vetting

I wish the GLT rods came in something shorter than 8-6 for the copper/leadcore. Would like something shorter since it makes storage in the cuddy easier. Might just have to go with the standard Classics that come in 7 footers.

Does anyone use the Okuma classic pro or GLT that are designed for leadcore?

I've been fishing lake michigan for 3 years now and slowly added gear over time. As a result, I have a hodgepodge of various rods for leadcore. A combination of whuppin' sticks, ugly sticks, and cabelas rods. All of them of course are various lengths and stiffness. This becomes and issue when you are running 3 boards a side on a triple tree since they end up overlapping. So over the winter I would like to get 8 - 10 replacement rods so that they are all the same. I run everything from 2 colors up to 10 colors with Church walleye boards. Does anyone have any recommendations that wont break the bank?

So what was the best speed on a X4-D this year? I had a real on/off year and couldn't get consistent results to see what the best speed with the new unit was.

I put these on my boat http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005WWIV3O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 $11 each truck LED lights. They have worked great so far and beat the spreader lights that my buddy spend 150 on. My triple trees sit up further so I mounted them right to the trees. Just got some shorter bolts, drilled a hole in the triple tree, and mounted them right there. Replace the standard nut/lock washer with a locking nut. You can set it to just the right tension where you can still tilt the lights in any direction you want.

Whats the proper procedure for checking the voltage on a fiberglass boat?

Check your balls!

Ditto the warranty. The worst case scenario is overheating to do blow head gasket/low compression on a cylinder. Can you provide more details on this "new" motor. Was it just a block or was it a full long block with all of the bolt ons that are all new?

I have an 89 mercruiser 5.7 I idle mine at 600 and never have had a problem. Oil pressure is usually 30+ at idle on 15w-40. Does it only overheat at idle? Are you sure the fins are going the correct way and all going the same direction when the impeller was installed? Has this always been a problem since you've owned the boat or is it something more recent? Was the old impeller shredded at all? A common issue at idle is that the old bits of the old impeller are stuck in the system and blocking low pressure water. If it overheats at idle, but is better at a higher speed, it almost always points to a water flow/pressure problem. Another common problem is the check valves/balls in the hoses - thats if thats the system you have. Pull the the two upper rubber hoses off thermostats housing to check balls. If they are too loose or not seated correctly, they will let water through without it cooling the block. You can tighten the nut on the shaft and check to see if that tightens them up. If they dont tighten up, I think you can stretch the spring and put it back together.

True true - now I only have to be hacked of about how I only get 8 fish in a trip when other guys are going 17 for 22 (who's going to eat all of those fish anyways )

Just another plug for the Raymarine Evolution - it tracks better and better each time I take it out. The system seems to learn your boat style. I usually touch the wheel 2 times or so once I leave the boat slip - that with an average of 6 hours of trolling. I dont even touch the wheel to do turns - I either use the turn 180 pattern or the 360 circle. You can set it to turn either direction and the diameter of the turn. Turns perfect with dragging 6 boards without a single tangle.

Ditto on the Evolution. It tends to freak out a bit in 4 footers...but so do all of the rookies on the boat

Do you know if it is hydraulic steering or cable steering? Thats the key difference that will point you towards what autopilot you should choose. Do you troll on just one motor or are you using a kicker?