MrGiggles

For sure. I have always done better during pre-spawn than I have in April-May when they're shallow. Like you said flooding and the volatile weather can make it tricky.

Pomme has always fished way better in fall and winter for me, summer is tough. My best days have been in Dec/Jan, March, and September. Truman kicks my butt more times than not so I'm no help there. Never fished LOZ.

There's two in Springfield. They used to have some killer rebate deals but not so much anymore. I haven't used them lately but always had good service in the past.

When I fished that area a lot it didn't really start to heat up until the water started cooling off in September. Always the first column and then the second as the water started to get cold. I always tried to hit it during the week when nobody else is there, but that's not really a thing since Covid hit. Lake seems pretty busy most of the year now.

I had a 14' Alumacraft that had visibly been beaten for most of it's life. Battered and bruised, but never broken. The hull was almost 1/8" thick. My dream boat is a Competitor 165/175 tiller. I wouldn't discount a Lowe that was in good shape with a reputable outboard. They're on the lower end with Tracker, but there's a bunch of them out there with happy owners. G3 is worth looking at too, although I don't think there's as many out there.

The west end of the 245 bridge usually usually starts to produce late Aug-Nov for me, although I haven't been there yet this year. It's a popular spot though.

Wood was used in pretty much all boats up until the late 2000s I think, and even then was still used in many models. It's hard to get away from. Lowe is no exception. It's not a deal breaker if you have to replace one, if you have a way to lift the outboard. Heavy ratchet strap and a floor jack will work on 60-75hp motors.

I'm not familiar with that side of the lake at all. But for walleye, there's a big hump next to big island near the dam, and the flats across from Pittsburg campground. It's getting real close to the time of year when whites will be surfacing at dusk and dawn. Looks for boils and throw anything with flash in there.

Tyee? Had one just like that in the shop last week. Dang good big water boat, although the walk through is awfully narrow and not much storage.

Do you want to stick with a tiller or side console? One thing for sure, I wouldn't want any kind of Mod-V or jon at Stockton or LOZ. I always thought the Tracker Guide V14 SC was a slick looking little boat. Fairly small but still not useless in rough water. They weren't too expensive either. As for older boats, Lowe and Alumacraft both had a model that was similar with the same name, Lunker. And the Lund Mr. Pike series. Tracker also had a few older Deep-V models. One things for sure, if you run up to Minnesota there are a lot more of those style boats. A lot of jons, pontoons, and bass boats here. With how I fish, there is little to no benefit in a flat bottom or Mod-V, and there are many to a Deep-V. I'd suggest you consider how and where you spend most of your time fishing, and get a hull style to suit.

I have been doing a lot better on points but I'm sure they're still on the flats at times. If you were by Maze, I'd motor across the lake to the points on the north bank, especially the one closest to master's island. I think it's an old road bed and there's a lot of rubble and brush along it.

The bite is still pretty good. Went Sunday 7/31 and had 10 shorts, no keepers. Couple that were really close but most around 12-13". Went this afternoon again, 5 shorts one keeper that went about 18". Almost all on jigging raps but a couple on bottom bouncers. Water has been around 84-85*.

Most of those are precharged, just have to vacuum down the lines. May need to add or remove some refrigerant if you extended or cut the lines by a significant amount. The manual should have a chart for how much refrigerant needs to be added/removed per foot of line. Should be a pretty easy job for an HVAC tech either way.

My experience has been that good pocket knives never stay in my possession very long, and the cheap ones stick around forever. So I carry a $5 Ozark Trail. Few swipes on some rough concrete and it's ready to go. My hunting knife is a CRKT. Their stuff used to be pretty good but I don't know if that's still the case. I was given a ceramic kitchen knife for Christmas last year, it's sharp, that's for sure. Not sure if I can resharpen when it gets dull though.

Mini split? Those things are pretty slick.

Amazon is notorious for fakes and counterfeit. Not sure if it's a thing in the fishing world but it definitely is everywhere else. Their inventory system is terrible, they will use many different sources for a given product and have no real control over whether they're legit or not. I got burned on a set of Denso iridium spark plugs once. Started misfiring within a month.

I'm of the opinion that all mono/flouro has a shelf life, even if it's covered. I always strip quite a bit off of my older rolls and toss it before spooling up. If it isn't glossy and new looking, I don't want it on my reels. I'm guessing that isn't your issue though since you probably have had the issues since it was new, unless the roll you bought had been sitting on the shelf for years. It's why I pretty much only use braid and switch between whatever leader suits the style of fishing I'm doing. Braid is a pain to tie and is pretty wimpy as far as abrasion resistance goes, a leader solves those problems, and it'll last forever. At most you will have to replace the ~100 feet of braid you actually fish with as it fatigues from running through the guides, but it takes a really long time. I think I've only ever used P-line once, and not for very long. If I remember right it twisted terribly and I got tired of messing with it.

You can just call the office in Stockton and have them mail it to you. Can also get them at the COE campgrounds around the lake. Crabtree does for sure, Cedar Ridge, Mutton, and Hawker likely do too. I usually renew mine every year at Crabtree or Wheatland on Pomme. The Park's service pass is likely a decal or or hang tag just like the one from COE.

Pretty much. Would only take a few dozen looters to empty the average Walmart of non-perishables. That is if some guys with firepower haven't banded together and claimed it as their own before anyone else can get to it.

Hit the lake solo for a couple hours this afternoon and put 10 shorts in the boat, no keepers. Jigging raps 15-22ft. Crappy pic, there wasn't too much worth taking pictures of, but still a very fun time.

There sure isn't. Hydro or nuclear is the only feasible answer with current tech. Wind requires flat land and lots of real estate, plus nobody wants to leave near them. Solar is getting close to paying for itself, but I still don't think it's there yet in many areas without subsidies. If you're handy, you can source used panels, install them yourself, and the payoff will come a lot sooner. But not many are willing to do that.

I'll add the ones from our trip. We put a hurting on them. If anyone is on the fence about booking a trip I highly recommend it. A good teacher makes all the difference. Thanks again Ed, it was a pleasure.

I see Teslas on highway 13 somewhat frequently. Saw a Model X towing a sizable Tracker Deep-V in Springfield once. I read that they tested the new electric F150's range while towing, and it was dismal. Like <100 miles.

EV's have cooling systems that aren't unlike what a normal car has, with a radiator, water pump, coolant, etc. So they will not overheat but there will be a decrease in range with adverse weather, especially in cold conditions.

Would be good to know what size the little motor is. I can't imagine a small (up to 25hp) outboard needing more than 100 amps. The little AGM is not a bad choice either, you're not looking at a large weight consequence.