LongLine

If you get them on your line: with a "clump about" 10-15 from your rod tip, put the tip about 6" in the water then snap it upward as fast as you can. Fleas will get cut right off. DO NOT slap your rod tip against the surface of the water. That's a good way to break your rod. Tom B. (LongLine)

For years this is what I used on my board. Very easy & cheap to make. You could also bend it a little differently & mount it to the bulkhead, however I’d think the seat the better option. I would not use wood as a backer but rather get a piece of aluminum. Cuts & drills very easily Tom B. (LongLine)

The great majority of my spoons have been switched to singles. Make sure the point faces the cup of the spoon as has been said 4 times in the above post...(or was that said the same way in 4 posts?) and it's sticky sharp. Also look at the size and shank length. Don't put a stubby 2/0 on a 4" spoon. Better to look at 4/0's. Also be careful that the shank isn't too long. For a 4" spoon I'd try a "Gammy" 4/0 and put a little bend in so so the point is not parrallel to the shank. Tom B. (LongLine)

IMO, if you boat isn't 10 ft wide, you're asking for trouble with a side & a rear rigg'r regardless of style weight. Any depth more than 40 down & the cables can get awful close. Tom B. (LongLine)

Fishing Report LongLine Launched out the river at sun-up. River surface low 70’s F. Didn’t see the sun again until 10:00 or so, then it got bright. Heavy overcast to the west moved to the east. Slight south wind (& I mean slight) initially then switched from the East. (Very slight – just enough to show the temp breaks). Headed towards Russell & put in around 95 FOW. Trolled around & out to 240 FOW then back in. Surface generally 65F. 60F down 15 ft. 54F generally down 60-65. A few fleas but nothing troublesome on 12# test. Anyways, only marked 4 fish the whole time out & couldn’t find any bait pods. However, started out with two quick releases but no one home. Then when the sun came out, ended up with 3 in the boat. 1 natural King a little over 12, a Stlhd under 10 & 1 Laker probably 3-4. All 3 clean fish - no scars. King at 70 over 140, Stlhd at 50 over 100 & Laker at 65 over 115. Blk, Purp, & Grn combo spoons did the damage, all 30-40 behind the weight. Interestingly, all three came when the lures fluttered downward. i.e King when stopped to blow out the engine, Stlhd on a sharp inside turn & Laker when lure popped from release. Haven’t been out in 3 weeks so it felt great to be back out there. Beautiful day on the water. Off around 11:30. Maybe 10 trailers in the lot. Luck to all, Tom B. (LongLine)

Nice. BTW - That's a Laker. Tom B. (LongLine)

A double flying solo is a real rush. Congratulations, well done. However please remember "ain't no fish worth your life." Tom B. (LongLine)

Black's are meant to go either on the cable or between the ball and the cable. Don't put any release on the fin of the weight as the drag of the lure will "back" steer the weight & cause tangles. Tom B. (LongLine)

What I do to remove the coating is to use a utility knife to carefully "skin" it off; then heat the exposed wire with a lighter; then just buff it with some very fine sandpaper. I then make sure the thimble is stainless steel. I also make sure that the wire is tight to the thimble as I crimp it. I run a Black's on the cable and often use a cannon pinch pad for a stacker. No issues. Tom B. (LongLine)

Happy Birthday Tim. Hope it's a good one. Tom B. (LongLine)

I've doubled crimped weights for many years and haven't had problems. (knock on wood) The rules I follow: 1. Never trailer the boat with weights on. 2. Never have boat under power (except for trolling) with weight hanging from rigg'r. 3. Never pull the weight out of the water except when you're attaching a line. (when you clear the rigg'rs when you have a big fish on - leave the ball couple inches under the water) 4. Always re-terminate every year. 5. Keep an eye on the wire & pulley, re-terminate whenever you see/feel a kink, fray, or pig tail. Crimps are cheap - probes aren't. Tom B. (LongLine)

Wonderbread. Every kid's favorite. Tom B. (LongLine)

Hey Skipper, That's what the good Lord made coolers for. Also don't forget that a great many fish get taken on dipseys, which are way out of the cone. Tom B. (LongLine)

AS - Did that about 35 years ago to a bunch of spoons. Only ones that I haven't converted are the DWSS, cuz I have a lot of trouble adjusting for the same action. You will occassionally brain hook a little guy but you'll get the fish out of your net & back in the water a lot faster with the singles. Tom B. (LongLine)

I hate to admit that I'm older school... Ever hear of Mac-Jac releases? The releases weren't very good but the clips were fantastic. Just clip a clip between the legs of the the Black's release and your all set. Unfortunately they're hard to find nowdays. Tom B. (LongLine)

Happy B'day there youngster. Tom B. (LongLine)

SH - I'd go straight out & get a good idea of the mud line. (Brown turns to green/blue water) Flip a coin & follow it in & out for a while, zig-zag fashion. I'd get one flasher fly combo down plus a couple clean spoons - one close & 1 way back. Cloudy - I'd try purples, blacks, reds, golds, Clear sky - I'd brighten things up a bit - silver/blk, whites, bright greens, etc Good luck, Tom B. (LongLine)

SH - Welcome to the site. The Genny is a warm & muddy river. BTs & LTs rare catch up-river. Try trolling in lake 30-60 FOW real early. Lake is in transition right now. Thermocline just beginning to try to set up. In a couple weeks you'll find them 60-100 FOW right on the bottom. As for the river, there's a deep channel right in the middle. Lots of warm water fish in there. Bass, Pike, walleyes, cats, etc. Remember, if you happen to snag a sturgeon - let it go. Good luck, Tom B. (LongLine)

P-Line on rigg'rs & flats. (It doesn't stretch like mono) Tom B. (LongLine)

Welcome to the site. Wish I could help ya but the only Fort Frances I know of is on the west end of Lake Superior. Good luck on your venture. Tom B. (LongLine)

Ditto lyteline. Southport. Tom B. (LongLine)

Not necessarily the carbs...more likely the prop. Dragging a 5 gal bucket can be a very effective way to slow you down. However, it can introduce other problems. What I found that works well is to make a harness that is clipped onto both rear eyebolts in the transom. The harness has a pulley. Replace the bucket handle with a rope and then tie a rope from bucket to pulley. (This is the same principle as water skiers use) Adjust the length of the harness so that the pulley cannot fall below the cavitation plate on your motor. The motor will then always throw its propwash into the bucket. Turning the motor just a little will always clear the riggers and this has no effect on the steering whatsoever. The 75 on my 18 ft’r will do 2.0 at idle but will go down to 0.5 with this setup. (slow enough to pull X5 & U20 flatfish) Tom B. (LongLine)

Craft stores have a sticker removal product called "Un-Do". It's good stuff. Will disolve the old glue & will not touch the paint job. Tom B. (LongLine)

Yes, Canadian side you need a license. U.S. side you don't. Tom B. (LongLine)

Sorry guys I just went thru the sites posted and this one: http://www.ijc.org/loslr/en/solution/ They're talking 2 1/2" higher in April and 2" higher in October, nowhere near 18" overall level. The water level is still regulated. It's not going back to the unregulated era. I agree that storms can cause a lot of damage, but come on...2" on top of 14-17 ft waves??? i would think that any house that survived the 70-90's high water eras and those storms will also survive this. I would think that Sodus especially would favor this proposal as it looks like it might help do something with that blue algea problem that has creeped up on them in the last couple years. Tom B. (LongLine)