Priority1

Dan, Have you been scooping up those stunned released walleye again. J/K my friend. You should make a necklace out of them.

Anyone remember these stacker releases from Walker?

There is a LC assembly you can buy and replace the defective one. If it was bad from the get go and less than a year old get Okuma or the dealer involved. It's probably covered. 1 800 GOOKUMA

Mike, What are your reasons for the move? 1. Better early season fishing. 2 $$$$ 3. Got kicked out of the old place. 4. All of the above.

Nick, I added a drain hose to mine a few years ago. They are now standard on a lot of the Mercruisers. Leave the cap on and stick the hose through the transom drain hole. Get a container and take the cap off. Get the end of the hose as low as possible. Of course the engine should be warm for the best results. When mine is just about done draining, I add another 1/2 qt of clean oil to push out as much of the old oil as possible. I like this system because most of the mess is outside the boat. You may still get a small amount of oil in the bilge when you remove the filter. Make sure you put some oil on the new filters gasket surface, so it will seal and remove easily. You don't need a pump. The oil drains by gravity. There is not a valve in this system. The oil will drain real slow even when warm. The I.D. of the hose is quite small.

GJ Dan.

I agree with the loosening the drag. I also try and get riders to take the clicker off until the fish is about to be netted. The reason I like the clicker on as the fish comes into the boat, I also like the lever back at this point. It saves rods. I have also noticed that if line gets behind the spool it will effect the clicker and sometimes other reel functions. It's a good time of year to lube, and also pull the end caps to check for small pieces of line. Line behind the spool is more likely to happen when running 10# than when running heavier lines.

I have been using Walkers for years. Quick and easy to set.

GJ again Dan. WTG The only BOGUS part of this report is the date. You are sooooooo good you are now fishing one day into the future. LOL Keep hammering them.

Was It Kzoo??

GJ Jay. Ya know I love Manistee.

Volvo Penta has their own unique outdrive, but a lot of them use other manufacturers engine blocks. 300 hrs is not a lot. A friend of mine has an older Thompson with the Volvo and a Ford V8 block.

Bomber, GJ on the ducks.

Dennis, Congrats on the boat. Maybe you can post a couple of pics. Ya know I love them Islanders.

GJ Jim. Nothing better than the Fall and Spring steelhead.

GJ on the eyes. Looks like they were inhaling the lures.

Matt, You may have have a point on the deep sets. I don't fish Salmon in mid Summer. About the deepest I ever send a rigger is 100-110 feet. I do feel when a fish can't pop a release, it's a blessing if it does get off. We have all boxed dead shakers that we wished would have lived. This is a good thread and it should bring some more input. Tight lines my friend.

Capt. Ron, Thanks for the report.

VN Ken. An excellent time to get a boat. You have all Winter, to get things just the way you want them.

There are several good choices when it comes to the super braids. They sure do have their place, in so many applications. One place braids do not belong is on a downrigger rod. The reason being is the no stretch factor and release issues. I just can't see any reason to switch from mono to braid on rigger rods. I'm sure others will disagree, and will have their reasons. JMHO:)

Congrats Dan on your engagement. I'm sure glad no one was hurt in the fire. It's still tough losing all the stuff, but ya have to look on the bright side. GL on the pond next year.

GJ Steve. Besides your love of those classic Cardinals, gotta love the classic Mepps. So many spinner type lures have evolved from the old classic Mepps Spinner. How many different species of fish, fall prey to this spinner? Gotta Luv It.

LOL Matt, I better be careful how I phrase stuff. These are Big Jon's and have never been used. They are $110 each + mailing or if you want both sets $220 + mailing. They should mail for $14. You will NOT be disappointed.

Beautiful.