casts_by_fly

I have the autopilot 120 and have fished it for over 3 years now. I've not looked at the Bonafide much, but from the hull shape I'm going to say its comparably stable compared to the AP, maybe a little less so given how pointy the front end is. It looks about the same bottom width as the AP. The AP is an incredibly stable boat and you can do all of the things in it that I see on the bonafide website. I stand to fish the whole time. If you go bonafide, the XI3 is the only real option. It was designed around it. With the xi3 on the nose, the bonafide is going to be a little more front heavy on the water. I suspect they moved the seat back a little to compensate for that. The storage in the front center is nice and I wouldn't mind having that on the AP. I would say that if you're going all in, then the bonafide might be the better choice. By all in, I mean XI3, fishfinders, the works. Its predrilled for all of your holes and mounts. Bonafide has made all of their own hardware and brackets for everything. So if you are going with their package 100% then it does look pretty slick. The storage in the front and under the seat are nice. On the AP, you also have full integration with the motor right out of the box. Just hook up a battery and go. There are two thru hull locations near the front rails for cords (each holds 3 cords). Before I put live imaging in that was plenty. The AP is designed around humminbird electronics so there are a couple small niggles if you use others. Also, any specific mounting brackets will come from a third party. There are lots of good third parties who do old town things so don't let that hold you up.

Boarhogz are my go to ‘finesse’ Texas rig. Small profile, smaller size that suits light line and a thin hook. Add an eighth or quarter ounce weight and you’re in. also, if you like that profile, throw a rage Ned bug on a finesse jig like a lil man jig. https://siebertoutdoors.com/products/ols/products/rage-magnum-bug-rg-mgn-bug1

yep. With the revised info either the dragger 1 or the heavy cover jig.

Assuming you can fit them, I'd say two 12's. I say that because if one goes bad or gets damaged you can replace it with one. Even if you replace both, you still have a 12v battery to use for electronics. A 24V battery is pretty specific in what you can use it in. Also makes charging a lot easier. Two bank 12V and you're good.

As always, it depends what you want to do with it. And in some ways what you're considering 'heavy'. I can point out rods labelled 'heavy' with lure weight from 1/4-3/4, 1/4-1, 3/8-1, 1/2-1, 1/4-1 1/4, 3/8-2, 1/2-1 1/2, and maybe a couple more. These are just the ones I know off the top of my head. I know most of those rods and they are all quite different. Generically, I'd say yes get a 'heavy'. And I mean that in the true sense of a 1/2-1 1/2 type rod. It makes for a great 1/2 oz jig or texas rig rod. Perfect for bigger spinnerbaits or buzzbaits. Big ploppers and small swimbaits are no problem. Think any lure with a ~1 oz total bait weight and you're into a real 'heavy' range. Regardless of the cover there are plenty of times to throw that size bait. Which rod? At $200 you can get some fantastic rods. That's right on the Falcon expert price point and the expert amistad would be a good choice. But if you're not even sure that you need one and don't fish one currently, do you want to spend the full budget to get one? Depending how big you want to go, either the Amistad or the Heavy cover jig in the Low rider series at $129 is going to be fantastic. The Amistad is a generall all around power rod and the heavier of the two. If you might go over 1 oz then that's the one. The HCJ is one power lower and great for 3/8-1/2 oz weight plus plastic or 1/2-3/4 oz baits.

Well that sure looks fun! Luckily here, all of the states have agreed boundary water regs that make sense. Either license is good. Launch from either state and fish the whole thing. Specific bag/season limits to the whole water regardless of the state. NJ/PA on the delaware is the big one, but NJ/NY have one or two and PA/other have a couple that impact.

The best thing you can do it watch some tear down videos for the specific batteries you're interested in. Some use a BMS, some dont. I wouldn't have one without. Some have welded/fused connectors on the cells and some are lightly soldered wire. Some of the brands have been around a while and still going while some have come and gone. I bought from Amped 3 years ago when I set my stuff up. At the time, there was a limited track record for most lithium brands and Amped had a good one. Also at the time, lithiums were either pretty expensive or super cheap. I didn't trust super cheap so I went with expensive. I've not had any problems so I can't complain. Looking at the costs now, the battery I run (80 AH) is $520 from Amped which is the same price more or less from 3 years ago. The quality of the cheaper batteries has increased a lot and the average price for lithiums has come down with technology and the market. TBN did a review of powerqueen batteries 2 weeks ago and rated them highly. They have a BMS and look to be built well. And at $239 for 100 AH that's probably where I'd go to buy new. Even if it lasts half of what my Amped does I can buy a new one after 5 years (when the tech will be better still and prices probably a little lower) and be better off and with more capacity. I'm also not using it for life support functions. If something happens when I'm on the water and my trolling motor battery goes kaput, I can hook my fish finder battery up to it and limp home. Or I can paddle. I'm not going 10 miles into the ocean where a failure means calling in a mayday. I don't trust Amazon ratings for lots of things so take the 4.6 stars with a grain of salt. Too easy to 'buy' ratings in various ways.

Yeah that’s baitfish. Looks like you’re scanning some drains/creek channels. Also looks like you got it dialed in pretty well.

That's how I read it as well if he's a ND resident.

nothing is announced, but you're right that the level of rebates/discounts ongoing makes me think new stuff is being announced soon.

page 64 outlines all of the rules specific to the border waters, except license reciprocity. Bag limits and season looks to be continuous (aka open) for most everything. https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/rlp/regulations/fishing/fishing_regs.pdf?v=20240313-32&view=fit&view=fit&pagemode=bookmarks page 58 outlines the license requirements. What license do I need to fish border waters? • Minnesota residents must have a Minnesota license. • Residents of a state bordering that water must have their state’s license. • Other nonresidents may purchase a Minnesota or the bordering state’s nonresident license. Can I fish anywhere on the border waters with a Minnesota license? • In Canadian border waters, Minnesota residents or nonresidents fishing with a Minnesota nonresident license, may only fish the Minnesota portion of the Canadian border waters. To fish the Canadian portion, you must have a Canadian license and may need a Remote Access Border Crossing Permit. • In other border waters, Minnesota residents or nonresidents fishing with a Minnesota nonresident license, may fish throughout the defined waters bordering the 2 states.

I'm not actively searching anymore. I still want one and I know what the right thing is for around here and me (16' decked out V bottom with a 9.9), but my wife has no interest in my getting a 'boat'. So I have my 'kayak' which is more boat like than lots of boats and we're good with that. I browse marketplace and if something were to pop up at a crazy price I might just go buy it (I've been tempted twice now) but What I've got works for me.

Ha! I wish we had that available here. When I was going to restore my dad's bass boat I looked into storage here. My garage is only 19'10" and 7'8" wide at the doors, so an 18' bassboat wouldn't fit. The best I found was going to be an outdoor storage unit in a 20' space for $80 a month to start. The regular price was $125 a month. I mean, we could swing it and I nearly pulled the trigger on it, but for $22 a month I'd sign a 5 year lease.

You don't have to be as precise as measuring. When you look at the spool there will be a taper on the edge of the spool nearest the frame. And then the spool will taper to a more vertical main taper all the way to the arbor. I like to fill just about a line diameter less than the junction of those two tapers. That allows for less than optimal packing of the line or loose line lay. Looking at your spool, I'd say its probably 30 yards of line, maybe more to get to that stage. Just strip 20 arm lengths off and see where it is on the spool. same. I've not used one in person but when you hear one on video you know it. I even don't like the sound of centrifugal brakes whizzing so much.

Yeah, you look overspooled by a good bit. Start by taking 20-30yards off and go from there.

as above, what weight range are you talking? You said 'light' but for me 1/8 oz is light while for the texas guys 3/8 might be light. GReb's suggestion of the head turner is a good one if you like a shorter rod (6'10"). Its a light fast tip with a lot of backbone up the rod. Mine is for bladed baits primarily, but I throw jigs and light texas rigs on it at times. With braid it would maybe not quite have as much give as I'd prefer for a lot of things, but for texas rigs it would be a good choice still. A 1/8 oz weight and a 5" senko would work but otherwise a 1/8 oz weight is a bit light for that rod. Start it with 1/4 oz on the lead and add plastic. I'd say the sweet spot for it is 1/4-3/8 weight plus plastic of about any size. If that's your range and you want a longer rod, then the 7'4" heavy cover jig is a really good choice too. Not quite as fast as the head turner, but still fairly fast action and perfect for braid. Also makes a great big buzzbait or 110 plopper rod. If you're staying at or under 3/8 oz all the time and especially if you are going to 1/8 oz a lot, then the 7'2" swim jig rod is a great choice. Fast action and quick tip like the head turner, but 1 full power down. It is my swim jig rod and my light texas rig rod. It does other things well, but I have one of those two things tied on every trip and that rod goes with me every trip so...

I already spend my time on the ‘other’ fish that gets some attention from me. Every year on the first or second trip out my early lake has a run of crappie that are predictable like the sun. I’ll keep a half dozen or so 10-11” fish and have a nice crappie dinner. Dinner was last Friday. Now we’re on the bass.

as a steeler fan, I don’t hate this move. Worst case, you’ve got your backup quarterback situation sorted out for $1m. Best case, he performs at a high level and earns a second contract for 2-3 more years after that.

Looks like you'll have some new laydowns to fish! Aside from them just being cool to be around, that's the best part about beavers- fresh cover.

So while England is WAY further north than mainland USA its nowhere near as cold. The gulf stream is the reason. Even by the time it makes its way across the atlantic its still bringing warmth. Ever see the shots of the coast of Ireland being bright green? That's why. Some years the main stream of the current goes south of the UK and that really heats things up (and chills scotland) but for the most part it just carries on like the picture below. Speaking about England only (Scotland is a bit different), an average day in winter will be 35 for a low and 45 for a high. It occasionally drops below freezing, but generally not. The further north you go and if you go inland (as much as there is 'inland' on a small island) you lose the moderation a bit from the gulf stream. Even when we lived up north practically on the North Sea (the body of water between England/Scotland and Norway/Denmark the north sea would modulate wintertime. The sea would be 40 degrees in winter which meant it rarely got below freezing there also until you went far enough inland that hills started to block the ocean breeze (roughly 20-25 miles). In the summer is also doesn't normally get so hot either. Being that far north you get a little less direct sunlight. On top of that, you have the ocean temperature moderation just the same as in winter. A normal british summer day would be 75-80 degrees for a high. The past couple years though the weather patterns have started to shift and they have had extreme heat events in the 100+ degree range. Considering most houses don't have AC (or window screens for that matter) it was actually dangerous. The one thing water can't moderate though is day length. Being so far north the extreme ends of summer and winter meant the sun barely set in the summer and barely came up in the winter. In December you'd drive to work in the pitch black and get home in the pitch black. The sun would rise after 8 AM and set around 345 PM. And it never really got bright for most of that time. It was always low on the horizon. In June it would be 430 in the morning and 930 at night. Then it would be pretty twilight the rest of the night. Look at the sun graph for the summer below (we lived outside of Hull). Three full months of summer where you never actually hit 'dark'. Its all astronomical twilight. The extreme ends of light and the lack of significant heat and cold in the winter and summer meant that there weren't as firmly defined seasons. The tree leaves just kinda browned and fell sometime in November. The flowers would start blooming in February and keep going until October when they just stopped. Summer didn't really feel like summer when you always had to keep a hoodie handy just in case.

I like that a lot. Clear water killer I think. I have my keitechs in one Plano. The 3.8’s are all together and I have my usual colors in there. All are similar light bottom/darker back types but there is a range of colors that mean each one is a slightly different variation of ‘natural’. You can tell what the original was but each one has a little mottling and character.

yeah, that’s the coldest I can remember. I grew up in Pittsburgh so I know snow, but not frigid cold. We were in the UK for 12 years and the coldest I know of there was -8 Celsius (17F). Last Christmas it was -8 (not counting wind chill) when we drove back to Pgh and the sunroof frosted on the inside of the truck.

Ignoring the specific temps for a sec, I’d rather the air be colder than hotter. I can always add a layer and I also tend to run hot. You can only take so much off before it becomes a misdemeanor (or a felony if you live in a school zone!). That logic only holds to certain levels though. We had -8 last year and that’s pretty miserable. Also the coldest I’ve ever experienced I think. I’ve also been in 110 and dry in Palm Springs and it was equally intense. If I had to choose between the two, I’d take -8 if it’s only for a week or so. Any more than that and I’m moving somewhere else.

A 7ah sla is cheap and easy for $30 or so. If you’re taking it on and off all the time you’ll need a transducer mount. I’d look at a switchblade setup. I think they have a full package on sale right now

Ah, yeah I read over that bit. Gotta be somewhere Daytona-ish.