Sk8man

Nick's advice is excellent and so is the attitude underlying it....sometimes you have to take your lumps and move on but benefit from the "learning experience" where money is involved at ANY level or situation caution is advised no matter what the deal or seller.

Same as rolmops

That is about identical to my trolling pattern and flea result the other day along with some cotton and weeds

Kuba- I'm not sure what the equivalent is in Canada of Small Claims Court but that might be an avenue if you have something like it. Just not sure of the applicability across borders either....

Chas is right I missed the fact that it is positioned where it is. The thing you have to ensure is that it is also away from any chines or strakes (longitudinal raised areas on the hull to disperse water) where they end at the transom as these are sources of turbulence as well as the prop wash displacement. If you have room on the transom you might consider a transom mounting panel (usually plastic substance) so you can move the transducer around for optimal placement. (Cabela's used to carry them)

Nice report Rick....felt like I was right there....the ole bread and butter lakers are still fun and some of those dudes are probably 20 to 25 yrs old out there...not many places you'll find them that big or that old around here.

A number of things are going through my mind right now in sorting out the "puzzle". Keuka used to give up numbers of large lakers (especially jerking copper) even in closer than Seneca and Canandaigua during early summer (for whatever reason) when the fish in the other two lakes had moved out deeper as well as the bait. There has always been a somewhat different "pattern" there. There have always been large areas out there when using Seth Green rigs where no marks occurred and fish were dispersed but tightly clustered together in "pockets" and in the old days night fishing was the way to catch larger numbers and sizes of fish. In my recollection daytime fishing has always been more "hit and miss" there during this time of the year. It sounds as though there are some strong year classes of smaller fish in the lake recently and often smaller fish hang together more than mature lakers that seem to roam and have a more diverse diet (small panfish and perch,stonecats etc. in addition to the alewives and the now pretty much non-existant smelt in many places) so catching big fish may not entail the same techniques or they may not be clumped together in defined areas. There is no doubt that the introduction of invasive species has upset many of the traditional patterns and relationships of the fish in the Finger Lakes but also thrown into the equation is the observation that anglers have become much more productive and efficient in using electronics, techniques and equipment to harvest the fish and as the fish come out of there they aren't really "replaced" as if by magic. The younger stocked fish may be more vulnerable now in finding adequate food, reproduction rates may be negatively impacted by encrusted traditional spawning beds with zebras and quaggas or silting from high flow input conditions. I think it may take a few seasons to really get more of a handle on things rather than making conclusions based on such limited time frames.

Rick said a little better what I was trying to convey but what I meant by "angle" is the fact that many transoms are not perpendicular to the water and for a transom mount transducer it is often necessary to angle it from the already angled transom so it is pointing downward rather than in or out at an angle and when I said the "auto setting" I was referring to "dual function" I just wanted to clarify that in light of that info. I'm not sure from a technical standpoint (in terms of manufacturing) how the Airmar and standard transducers from Lowrance differ but I know there have been a lot more problems reported on here for example for the Lowrance transducers. I've had both and the Airmar seemed to pick up more detail.

I agree Brian...and he is there and really loving it big time. He met some guy with 200 acres of prime hunting land too and some right next to Pat so he is really in his element. Apparently a lot of good fishing nearby as well. Les

Often the transducer is supposed to be at an angle (usually defined in the installation instructions)..some of it depends on the hull design of your boat and the actual placement of it. Airmar transducers (when properly matched to the unit and use) are viewed by many folks(me included) to be superior to the ones that are shipped with Lowrance products. Another factor may be which khz setting you are using at the depths you are fishing (or whether you use the auto setting) The cone angle is dramatically different for each. The 50khz is best at deep water detection. Another possibility to keep in mind is that a bad transducer can act that way too and still detect bottom features fine.

Great pic Brian....I'll send a copy to Pat W. in my email to him tonight.

Jeff - John's suggestion is the one I've been looking at too and apparently getting a good properly installed antennae is also important. I'm planning to use my hand held as just a backup.

The lakers still may be there just not where expected. In both Seneca and Canandaigua there is still very significant bait and fish too in shallower than we are used to fishing right now....things have seemed to be behind schedule all along this season (trees and flowers etc.) and most jiggers and trollers are used to fishing out deeper than the fish may be right now and Keuka may be similar.

WTG Joe! Like the ole saying "Necessity is the mother of invention"....a little creative thinking can go a long way

Nice going Bruce and you never know the full extent of the impact of exposing kids to that kind of experience. and those memories may last a lifetime. I still remember every detasil of my first fish (a 12 inch smallmouth) caught fishing from shore with my dad and despite the thousands of fish since then I still remember every thing about that day the spot and the look on my dads face when I got it in....I was 4 years old!

If near middle part of lake: http://screwylouiessportshop.com/ or if near Lake George area : http://www.fish307.com/downrigger-and-minn-kota-parts.aspx