rshubuck

I got the same reel with 475ft copper with a 150yds of powerpro 50# backing and it is tight. To be real honest I would not go any more then 450 ft of copper and put the extra backing on.

I would go with the 55# It will rip your boat right around. My dad has the same thing and about the same weight. He is very happy with it. I on the other hand have a 18ft fiberglass boat thats a lot heavier and I chose to go with the 80# minn kota power v2 and the thing will dam near knock me off the boat when I go to side to side when its turned up. They don't make the 80lber anymore. Now I am very happy with the minn kotas as far as performance and easy operation, but longevity is another story I am $%^*pissed at minn kota. I bought the 70lb version for another boat I had 3 years ago and I got 2 month out of it before it stopped working. Returned it to cabelas and got a full refund. It was the end of the season The following season I bought the 80lber and used it a lot the last 2 years but I tried using it this May and it is now a dead unit not under warranty. I am not really a fan of any other brands but minn kota so I don't really know if I want to purchase another one or not.

Wow ED! You certainly are have one hell of a year with your boat. Don't give up! Have one of these

Great report and laker! Glad to see you got the new boat out!

It does not hurt to ask but. Some of these prop shops will let you borrow a few props to try. Prop selection is a very hard thing to get right. There is some other factors to be aware of. Each brand prop may be different from the other. Some props are cuped. Diameter plays a big role also. If you stick to the same brand prop and design you should have no problem going to a less pitch prop. [ Post made via iPhone ]

Nice job! Thanks for the report. [ Post made via iPhone ]

6lb 1oz LL for me. That was the only thing worth mentioning.

Thanks everyone. Mower I know what you mean. Jacqueline I been together for sometime now. In that time she graduated from Cornell with some degree that I have no clue on how to spell. Then she just spent the last 3 getting her nursing degree at Arnot agdon. In that time she also worked 20 to 30 hrs a week. So now she is finally working we are able to spend more time together at least until the kids start popping out. Lol. My ez steer was fine. What happened was my shift and throttle cables got hung up so the motor was not able to turn alll the way. While I was out there I tightened the ez steer down so could figure something out. That was fine until I was waiting to dock my boat my motor would not turn all the way left. So I kept going in circles. I got every thing readjusted now so I should be good. [ Post made via iPhone ]

Congrads Andy, Dustin and Tcon

Great Job Andy! You and year teamed deserved it!

Fished this event with my wife She just finished Nursing school so she might have a little more time to go out fishing with me now so I am excited. We launched at Myers I think some time after 9am. I motored N and was planning on hitting my waypoints from the Red Cross event but noticed a lot of bait while I was driving in the middle of the lake I just felt like hitting it this time. Plus we usually get 1 or 2 just south of Tfalls in the middle of the lake. I put 2 down riggers down with SD/fly combos. One at 60 and the other at 69. Went to go sent up dipsy when I heard my drag peeling some line off of the 69, rigger. Grabbed the rod and handed to my wife. After a short battle she got it close to the boat and it took off again but caught my other rigger. So my boat was going in circles while I untangled things Must have been pretty funny to watch. For some reason my easier steer was was collapsing so the motor turned. Any ways we got the fish on the boat at it weighed at 6lbs 1oz. Thats the biggest LL for my boat out of Cayuga We continued on the N troll but we only got 1 ll and 2 really small LT by 1pm. We made it just past AES. I wanted to start there and work my way N but the LL and the smile on my wifes face was worth a slow day. We had a great time. Congrads to Chowder!

This time of year it really is a hard thing to do and your just going to have to face the fact that some fish your just going to have to keep. The problem being this time of year your pulling fish from 42 to 55 degree water into temps as high as 85 degrees. The shock from the warmer temps alone usually kills the fish. The longer they are in the warmer water the less chances they have to survive. Some people say slowly bring them in and others say reel them in fast. I find the less time I am fighting the fish the more energy the fish have and the better their chances of swimming down. By the sounds of it you are already doing the best you can to release them. I like dropping them in the water like a torpedo also but as you said its a 50/50 shot. Its just a matter whether the fish has enough energy to swim back down. Good luck!

Great job! I need a hat like that. I missed placed mine:( Boo to the up coming cold front. [ Post made via iPhone ]

Wow. The temp sounds like it changed a lot since the last time I was out. Good report! [ Post made via iPhone ]

I'm not going to have a full boat this time. Its just going to be my wife and I:) I guess I won't bust out the copper Should be a real good time.

My wife told me No, No Rob, Focus Rob, Focus on the House! Nice Boat! Good luck!

No sir I use abright on a lot off my lines. It is a lot easier tying when you got a real stiff line like copper. It takes some practice but I like the knot. Now my downrigging rods I tie flurocarbon leaders on and either use a micro swivel or use the albright knot to attach them. It is extremely a pain is the *ss to tie and get right. Tooth pick helps. I will be at the LOU event on Cayuga this Sunday if you want me to show you how its done. This is the great thing about fishing. There is so many different ways to rig your lines and set up your boat. Apparently there is no wrong way to do it. But it is really important to keep an open mind and develope your own program. I been fishing all my life but just got into trolling last year around this time. I been pretty lucky and have this site to thank for it but I have had the opportunity to fish with a lot of guys from this site and see their secret weopons The most important thing to remember are Bananas are bad! Although, some bananas got placed in my boat before for my trip to the Oak. Which might have been my best trip of the year. They had smilely faces drawn on them. I just can't imagine how good fishing would have been if the bananas weren't in my boat Hanna, good move. Down temp and speed will help catch a lot more big slobs consistently. But handing a rod over cause your tired to an even older guy then you is just sad. [ Post made via iPhone ]

My bad. I thought we were talking about connecting the backing. I use the same not as ben but use the same bearing swivels that are on spin doctors. [ Post made via iPhone ]

I use the Albright knot. I have not had it fail if it is tied right. Also, I have never had braid slip on me ever and I use it on a lot reels. [ Post made via iPhone ]

Berts are probably the most popular. I purchased some cannon single axis and I love them. The one hand operation is really nice [ Post made via iPhone ]

I run mine on the big boards as well. It's out of the way and you can just forget about it. When it's on a board any slight turn changes it speed and depth. Which I believe to make copper so effective. [ Post made via iPhone ]

I love my hds 7 paired with navionics platinum mapping chip. I did have to send mine back this past may cause it would not power up but they sent me a brand new one. Customer service was great to deal with. I want to buy another one but they are a little pricey:( [ Post made via iPhone ]

Nice job Andy! There is no known cure for the Lake Ontario Bug! Once you got it, you have it for life I'm going to have to get me some of those "Yecks"

Especially this time of year hands down; it is the number 1 laker taker that you can use Depends on how many people I got on the boat but I generally I run 4 wires but if I have to I will sacrifice 1 to run a deep copper also.

The Okuma 30's fit the 1000' wire better but the 45's will work. I use th 45's for my downrigging rods with 30lb test mono. I use the 30's for my wire rods and have plenty of room to fit more wire on. To answer your question the reason is because wire will slip on your spool unlike braid or mono does. I can't remember what reel has it but they do make reels with a screw on the spool you tie the end of the wire on and there is no slipping then. So for your reels you don't need to use any backing but if you don't you will need tape for these reels to help prevent the slipping. I personally use 50' or so of powerpro backing to prevent slipping. If you plan on using the 45's I would consider using 50lb mono for some backing just to do what Wes is saying to fit the spool better. Mono is a much bigger diameter so it won't take as much to help fill the extra space on the reel. Just a thought.