Pete, how did your unit perform this season?

Thanks everyone for the great ideas and responses, much appreciated.

Once the garage is done in June, I’ll share some pics.

Thanks!

I’ve had 8′ Talon’s my 19′ Ranger for 3 years now and have held on the main channel with no issues. When the spike drops and makes contact with bottom, you aren’t moving. If it is rough water, the rough water mode with the continuous driving of the spike helps keep the spike in contact with the bottom.

This past year I was testing the 10′ model which has the soft bottom mode. The biggest thing I noticed here is that when in backwater sloughs where you are dropping the spike into muck, the spike won’t get down into the mud as deep.

Any other questions, let me know.

Do you still need a boater??

Thanks guys!
Pete is the 494/61 one easier to get to/put in by yourself than Lions?

Much floating stuff in the channel?

Thanks!

What did they say? I was thinking the same thing the other day.
Thanks!

60 lb. Seaguar Kanzen Braid for flipping vegetaion or 20 lb. TATSU for flipping on the river.

http://www.idofishing.com/forum/showflat.php/Number/1100223/fpart/1/minn-kota-talon-offer

Great chance to win a Talon!

I’ll be there with the RC Tackle Booth….have a lot of great closeout deals on jigs and plastics!

After every few uses or even more if you are using the Talon in extremely sandy or gunky bottoms, I would suggest hooking a hose up to the the top of unit where it will flush out the whole unit. Also it helps to go out in the middle of the lake/river and deploy the unit so it won’t hit bottom, that’ll clean it.

My 998 has the SI and is an 1″ bigger, that is the advantage.

If you can get a bigger screen, go with it. The bigger the screen the better as you’ll enjoy looking at the screen so much!

Any other questions let me know.

I have the 998 SI at the console ethernet connected to an 858 at the bow last year and loved it.

This year I’ll be adding an 858 to the console as well.

I ran a Talon all last year and loved it!

No issue in strong winds, waves or rocky bottom. If it is really windy, the rough water mode will deploy the spike three times in to the bottom.

Doesn’t drain the battery at all.

How deep of water you can hold in, will depend on the height you have it mounted on your boat. On mine, I was able to hold in 7’8″ to 10″.

You put in at the Power Plant? Is the channel free from ice?

I need to test drive a boat and was wondering if it would be doable?

Liar, check your PM. Thanks!

I bag mine up and get them to the National Guard and they distribute in packages that go over seas.

WD-40

Great group of guys up there! They got me back on the water very quick and did a great job dealing with my insurance claim.

Also installed a Minn Kota Talon on my boat.

Video of the Talon in action,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uE7FWSrn6Ko

Other things to consider, you can install the Talon yourself so no money to a dealer.

2x the holding power compared to the Power Pole.

I’ll let ya know when I’m coming through LAX next and you can check it out.

Here is the video we put together on how easy it is to install a Talon,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zM1B1s6VU4

Helped big time this morning to fish docks with the wind blowing right into them!!!

30 lb. braid in the thick stuff
15 lb. flurocarbon open water

The Quick Release Handles are great, helped me get it in to my garage!

I don’t see them kept, I just see that they hooked up with multiple bass and netted them at the same time.

The new mounting brackets for the Talon have been beefed up and are much stronger.

The Talon is quick and easy to install. I’ll be doing a video on the install of mine here in the next week and will post it.

In regards to taking off when the spike is still deployed, with the Talon you can wire it to your starting battery, so when you turn the key, if the spike is deployed a warning sound will go off.

Put the new updates on, we’ll let ya know tomorrow.

Any advice on the 788 depth readings?

Thanks!

Yep, it’s a 788 CI HD DI Combo.

Yep, I have the ethernet menu and it show’s both units and I have share waypoints turned on.

It could’ve been the packs that I had, as products always have bad run’s.

But in one summer, I had numerous problems of their hook points bending after fishing around rocks and other hard structure.

Also had a few instances after using a hook for half a day that I would be unhooking a fish and would go to grab the hook out with a pliers and it would break in half. Few years ago my co angler was using a swim jig with a Gamakatsu hook and he had the hook break twice on him.

I know of many other anglers that have had similiar issues with those hooks. Other’s haven’t and use them exclusivley…it’s all what you have confidence in.

The ones last spring were a bad batch and that problem has been corrected. There are no issues with the ones that are out on the market now. Last fall I could bang a hook off rocks, dock pilings, etc. and it was still sharp and no damage done.

Gregg can you forward me your e-mails from customer service and I’ll pass them along and see you get taken care of.

Definately rolled and broke more Gamakatsu hooks than I ever did a Trokar last year.

Brian…The new 7’6″ hvy cover micro guide rod is sweet.

Everyone has their preference. I had numerous complaints about the Mojo series when I was at Cabelas a couple weekends ago.