Owasco Owasco 4.12.17

[rusty1034]

Owasco 4.12.17

Howdy all,

 

I did a shake down cruise out of Emerson Park this afternoon. The launch is a muddy mess, and the water is high.

 

I trolled a bit around the north end without any action. Tried riggers and a 4 color lead core with a few different spoons.

 

Surface temp was 39*, and the Northwest wind was pretty chilly as well.

 

I was able to troll down to 2.3 mph with the 150 Mercury using the smartcraft gauge system. If that continues to work, I'll probably remove the 9.9 kicker.

 

There are still walleye in the lake. I could  see a few lying on the bottom in the outlet.

 

Rusty

[magill270]

Thanks for the report


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[Sk8man]

I think I'd be thinking twice about removing the kicker if it works well for two reasons: 1. safety - having a backup motor at this time of the year when sometimes there aren't many folks out there is smart , and 2. your big motor wasn't really designed for slow trolling for hour after hour and will probably "load up" at some point giving you potential problems and the kicker should be better on gas.Just something to think about.....

Edited April 14, 2017 by Sk8man

[FishingTheFL]

Bring lots extra plugs... Like Les said. They load up and foul out. I use to do it with a 60 HP merc. Learned the hard way to bring extra plugs one morning. You can also get two drift socks to slow you down at higher idles... But as Les said again... Save on gas, use the kicker. I'm considering putting a bigger kicker on mine so I can make it back in even if main motor overheats, points burn up, or whatever else stupid can happen on the water. Its no fun being towed in

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[rusty1034]

Thanks guys,

I have those same concerns, but my questions are these two:

1) The engine is a 4 stroke. Will that "load up" like a 2 stroke ?

2) The smart control is designed to bring the motor to low rpms. Would a manufacturer offer such an accessory if it would cause the motor's performance to deteriorate ?

I really enjoy the peace of mind of having a second motor in case something goes wrong. However the weight of the 150, combined with the 9.9 makes the boat very stern heavy, thus it steers very poorly. To compensate for the bow beings high, I have taken to filling the bow livewell, which improves the steering quite a bit.

I'll post what the ultimate decision is. It's gonna require more field work, and research.

Thanks again !

Rusty


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[FishingTheFL]

I'm not sure about 4 strokes. I imagine its possible

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[GANGGREEN]

A buddy of mine trolls for hours and hours with his 150 Merc Verado and smart control without issue.

[Sk8man]

Rusty you bring up some really good points of concern. Unfortunately I am not an outboard mechanic. Mine is a 135 Merc Optimax 2 stroke. The primary time I troll with it is if the wind cranks up and the 9.9 becomes marginal in the wind/waves without really pushing it. I have tried to keep the hours down on the big motor. The fact that the oil isn't mixing with the gas  sure could be a different case with the 4 stroke. My 2 stroke will troll down to1.8-1.9 at 550 rpms but I norlmally like to troll at about 620-680 and I know the oil injection makes automatic adjudtments for the slower speed etc.

 

In 2013 I had the impeller go on my 135 during a derby and the winds were gusting at 40-45 mph. My 2 stroke 9.9 couldn't overcome the wind and I could have been totally at the mercy of the waves ending up miles and miles from where I launched or even crashing into the shoreline. I couldn't even anchor  effectively in shallow water with 40 pounds of anchor to try to ride out the wind. Luckily, my buddy Admiral Byrd was out there too in his Penn Yan and saved our butts by towing me back about 16 miles to the launch. I have towed folks in the past but that was the first time being towed myself and hopefully the last. The moral of the story is even with two motors you can get caught short out there and total reliance on just one engine or perhaps in this even case on two can get sketchy. Although this is a bit embarrassing to talk about after spending the majority of my life out on the water....the point is it can happen to ANYONE and hopefully sharing the experience here might help someone avoid the same thing. You can NEVER totally rely on any engine while out there and always have to keep in the back of your mind "options". I now include carrying a tow rope on my boat too . Mother nature can be relentless and very unforgiving.

Edited April 15, 2017 by Sk8man

[rusty1034]

Thanks Sk8,

There's definitely a lot to be said for having a backup engine, or in the case you described, two ! Luckily for you the Admiral is a great guy to help a man when in trouble.

Rusty.


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[Sk8man]

I'll be eternally grateful to him although he did bust me rather severely by putting a sign on the back of his huge cooler (which sits on a swim platform on the back of his boat that everyone can see for miles) that read "Les' Savior"