Rascal Trophy Fishing

You're funny Mainiac, and lucky too. lol. Which tourney has all those raffles?, it's not here. Tok tok.

If you bought the mag meats from JK, what does he recommend to use? He's the guru on this these days, I wouldn't doubt his word on this subject, but gladly take it...jmo. What's the cost and any pics. on that new rig Rick? Thanks. P.S. (Any excuse to spend more money on new tackle, eh?).. lol.

Sounds more like you want/need tackle failure advice right now, I agree with Jim on one point, you may have it backwards when setting the diver. The other possibility is your fine tuning adjustments, that of two screws that tighten the diver to move one direction or the other, and the clip setting screws, are loose, and need screwdriver tightening. You want the diver to follow the port or starboard side going away from the boat, as soon as you drop it into the water, you also want the tension clip to be taught enough to hold, not too tight to not release properly. All these things come with time and patience, in the field/lake. Hi/low divers are a good tool for catching, just watch for tangles, when properly set up, you seldom have one as Nailer pointed out accurately.

I don't use BJ products, my brother always has though, as well as many others I know and talked to, and I must say, bravo to Big Jon for their undying loyalty and appreciation of us great lakes fishermen. They have always stood behind all their products, and been very generous of all situations that arise, for as far back 30 years that I have salmon fished here. Keep up the good work BJ. Anyone got a pic. of that reel, I haven't seen this one yet. Thanks.

Good job and report Jeff.

Nice!

Nice post Tom, where does the "tangle factor" boat name come from? Just fyi, Matt made some good points, when the early bite dies, use meat. It's best for me at slack times, later morning, early afternoons too. We took two quick screamers last nite in about 15 minutes on meat, about 9pm, then she died approaching sunset, so Rick is pretty right on that score. Btw, Rick, where are you fishing? Thanks.

Ed, many thanks for your report, and, you might have mentioned that the Big Fish was a 24# Brownie, not a salmonoid. That in itself is pretty incredible to me anyhow. Big congrats go to the locals that fished their hearts out, and finally, won our local tourney too, like Doug from Polecat, many tries at winning, and now, brought our trophy back home where it belongs. Actually, the local boats won pro, amateur, and big fish divisions all this weekend, quite a difference over the last 11 years when only one local won the pro division. Happy, happy we are in Ludville.

Last I heard, the Manistee netters were done up there, bankrupt or quit. Good report Matt, keep up the good work.

I've got several ugly sticks and like them well, don't know the wolverine charter series though. The closest local guy that might have some is Armstrong Tackle in Whitehall, he has hundreds of items that are now discontinued in unorganized fashion, but, if you're lucky and willing to look hard, you could just find some. He isn't overpriced either, but fair.

Brandon and Dave are on the right track. If you catch a fish early, try to open the stomach cavity and see what size of alewife is inside, let that help guide you. I have seen days when the action is so furious, that minis, regular, and mags are all going well, so go figure. When fishing my deep rods or longest rods, I prefer mags for the biggest fish though.

I'd check with the charterboat association nearest Toledo on Lk. Erie first, they should have a list of captains you can browse thru and call and talk to the captain of your choice. Sorry, not in that area and don't know anyone over there. Have fun.

Hey Griz, did he say anything about the quality/mfr. of the hooks now? Did they change the hook, or is it the same one from their inception? Seems strange this would just start occurring this season, and not past seasons for me and others I talked to. It may sound like being a smarty pants, but, if he had told me to make sure the hook is on the split ring, I would have asked him why I should have to check it, appears they have a new QC error that they should be checking into, not us customers, jmo. I am beginning to believe either the tine on the new hook is too small or weak, or that the split ring is the root of the problem. Either way, Moonshine Lures should be double-checking their quality control very soon so this doesn't mess up their fine products and name. I don't like having to change hooks on new lures I am paying $9/each for, nor split rings either.

Just a note of caution to those fishing Ludington this season: the USCG, Sheriff, LPD, and DNR are cracking down more than ever on safety and DUI's on the water, they all have their own boats, some more than one, and are using these vehicles for more stops than ever in the last 30 years I have been on the water. If you're smart, you will celebrate off the water, safety first guys.

Mark, that's a good post, esp. the part about having a second net on board, at the ready for any snafus that may happen, like dropping a net overboard, losing a net in rough water, or not secured properly, or just an older net that breaks and bottoms out. I have even carried a third net below in the bunk area, just in case my two cockpit nets fail, or just disappear accidentally....lol. You can't have too much tackle or insurance when fishing, if you are serious about the harvesting that is. Getting back to sliders, I like to position mine between 10'-15' above the main, it's going to look like it's swimming with the main, and gives most bites a chance to reel the slack in before the fish can spit that lure. I have seen guys run the slider at the top of the water after setting the main line down over 30'-100'. How on earth do you expect to reel in 100' of line to the slider from the main if you do this without the fish getting away? I've also seen a couple of guys use a 50' or 100' long slider, the same thing usually happens too. Sliders are a tool, not a trick or joke, use them to your advantage, not disadvantage.

That cell phone call is ok today, before cell phones we had to pretty much go on our own instincts, luck, experience, and of course, the VHF radio. The friends you make on the water with the radio is priceless for me, wish it were still happening now, as the cell takes the fun out of on the water communication from a host of fisherman on various channels they talked on. In the old days, channel 5 in Ludington was hot to trot with charters, we all helped one another, gained insights to best bites, and to great areas, and went on to be good friends off the water as well. That experience, I wouldn't change nor trade it for the cell days now if I live to be 100 years old.

Quite the stories from all, nice. About 10 years ago I had a friend that went with me and x-grlfnd, and he took pride in always jumping on the rod before me. Most of the time I saw it first, pointed to it, and let him reel/land it. This trip was a little different, and became annoying. We would finish with 12 fish, but the thing was, he and grlfnd. both landed their limit, and he had made me look bad in front of her by always pushing and bumping himself to the rod first, no matter what. So, the next fish I decided he was going to get a serious body check, ya know, hockey-jockey style. Next fish went I didn't say a word, as I hadn't for the last several fish, I just moved in for the combat. This time he went down, and I mean to the deck on his keester. He was slow getting up, but still laughing, with a backache too. Funny, that friend NEVER made it to the rod before me again, unless I gave him the go-ahead sign, that of the middle finger to boot.

That was pmp funny JB, esp. the part where no one sees the fish that were lost in the fire drill mode. Quadruples........pure Michigan. Fine job.

Strange you mention this at this particular time Griz. I have had several customers also complain of recent about the quality of the hooks on Moonshine lures. They have been great until just recently, and I think it prudent and necessary to send an email or phone inquiry as to whether they recently changed their hook supplier. If so, they need to change back to what they had before, perhaps VMC/Eagle claws, or whatever. I've not had this problem yet, but am running some 1-3 year old lures, as well as new ones here and there. One guy went on to say this hook won't even stick to his fingernail on most new ones, mystery, but solvable, change hook even if new out of package and not up to par for you.

Nice job and pics, and to think, it's only early July here, wait till the Bell Tolls in August. Btw, what's you're fav. rod mfr., not Eagle Claw or anything like that?

My brother has the twin to this boat, only his has twin 4 cyl. power, quiet, powerful, and fast. Real nice fish too.

I usually grab something to eat, like a sub sandwich, that always gets interrupted by a bite in my case.....lol. On a more serious side, depends a lot on the time of day, the weather, the number of boats close by too. My best trolls, on a regular basis, is either a up or down troll, with or against the waves. Checking the bottom speed and graph also are factors for good action. If I am in a group of boats, I look around to hear and see if anyone is catching or just washing spoons, if they look dead too, I'll usually work deeper or shallower, depending on the situation, and of course try some newer lures at differing depths.