mudflat

Downriggers and wire divers with a 4 rod setup is a great start, especially if you are limited with what you can spend. Get your father out and let him play with a 20# King and spend some quality time together with his son and he might be willing to invest more. If you can get on a charter it will shorten the learning curve and give immediate rewards. A couple of suggestions: Go with 30lb Big Game mono instead of the 50# power pro for the riggers. Fleas will be a problem with the power pro and the mono will be easier to work with. You can run free sliders off the mono and add a 20# leader if you're running spoons. Look at Trax Tech, Bert's or Cisco tracks to set up the boat with rod holders. Go with the longest sections that will fit on the boat. This will let you add, change, or remove rod holders very easily in the future without drilling more holes in the boat and they look good. You can add electronics like sonar and a Fish Hawk when you can but I would get a vhf radio right away for safety and info while on the water. Remember it's all about the fun, keep it simple at first and learn as you go.

Arney's has a few campsites right next to their parking area You can check with them if any are available

x2 on the TR1 Gold A hydraulic AP made just for kickers Quick, responsive and quiet, will even give you electronic throttle control if you want it Have one on a 25' Penn Yan with a T9.9 kicker and can't imagine being without it Last I knew they were in short supply right now, could try Calumet Marine

I've had one break, now I try to be "gentle" with them and stop the boat to bring in my boards. Cisco makes a replacement reel that's all steel. I plan on trying them if another plastic BJ cracks on me. Their not cheap either but at least you shouldn't have to replace one because it cracked.

You can try BOE Marine They are not listed on his web site but Jim is a Garmin dealer and was able to source one for me a couple of years ago at a great price 866-735-5926 or [email protected]

X2 You will only get about 120 yds of 30lb test on a 27, maybe even less with Flea Flicker. Might work ok for trout but you're likely to get spooled with a king.

FYI If you are a member of ELOSTA you can get a discount off your BoatUS membership.

"Nothing deserves more respect than a nervous woman with a shotgun" --- John Wayne Life, it's what's happening while you are making plans.

Congratulations, everybody seems to love their Islander's A 8hp kicker with a TR-1 on that will make boat control real easy so you can enjoy fishing.

Tim What are you putting this kicker on? What's your new ride? You will love the TR-1 once you get it dialed in and learn how to make it dance, very quiet.

Would need to know what size and type of boat you have and if you trailer it. Also where do you plan on fishing and what for.

Big Water Saw this post on GLA. There were a couple of times last year that I was thinking of trying this with my TR1 but I had my wife with me and it was rough enough that she was ready to go in. Maybe in a tournament or with the guys it would be worth a try, especially since I already have the TR-1 and it works great except in extreme conditions where the kicker can't keep up. Quote Originally Posted by TAMTAM View Post Right sir in the USA, in case you can afford the hours on your main propulsion, get rid of the mechanical steering in favour of hydraulic and spend your money on a fullsize pilot, got the TR-1 Gold myself on a slightly smaller boat, its a great unit but in windy condition nothing replaces a big (powerful) prop when it comes to hold course... (even compared to a T8 Yamaha) Just my insight Best regards from SWEDEN Scandinavia! reply by HONDAM: This is true, all the TR-1 does is maximize the potential of the kicker. If the kicker is to small to do the job in the conditions no matter how good the driver is it wont help. We had a TR-1 paired with an 8hp Honda on our 24ft Hewescraft tournament boat for a couple years before switching back to the cat. There was a time or two where we were fishing and the waves started well over 6fters and the kicker started struggling but what we did was start up the main motor and put it in gear (no tie bar just sitting there straight) just to help with some extra thrust to get up those big waves and it all worked up fine with the autopilot still steering the boat.

Fishing is a reel tough job but many tackle it.

I'd rather see a 15"er in my box and included in my daily limit than one floating behind the boat because someone thought it was too small to keep and wanted to upgrade. I release them if at all possible but feel terrible if they don't make it. When hunting you can be very selective as to what size you're targeting, not always possible when fishing but I feel you're legally and morally obligated to keep any "legal" fish that isn't going to survive. I even hate releasing an undersized shaker if I don't think they are going to recover.

Wet your finger and hold it across both metal probes on the front or put the probe into a bucket of water, if the red light starts flashing that is a good sign, at least it is turning itself on and the batteries are good. If the plastic casing is not cracked so water can't get into the probe you're probably OK.

Doug Have you found the problem yet?

My son spent two years working on survey boats in the Gulf and never lost it. Last year we were out of Sodus for the Salmon Slam and he was hanging over the rail. I was laughing too hard to even think about coming in. I do give it up quickly if my wife starts feeling even a little queasy so I guess it all depends on who it is