mr 580

I’ve used all three and would say it is kind of a “how much do you want to spend” situation. As Jerry says the twili tips work fine and are inexpensive. I have several of the torpedo roller tips which have worn well. I also have a couple full roller rods which have been good too. If you spend much time on Lake Ontario with kings is when the rollers pay off. If you go with twili’s get a spare as they do tend to wear faster. To me the biggest issue with wire is keeping it under pressure and staying away from kinks to prevent break off.

VRO stands for variable ratio oiling and is an oil injection system. I don’t know much about those systems other than it was pretty common for owners to disable that system and go back to premixing 2 stroke oil and gas at the tank. If the system still works after 30 years, I guess I’d leave it alone. The older 2 strokes do smoke more than the newer direct injection 2 strokes available today. You might do an internet search on VRO for more info.

Been busy running trips-Stillwater a vibie is similar to a sonar. Water clarity on Chautauqua can be an issue so the vibration seems to work here. Weave bumping the weeds helps and you need to make your presentation as weedless as possible. Afraid pulling some weeds is part of the deal here. Being able to see the weeds on electronics is important-where you put your lure is critical.

My style (there are lots of other ways that work too) is to weedline fish until that bite fades as water warms. I’ve had weedline daytime fish since season opened this year. The way I work the weedline lets less experienced people get eyes. Later I jig and toss vibie’s in open water staying with rod in hand techniques. On Chautauqua I don’t usually open water troll as I do plenty of that on Lake Erie in my Proline.

Full moon can slow down daytime fishing but there are still fish to be caught. I have success along the weed edge and do see that even the width of the boat can decide on how many strikes you get. Sometimes you have to move around to find active fish. Starting at first light does help, but there are fish later. My Tuesday trip started at eight and we had a pretty steady morning until we stopped around 1pm. When I'm on fish I usually am seeing them on my electronics.

Drift with worm harness just outside weedline for walleyes. I had customers get 7 keepers this morning in that area. You should be in 14 to 15 fow. Hope that works for you.

A number of manufacturers make a “leadcore” specific rod- Shimano, Okuma, etc - good choices. Also “planer board” models will work. Pretty much a personal choice for length and action. To me same rod that handles 27lb will work with 18lb. Rods are like pickup trucks-everybody has a favorite.

There is a Outdoor Show at the Clarion in Dunkirk on Saturday the 21st, good time to talk with people about slips only $3 admission. I keep my boat at Holiday Harbor at Chadwick Bay and it works for me. Last year they had ethanol free fuel at good price. As far as rate I do a seasonal slip and take advantage of early pay discount. Guess you’d have to check monthly rates and see what is available.

Some open water on lake but most of lake still ice covered. With cold nights forecasted looks like a little more winter ahead.

I don’t target them specifically on Erie but they do show around 2 or faster for speed. They tend to like be around the thermocline if there is one. Later in season they can show up in any temp. Spoons especially with some orange are a good choice. Exciting change of pace on a walleye trip.

Looks like LCX 37C requires a LGC3000 external antenna. You can download a manual for the LCX 37C to check out install instructions.