setting for the G3 model: I also downloaded the manual, and although I see references to the heading line on certain graphs in the manual, I cannot find any information about how to toggle it on and off. The only YouTube video I can about how to do this is also referencing the earlier generation models. Is it perhaps just always turned on for the G4 models? (I'm doing some preliminary set-up work at my desk and haven't checked it out on the water yet, so I cannot answer this myself as I'm not hooked to a transducer and therefore not producing images.)

In addition to the fly rod, as mentioned by others, you could also try a bubble. I used to fish flies with a bubble on a spinning set-up and it works fine.

Yes, the exact unit is Helix 7 Chirp Mega SI/DI GPS G4 This weekend I focused on getting used to the kayak and the motor, so I didn't even take the unit out of the box yet. I'm traveling next week, so it will probably be 10-14 days before I try it out. But I'll let you know as soon as I can.

I figured out why the maintain heading function wasn't working: I was pushing the cruise control button! Although the boat didn't track great when I tried the actual heading function today, especially with the wind at my back. The motor was doing a lot of jogging back and forth. It did better heading into the wind. Thanks for pointing out the self-bailing cap in the specs! With my body weight and gear, I'm probably pushing 75% to 80% of the self bailing cap. (Not sure if weight of the seat should count against the cap, but I assume so.) The water seems to pool just a tiny bit above a couple of the scupper holes. But it never gets worse and it never gets better. I think it's o,k but I'm assuming it will be a lot more comfortable after I drop 50+ pounds of body weight. (23 down so far and 60 to go.) Caught 2 bass today. Both small 11" to 12" or so. First fish ever on a bait caster! Also caught my first fish ever on a drop shot rig.

I finally got this boat on the water after a very busy spring. First went out under paddle just to test the stability. The boat feels very stable to me. Easy to turn around in the seat and move in various directions with no worries at all. I then put the motor on it and took a spin around for a while. I did do the calibration procedures, but the maintain heading feature wasn't working at all. Maybe I need to repeat them? I will try again tomorrow. I then got out for a few hours of fishing and got skunked. Everything was new today: new boat, new motor, new rods and reels, new lake, first time baitcasting. The only thing that remained the same was the getting skunked part! Plan to fish 4-6 hours tomorrow as well. Hopefully will get some bites. Once I get comfortable with everything, I will put the Hummingbird unit in and start learning how to use that. I got a Helix 7 DI/SI. Only thing I'm not sure about is how much water should come in through the scupper holes? The water line is basically flush with the bottom of the boat. I don't really see how water can drain. But it's not really flooding in either, I just didn't expect the water line to be almost in the boat/right flush with bottom of the boat. I'm probably a bit heavy for the boat once I add in battery and motor and other gear. Although I'm should be near the supposed rated capacity.

Welcome. I'm also from the Concord area, (Pembroke), and just started getting back into fishing after a multi-decade lapse. After a too busy spring, I'm about to finally get my season going. I will be spending most of this season learning Ayers Pond in Barrington, as we just put a camper on a seasonal site there. I got my fishing kayak up there yesterday, and will be launching it for the first time today.

I have the MotorGuide Kayak model with the hand held remote control. I believe it will also operate with a remote control foot pedal. I'm wondering if anybody here has tried operating it with the foot pedal while standing in the kayak? I would probably use stand-up bars for more stability, but I guess would need to test it out and see. It seems the foot pedal would be more convenient than the hand held remote, but maybe I'm over complicating things? I have seen brief references about people doing this but cannot find any in-depth discussion, so I thought I would ask.

Texas rigged worm for me.

Any more thoughts on the stand up bar since the last time I asked? Do you use it regularly?

Is the issue with the track mounted seat only a problem when you need to frequently remove the seat? It is a PITA to fully remove and replace the seat, but I don't need to ever do that so it's a non-issue for me. (Unless your issues go beyond that.) Are you guys aware of any retractable skegs that mount to the square stern? It would seem to be an easy enough solution if I end up with tracking issues, but I can't seem to locate any commercially available options for this.

Our model we're discussing in the thread is 12'6". Interesting about the tracking. I read and watched a lot of reviews on this model and nobody complained about tracking. Considering it's 41" wide, I don't expect it to track like a racing boat, but I really hope it's not a huge headache! The seat mounts on top load gear tracks. The knobs are just standard top load track knobs. I don't see any great risk in losing them.

I bought a 5th wheel trailer this spring and have been busy getting it set up at a seasonal site on a lake and learning how to use everything, so I still haven't made the maiden voyage yet in my Unlimited, but I'm getting very close. I'm wondering how you feel about seat placement. I suppose I'll just fiddle around with mine as get used to it, but I'm curious if have you settled on a preferred position? My set-up is very similar to yours, with the MotorGuide upfront and the battery in the back. I'm hoping I can cheat the seat forward so that the front edge of the seat is just behind the transducer port, basically where I drew the red line below. This will give me enough room to place my kayak box behind the seat in the exact position that I want it, and still be able to turn the seat fully without interference. Do you think moving the seat that far forward would be an issue?

What is the purpose of the tie-in being extended in front of the jig head like in the picture below?

Not quite in the same vein as these stories, but one time my dad hooked a landlocked salmon and after 10 seconds or so the line went limp and he thought he lost it. Next thing we know a salmon jumped and landed right in the boat. It was still hooked, so apparently it swam directly at us faster than my dad could reel, leading him to believe he lost it. Nobody ever believes him when he tells the story, but I witnessed it. When we went into camp for lunch we told people the fishing was so good that they were jumping into the boat.

I used Sieberts for tungsten versions of a bunch of stuff. I will send him an email. His customer service was excellent.

@Bird Thanks! The 1/8 oz heads I got from Reaction Tackle have a 3/0 BEEFY hook.

@Bird Reaction Tackle has something similar in tungsten, but I'm afraid, like the other tungsten jig heads I already bought from them that are more in the style of the smallie smasher, the hooks may be too beefy on these. Do you have any idea of the hook size on that example photo? Here are the listed hook sizes by weight of the Reaction Tackle version for the one in the photo below: 1/4 oz = 3/0 hook 3/8 oz = 3/0 hook 1/2 oz = 5/0 hook 3/4 oz = 5/0 hook

I am going to pick up some of those Keitech round tungsten heads, so thank you for pointing them out! I'm looking for this style too (below is smallie smasher) but the alternatives I've found have an even beefier and larger hook.

Thank you for your post. Unfortunately I need tungsten because up here in the Northeast lead fishing tackle is banned and can't even be sold in New Hampshire any more. (At least it's not supposed to be.) I've been replacing everything I can with tungsten versions, but still struggling with some odds and ends.