Sk8man

Nice going.....great eyes. I have to say though that the one in the first pic must be a male from the expression on his face....you shouldn't have been gripping his gonads so tightly

Thanks Panfisher....and you should get to work designing that watercraft aliens might already have it ....we could just copy

Just as a point of information for folks who might be unfamiliar with the Finger Lakes flasher flies and spinney flies and also dodgers with them as well as squid work very well on most of the Finger Lakes and especially the larger ones like Seneca, Cayuga, Keuka, and Canandaigua. They have been used successfully for years there for Lake Trout, Rainbows, Landlocked Salmon and Brown Trout. I even caught a 4-5 lb smallmouth bass on a wonderbread echip flasher and fly combo last season . In my opinion there is no "magic speed" I have caught rainbows with them going 3 mph when I was running spoons at that speed and was too lazy to change over the flasher/fly combo and they hit it Rather than just the gps or surface speed I continually watch my rod tips primarily and and get them "pulsating" slightly and do this with cowbell setups as well.....I know it is "old school" but it works. It also can be an indicator of current change such as going with the current rather than against or across it (which you should be) as the rod tops appear to "go slack" in comparison. A lot of times it is mainly a matter of not running in the same layer as the active fish in the water column when they don't seem to "work".

For something quick just a 10-12 inch section of 2x4 will do and mount the transducer to it or make a hole in the center of it so the transducer can be "adjusted" and let it "stradle" the hole. it can be anchored with snow at the ends

Thanks bud. (can't wait until open water fishing again...already)

I just typed a detailed report on things at the north end and the Internet connection dropped and it all went up in smoke and I just don't have the heart to do it all over again so I'll just say this:it appears the only possible access is the extreme north end at Kershaw and Muar House and with a long walk to what looks like about 15 ft of water possible with ice coverage.I'll include the pics for your review. I tried to name the pics for the spots and the direction (e.g. NE S etc.) Butler is VERY unsafe and undoable right now. The east side pull off area the ice is all broken up and mostly open water with the west wind today. On the west side the bubblers around docks are going full blast. Hopefully this may save some folks on gas and time scouting it out. The pics were taken about 2PM this afternoon. TIP: Place your mouse over the thumbnail pics to see the location

:lol: I think Rick got ya pretty good Nick....

Sean - I've had good success with the 124 mm (largest size) Walker Deeper Diver rather than the some of the others in the Finger Lakes especially because they can really get down there especially for lakers. I've bumped bottom in 140 ft of water with them on my wire rigs. The best performance for me seems to come on 30 lb wire rather than braid or mono as the main line etc. Sometimes you also have to play with the distance from the diver to lure too and although I usually run the setup so that it is about the length of my rod in its entirety I also sometimes use a long lead and "handline" in the fish.

The usual batteries are the relatively small 12 volt batteries that come in 8 amp hr and 9 amp hr. I've had the 9 amp hr. in my Vexilar flasher for 6 years (also have a backup just in case at home) but have charged it with the adapter after each use and kept it fully charged. They run about $30 as stated and I've had mine operating for more than 10 or 12 hrs at a time in the extreme cold without the "Low Battery" light coming on. I would suspect however that there could be significant differences in the way the various units and models use current but that is the data for mine. You can often find the batteries and adapters in places like Radio Shack, Runnings, Gander Mountain etc or online. I think the charger was about $24 These are my "backups" as I still use the original battery and charger that came with my flasher. Here is a pic of a battery and adapter: (measurements 5 3/4 inches long, 3 3/4 inches wide, 2 1/2 inches thick)

Congrats Rollie Great ways to "get even"

Hey Nick, You should have bought stock in the company before making that purchase It probably cleaned out the east coast supply...

Congrats...and at that size he should be winning a baby derby already

:lol:

Most of my dipseys are black but I also left a bunch with original colors and I'm not convinced there is a significant difference in their effectiveness whether on kings or trout. As far as the "stealth" argument if you are the fisherman it may make sense but not if you are a fish. Basically the visual systems of most species including fish pick up movement and figure ground or contrast much before color etc. because it makes biological sense (e.g murky water, objects a distance away, early recognition of prey or predator etc.) and black contrasts most distinctly with the light above and the sky so in all probability they can see it or its movement in the water at a greater distance. If you notice fish eyes are located to the front but upward on their heads...this is not accidental placement... it maximizes their ability to see upward so like sharks they see forms, shadows, and shapes better than colors and interpret it more quickly. I suspect the majority of the phenomena associated with color discrimination in dipseys, weights, or lures is actually more about movement in the water, vibrations sent to their lateral line,and the action of things than the color per se. I know this will cause a great deal of tension and turbulence in the fishermen reading this and especially in the marketing folks out there but I think a lot of what goes on can be explained by "happenstance". This is the fish being in proximity to the lure or attractor, it presenting as a vulnerable object because of its movement or action and the fish being hungry or willing to "buy" the presentation. Boat speed, length of line out, depth of lure and/or attractor may be more important factors. We tend to look at cause and effect situations as something relating to our own "selections" or actions when in fact they may be related to very different aspects of the situation beyond our ability or opportunity to witness firsthand so it becomes something like "superstitious" behavior on our part attributing it to "color selection"......and yes I did have a couple coffees before writing this

I think Big Water hit the nail on the head when he mentioned "balance"...this is the "missing link" in the equation and is key to the solutions but some things have a "critical period" attached to them after which it may be too late to restore any sense of balance. Even very "primitive" people whether in Australia, Africa, or the Americas fully understood this necessary concept and integrated it within their lives....we have a lot to learn from them and hopefully before it is too late. Technology can be wonderful but it is not the answer to everything.

Those weights look very good. They resemble the shape of tuna which is the most hydro-dynamically designed of all fish so they should glide through the water nicely

Thanks Mark I've written that down just in case I forget by then....I'm kind of an old dude

John and Mark

We may all be myopic. Global warming is only but one issue and its origin may become irrelevant in the final analysis because the world as we know it is rapidly deteriorating in quality for many reasons some of which may be related to the natural cycle of things and others which are directly attributable to human actions or inaction. The oceans are becoming devoid of fish (over fishing, pollution etc.) and wildlife, Air quality in many places in the world is atrocious, Here closer to home the acid rain has spoiled much of the fresh water lakes and streams in the Adirondacks, tropical rainforests are disappearing at the speed of light. Some of the problems that at first glance appear to be "natural" in outcome have their origins in man made situations (e.g. Zebras, Quaggas, Flying Carp, Water fleas, and on and on from careless human acts). Many species of wildlife are vanishing before our very eyes and we choose to focus on "global warming" as the prime issue of the day polarizing our views and blinding us to the myriad of destructive events taking place all around us many of which do have clear cut answers. The real issue to be concerned with is what are we going to do to change in a meaningful way how we interact with the environment to insure that our decendants have a viable set of resources to maintain them with a decent quality of life today and into the future .