How Much Time Do You Spend Scanning For Fish?

[Bill Babler]

Winter time deep fishing is really the time to use those electronics. I will at times spend the majority of my time with my head plastered to the HDS8 Elite in the console. Really no need to fish the way we fish without seeing fish and shad in the Winter.

At times you can lite on them, but most often this time of the year, we are looking for schools of deep fish usually suspended under bait.

I look till I find it. Will not always bite, see Sunday, but 90% of the time this is the ticket for me.

[Old plug]

BILL your a professional guide. I suppose i would want the vey best electronics with me as well. I do not know your age, but some if us at mine run into problems with adapting to new things with many buttons and modes and what have you. I do run two finders on my boat. And i do use them for pretty simple things. I love the front one for white bass jigging. But with all the other stuff I would be frustrated I am sure. I get enough of that with the TV remote.

[hknfsh]

Wow....how'd we ever manage to catch anything in the days before electronics ?? Use mine for depth and to see if anything around. Haven't figured out the " make 'em bite " mode on my graph yet. Seems all the bells and whistles takes some of the fun out of it for me. Figure if I catch one it was because I presented something that enticed him to bite. Maybe I'm old school........

[huntest]

I have been fishing since I was 3 --- 57 years ago. I thought we had struck gold when we got the "old green flasher" This new electronic fishing equipment is terrific. We can't make them bite but we can sure find them.

I think it helps narrow the gap from fishing to catching in all conditions.

[Feathers and Fins]

They are just tools, no different than a set of Binos and a topo map when hunting if you learn how to use the tools your odds go up if you don't they don't. Still comes down to the angler being able to not be locked in to one style or bait. The adaptive angler always seems to catch fish when the 1 mentality angler gets much fewer. Combine with local knowledge and well kept logs after time one gets a little closer to understanding the massive brain of a fish. Still think scientist need to stop thinking small brain = not smart... Ya let them fish for a day they might find their big brain is the retarded one lol

[Bill Babler]

BILL your a professional guide. I suppose i would want the vey best electronics with me as well. I do not know your age, but some if us at mine run into problems with adapting to new things with many buttons and modes and what have you. I do run two finders on my boat. And i do use them for pretty simple things. I love the front one for white bass jigging. But with all the other stuff I would be frustrated I am sure. I get enough of that with the TV remote.

Plug, I'm sure I'm with ya. Will be having my 59th. next year. For me however it has been an evolution and an adaptation as far as the electronics. The setup is always the key and I will tell you I'm not as good at that as I am at interpreting the screens.

Rick Lisek and Bill Beck and he is our age have always been very good at the setup. Reason being they tinker with it all the time. Bill knows all his menues and goes to the often. Once my unit is dialed in I just use it to zoom mark and view. I can work it all but am lazy. 100 percent of knowledge on the entire machine is not what I'm after. It is like knowing every function of your computer in every mode. Just don't need to know.

For people that are retired or just have time and are not weekend fisherman there is really no excuse for not knowing how to use electronics. You have the time, use it wisely. I remember Dan Langely telling me he used to spend at least 1 hr. of every fishing trip just learning his electronics, sometimes he would not take a rod from his box for the entire day. How many of us even with no time restrictions do this. I'm guessing not many. Now it is easier than ever with all the tutorials and DVD's on usage for both Hummingbird and Lowrance.

Good Luck

[merc1997 Bo]

even in the spring, unless i am up a river, i will spend time looking around for fish. many times even in the spring, especially on the lower end, bass will be suspended out over deeper water. when night fishing, this is very good information, because those bass suspended will go right over to the bank sometime during the night. you can sometimes just go bank beating and get some, but bass are school fish, and the mother load will most of the time be in one spot. learn to use your electronics and it will sure help you catch more bass, or any type of fish.

bo

[inshore]

you can under do or over do anything. I find people that have the good machines and (key) understand how to make them work for them will use them more than the people who don't. as for my self if I'm looking for deep fish if I don't see them on my hb I don't fish. if I'm fishing bank to 10 feet all I use is depth. if I'm fishing brush pile I will look but remember it is hard to see fish dead on the bottom so I may fish even when I don't see fish.

like the old saying goes use it or lose it.

[Old plug]

Geee BiLL-------- OUR AGE !!!!!!! I wish I was our age. And i wish you luck when you get to be MY AGE.

I think a lot of people who fish a area for a long time do not require electronics. I think also a lot of retirees find it to expensive to buy these newer units. Like I say. I like them for limited things. I have to two on my boat. But I do not depend on it.

[3-Liter]

Bill, You mentioned Dan Langley. I have not heard of him for years, is he still around? 3-Liter