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Viewing 30 posts - 1 through 30 (of 1,165 total)
  • z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2263448

    This may be a longshot for you to check, but I can tell you that my saw binds up when there are bad nicks in even just a couple of the cutting teeth or drive links. Happened to me a couple times after chain came of sprocket and got nicked. I used a file to remove the nicks and worked fine afterwards.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2257867

    A Monday funny…..

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    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2245200

    Just checking to see if anyone reads these ads, lol. I knew I could count on you guys. And no, chair not included but could be thrown into the deal for a measly 50 bucks extra.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2239731

    Hit the Milwaukee Harbor targeting browns and lakers by casting and jigging, but only boated one. Perch were aggressive though, smacking 3/4 oz spoons and 5 inch jerk shads, so we each set up dead sticks with fat heads and went home with 5 each. Started out with NE winds and 3 to 4 foot rollers plus some chop, so stayed ducked in behind breakwalls near the gaps most of the time. Water temp at 43 degrees, so still time to try again.

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    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2235161

    Fished a couple more times since last report and have not found a fast and furious bite yet. Managed to boat 10 to 15 eyes or so on each outing, and actually got 3 legals two days ago, but that’s slow compared to the more typical fall bite I’ve enjoyed out here in the past. Hope to make it out a couple more times before ice.

    Anyway, seems like posting on this thread has gone by the wayside, so may it R.I.P.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2233738

    Trophy19, are you planning to troll, or jig the gaps and harbor area? Interested in seeing how you do, as I plan to hit it myself next week after returning home from a trip. Tis the time of year to jig the gaps and harbor, but trolling inside also can produce fish.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2232643

    Been out a couple times in the past week just for 3 to 4 hours, and the typical fall bite I’ve enjoyed in the past isn’t on yet. I’m thinking that the water temps are still too warm, hovering around 54 degrees both outings. Boated 6 and 8 eyes on these outings and missed some good plastic hits, plus a few obligatory goats and rockies. No white bass oddly enough.Eyes ranged from 14 to 18.5 inches, with most 16 and up. Plastics and jig/minnow both caught fish. More trollers on the water than usual, and heard of reports of nice catches by that method, including some big fish.
    Taking a beak for a week while travelling to visit family, but back at it in November. Should start seeing some much better action.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2228130

    Is this the Plus or Ultra model Tom? Also, would you sell without transducer. A buddy is looking for a second head unit only.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2227118

    Petenwell for a couple trips, chasing eyes and few hours casting for musky. Also get some nice perch and plenty of white bass incidental to walleye fishing. Closer to home, it’s the Rock River for eyes, and Oconomowoc and Pewaukee lakes for skis, and Madison chain for big gills.
    And I’m glad there are lots of hunters at this time of the year….lakes and rivers are nice and peaceful much of the time.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2227117

    First fall outing yesterday on the river with my 20 year old grandson, 7 till noon. slowwwwwwwww. I boated two white bass and he got one nice eye, a fat 25 incher that’s still swimming. I’ll never hear the end of that story…..grandpa got skunked on eyes. I reminded him that it was my dead-stick with weedless 1/8 jig that I convinced him to hang over, caught that fish. Don’t matter…bragging rights are his for sure. lol.
    Water temp 65 degrees, and not much current despite the recent rains. Off to Petenwell at end of week, so back to the Rock in a couple.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2226558

    So here’s my assessment of the transom-mounted LVS 12 after a couple days of playing around on Petenwell. I found it very useful as a fish-finding tool in detecting the presence of fish in standing, submerged timber and downed timber, which Petenwell has plenty of, in cases where traditional sonar showed unidentifiable marks. The forward view showed me the submerged standing trees ahead (15 to 20 fow) while scouting, and in a case or two, fish milling around them. Caught one suspended crappie casting into the “milling” fish. In down view, it also showed fish hanging around structure, or just swimming around featureless basin bottom. It confirmed to me something that I already knew: although the fish are there, they don’t always eat.
    I came across a tip that said to increase the color gain in sonar appearance to 90% to better see the jig or whatever bait you’re throwing. I did this and did see my jig a little better than before within the limited scanning angle zones of the forward and down views. But as said above, it is difficult to see your bait with the LVS12, especially when affixed to the transom, so this is not a video-game fishing transducer or set-up.
    So in summary, I’m happy with the end result, since I did not want to mess around with the black box and xducer on a stick set up. While the LVS12 has significant limitations to the more deluxe tools out there, it has significantly improved my fish-finding capability. Heading back to Petenwell later in October for a one week trip to improve my skills with the new toy.
    Oh, and here’s the fishing report. Went up to get some work done around my friend’s cottage, so only fished 4 to 5 hours the two days. Got lots (30 to 40) of undersize eyes each day with some legals mixed in. Also took home 6 nice crappie, a dozen perch at 10 to 12 inches, and released a dozen or so big white bass and 3 channel cats. Did the LVS12 help? I think so, since I spent more time scouting and confirming before dropping lines.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2224780

    That’s a sphinx moth.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2222752

    Still collecting dust. Yours for $115 plus shipping.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2220965

    Looks similar to my 2019 1775 Impact after two weeks being tied up to a dock in Canada the year I bought it. My fenders were tied up to the boat, hanging but rubbing against the hull in wave action. Used rubbing compound to try to buff them out a bit when we got home, then several coats of wax. The areas are still visible, but not as bad as they initially were.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2220688

    My roller trailer/1775 Impact are easy-on, easy-off in most conditions, solo half the time. The guides do help when wind and/or high, fast water add a little challenge to it. They help keep the boat in the correct zone to drive it up or pull it up. Mine guides are scarred up too.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2218635

    So I mounted the LVS12 on the transom about 5 inches portside of the GT-56 transducer , not knowing if the side-scan view might detect the LVS12, or if the LVS12 would “see” the lower unit. Actually had to slide the GT56 toward starboard a bit to make room for the LVS12, which raised the height of the GT56 a bit as well. The installation worked well. As a matter of fact, the GT56 side scan is no longer picking up the lower unit when trimmed down; previously had to tilt up a bit for port-side scanning.
    Played around with the lvs12 down-view for only a bit while gill fishing with grandson.(busy catching gills with a 9-year old). Had a tough time seeing the jig, but eventually caught glimpses of it while playing around with the settings. We were spot-locked in 18 fow with a patch of weeds right below us. Could spot gills milling around the weed patch with an occasional bigger fish swimming thru, guessing bass. Clarity was great. Didn’t do much with the forward view yet.

    So I plan to go solo next time and get to know this new toy. Any suggestions from others’ experience with settings, tips, etc. appreciated.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2218201

    Welcome to IDO Nik. That’s a nice-looking rig. I had a 2000 Wrangler DC that I sold in 2017 and moved into a Lund. Seller’s remorse ever since, although the Impacts are a nice fishing boat too. What’s the top speed with the 115HO? I think the Cobra has a few less interior creature features than the older Wranglers, making them about 200 lbs. lighter.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2217629

    I figured it’s usefulness would be limited when drifting/jigging a shallow river like the Rock. I also fish Petenwell and local lakes where I’m often jigging or drop-shotting in 15 to 30 fow, and the Milwaukee Harbor in open water for late season Lakers in 30 to 40 fow. Will post some feedback after getting out a few times. Looks like it will be delivered today.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2217592

    I know what you mean about the limitations. Most of my time fishing walleye is vertical jigging so I’m hoping the transom mount is workable for that. I’ll give it a go and if it’s not a useful tool, or a fun tool to find and “watch” fish with, then I’ll likely switch over to the stick mount. For a couple hundred bucks, thought it was worth a try.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2217073

    So I pulled the trigger on an LVS12; Englund Marine had a clearance on them for $234 including shipping. I’ll be mounting it on the transom for a permanent installation on my 106SV Ultra. I know it’s limitations compared to the black box models, but decided not to go in whole hog. Will be installing it in the next few days. Reached out to Garmin to see if I can mount it right next to the GT-56 transducer, and they said that should be fine, as they don’t expect that the frequencies will cause any kind of interference one to the other.

    Speaking of Garmin, I’ve been impressed with their fast responses to both phone and email contacts with the transducer installation question, and a previous minor issue I had with the side-scan imaging. Great service and tech help!

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2207787

    Off topic here, but a good, easy way to fry in the back yard is to use a propane grill if you own one. Turn the burners on high, set a cast iron pan in there to heat up, add the desired amount of oil and bring to desired temp. Put the fish in, close lid. All the splatter burns right up, no mess. Trick is to figure out what burner setting to use to get to desired oil temp.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2201768

    I carry a floor jack but added a breaker bar with pipe extension, plus impact wrench socket set after getting stuck last year with flat on truck and boat in tow. Had the tires rotated a week earlier, and for the life of me, couldn’t break the lugs loose with conventional lug iron bar. Had a 2 hour wait for AAA to rescue me and just before they arrived, a 250 lb. guy stopped to help. He was unable to break the lugs loose with my lug bar, pulled out a breaker bar and extension pipe, and after leaning into it pretty good, was able to loosen the lugs. Of course, AAA showed up a minute later to finish the job.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2192126

    Can’t comment on Humminbird vs. Garmin side-imaging comparisons, but I can tell you that the side-imaging on the Garmin 106SV Ultra with the GT-56 transducer is a step up over their 9 inch units due to the processor, power and three-frequency sonar differences. The 10 inch vs, 9 inch screen not that big of a deal; it’s the specs that add to the quality.Pulled the trigger on one a few weeks ago and had it on the water a few times. Clarity is amazing even in default settings, vs. my older 93SV, and if you wait and look for sales, can find the unit with ducer for under $1400.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2192124

    Suzuki, wondering where on Marathon and when were you chasing the bonefish? Need a boat and guide to do it, or access fishable water by foot? We stayed on Marathon in January and fished a few times, but didn’t hear anything about bonefish.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2191132

    I’ve had single cylinder 4-stroke 6hp Merc (Tohatsu), 5 hp Honda, and 6 hp Evinrude (Tohatsu), and the Tohatsu and Honda were about the same. Not as smooth running as a two cylinder 4-stroke, but plenty of power for my 17 ft. Yarcraft and Lund, with a top speed of 5 or 6 mph WOT, and troll down nicely to 1.5 to 2 mph. I like the fact that they’re light (60 lbs), Noise level on both not a nuisance. Use it mostly trolling Lake MI but saved my butt several times on Lake MI and in Canada, limping in after main motor problems.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2186103

    When are you planning on being there? Walleye fishing can be very good in the spring and fall but be prepared for lots of company, especially April and May. It can be a PITA at times, with boats zooming by too close, but I guess that can be the case anywhere. With that said, it is a beautiful area to fish and action can be very good, sorting thru many shorts to get a few eaters and slots. High water can be a pain; I look at streamflow charts before heading over there. If you’re flexible on location or considering another trip, take a look at Petenwell Flowage and the stretch of river that leads into it.
    Don’t know anything about Holiday Shores.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2181741

    Borrowing from an earlier post, you are truly a class act James. I recognized that from the few guide trips in early 2000’s, reinforced when you took a couple minutes to help me cover my YarCraft at Evers on a very busy March day while my buddy cleaned fish. It’s been great following your success on this site and the show. And to offer the detailed explanation for your personal and business decisions….my hat’s off to you. Wishing you and your old/new staff continued success.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2178981

    Just finished a 4 week stay in Key Colony Beach community on Marathon Key. Staying on marathon puts you roughly in the middle of the Keys which shortens the drive to Key West if you plan on going there. Drove there for a day trip last year, and no more; waaaaaay too busy, commercialized, and pricey for my liking.Plenty of restaurants on Marathon, as is the case on Islamorada, and plenty of fishing opportunities at both. One factor to consider if your family is into the beach thing is to find somewhere on or close to a swimming beach. While the Keys are surrounded by water, access to a sandy swimming beach takes some looking. Sombrero Beach on Marathon is a very nice one.
    In any case, you’re in for a treat. Our first visit there was staying with friends in a rental house for 10 days two years ago, 2 weeks last year, and this year 4 weeks. Any more questions, fire away.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2177043

    Hope you’re not bored in retirement Jeff lol. It’s been 8 years for me and seems that they absolutely flew by! Not enough time to do everything I want to do, but that’s a good problem.
    Anyway, any newbies to the Rock River system should jump all over your offer. I’ve told Jeff this before and thanked him a few times for getting me hooked on this system back in early 2000’s. If you put your time in and learn the nuances about fishing the Rock, you will be successful. A little coaching will expedite the learning curve. I took the lessons James Holst taught me about plastics on a few guided trips at Red Wing back in early days of Fishtheriver.com, and applied them to the Rock and Wisconsin rivers, and walleye fishing has never been the same!
    I’ll help in trying to jumpstart this thread.

    z-man
    Dousman, WI
    Posts: 1408
    #2160743

    I’m planning to pull the trigger on a 106sv Ultra with the sales in place ($999 with the GT-54 transducer),but may sit tight till a sale comes up with the GT-56 transducer. I’m by no means an expert, but have used an older 93sv echomap/chirp unit.The upgrades to the 106sv from a 93 sv include better resolution and bigger screen of course, which I feel will best benefit the side view function. I’ve taken a look at numerous youtube videos by MG Marine tech. The info that young man provides on numerous unit/tranducer comparisons should answer any questions you have.

Viewing 30 posts - 1 through 30 (of 1,165 total)