momay4000

Try this, http://www.turtlemarine.com/navgoldxl9cf14.html Hope it helps, - Chris

Kingfish, I just picked one up over the weekend from Hodges for $245.....you just can't beat the price. Nonetheless, get the Navionics Gold 14 chip for our Great Lakes region. Good luck, -Chris

Steve, It's a "make it yourself" type tape job. I first used yellow relective WTP tape and cut it to fit the inside of the spoon for the base. Then I hand cut five "circles" (about the size of a hole punch) using red relective tape and stuck them on top of the yellow tape. I buy my tape at B-E tackle in Ontario. - Chris

I can't believe it....finally after almost a year of waiting.....my X-5 shipped today. Hodges Marine is continuing to get more units in stock every day and apparently has worked on some of the backorder and "waiting list" and now has them in stock. Nonetheless, I'll still believe it when I see it at my door.... I don't think you can beat their price - it's around $1455, no tax..... -Chris Disclaimer - I have no ties to Hodges Marine or Raymarine

It seems like people have been discussing boat safety "readiness" , i.e. USCG inspection, so I thought this link might help: http://www.uscgboating.org/SAFETY/vsc.htm Disclaimer - I'm not in the USCG, nor do I have any ties to this site. - Chris

Chowder, Typically coho are the easiest to catch b/c they are so curious. However, over the past two years it seems like the numbers are down.... Nonetheless, we used the small (6") Action flashers last year with a small (either blue or cotton candy) peanut fly. They're pretty narrow (I'd say only an inch wide) and they're made of metal. They seemed to work a little better off the boards b/c they ran a little deeper than the small plastic SD's and didn't require keel sinkers. http://www.lakemichiganangler.com/store ... lasher.htm Good luck, - Chris

JBoock, I spoke with Dreamweaver a few weeks ago, and they use: #2 trebles for all of their Super-slims 1/0 for regular spoons not sure about mags (I forgot to ask) Hope this helps, - Chris

Rod, Nice looking work - I also like some of your tape patterns on the 2 "42 second" style spoons you made. I just swapped out my hooks on all of my Dreamweaver stuff - even new spoons that I just purchased. I put all Owner hooks on my spoons (#2 for the SS spoons, and 1/0 for the regular spoons). There's an unbelievable difference in how sharp the Owner hooks are compared to the "stock" VMC stuff they come with. Owner's aren't cheap but they seem worth it (I called Dreamweaver directly by the way to confirm the treble size on their spoons). Thanks for the post Rod! - Chris Disclaimer - I have no ties to Owner hooks

Stinger, It is not in stock yet. In fact, I received an automatic email today from Hodges, called them within ten minutes and it was still out of stock. I spoke with someone over there and they said it was an error and they hadn't processed any orders yet. They also apparently have over 200 people nationally on the wait list for one of the units. I also spoke with Raymarine today and according to them the entire unit has yet to be released. They have released the helm units to some dealers, but they're still waiting to release the control.....nonetheless, the wait continues.......... - Chris Disclaimer - I have no ties to Raymarine (actually I would be embarrassed if I did at the rate they're going...)

I agree with Gill-T, I think as a general rule we tend to run our baits higher than what we think they are running at because we typically think "rules" such as "lead core sinks 4.5 feet for every color out...." or " wire depth is a 3:1 ratio...." and so forth. However, when you look at the Precision Trolling curves, for the most part the curves aren't linear, i.e. the farther out a lure/line is from the boat, the less is the rate of sink of the lure. Trolling depth is quite complicated and it actually takes into account fluid mechanics, but trolling should be simple and fun, not complicated. I use the Precision guide every time we're out as a general guide, and then adjust from there. I trust that they have put in the hours and visualized lures underwater so I have to trust their data. However, certainly currents, boat speed, lure size (flashers vs. spoons) makes a huge difference. In my opinion, when we start hitting fish, it's not so much what we THINK the depth is of the lure, but rather a guide for reproducibility for the rest of the day. I agree with Ray as well, last year we had a 10 color core out in 30 feet of water fishing browns, probably 2.0 mph surface speed or so, and it never snagged bottom either..... Just my 2 cents...... - Chris Disclaimer - I have no relationship to Precision Trolling....

Chowder, Here's a chart from GL outdoors Hope it helps... - Chris http://www.gloutdoorstore.com/vmc9650ni ... size1.aspx

Legacy, Try this - A-Tom-Mik has bulk VMC trebles. http://www.atommiktrollingflies.com/vmc2.htm - Chris Disclaimer - I have no financial ties, personal interests, or relationship with A-Tom-Mik in any way.

Legacy, It's funny that you just posted this question. As we speak, I'm looking online at Basspro for some new trebles. I just bought about 2 dozen DW spoons yesterday and I was VERY disappointed at how dull the brand new hooks were. Let me know if you find a good source for bulk hooks... Thanks, - Chris

Awesome pictures.... Man, Salmon Chaser has some brass stones to get that close let alone be on the water taking pictures near one of those things..... - Chris

Legacy, What do you mean? - Chris

Mike, One of our hottest spring setups last year was three color and five color lead cores run behind inline planer boards. This presentation worked great for steelhead/kings/coho from ice out until June. Typically we ran size 4d Northern King spoons (black/silver streak) and lots of DW SS spoons (orange crush was a favorite). We also ran the smaller coho Spin Drs. in red and orange with a small Howie fly. These tended to pull a bit more behind the boat, but were still effective. We also ran our clean mono setups behind the boards, but typically we would use a 3/8 ounce inline keel sinker for added depth. We ran stick baits such as the Kaboom Goby patterns, GFR and clown pattern rapallas and a few smaller pirate spoons (homemade 5 of diamonds) Hope this helps, - Chris

Floater, No pic, but here's how I've rigged the terminal connection to my probe: 1.) Burn off a few inches of the protective coating of the terminal end of your coated DR cable and make sure you have a completely clean stainless cable 2.) Slip on three or four crimps to this cable (for later) 2.) Take the U-clip which Moore supplies (open it slightly) and pass it through the top post on the probe so the wider end of the clip is passing through the eye. 3.) Take your burned end of your coated cable and pass it through both the post of the ST probe and the channel of the U-clip and make sure that there is metal-on-metal contact from the wire and the clip. 4.) After passing it through, take the end of the coated wire and pass it through the crimps which you slid on earlier and crimp all three or four. 5.) Apply the waterproof tape to everything and you're good to go. Many of the top fisherman/women make up a swivel system so they can remove the probe when they want. -Chris

Mdryer, I do the same thing as Legacy. Since most of my SD/fly combos stay together as a "package" , I like to tie them directly to the SD and avoid swivels. - Chris

1.) We use at least 20# mono leaders from the Dipsy to the flasher and no less than 20# mono on our mainlines. 2.) your combos are fine 3.) We use white flies/spoons when targeting lakers Good luck, - Chris

Jack, SD's and flies work fantastic behind the ball. I have only two riggers on my boat and typically we run a SD/fly combo on our "non-probe" rigger. Some of our best combos last year were a 42 second SD/fly and the green dot/glow SD/Hammer fly. We keep our leads short (less than 20 feet) and did quite well. Our riggers out-fished our wire last year 10 to 1. Good luck, - Chris

Last year we were in the process of landing a triple and after I landed the first fish I set the retrieve on the rigger to bring up the ball (and Subtroll probe). As I moved and focused on the next fish, I start to hear my brother who was driving yell, "dude, huge fish at the surface, 15 feet ,30 feet, 60 feet......now it's on the bottom.......!" Certainly it wasn't a fish at all, but my probe and ball which snapped off when it hit the top of the boom and nobody was paying attention..... Moral of the story is watch it when you retrieve your DR's (or at least have ones with a reliable shut off when they hit the surface.) - Chris

Wow - I just put my order in for a few of A-Tom-Mik's new Spinny combos. Nice stuff for '09. Take a look for yourself - http://www.atommiktrollingflies.com/combos.htm Disclaimer: I have absolutely no financial ties, professional connections, or affiliations with A-Tom-Mik. I only know that they have great products and customer service and I thought some of you might like to see their new products. - Chris

Blackdog, You want a heavier "power" rod for a dipsy in order to take the punishment of the intense drag from the diver. If I'm not mistaken, the shorter Heartland Downrigger rods are medium power (do not confuse power with action of the rod). At any rate, if you want to use a shorter rod, go with the Okuma's. I run 9'6" and 10'6" Heartland Dipsy rods on my 21' Trophy without any problem. Just run shorter leads off the rods if you're worried about netting. Here's my opinion: 1.) The longer rods are typically used so you can clear your outside gunwale mounted rigger boom 2.) Use a heavy power rod for Dipsy's 3.) Run as long of a lead as you can depending on boat length, but keep it consistent with the rod length. 4.) Keep it as economical as possible Good luck, Chris

BUMP Yes, still for sale. PM me or call if interested. Thx, Chris

Copper is great - just one more thing.... Make sure when you're geting used to it and reeling it in at the end of a day, have someone experienced reel it in under tension (typically your thumb). Otherwise, get ready for a nice reel tangle and backlash when you're letting it out the next time out. - Chris