Sk8man

You probably can't lose depending on price for the bunch regardless as lead is getting scarce and there are guys on here that make downrigger weights that probably would be interested as the balls can be melted down.

Nice going and that is a real beauty for the Finger Lakes especially.

I found the video interesting but I think it may have been done in California rather than Florida I know the study was well intentioned but one of the things that strikes me is the absence of visual information about how well the fish actually survived. Some were still upside down when they became free so I wonder. Also holding the fish vertically doesn't do them a lot of good survival wise either

Tape off small section and spray paint with fluorescent paint at the intervals you wish. Permanent marker can be used but not as easy to see. In the past I used red yarn tied tightly and then super glued and it worked OK for quite awhile but I use roller tip rods so more tolerance than some other rods too. I've run copper without it being fully extended but I don't think it runs as deep as expected because it doesn't lay totally horizontal in the water (at an angle from increased water resistance) as when fully extended and some of the backing is used.

If they were running OK previously (e.g. together) and the sensitivity has been adjusted properly and they each are on different frequencies my hunch would be that the transducers are either worn out or have been damaged( doesn't take much of a shock to them for example bumping hard while coming on a trailer, stones from the road etc.).

fisherdude you did real well for this lake the way things have been recently especially. As far as the tickets go I think most folks at this general end of the lake may register at the Chamber of Commerce on Main Street instead of the local outlets here in town. I've always bought a couple tickets in advance over the years whether I decided to fish it or not as it goes to a real a good charity. Good luck in the derby and with the boat traffic (especially the recreational boaters) after 10 Am or so I'll be out there too.

Yes you can rig them many different ways in setups e.g behind downriggers or dipseys by themselves etc. but if you wish to get real deadly with lakers run them behind cowbells. If you haven't done so check out the Gambler rigs on here. He has it down to a "science" and the results speak for themselves

Nice work Al. I think you guys had the right idea during the derby too as it definitely wasn't a "trollers" derby

Yes tell her you have a lot of plans to travel.....just don't mention it is to the launch

I have had my 2 stroke 135 Opti on my 18 ft Whaler since both were brand new in 2002 and it has performed flawlessly with the exception of the impeller screwing up in 2013.....my fault as they were supposed to be replaced every couple years and I still had the original in it The engine is incredible for a 2 stroke on gas and oil consumption but I run non-ethanol91 octane and always have used the specific Opti oil in it and marine Stabil year round. Mine has probably 500 hrs on it as I have until a couple weeks ago used my 9.9 2 stroke trolling motor for trolling. I now have a new 4 stroke 9.8 Tohatsu for that. The motor will troll down to 1.7-1.9 (stainless steel prop) when necessary although I have primarily used it for trolling only in real windy conditions going against the wind over the years. It always starts up immediately but I keep my battery fully charged and run all my secondary stuff off another battery as I was informed when I bought the boat that it has to have over a half charge to start the motor as it a a high amperage draw during startup. I took it in last year for my first set of spark plugs since the originals and when it was tested for compression I was told the compression was just the same as one that he would test from the showroom and that these motors are considered the best that Merc has ever made. In short I love it and feel that it is very reliable. Most of the time I run it to and from places at 1/2 to 3/4 throttle and I kid you not it uses less gas than my old 2 stroke Johnson 35 horse motor on my 13 ft Whaler.

Ah... probably the only way would be to see if one or the other unit can use a transducer of different frequency (e.g. 50khz instead of 200 or 83 etc.) if neither is dual frequency.

Should be OK if the transducers are different frequencies.