Sk8man

The main reason I've changed over from trebles to Mustad Siwash 3X or 5x stainless singles on my spoons (for many years) is because treble hooks tend to work against each other in the fishes mouth resulting in lost fish...it is VERY seldom I lose fish on singles. Yes you have to carefully match up some of the spoons that are weight sensitive but it is worth it I have also never had one of those stainless hooks bend on a fish....plenty of trebles even the good quality ones.. I leave the trebles alone on sticks because of the weight sensitivity issue and use hardened ones on my home made trolling flies. I have had a couple rainbows and steelies with the hook in the eye but I've also had fish of many species with deep trebles which took too long to extract resulting in lost fish.

Here is the link to the article on board modifications at Blood Run http://www.bloodruntackle.com/planer-board-mods-tips/ Carefully look at the TX44 board modification.

I think it another of the many personal preference issues more than anything else...it still boils down to what you feel confident in and whatever works for you that you feel you can trust and therefore folks feel strongly one way or the other....kinda like religion or politics.... strong points of view but not necessarily the ONLY way to do it and have it work for you.

You don't need the "kit" I've used crimps for many many years successfully with wire. What may have happened is either you may have crimped improperly (allowing the wire to work back and forth or too tightly allowing it to sever at the end) or if you used a Sampo with a split ring they will often cut line or wire with any significant weight on them if the line or wire slips into the groove of the ring. I've had my current connections on two wire rigs for at least 5 years through many kings and other fish without problem and I run large heavier divers too. a) Make sure you are using the proper diameter crimp for the wire you are using b) Use a good quality SOLID RING swivel snap c) when you crimp the wire make sure you crimp it snugly in two places on the crimp toward but not exactly at the ends of the crimp. You want the ends of the crimp to be pretty well closed on the wire but not totally because you don't want the edge of the crimp to work back and forth on it. In the past when using very thin wire I put a drop of Instant Glue in the hole of the crimp and then I crimped it - not necessary with the 30 lb and above stuff though. d) After you get the crimp the way you want it you can use a small amount of CLEAR hot glue on the entire crimp and the lead up to the loop of the swivel. That will keep the crimp from moving back and forth on the wire and potentially severing it and also allow you to see through the glue to monitor the condition of the wire.

50 lb works pretty good

We'll be squeezing for her Sean....truly incredible opportunity.

I think I'd try running a can of Sea Foam through it before changing out anything.....possibly a residue issue. Maybe it is running too lean on the fuel?

X 2 on DVD's post and before fleas I used 12 lb all the time and even with 30 lb plus kings on the other end without break-offs.

Sean covered it real well and adding snap on weight is something I also do rather than extend the length of copper I use (200 and 300). I used the big boards for quite sometime and switched to outriggers years ago to keep the traffic away from my boat. Now I run TX 44's and Walleye Boards most of the time. They are fun to use and productive once you get the hang of them. One of the things I did with them was to replace the plastic pins with metal ones (Calumet Marine online) which alleviates the problem of the braid wearing them and cutting through them eventually. I always place the line in the furthest back position of the jaw on the releases and have the releases tightened down about as far as they go so they don't actually release and I bring the boards in and take them off manually on the way in fish or no fish rather than let the line release in them and have them slide down to the swivel on the back pin. Having the line very tight in the release also keeps the braid from wearing the release jaw itself too.

Another good idea about going on your boat with someone with a lot of experience .....wantmorefish - you have the right attitude my notebooks have payed off big time over the years

One of the things that occurs to me is the fact that sometimes folks are looking for "instant answers" here rather than fully doing their "homework" by researching past posts on here and trying out the things experimentally on the water themselves, finding what works and what doesn't. Many of the guys on here have spent much if not most of their lives gathering this experience and information (at their own expense) and graciously offer much of that information to others but it is assumed that people will also think and do for themselves rather than being "spoon fed" information in bulleted form because someone is too reluctant to put in the minimal effort to become more informed by sifting through existing information. Paul's suggestion of an on the water "seminar" is absolutely the best way to learn this stuff and he is a very credible person to conduct it. Many folks often chip in money/split costs to go on charters when they can't afford the whole shot themselves. It is far more advantageous than buying a bunch of rods and reels and lures and cruising around trying to figure out what you are doing. Going out once and then assuming your results indicate that you suck at fishing and worrying about down temp or speed when you don't have the basic essentials down isn't fair to yourself either. You'll get it down and start catching but patience is also very much required in this game and a lot of times success out there may be totally outside your control (i.e Mother nature). Stick with it and best of luck to you.