J-Doc

Starter and power pack? I'll trade ya for a possible rebuild. I think mine needs a cylinder rebuild because I did something stupid not knowing any better. She'll last another 32 yrs after I get it fixed. Can't wait either. I'm ready to get out there again with more than a trolling motor only. I heard boats froze to their trailers up at Table Rock yesterday. My fishing partner was in a small tournament and they had to head home because all the boats were frozen. That is too cold to fish. :-)

Took 16.88 to win. On the 5th cast, my bud's boater lost a 4.5lb fish at side of the boat. Then he lost (2) 2lb fish the same way on two consecutive casts. After the numb-skulls finally got the net out, they weighed in a 6 bass limit. If they hadn't have lost those fish, they could have probably run around 16lbs and possibly the lead. Big fish was around 6lbs. All incredible weight for a winter fishing tournament on a blue-bird day with frigid temps. Well done to those guys/gals! As for my "I don't use a net" buddy..... USE THE NET GOOBER!

I'd like to know the results myself. My bud fished it and his boater lost a 4.5lb at the boat and had 3 keepers that I know of. Didn't get the final report from him yet.

Awesome to know you fish with your Dad still. My Dad is not a fisherman and my son has little if any intrest. One day, I am going to go fishing with someone that knows what they are doing for stripersand I'm going to give it a try. Looks like it could be a lot of fun.

My buddy fished this tournament lasg year but sold his boat or ekse we'd probably be in it. My boat is down for a while or else I woukd be intrested also. I hear this can be a fun tournament.

I caught quite a few walleye this last spring. The walleye/sauger population is on the rise for sure. I caught them on anything from a 6" swimbait to a shakey head, jig, jerkbait, and I think a crankbait also. I saw a large school of them around the south side of the islands above the Hwy 12 bridge back around April. You shouldn't have a problem catching a 17-20" walleye or sauger next spring. There are plenty of them now. I was getting tired of catching them because I thought I had a 4-5lb bass everytime.

Shows how much I know about striped fishing. My bad guys. I remembered the small crappie minnows jurI thought they had shad az well. Guess we all have to fend for ourselves.

Hook Line and Sinner bait shop has shad. Not sure about shad big enough for striper. I would like to learn more about stripers myself. Im a bass guy but I want to try some striped fishing soon.

That's cool! So what's the deal with fish lately? No one is having much luck. I thought the fish would be biting well in the back of creeks in water temps around 50-70. I've always had mixed results in the fall anyway but nobody is having much luck right now. Any thoughts? Bald eagles over Beaver is a very good sign of they're recovery.

I just checked the water levels and they are stable. I crossed the White River at Beaver,AR today and the river looked higher but clear. Not sure if the dam is pulling silt or what.

I think you just described it. If it were white bass, there are typically a lot of bites close together. Eventually a school will surface and the bites are not that large. Even with good sized whites, the bites are no where near bowling ball quality. I heard the whites were south of the 12 bridge. With this cold front, that might turn them on in a few days but it won't be the big push. Still a bit early.

I admit, in years past my catch ratio dropped during this time. However last year, I had better luck. I think the gunk on the line is what's spooking the fish cause they can see it. Maybe that's part of it. Hang in there and try different things to see what works.

Call me strange but I really like Sportsman's Warehouse and miss it very much. I didn't buy that much tackle there......well Ok I did buy a lot of stuff there but it's now stored away in my closet becuase I've learned more about color selection but I still really like the store. I liked the overall atmosphere and size of the store. There was a lot of stuff in it. Academy has a little of everything in it from golf to camping to fishing and a little hunting stuff too. It's not going to be as good as the mom & pop shops or the local bait stores. GOSH I hope it never does because they could hurt the local business. I'd rather keep supporting folks locally like Mobile Marine, Hook Line & Sinker, and when I can get down there, the store next to Lake Fayetteville. They have more selection thats catered to local lakes, better color selections, and more of the stuff you really need. As for the H20 baits, I hear the action is slightly differen than LC but for the price, I'll buy a few of them and won't think twice about it. They have a decent selection overall for the "not so serious angler" such as ourselves. We keep the locals in business, not the big chains. The Dad that wants to buy his girl or boy a fishing rod and take it out on their ski boat.........Academy is a good option for him vs. Walmart.

Nice report Stump. I was just thinking of heading out that direction Sat. morning for a couple of hours. Funny you mention feeding gar and bass. I've always viewed gar as a bad sign. Whenever I see gar feeding on top, I almost never catch bass. Maybe I've been fishing the wrong type of baits. I've tried topwater, cranks, spinnerbaits, etc. and never caught bass when gar were around. I can definately see how they would feed together though. If the food is grouped together, they do not discriminate on the company. What were you trolling, small crankbaits?

Sorry guys.........couldn't help myself.

I'm glad you mentioned that. After spending time on the water in a little 12ft jon boat with no motor, I can relate. The ski boats have "0" respect for other boaters in boats larger than theirs much less a small vessel. I bet the complaint at P. Creek marina was from the people at the marina. I usually cruise through at 800-1000rpm but I have a small boat and try my best to not leave a wake that will be noticed by the time it gets to the marina. Usually, I see a very very small wake behind me but it's never more than a 2-4inches high if that. Heck, my boat will leave a wake almost that big with the trolling motor wide open.... I'm glad to see the AGFC out there controlling laws but I wish they would pay more attention the other spectrum and leave us fishing guys alone. We generally have more respect for other boaters of all vessels.

They could have been diving for evidence. I think they dive Beaver Lake many times for such reasons. Sometimes for bodys, other times for evidence.

If they'll bite the redfin, they should bite this pretty easy. This is just a bit longer than the redfin. I'll email him and ask him if he has plans for a smaller version for the "non-trophy bass" folks.

Here's a new bait just out from Matt Lures. Matt is a really nice guy and makes great baits. I've bought a few of his swimbaits and they are great! Matt Lures Jitterfish Topwater Swimbait If anyone gets one of these or has one, post up some feedback on it. I'm thinking of buying one myself. I wished he made them in the 4-6" range...

I called Wolf today. I'm going to take it by there Saturday morning so he can take a look at the powerhead before I put the head back on. He said if it runs good, run it. I've had others tell me that too. It's a matter of "money per value x age" factor that makes me want to keep running it as is. I'm going to several mechanics, show them the powerhead without the head on and get an average of opinions. If money wasn't so tight right now, I'd already have it the shop for a rebuild.

Just as an update, I took "things into my own hands" with a little help from some folks and pulled the head cover myself. Inspection of the low cylinder showed no visible signs of gasket failure, slight water damage/scalding of the cylinder wall but not worth an overhaul, and no major damage as the mechanic said over the phone. The decarb did not do this, it was due to ring failure and the rings are still OK and usable. Three cylinders have 120psi and the one cylinder has 80 when the motor is warm. Since the motor is in such good shape and no futher damage should occur after replacing the head gasket, I'm going to keep running the motor "as is" and keep a close eye on the compression and temperature. So far, the little boat is running 40-42mph in rough choppy water on ALL ORIGINAL GASKETS! A 31yr old outboard that has never once been cracked open. Unbelieveable! That's a tough little motor! So, it looks like the suggestions made for local mechanics were good suggestions and will definately keep them in mind for future work. I will try to do the work myself when I can to save the cash. I've already taken the starter apart twice now and cleaned/greased it to solve the squeal when my mechanic told me "just buy a new one". Saved myself $180......

WOW! Now that's a clean motor and nice rebuild. Maybe one day I'll break mine down and restore it to that level. For now, it's in it's original condition. I have to admit, for original condition it's in REALLY good original condition.

Thanks for the tip. Ill give them a call. Yes, the quote was for all 4 cylinders. I was told it would be a new motor when he was done with it but it wouldnt have new electrical components, just a powerhead overhaul/rebuild. Motor is a 1979 Evinrude V4, 85hp model 85999R. No, the gauge used last year was my mechanics gauge. I got one from O'Reily's when I did the test myself this past weekeend. Good to know that gauges can differ slightly.

I have low compression in one cylinder (70psi) and the other three cylinders are at 100-110psi. Last fall, all cylinders were at 120psi range and within 5-10psi of each other. So, I called just to get a rough ballpark range for seal/ring replacement, warped cylinder replacement, or worst case scenario. I got the worst case scenario and that was it. I was told over the phone $3,500-$3,800 to overhaul the motor due to cracks in the cylinder wall. The mechanic felt it would definitely be a damaged wall because I paid another mechanic to “decarb the motor”. He said large carbon deposits will break up and then scratch the cylinder wall and the decarb will damage the rings and seals. The mechanic has 30yrs experience and I was told he is really good. Sounded to me like he would “fix it right” the first time and didn’t want any callbacks or chance of warranty work and wanted to go to the limit right from the start.

I'm looking for a really good mechanic with reasonable rates in the Rogers Bentonville area (or greater area if you know a great one). I've been to only one so far and I'm just needing second opinions cause we've all got opinions.