Muddpuppy

Use a rope like a block and tackle. attach one end of rope to the winch line then run it trough a pulley that can be hooked in the eye of the boat and back to the winch post. When you wind in the winch line the pulley should decrease the load and take up twice the distance of the length of rope used. Attach a ski rope float to the pulley so it will float. Before you back up the trailer to load the boat lay the rope down the length of the trailer. Back the trailer in. Grab the floating pulley and attach it to the boat. Pull the boat onto the trailer as far as possible with the motor then raise. Take up the slack in the end of rope attached back to the winch post. Reel in the winch line about 6 foot give or take. Disconnect rope and pulley - store until next trip. Hook back up the winch line and hook it to the boat. You could put a walk board on the trailer to walk on. I think this should work for loading in low water also. You may want to wet down the bunk rails or spray with silicone.

There are some formulas that roughly can be used to compare thrust to horse power. This is one of them. It is pretty simple and maybe some what close. It might be handy in chooseing a motor other than a trolling motor or calculating speed. Measure amps at full load. ( Minn Kota gives 45 amp. draw for a 75#thrust and 40 amps. draw for a 50# thrust motor) 4 inch prop. pitch multiply Amps x battery voltage = watts 45 x 24 = 1080 multiply watts by motor efficiancy =effective watts 1080 x .8 = 864 / 746 =1.15 Hp or 1080 / 940 = 1.15 Hp to find efficiancy 65%-70% for series wound motors 80%-83% for permanent magnetic mortors( minn Kota) Divide effective watts by 746(1 hp) to find Horse power rateing 746= (1 Horse Power in watts) or 940= (1 Hp with 80% efficiancy) 45amps. x 24voltage = 1080watts 1080watts / 940 =1.15 Horse Power If a ducted prop. is used multiply x 1.6 The aprox. H.P. of a 75# thrust motor would be about 1.15 horses So you were were right Now the way I arrived at the answer that I did, was to .... ?I guess my 50#motor is about this big around (check weather) and I guess it (play with dog) about this speed ( check weather again and play with dog) and that is about the size of a xHp industial motor that are rated in H.p. ( find out storm blew over & go to bed). pure science!

I would have to say Tu Sha'- mainly because I don't have a clue on how to spell it.

Your basic casts will be simular to a spinning rod. You can over head, side cast (probally the easiest) pitch, flip left or right hand. One of the major differences will be that the spool will continue to turn and push line forward off the spool and needs to be controlled with you thumb instead of the index finger. I don't know what type of brakes your reel uses, I am used to a Curado and it has internal centrifical weights where the more weights that you pull out the more resistance you have on the spool during a cast. Pushing them in or "off" the easier the spool will turn. I also adjust them where they oppose each other to keep it balanced. Other types may have a selector slide or dial. There should also be a friction knob on the reel's side. To adjust the brakes try pulling out "turning on" 3 weights and leave 3 off "pushed in" or adj. the dial about mid range. Then adjust the friction knob where a practice plug or weight will just barely ease downward extracting line from the spool when the thumb bar is pressed. Next I would pull out enough line to make a normal cast + alittle. Place a piece of tape on the across the remaining line on the spool, to prevent excessive spooling, and keeping a small overrun from turning into a collasol mess. Try makeing an easy side cast and try watching the spool as the plug lands. If it backlashes at the beginning or the during the cast "before the plug lands," pull out anouther weight "on" or adj. dial + If the plug lands and then backlashes tighten the friction knob. If every thing went ok try a longer cast. As you continue try turning off weight as you go. Don't throw into the wind. You may have to readjust the reel for different circumstances. Heavier or lighter lures, wind, until you get used to brakeing with your thumb. Turn off as many brakes as you can and still control the reel. You can turn off all or none. I have been writing this a little here and there and start & stop, so I hope I have my in's and off's going right. If not somebody correct me.

Texas Parks and Wildlife has some pretty good pictures of each with a detailed discription on their web site. It is under fishing and identifying fish freshwater. There probably a simular site for your area.

Pretty much what has already been said. If you can find a landings with less traffic use it, put in at off hours until you get the hang of it. If there are alot of boats waiting to launch let them go ahead at first. Tie a long tag line to your boat and attach it to the truck or trailer while launching just in case it drifts alittle you can pull it back. Put tread tape on the surfaces that you will be stepping on trailer tounge, bumper, ect. Make sure you have every thing ready to launch and double check before you get on the ramp if you think you will feel rushed make a list plug, straps, and so on. The more you do it the easier it gets. If some one else is loading or unloading offer to help they may return the favor. Just hooking the winch hook is a big help if your boat slides. I find if I back the trailer farther in the water to wet the carpet on the bunks ( if you have it) then pull out where you want the trailer to be, the boat will slide into place easier.

North East Texas they will be soon if not already on most lakes around here and already have on some of the power plant lakes.

I would guess it is around 3/8 hp.

We usually use a 3/0 or 4/0 hook.

Has anybody used Battery equaliser by Minn Kota. I have put it in my batteries but they are fairly new and it hasn't been in long enough to tell if it works. I did put some in an old deep cell that I had and I could only get a 3/4 charge on. After drawing it down and rechargeing it a few times it now shows (on a meter)to take a full charge again. I haven't tried using it for trolling.

Mine isn't the x-51 but it did something like that when I pinched the transducer cable. I replaced the transducer and that pretty much solved the problem unless I get into somewhere in real shallow water or possibly bump it or get into real thick grass and it throws it off like that for a little while than returns to normal and I get back in cleaner water. I think once the beam is broken it confuses it for a while.

One more and I won't cluter up your post no more. Build a cable winder out of (for instance) the pull start off a mower replace the the pulley with a wider spool so that it works like a cat head puller. useing a drive spool and an idle roller might work better so that it doesn't twist the cable. Something may be found fairly cheap at an electrical wearhouse catalog or a cord roll up out of an electrical appliance. But this doesn't keep the cable from running unsupported in the water unless it can be tied to the shaft some way that I don't see.

I don't know if any of these will work but maybe you can build on something from them. I am just looking a picture of the power drive and not a very good one. Put some slip rings on the shaft and attach the cable to them so they swivel. when the motor is raised the cable will collect and gather above the motor. When the motor is lowered the rings will slide apart and the cable accordian out with the shaft. or attach a collar on the shaft near the motor so that it can turn and then hinge a small stiff dia. tube to it. Put a slight offset (to clear the mounting neck on the mount) in the tube below the mount when parallel to the shaft cut a slot in the mount or attach a clip to the side, that the tube can slide thru. When the motor is raised the tube will raise up and pull slightly away from the shaft and slide up through the mount when deployed the tube will slide down through the slot and come to rest next to the shaft . Run the cable through the tube. Just from the picture. I don't see how you are abel to attach anything to the shaft directly and be able to raise and lower it. Like I said I haven't tried to work any of these out on paper it is just the first couple of things that came to mind when I looked at the picture.

Have you tried pond management on your browser? Or talk to a county agent. Maybe eat more small fish.

I split some aquarium tubeing and placed it on my cable and taped it back up. Where it looked like it might pinch I left a slight bow in it when I attached it to the shaft avoiding the problem area. Works so far. Make sure that you place the cable ties so that the shaft has room to travel.

We are haveing about the same weather here plus heavy winds. We have been haveing alot of luck on watermellon candy and cotton candy flukes, baby & reg. bush hogs. Fishing standing timber,weedlines and around boat houses in about 4.5' to 10' water.

I have an aluminum Ranger and we were out in about 20 mph gusts the other day and bounceing around like popcorn. We stopped to talk to a friend with a new Skeeter and I don't think his boat moved a bit.

There is an article on interference at http://bassresource.com/fishing/electronic_interference.html maybe it will help

Has any one used the Denny Brauer Control Post Pedestal/Seat system? Cabela's item #IF 015951. I have back trouble and was wondering if it might help.

Mine wasn't angling. Several + years ago my wife and I were at a State Park that I used to spend alot of time at in highschool. We had gone there for a cookout with some of her friends. While we were there, I managed to convice her that we should rent a paddle boat. Now this is in late fall, it's cool and we are fully clothed. I have consumed alot of groceries and gained a few pounds since the last time I was on one of these rigs. We were talking about how we used to dive off the front of the pontunes when we were younger. Sometime during the conversation I stood up and stepped on to one of the pontones and eased my way towards the front of the boat, causing it to dip into the water and kick up the rear. Before I could get back to the seat, she freeeks out and jumps off the boat, causing it to completly flip over on top of me. Luckily there were a couple of ladies nearby crappie fishing who towed us into shallower water where I could flip the thing back over. My wife was not impressed.