Organized Slime

I have two #10 chrome sharks that I love. Wanting to get a pair of #12 or #15 and was wondering about the new color options. When I bought my first pair they just had chrome but now offer chrome/blue back(saphire) and chrome/black back which they say were made popular by NY charter captains. Am I thinking too much or does anyone have an opinion? Mainly fish Olcott & the Oak. Thanks

I set the comm port to transmit ... still nothing?

Not receiving GPS data. I hooked up the yellow + and shield - from the Lowrance power cable to the NMEA in on the course computer, GPS is set to send NMEA on the comm. port. I did not hook power to the NMEA 2000 buss, could that be my problem? Wasn't sure if I had to power the NMEA 2000 buss to transmit NMEA 0183 from GPS to autopilot course computer? Lowrance is now Navico and the customer support is lacking to say the least. Other than that Autopilot works fine.

I had read about the noise on here but to me it was acceptable. It made for a much more enjoyable day on the water. I didn't even calibrate mine just hit auto and it held course. The one time it went off course we were both in the back of the boat 21' Starcraft center console and the 29mph wind and big waves spun us so quick the auto pilot didn't have a chance. It could never have held at the speed we were going(2.0) without increassing the throtle which it can't do. I honestly don't recall how it was beeping or what it was doing I just knew we were way off course.

Finally tested my new sportpilot and am very happy. Never got arround to the autolearn part because it was too rough and when it finally got calm I was fishing. It held a course perfectly and only once in 4-5s with me in the back of the boat rigging did it loose course.

Just got back from Point Breeze, the fleas were brutal. Can I get away with #20 flea flicker, or do you need to go to the #30. I do not want to go through what I did this last weekend again! Thanks

I have been looking at new rigs. Models I like are the Starcraft Islander, Sea Fox 216WA, Trophy 2152, and Angler 204WA. I like the Angler 204WA the best but don't know much about angler boats. Do any of you have any experience or knowledge of Angler boats? Thanks!

I would like to thank everyone for their input. This is one fine message board for sure! My SmartPilot X-5 is on a short backorder(should ship May 22). I pulled the steering wheel, leangthened my NMEA 0183 leads from the GPS and have a basic game plan on where I will mount the computer & fluxgate compass which I do need(thanks FishStix!). The 3 & 1/16 hole for the controller is already drilled in the console. I'm thinking three hours tops! Pretty stoked to see how it will work. I have and outboard with a 9.9 kicker & steering link. I know when both motors are down steering is a breeze. I will be curious to see if it can handle things when I'm on the big motor and the kicker is up? I can't say I would be real comfortable cruising on plane with the autopilot??? Updates to follow. Thanks

I would say long shaft. The motor will get a much better bite with the prop further down in the water, especially as mentioned when it is bumpy.

After reading on here, I had mt heart set on a Simrad AP12 or 14. After taking some console measurements it has become clear to me the Raymarine Smartpilot X-5 would be a much easier install. I would have to do significant modifications to get the 10" clearance for the motorized steering box with the Simrad. Does anyone have any input on this product? I have mechanical cable steering. Looking over the manual am I understanding correctly that if I am going to hook up the NMEA 0183 from my GPS I do not hook up the fluxgate compass that comes with the unit? Thanks!

I bought a pair of Fishlander planar board snubbers. Tried them once and they caused my boards to lag back considerably further in the same seas. I use rail mount planar board reels and my rails are quite sturdy so they went in the "oh well" tackle pile.

I use the #50 & #40 for salmon the #30 & #20 for steel and love them! I pull spoons & meat rigs (no flasher) with them. I have often wondered why more salmon guys don't run them? I put them back 100-140 ft. usually off big boards sometimes one down the shoot with a snap weight for even more depth. I have copper & lead but in heavy traffic 100-140 is much better than 300-400 ft. of stuff behind the boat. Obvioulsly if the fish are spooky the lead & copper are the way to go. The #50 can be a brute to wind in, I use a Penn 209 linecounter which has a 3.2 : 1 ration. I just winch it in.

Okuma has a new rod just for copper. Large all metal guides and carboloy tip top(if you use swivels to attach leaders). 12-27lb. line which I would call a medium heavy action. They are 8.5 ft. long and I just picked up 2 for $80. Very nice rods specifically for copper. http://www.fishusa.com/Okuma-Classic-Pr ... ods_p.html

Bert's, Big John & Traxstech all make planar board reels that clamp on your hand rails. They work fine, the only down side is the higher in the air the towline is, the better the lines run out to the boards. I have rail mounts and don't run more than two lines a side. I have no problems.

I like the Scotty's small & large. I put short leads on them so when I pull my tow line to the side of the boat while changing up I can just leave them attached to the towline and swing them inside the boat until I'm ready to put the changed up line back out. I crimp #80 mono or coated wire for the short leads. 4 for 10-12 bucks.

Thanks fellow anglers! I made my first trip last Sept. Stayed at Golden Hills & fished Newfane/Olcott & the Oak. I thought it was absolutely beautiful there! Is Newfane/Olcott or Oak Orchard better early on or should I remain flexible to fish both? I had my best results straight out of Newfane/Olcott in 100-120 ft. of water working some large schools of bait. It was humbling to be in NY on the anniversary of 9/11... good to see not all have forgotten!

When does the salmon fishing get going in Olcott? I am giving serious thought to fishing the Pro Am amatuer division but am not sure if I can with no head on my boat. I know I would need to bring an observer and buy a license for ours so we could run 6 lines. The photos from 2008 looked like it was a friendly competition.

Hello, new to LO. I fish a 21' Starcraft center console 'Organized Slime'. Spent the last several years musky fishing, have the salmon bug now.