killerbe20

Both boats back in action!

Some cohos are starting to show up around Racine. Won't be long until they are flopping around the deck if the First In!

Fishing is just around the corner, come check out some great speakers and see Kortendick's great Lake Michigan fishing selection!

I have by no means perfected it like Mark but offshore from Racine I catch a lot of fish in deep water. Even in the spring chasing cohos on the surface in 200-300 feet of water there are usually kings or big trout down past 200. As long as I am marking fish I will dedicate my center rigger, and depending on action, my two deep divers down there. I only have 300 feet of cable on my rigger but will fish as deep as I can if needed and my wire divers will be out 300,400,500 or 600 feet if needed. Your fish finder will be your best friend especially if you can mark your down rigger balls. UV spin doctors have been my best presentation for really deep salmon and trout. Chamberlin releases will be your best friend especially if the deep fish are lake trout. Many times the hot deep rod dies only to find a small trout of 2 year old hanging on. I had more than a few trips last season the +/-300 foot down rigger saved the day. If I could have ran more riggers down there I would have really cleaned house. It is time consuming by the time you set the rod, catch the fish and reset the rod. And of course pop it off the rigger as soon as its set and have to start over again

I believe Slide Diver is now making rings and weights made for their own divers to make magnum Slide Divers. I have not seen them yet but they are supposed to have them at the Anglers Avenue show this weekend.

I have seen some AWESOME screen shots of chirp sounders but I have also read about some poor experiences. I am still on the fence with chirp. In theory it is by far a better technology but still not convinced it is the answer for us fishing relatively shallow waters. Most of my research has focused around the higher end models. Maybe the newer, "baby" chirp models are more user friendly and conducive to our needs. I have not seen or heard any reviews on Humminbird chirp but their new line of products is initially impressive. If chirp/side imaging/down imaging are all selling point to you I would maybe consider Garmin or Simrad. They are the leaders in chirp sounders for the average guy and both are now offering versions on down imaging and side imaging. here is a somewhat educational thread on chirp http://www.thehulltruth.com/marine-electronics-forum/521286-garmin-chirp-vs-furuno-chirp-shoot-out-6.html

Michigan City is up without a password. According to TT Facebook page the password for the new episodes will be released on Mondays on the huntingandfishing forum

I very much love my Raymarine digital fish finders I have had. I went through two electronics upgrades since July because I tried to switch brands. Same transducer just different brand unit and was not happy. I ended up selling it off before the season was over and buying Raymarine again. I also had a high end Furuno VX1 unit on my boat but it was not digital technology so it was not a fair comparison to the digital high resolution Raymarine units. I do not think you can really go wrong with any of the new units. They are all very nice units. Your decision will ultimately come down to personal preference and budget. If you decide on a unit that uses Airmar transducers, they have a new free app that will tell you the coverage area at depth for each of their transducers. The wider the coverage area the better chance of seeing bait around your boat. I personally am not convinced in side view or 360 view for our application. http://www.panbo.com/archives/2014/01/gemeco_install_ipad_app_for_do-it-yourselvers_too.html as far as seeing fish come up into the bait. You can at times see a fish trailing as it is moving depending on where in the cone it is. Very similar to watching your down rigger balls move up or down

i personally think this is a steal if you can make it work http://www.ebay.com/itm/Raymarine-Smart-Pilot-X-5-Wheel-Autopilot-with-P-70-Head-Brand-New-In-Box-/161213891005?pt=Boat_Parts_Accessories_Gear&hash=item258918c1bd&vxp=mtr

Not for the sport pilot but a nice write up on the ease of installation of the new Evolution pilots http://themarineinstallersrant.blogspot.com/2014/01/installing-raymarine-evolution-autopilot.html

your backing plate needs will also be related to how long your track is. A 5 foot track will better distribute the strain and stress compared to a 12'' track.

I will do my best to answer some of your questions while short on time..... (1) I prefer the willis not for its small profile and simplicity. (2) although I have had success with meat rigs, others on here fish them much more than i do so i will let them chime in (4) I fish my dodgers and peanut flys about 1.8 on my depth raider, same as everything else. I do not believe dodgers spinning is a bad thing. It will still whip the fly just as designed. I have never tried running them backwards. (5) again my target speed is 1.8 on my depth raider. I will let others determine whether that is fast or slow....My top producing spoons are by far Dreamweaver SS. Even when I do slow down for trout or speed up to cover ground they still are very productive spoons. (6) Anything is worth a shot! The smaller Dreamweaver SS and Stinger spoons may be a better option for good action with slow speeds. (7) I do not fish plugs much except fall fishing and then it is more about aggravation so this is one time speeds vary considerably for me

on this side we mainly fish peanut flys for cohos instead of body baits and small spoons. Majority of guys use 00 Dodgers or action flashers but the 6'' spin doctors and a peanut fly can be very deadly.

a good visual example of a stock transducer vs an upgraded transducer http://www.thehulltruth.com/marine-electronics-forum/562826-transducer-question.html

The sonar unit or module controls the output power and you match it with a corresponding transducer, either 600watt or 1kw. I personally have a 1000watt capable sounder module hooked up to a 600watt B60 transducer. I could jump up to a 1kw transducer but we don't generally have a need for seeing the bottom past 500 feet. If you have a 600watt sonar unit and 1kw transducer, you will only get 600watts of power out of the transducer. I would figure out what sonar unit you wanted. Pretty much any Airmar transducer will be available for just about any sonar unit. Humminbird is the only manufacturer I have little knowledge about.

just one of many great threads regarding sonar and transducers http://www.thehulltruth.com/marine-electronics-forum/559165-600-w-1kw-transducer.html

Most units these days are going to be at least dual function if not complete multifunction including adding radar, sirius weather etc. I prefer the clean look of less units and flush mounted but thats personal preference. I do also think that throwing down that much cash at least having the option to add on to it would be a bonus. I have two multifunction units networked together with the same capabilities and each has independent GPS. I agree that it would be bad to have your one and only unit down and in the shop but I tend not to buy a product anticipating it being broken. If I was going to go with a stand alone unit, Furuno would be my only choice as not many manufacturers make high end dedicated units anymore. CHIRP is an outstanding technology. I wish I could have afforded going that route with my upgrade. The problem many have been facing is the entry level units have not lived up the the hype that the big dogs have shown. Again this could very well be an issue with the transducer quality. Another issue has been the beam width capabilities and choosing the right transducer. This has been discussed at great lengths on thehulltruth.com including some awesome screen shots comparing CHIRP vs traditional broadband sonar.

The Humminbird 360 requires a big goofy transducer that hangs off the back of the boat. I also do not know how effective it would be trolling. I will second Matt's Raymarine recommendation. I have had some form of Raymarine unit for nearly ten years. Just completed a complete electronics upgrade, twice actually in the last year, and coming back to Raymarine after trying a competitor. Their top tier models may be out of your price range by the time you add in a quality transducer but they have some really nice mid level and entry level units. I have seen and used almost all the manufacturers except Garmin and think Raymarine's digital sonar with their high resolution screens are the best I have seen. The unit you decide on will really come down to which one you like the best and which one offers the features you desire. Without a doubt your transducer will dictate how well which ever unit you decide on performs. Transducer placement and hull design will be the biggest factor. Airmar makes nearly all the transducers on the market with different plugs for different manufacturers. In reality Lake Michigan fishing does not require a 1kw transducer, a 600 watt transducer will surface just fine. Most Airmar's 600watt transducers are the same element with different housing and mounting styles. That is where choosing the correct style transducer and placement com into play.

thats too bad and sorry to hear you had a bad experience. That is definitely not the norm from what I have seen with the clear and purple. Myself and other charters I know have really abused the Blood Run mono with great results.

Blood Run 20lb Tournament Mono. Designed specifically for what we do and I don't feel any if the big name companies can compare. I have had kings on wire divers get into my riggers and the Blood Run mono comes out without even a nick. Stuff is tough as nails

Where are you fishing out of? Southern Lake Michigan tends to do very well on body baits early in the spring fishing browns and cohos near shore. Then they can work well offshore during summer for steal head and then again in the fall for the spawning run.