Sk8man

Very creative and it sure sums it up...good example of the old addage "A good pic can be worth a thousand words"

We had a couple last season that were about 26-27 caught "accidentally" while ice fishing for perch, and had a few smaller than that that were very scrawney too. I too have specific set-ups for the trout both ice fishing and from the boat that I use out deeper and either way it is fun. I'm now wondering if the Ciscos will be hitting on spikes along with the other fish through the ice.

Nice going Sean

You guys should have been in my back yard just now. I looked out the kitchen window and three does two were big and a meddium running like H so I waited a couple minutes to see if buck coming or just spooked by someone. This 6 point showed up

Yep and they have resided in the keuka Outlet since at least the late 50's that I know of.

I haven't either and I've fished it for about that time as well and I knew quite a few old timers out there including Bill Snyder who owned the main bait shop around there who I knew real well and never heard any of them mention it either. It really did surprise me when I read that statement and just figured it was a mistaken statement that got mixed in.

Good to hear jk1. It will be interesting to see what happens if we get good ice too. last year we caught some good ones while perch fishing in shallow Itys actually a lot of fun on those little rods with 4 lb test line and little tiny jigs and a little more of a challenge landing them...my son Mark doing it

I was told by a mechanic that because the impellers are made of a nylon or plastic material when they sit for long periods of time as in over the winter during storage they can get ever so slightly deformed with extreme changes in temperature and sitting an a single position and that is all it takes to make them fail to operate properly

I also keep diary for Keuka and they mentioned in the last summary report they were suspending the stocking of landlocks and browns and will stock yearling rainbows ( which they feel may stand a better chance of not being decimated) (my words). They also mentioned the intended stoicking of ciscos.

Stix - Just my opinion based on my own experience rather than hard data but I would first revisit the issue right from point one. Early on I used to use snubbers and then started having problems with them mainly breakoffs as you mention, and I then considered them just one more potential weak link in the chain to contend with and I stopped using them and have never looked back. A second thing to examine closely is the particular swivel snap you are using. It should be heavy duty (e.g. larger than the usual ones for other setups) with solid ring and high quality ballbearing. Rather than using the snubber approach for "give" or "stretch" in the dipsy to wire set-up use mono for the leader to lure and from dipsy to attractor. There is just enough stretch to help prevent break-offs, and it provides enough strength for decent hook-ups. I generally use 40 on Fingers and 50 on Lake O. If you use sectional rods or solid ones use a small bunji ( Iuse the things below for sectional rods etc.) from the terminal end of the swivel to an eyelet or wherever you hook to as it can help minimize the curly cues, but 7 strand wire regardless of brand is prone to it to some degree and lower pound test (e.g. 30 lb) in particular. Using Spin Doctors seems to increase the liklihood of the curlies too in my view but because of their success I can live with having to trim the wire once in awhile. I don't think just adding mono between to wire and the dipsy alone will give what you are looking for. I'm sure not trying to second guess you as I know you are a very competent and successful fisherman so this is not the "Word Of God" merely a suggestion for further thought based on my own experience with the issue over the years.

Man....looks like they are kickin butt Nick. Thanks.

Yep I guess I missed that in the manual way back when I do think that the 0ne year thing is a bit conservative though the Merc mechanic told me every two to three years should be fine.

Yeah sometimes I put myself to sleep JIm but I had a few coffee's I'm sure Brian will be glad to help as I'm sure he likes helping out his elders

I have had my 135 Opti (2002) since new and it is basically the same engine as the 150. It sips gas and is actually more economical than my previous 35 hp Johnson if kept in normal range of operation....top end easily in the 40's. Oil use is also conservative. When I had it serviced a couple years ago the marina owner (didn't buy it there) who knows as much about Mercs as anyone told me "The Optimax is the one to own very few problems with them... great motor" After 14 years of use compression in all cylinders were exactly what they should be (350 hours on it at the time) and he said " I could take one out of the showroom and it wouldn't be any different". I have used the Merc Optimax oil since day 1 and only non-ethanol gas and have used stabilizer year round in it since day one. Only one problem in all those years and it was on me....ran the same impeller/water pump for 13 years I nearly always use it for getting from place to place etc. and seldom troll with it as I have always used my 9.9 kicker for that, but it can troll down to 1.7 mph (540 rpms). I have a high performance SS Mirage prop. Likewise hoping I am not jinxing myself. I'm sure a lot depends on how the motor has been taken care of

I know there were signs there Dusty but fishing went on there every early Spring, late Fall and Winter for the last 60 years plus that I know of

Wonder how many pounds of sinkers, hooks, and jigs they found there?

Dinosaur that I am I've been slow to adapt to new ways on the ice Although I have had shelters of various types for many years, I still revert back to "old school" stuff in response to the weather conditions. During first ice I often just go with a sled, a bucket, and folding chair. When the snow gets deep I stick with the sled instead of my shelter and may include my old eskimo tent. When the weather gets brutal I take my Clam insulated Kenai. Here is some food for thought though...the use of shelters is great in many ways but there is often something missing from the ice fishing experience: socialization and comradery. The actual learning experience has also changed. Instead of being able to watch old timers using their "secret weapons" and hoping they might share some of the info, we resort to Youtube presentations at home with fishing conducted within heated sheds and fish ourselves with little to no interaction with others outside except maybe on a cell phone. It is a very different experience than in the old days. It was easier to socialize and learn as well back when you had direct visual access to other people out on the ice. I still remember one great experience that stands out out of the many had out there. I was fishing the Penn Yan end of Keuka sitting on a bucket back in the early seventies with my sled nearby with an insulated box in which I kept all my stuff including a bottle of Yukon Jack wiskey. A bunch of guys from Pennsylvania were fishing nearby and while setting up our tip ups we began to chat and I noticed they had a propane grill so I asked what they were going to cook and they said "everything", so I went a bit deeper in my questioning and they displayed venison, pheasant, duck, and some elk meat. I said "I have some pretty good perch if you want some to add to your feast". They said "sure, why don't you join us?" I went back to my sled and filleted some jumbos and grabbed the bottle of Yukon Jack and returned. We finished that bottle and cooked up the variety of food, chatted about fishing techniques, hunting etc. for what seemed like hours, and it was one of those "peak experiences" and some of the best tasting food in life.You can miss a lot of enjoyment hiding out in the warmth of your shelter....