mr 580

Changing environment with clearer water and spiny water flea have driven different line presentations more than preference or “fun” factor. When fleas choke up your rod guides so you can’t reel in kings, you have to adapt. Guys will run 30lb then leader down to 15 to 20lb fluorocarbon to get around the problem. If the fleas aren’t around, you can still run your 15 to 17lb like the old days just add the fluorocarbon leader.

X3 on staying away from pancakes. Torpedo/sharks are better for deep faster trolling on Lake Ontario. Going to 150’ you’d want 15lb if your riggers would handle them. Over 100’ 12’s start getting pretty good blow back.

Might be helpful if you posted a picture of the back of your boat and the swim platform. Some swim platforms will carry a kicker others will not. A 9.9 kicker should be all you need (100 to 120lbs). Auto pilot choices vary depending on what type of steering your main motor has and whether you want tied to kicker or a stand alone kicker system. More info will get more help for you.

You can run your outside high diver back further. IMO the key thing to watch when running double divers is to keep your spread running square. If you spread is sliding sideways to the back of the boat due to wind or current, you need to drop back to one diver per side. There are days when one is all you can run.

Back in the 80’s when we stacked riggers regularly, we didn’t stack j plugs. They way j plugs fly around they tangled pretty good if you got them anywhere near close. You could do a spoon on a slider over a j plug on a short lead. Back in those days we ran a lot of j plugs all season.

My experience with dealing with trailer “problems” in the equipment business is that over 80% of the time tires or overload is the issue. Tire inflation and proper load rating check first. Second check weight of load and proper load placement-tongue weight and axle loads. Get trailer on scales to do this- can be an eye opener. I’d do this before measuring. In the case of a trailer/load that someone has had for years with no problems with tires that suddenly starts having an issue, I’d look at tires first. Trailer tires aren’t the highest quality. Then I would look at adjustment points on frame for any sign of movement. Then check shackles, eye bolts, springs for wear, hub, wheel bearing and any wear point. Look for any sign of damage/road hazard or curb impact. Get the trailer up on stands with wheels off-helps spot areas needing attention. Axles can get bent and need replacement.

You measure from where your ball attaches to the the axle center on each side- that dimension should be equal. If you have a difference either your axle mount has shifted or the front axle is bent. It is a practice referred as string lining a trailer. You are determining if that front axle is square to the pull point of the trailer. Between making sure your axles are square and weighing your trailer, you will find your problem. If the problem is same tire/same axle-points to an axle problem. Could axle mounts slid back on one side or that axle is bent.

Typically on the East end of Lake Erie, it is primarily a night bite in May into early June. The daytime open water trolling starts in June and usually is best late June through early September. Fishing can be good into late September and beyond, but the issue is the number of days you can get out is limited on the East end. My advice for an East end trip would be to look at July/August. If a fall trip is what you want go West into Ohio for a better chance at getting out.

Number of issues to be aware of at NY Ramps presently- Sturgeon Point- launch ramp open and marina closed Catt Creek-major flood last weekend. State Ramp at Sunset reopening today. Believe Hanover Ramp partially open. Many marina docks damaged or gone. Dunkirk-launch open / channel good. Barcelona-issues with harbor silting. Channel access a bit “tricky” with an East temporary channel and material moving in the normal channel after some emergency dredging. For someone making their first visit to Lake Erie right now probably Dunkirk or Buffalo Small Boat Harbor best bets.

Measure from center of ball to center of axle on each side. Are tires separating on one axle or one side? If it is on back axle on a tandem trailer, my guess would be overload. Might want to get trailer weighed with your normal load. Trolling boats get back heavy with riggers, weights, kickers and gear.

Where are you looking to fish from? Ohio, Pennsylvania or New York

Looks like the cable steer kit is the same Lowrance or Simrad with the Point 1

Simrad and Lowrance are owned by same group. My install was hydraulic steering- I do believe Lowrance did offer a cable steer kit.

Todd the Lowrance Outboard Autopilot uses a Point 1 Heading sensor. The Simrad Outboard Autopilot uses the Precision 9 heading sensor/compass. Both kits use the Nac-1 module and the same fittings/hoses so the difference in the two kits is the heading sensor. The Precision 9 compass is an upgrade compared to the Point 1 and is more expensive by about $500 or $600 when comparing Lowrance and Simrad Outboard Autopilot kits. My experience with the Precision 9 is that my autopilot holds a good line in wind and rough water-I don’t know how the Lowrance Point 1 would compare.

The NAC1 with Precision 9 Simrad version works well for me. Holds a good line even when it is snotty. Using with Simrad Go Series for chart plotter. Precision 9 upgrade worth the extra $$$ IMO over the base Lowrance unit. Go Series touch screen easy to use.

To the OP - seeing you have another post with questions on copper besides this one on using a down rigger, a good way to shorten the beginner learning curve is to take a charter. Get some buddies to split cost and the expense is not that great. Likely will save money from losing less tackle or buying the wrong equipment in the long run plus get you catching fish sooner.

IMO the way that Bombardier pulled the plug on Evinrude left a lot of owners and dealers in the lurch. Not sure what their future is in the marine industry going forward with what they have left for boat brands and other products. Seems like Evinrude is dead after the OMC bankruptcy and BRP’s recent exit with the brand. If I was looking at an outboard today would be Yamaha, Suzuki or Mercury. Pretty sad demise for a brand that was a market leader at one time.

That little black insulator does work and controls the short stop. Cannon has used that style system for over 30 years-was on the Mag 10’s I bought in 1986. I might worry about a few things not working on my boat, downriggers would be down towards the bottom of the list.