jeb

Wow, 3.5" in the rain gauge so far just from the storms last night in the PC area. And they're saying the storms later in the day promise to be the big rain producers. I sure hope everyone stays safe, on the water and off.

I only use the foot pedal on the Terrova to steer it 5% of the time, if that much. And then I only use the buttons, not the main part where you'd stand with your whole shoe. I use the 3 buttons on the bottom to steer instead, on the rare occasion I need to use the pedal to steer at all. But I do use the AP and constant on/off buttons on the pedal a bit. It'd be nice to have a more compact pedal, without the shoe print part. Can't remember the last time I used that.

Agreed, the Auto Pilot feature is awesome. That's how I fish, for the most part. I've never used the "learn a route" and then retrace it function. Just fish in too many places for that to be useful. I'd think the cruise control would be a great thing for the trollers.

Local forecasters were still saying 4-6 inches of rain on Saturday alone this morning. We got just over 2 inches of rain in the gauge from yesterdays rain storm here in the PC area. High winds took out a yellow poplar in our yard.

I'm hoping they put the new Ultrex spot lock on the non-cable steer motor. I don't like cable steer motors, but MK apparently finally got the spot lock figured out on the Ultrex. I have a Terrova and have the new and older generation iPilot modules for it. The older one is much more accurate with spot lock (something to do with the GPS components in the modules) but will still drift around 10' or so. And it will do what it takes to keep you that close. The newer one, which is the same as the current Terrova and Ulterra motors, allows much more drift. I keep it as a spare. Maybe MK will come out with an update module for those motors with the better spot lock. That would be ideal, as I'm happy with the terrova otherwise. I thought about the MG Xi5, but it's got a pretty bad rep on reliability, as borne out by some posters comments in this thread. When it works, it's suppose to be a nice system though.

Yeah, the FLW guys are all over the lake right now. I wonder if they'll cancel if the Friday/Saturday forecast comes true for several more inches of rain?

Some like it, some not so much. My buddy has it on his boat, and says he's going to sell it as it just does not help him. From what I read on the HB forums, seems it's a better shallow water tool, so maybe not as helpful on our deeper lakes.

Ended up with 4 1/3 inches. PC has calmed way down, but is still stained. I've not been out on the lake yet, but it looks stained from shore. Lake level is up 4' so far. It'll be interesting to see how the FLW guys do next weekend.

Wow, shorting the guy already! It was 3.89, IIRC! Thanks for putting this together, Jeff. It was great to come up and put some faces with the names we see here.

We're up to 3 inches now, and PC is running very high and very muddy. Looks like it's going to be a much different lake after this storm goes through. Hope this doesn't mess up any spawning.

Almost 2 inches of rain so far in the PC area as of Noon on Friday, and still coming down hard. Lake level is coming up fast, but the water running into is still clear, at least so far. Hoping not too much mud gets washed into the lake.

Blackburn is for sure popular with the striper guys right now. We went in there Friday to bass fish, and they were pretty thick. Didn't see anyone catch any, though.

Nope, hubs are all sealed. I've had them apart several times, no water. It is tough on brake lines, though. I replaced the line inside the trailer frame with a high pressure braided SS line. Well worth the small investment. Took less than an hour to do.

A bit off topic, but I have a foot in both worlds. Here in Ark, we live just above the lake near PC. The boat is in an attached garage, all ready to rock. Hook up and back it into the water at the bottom of the hill, and go fishing. I even leave the trailer in the water all day, so it's just so super easy-peasy. Need fuel? Run to Rogers and fill up with non-ethanol fuel before/after fishing. Need to work on some of the rod/reels/tackles/electronics? Walk out into the garage and get it. Never have to stow anything. Where I stay up north in the summer, I have a dock and boat lift. What a PITA. I fish most every day up there. So at the beginning of the day I have to uncover the boat, pull the rods and tackle out, hook up the electronics and bring it off the lift. No fuel stations on that lake, so I carry it down to the beach by hand. Fortunately, I don't burn a lot of fuel up there (small lake).

Great day, Jeff! I'm sure the bass are wondering when you're getting the other knee done, so they can have a little rest.

Thanks for the video. I already bought the tackle bag from Academy recommended earlier in the thread, and I think that will work. But it's good to know that the Flambeau K series tackle box will work, too.

Thanks Vernon. That looks like it would work.

Great to hear you're back in the saddle, Jeff! Much fear in the fish world now.

At least I got one answer before it got derailed! Thanks Dave. Sure was hoping for a different answer, though.

Anyone know of a brand of tackle box that will stand up to Zman baits? In my plano plastic boxes, they tend to warp the plastic dividers and make a mess of things. Was going to try some different brand box, but figured I'd ask y'all first.

+1. I've always found Beaver in the winter is best with clear water, at least for where and how I fish it. I agree we need the rain, just hoping it doesn't muddy the water up too much.

Use fairly light wire hooks on the A-rig, and use braid. I've only ever lost one A-rig, had to cut it off. You will loose a few spoons, part of the game. HLS used to sell those locally made hammered spoons for like $1.79 per, but no longer carry them. Made it a lot more affordable. I need to order some blanks from somewhere and make my own, I guess.

I'd bet WW's and RC's will play a big part, if it's windy. I'll be working a different charity event, so won't be there. Hope y'all catch a big sack!

Yep, that seems to be the key. Watch those electronics and find the bait with big fish under or nearby. But really, that's always a good thing to do. The difference is that right now, the bass seem to be reading the same fishing articles I read and are actually biting like they're suppose to in those situations.

MinnKota Terrova. It's pretty good as far as holding it's spot, but I understand the MG is a little better. Got out again this morning. A lot more traffic one the lake, and no wind. So the fishing was more like normal, but a little weird for this time of year with the warm weather. I had them blowing up shad near me at one point, so broke out the topwaters, and caught several fish on them! Caught an almost 5lb spot on a jigging spoon. Just a complete football. Caught a nice LM on an A-rig, some more on spoons, one on a jerkbait. So had to work a bit harder today, and didn't catch near the numbers of yesterday, but some good quality fish mixed in there. All in the PC area. Watched one striper guy that was working back and forth where I was fishing put a couple on board. Looked like decent fish.