surfer

ya bra!

Way2slow sumed it up nice. No need to spend big bucks. You'll get plenty of use out of that setup.

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1231259325 http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1231020248

I like craigslist so much I check it even though I have a boat.

Lake county or Polk count? The map below might give you some head start for you and your boater. i have never fished either one. And very few lakes in Florida have roads, bridges, or creek beds underwater. Rodman reserve and stick farm are the only two I can think of with any structure like that. As for what tackle to bring, after a little time on the water I found myself only using 5% of the tackle I brought. I had developed favorites. So I took about 60% of the tackle, stuff I had never even thought about using although I had it with me, and left it in the garage. I don't ever miss it. Lake county crooked lake map http://lakewatch.ifas.ufl.edu/RevisedMaps05/LakeMaps/CrookedLakeMap.pdf Polk county crooked lake map http://lakewatch.ifas.ufl.edu/RevisedMaps05/PolkMaps/CrookedPolkMap.pdf

thought shall not overlook craigs list. http://richmond.craigslist.org/boa/1003027223.html http://geo.craigslist.org/iso/us/va

There are bass in there. From what I remember it is considered more a recreation lake just because so many boaters cruise around and it is not as peaceful as some other less popular lakes.

i want a longer shaft. if i am in chopy water i have to put the motor all the way down to prevent it sucking air on the rise. then i have to bend over to drive.

Both the forward angle and the rivet turbulence considerations are to keep the face of the transducer in undisturbed water. Any air bubbles in the water below the transducer or on the face of the transducer will affect it. If a rivet, spline, repair or anything that is not smooth is on the hull in front of the transducer then move the transducer to a clean spot. The slight tilt is so that the leading edge is not lower than the back edge. If the leading edge is lower than it will push water out of the way of the rest of the face of the transducer. I installed mine lower than the instructions recommend. I have Side imaging up to about 20 mph but am at risk of having the transducer ripped of if I hit some trash in the water. good luck.

Call them. I know of a lot of people and buisnesses who don't check email often.

Stick Farm sounds like a Fish Market. Do they have crawfish too. I am getting hungry. ;D

Guest is a popular brand on this board. I just got a 2 bank Guest and have no complaints. I had a Ship to Shore before that and although it was a little finicky it got the job done just fine too. Every now and then it would show 18 volts on the gauge. I just had to unplug it and unhook it from the battery for a few seconds then hook it back up and it was fine.

1. Yes. Be careful when wiring together though. It is harder to visualize the wiring when the batteries aren't next to each other. 2. You are complicating things. Cary an oar. It's lighter, less susceptible to problems, and you are never going to use it anyways. 3. uh probably. ? 4. 10amps per battery will charge the batteries overnight for most situations. I disagree with the slow charge theory. The less time the battery acid is out of balance (discharged) the less time for the plates to become sulfated. Ask away. That's why we are all here. To share info and experiences.

I would go 2 stroke. I am under the impression that 4 stroke is not effective until you get above 80 hp or so. If you add a dol-fin to the foot of the motor you can get on plane much quicker and at lower speeds. This saves gas, weight, and money if you allow for a smaller motor. Like this one. (not recommending this one specifically, just in general) http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/pod/horizontal-pod.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/pod-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat21276-cat21288-cat21370&rid=&indexId=cat21370&navAction=push&masterpathid=&navCount=11&parentType=index&parentId=cat21370&id=0000919 I would probably look for a 20hp, but ****** anything between 15 and 25 if a deal presented its self. Anything more and you are just adding speed.

Nice write up sneaker. Answers to questions. 1. yes 3 batteries is your only option 2. you could save some weight by using smaller deep cycle batteries instead of the larger ones, but this would reduce you run time / range. 3. refer to sneakers write up. 4. depends on weather you are fishing or traveling. For the slow moving along a weed edge or other structure / cover you are picking apart bow mount with a stern rudder is best. For traveling rear for the reasons Sneaker mentioned. Don't forget you will need about $250 worth of battery charger to handle the 3 batteries. Opinion Holy cow that's a lot of motor for a 15 ft aluminum hull. Have you considered the 2.5hp and a 45 ish trolling motor? The 2.5hp will increase your range and probably weigh less than the 2 extra batteries needed for the 109. Scratch that. The 2.5 won't get you on plane so it won't be significantly faster. It would increase your range and lighten the load, but the overall cost would be more and it would complicate the system thereby adding to maintenance. Get the trolling motor you want then save up for a gas motor that will get you on plane.

Yes 4mph is plenty fast enough. I got good readings at 1/2 mph on the slowest chart speed and glassy waters in a jon boat. I also get good readings at 5mph with a slight chop. Calmer waters produce clearer pictures due to the boat not rocking. More stable the boat the clearer the picture I don't have a Nav Chip either, but since its only a few more dollars (comparatively) for the GPS antenna I would get it. Mine came with it. Bought it used for $1K from a salt water forum. he was upgrading to the biggest screen and selling his big screen.

My unit. I bought a SI about 4 months ago. I only had about 1 year experience with a $200 grayscale sonar before that. I would say the learning curve for each is similar. It is important with either type to run over stuff that you already know what it is. That being said each has their particular things they are better at. I typically run in half screen mode with standard sonar on the left and SI on the right. Best of both worlds in one unit, but you must have the larger screen for that. Even with the larger screen I sometimes have to lean in because the detail is so great. Some usage things I have noticed On more than one occasion I ran over a sunken boat. There was no hesitation in recognizing that it was a boat. Typically when I run over a new hole I know the general shape of the hole first pass. Most Florida lakes I fish are heavily weeded and I can't see fish on the SI unless they are almost under the boat. Just like flying in an airplane the higher you are the more area you can see, but the less detailed it is. At 8 ft I usually set the SI range to 40 ft each direction. At 20 ft I usually set it out to 100 ft each direction. I can see fish beds. My friends who spend more time on the water typically still pull in more fish than I. (anti Bait Monkey clause) A story from yesterday. Just yesterday I saw a fish on the regular sonar side of the screen as I was trolling. I immediately marked it (screen snap shot and gps waypoint on one button) and 5 seconds later he bit my lure as it passed. After releasing the fish I was able to review the screen shot and make the comparisons of the regular and SI. On the SI I could not see the fish at all, but I could see the shape of the entire weed bed that he was hanging over top of. It was a peninsula jutting 40 ft out from a weed covered shore line. He was within feet of the tip of the peninsula. The bottom was 20 ft and the weeds that created the peninsula were 10 ft tall. You can tell a lot from one pass. On regular sonar it would take me many passes to figure it was a peninsula, not an island. Dose it help me catch fish? Not exactly, but it helps eliminate a lot of water fast. I didn't know I was gona type that much when I started. I guess I like the thing. ;D

You might start with Costa del mar customer service and see if they want to replace them. You might get a discount through them. If that doesn't get you anywhere, I just got the Costa del mar Blackfin w/ 580 lens and am in love all over again. The black fins are oversized glasses to block side light from getting behind your lens and they give you good peripheral vision. comfortable enough that i wore them for 8 hours yesterday. Not the most stylish though. $175 ebay. Try them on at bass pro and then buy them of eBay for 30% less.

I have a similar Ship N Shore charger and leave it pluged in 24/7. 3 phases of charge: bulk, top off, float. it will stay in float indefinetly and keep the battery as full as posible.

Add baking soda to neutralize battery acid. It bubbles up just like vinegar and baking soda. Keep adding baking soda as long as it keeps bubbling up. I am under the impression you can rinse it down the drain after that, but I can't find it in writing and am not sure.

NitroMan, By the time you figure out how to properly desulfate a battery (assuming that is why your battery is weak) you could have mowed 4 lawns in your neighbor hood and bought a new battery with less headache. Replace mowing lawns with snow shoveling, delivering pizza, or spending an extra 3 hours at work; depending on your preference.

If the battery is old it might just need replacing. Yes, two batteries paralleled will act as one big one. + to + and - to -

Sounds like the trolling motor manufacturers need to start installing ceramic guides to prevent scuffing of the rope. I installed SS cable on a prior boat. It works great with one exception. It slowly chews through the tin grommet and then starts chewing through the aluminum frame.

jon boats are roomier, and everything else these guys said.

Excellent find. Hull and trailer alone are worth that.