The crab legs that you are buying from the grocery store are already pre cooked. So basically you are just warming them up.

Boiling washes out the flavor. Steaming is fine but takes a long time. The best way I have found is just bake them in the oven until warm.

Split the leg sections at the joints if the legs are still one piece. The narrower front sections take less time to warm the the larger sections that were connected to the crabs body.

Spread the split legs onto a baking sheet. Put the sheets into a 350 degree preheated oven until warm. Typically the front sections will take 4-6 minutes. The thicker sections that connect to the body will take slightly longer. Maybe 5-7 minutes. They do not take long to warm and you do not really want to cook them just warm them through.Too much cooking and they get tough and taste fishy.

James,

I have heard alot of different opinions on what kind of mileage they actually get. I have heard 40 mpg in the city and up to 45 mpg at highway speeds.

However, a quick look at their website says the 2008 estimates are 33/41 mpg respectively. Too me that seems kind of low. I know that they are getting similar mileage out of the smaller japanese cars (Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla etc.)

In my opinion you sort of anwsered your own question in you post. The water is dirty both in color and debris in the water. Also the flow is fairly high however I do not think the amount of flow there is right now is enough to shut the fish down. I do know that ugly water can really make the fish tight lipped. Since the water just came up a couple days ago this would be my first guess as to why it was slow. Once things stabalize the fish should want to eat again.

I am not sure of what the water temperature on 9 is as I have not been on that pool since last week. However if it was aproaching the 43-44 degree mark and has been there for a couple of days it would not surprise me if the eyes have began moving into their staging areas to spawn.

If I was going to go out today and had to catch a eye or a sauger. I would seek out running sloughs and back water cuts near the main channel with some current in them. Focusing on smaller spots that provide a good current break. Eddys, logs, anything that breaks the current and gives the fish something to protect them so they can ambush prey without using too much energy. However most importantly look for clean water in these areas. If you find clean water with a decent current break there should be some fish.

Either that or go up to the dam and play bumper boats with everyone else. The current is tough but there are still some fish scattered in there without a doubt.

These are just my somewhat educated guesses but without actually seeing what kind of condition the pool is in I cannot say for sure what I would do. This is where I would probably start though. Do not be afraid to look for fish in areas you do not think looks like walleye water. The fish may surprise you.

If you are looking for a great rod for rigging, that can also double as a rod to pitch lighter jigs take a look at the St. Croix TWS70MLF. This is also called the Tournament Walleye Series “Lindy Rig” rod. It is a 7 foot medium light fast action rod. It is a great rigging rod but is also excellent in other applications. I like it to fish live bait on wing dams either on a simple hook and split shot rig or on a jig head. It is also great for fishing lighter jigs and slip bobbering. You can even pitch blades pretty well with this rod.

As far as reels go I am biased towards shimano. It is all I use now. I have tried all of the other so called high end reels and i always end up back at shimano. I like the stradics for an all around reel. In the new model stradic I like the 2500 size on a 7 foot rod. In the older white model the 2500 is too big for my personal feel so I have the 1000 size in the older reels. I like smaller reels though so take that for what it’s worth. However the 7 foot tournament series with the new 2500 stradic balances up as well as any rod I have ever picked up. Even more expensive rods and reels do not pair up as well.

I am not aware of a stren stealth?? However I have used Spider Wire Stealth and Stren Super Braid…

I like spider wire stealth on trolling rods. It is the best I have found as far as a trolling line goes.

On spinning rods used to cast jigs or fish blades I do not care for the stealth. It did not perform as well for me as any of the other superline choices.

Stren Superbraid on the other hand is now my superline of choice. The high vis gold is my favorite high vis color hands down. It is very bright. Also it does not fade like the other superlines do. It is very strong and has good abrasion resistance to rocks or zebra muscles.

For me super braid is the best superline I have found.

In my personal opinion the fish are still scattered all over the pool. The majority of the saugers and smaller eyes will be up near the genoa dam.

I think that condition of the pool has alot more to do with it than it being fall and colder. This year has been a strange one with the high water. Not to mention the ocassional days of high wind that really make a mess with the weeds and water clarity.

So to anwser your question a bulk of the “eater” sized fish will be in relative proximity to the dam. However I think you will find more larger fish further down stream. How far down stream??? you will have to let the fish tell you that.

No kidding Joel.. I would have comissioned an artist to create a oil painting if I had to, to get a picture of that fish. That is a monster of a sauger. I want to see what one that size would look like.

Wait what a 24 and 1/2 inch Sauger??? did you get a girth measurement on it???? That is a huge sauger congrats on the catch.

A firecracker k grub with a chart tail??? Put me down for 100 right now. I think that would be awsome to say the least. Walleyes and Smallies would love them. I think the would make a great swim jig trailer for the green bass boys as well. I say do it Dave and seriously put me down for 100 of the first run.

Congratulations Mr. Koonce…. I have caught many fish because of your products and I hope to catch many more because of them. Heres to many more years of sucess.

I agree with Eric… The symetre is a very functional reel for the money. The 1500 is a exceptional size. Good spool capacity and height, paired with a relatively small frame.

However if money is no object step up to the stradic.It is alot more reel than the symetry. However with the new redesign of the stradic it also has a much larger price tag. The new shimano reel the Saros may also be a good choice. I have not used one yet but have played with a couple in a tackle shop. Looks like a nice reel. It has a large spool on a small frame which I like.

So basically it is tough to go wrong with any higher level shimano reel. They all will treat you well. If you are a guy who buys reels and keeps them for a while. Treat yourself to some high end gear. In the long run you will be much happier. The cost difference only matters when you buy it, once you use it you will be more than satisfied that you spent the extra cash.

I had a 99 4wd extended cab step side 1500 Silverado with the 5.3 that got right around 16 mpg average. A little better on the highway a little worse in town. It got around 12 pulling a boat.

My Grandfather has about 7.5 acres of yard that I have to mow for him as he is getting on in years. He has had a couple of Craftsman mowers one with a Kohler engine one with a Briggs engine. The kohler is about 12 years old the Briggs is around 20. Never have had any material problems with them except they both like to throw the drive belt for the mowing deck if you happen to hit a large bump while mowing. The have around 1200 and 900 hours respectively.

However now that I have had to take over the mowing. Last year we spent a little money and bought a used Exmark Lazer z with a 60 inch deck. Between the zero turn and the ability to actually mow at a much faster pace it has cut the mowing time by about 3/4. What used to take 5-6 hours depending on who was mowin now takes between and 1 and a half hours to two at the most. With around 500 hours it cost around the same as a new garden tractor. 500 hours on a comercial mower is just getting broken in according to everyone I have talked to.

Not to mention that riding the comercial zero turn is so much more comfortable. I cannot even express in words how comfortable it is to use. You sit up alot more and since there are no foot pedals to use your feet rest in a comfortable position. There is no crouching over the wheel. Now when I get on one of the other garden tractors they feel cramped and uncomfortable.

I think you will be very pleased if you go with a used commercial zero turning mower as opposed to a brand new garden tractor.

After a second look I think Waterfowler has it. The Skyscraper. Lenny is correct on the mounting bracket on the mojo. I did not see that in the picture before.

After a second look I think Waterfowler has it. The Skyscraper. Lenny is correct on the mounting bracket on the mojo. I did not see that in the picture before.

I believe that is a mojo duck or mojo mallard. If the wings are made of metal and screw on with something almost like a set screw then that would be my guess.

I believe that is a mojo duck or mojo mallard. If the wings are made of metal and screw on with something almost like a set screw then that would be my guess.

I think you can get them from Janns Netcraft. http://www.jannsnetcraft.com

However if you are looking for the best blade bait around I would purchase some of the B3 Blade Baits from Bfishntackle. They are the best blades I have ever seen. The blades from Bfishn have the best action I have found. Not to mention a superior finish which is chip resistant and high quality hooks from VMC. These blades just plain catch more fish than others. At least for me.

These blades are available at http://www.bfishntackle.com

Tackle storage seems to be the ongoing mystery in the fishing world. There never seems to be enough room for all the stuff it takes to fish.

Here is what I use.

For crank baits I use a B and B baitboxes. You can find them here http://www.bbbaitbox.com/

They make everything easy. No tangling and no troubles finding things. It has made crank bait fishing far less of a hassle. Changing baits all the time is no longer such a mess.

I then have a older cabelas tackle bag that has plano boxes filled with Jig heads, Hair jigs, Blade Baits and jigging spoons. This is my walleye hardwear case. I keep all my plastic in the Tackle Utility Binders from Cabelas. It makes them easy to carry around. I keep just what I will use during a day of every color and keep the bulk plastic in a rubber bin at home.

I then have a similar set up of a larger tackle bag with just bass tackle. Then one for toothy baits and one for pan fishing.

I have found that keeping it divided by species is the easiest way to be able to find things.

That is just what I do. There are 100’s of different ways to approach storing tackle. There is no one correct way it is what works best for you.

Well the NADA says in the 2600 range for boat, motor, trailer. I do no think that is a fair price. I am going to agree with gary 4500-5000 depending on condition.

Is the trolling motor a minn kota power drive????

If it is more than likely the foot pedal itself. They are known for going out on a regular basis. Generally for me they will stop turning one direction completely but I do not see why it could not go crazy some other way as well.

If I get the chance to fish alot I will go through one or two a year. I have come to the point of always having a back up in the boat. I cannot remember what I paid for the last one but I want to say $65???

That is my only thought other than some crazy electrical problem.

I have not had any problems at all with mine. It has been flawless. I do not have a ton of hours on it yet. No problems with the alternator, starter or plugs. I have never used it to troll or much slow travel though either. It gets run at pretty high rpm’s most of the time. I really just use it to get to and from hunting spots and to run the river to fish. When fishing I just use it to get to the spot then one of the electrics take over. I have it set up to run xd-100 I have heard of some of the motors set up to run xd-50 have had some problems. However all they took to fix was to change the oil settings and go to the 100.

Sorry I am not of more help but knock on wood the etec I have has been strong and without problems thus far.

I have a 2006 90 etec on my duck/winter fishing boat. What would you like to know??? Either ask here or pm either way is fine.

I fish mainly the mississippi pools 9-11 most of the time. I have never had a problem using hi-vis line. No leaders required. Shallow or deep flame/pink fireline, yellow power pro, or any hi vis mono works all the same no issues.

Fishing lakes in minnesota where the water is clear I run hi vis fire line while rigging or running spinners on bottom bouncers. For the business end I usually will use either a florocarbon or a clear mono leader. Live bait rigging or shallow jig fishing is generally a clear mono like sensation or suffix. I have used hi vis line some such as the tangerine suffix and have caught many fish. I just go back to the clear because I am more comfortable with it in clear water.

I fish ringworms almost exclusively for walleye/sauger on the mississippi here in Iowa. As far as dragging I have had really good luck in areas between wingdams with sand and steep breaks. However I do not do a ton of dragging as I have had such great sucess pitching and vertical jigging with them.

As far as vertical jigging the ringies go I find the less movement the better. By that I mean find the bottom with the lightest jig you can use and still get down. Once you have found the bottom lift the rod tip just slightly. I mean a tiny bit. Move the bait maybe 3-4 inches off the bottom then just hold it there as still as possible. I have held it in the same place for as much as a minute but usually will lift and hold for 20-30 seconds then repeat the same process.

A precision jig head and ringworm from bfishn tackle have put lots of fish in my boat over the last couple years. If you put some time in with them I am sure they will do the same for you.

Buying new TV’s now days is kind of like a chevy vs ford debate. It is really personal preference. They are all good if you go with a high quality unit. It really comes down to how much money you want to spend and what is on sale at the time in my mind. Now for my opinions.

LCD or DLP- I guess the main question is do you want to be able to hang the Tv on the wall like a picture?? or is it going to sit on a stand??. If you want to hang it you either have to go with lcd or plasma.

As far as picture goes unless you have a very high components and cables you will not notice much difference between two comparable units. What I am saying is comparing 1080i to 1080i.

Reliablity- Both Lcd’s and Dlp’s have had some issues in the past. They seem to be getting these straightened out. Lcds have been known for having power supply boxes that fry thus leaving you with a televsion you cannot watch because you can’t turn it on. Other than that Lcd’s tend to run a little hot at times thus causing some problems. Dlp’s on the other hand run into the same power source issue at times. Not often but I have heard of it happening. Dlp also runs off of a light bulb source and a series of mirrors. Over the course of time the bulbs burn out. Usually between 2-5 years from purchase depending on use. However I have heard of cases where they go bad 3 months down the road. This is something that you will alwas have to deal with. Replacing bulbs is part of owning a dlp tv. However that is also the only real thing that goes wrong with them . If you continue to replace the bulbs you will have a tv that lasts a very long time.

I have had great luck with a Sony Lcd as well as a Samsung DLP. Now that the hd tv market has been saturated with other players there are alot of really good lower price lcd’s out there. A couple being Viewsonic and Vizio. Viewsonic has been making flat pannel computer monitors for many years. My cousin has had a 32 inch Lcd from them for 3 years with no problems and it has just as good of a picture as my grandfathers 32 inch Samsung Lcd. I believe the Viewsonic was in the 1000 range where the samsung was more like 2000. Vizio is also a great choice because the have been making components for alot of the big name tv manufactures for a long time. They recently started manufacuring the full sets and I think are making a nice product for the money.

That was alot of info but I know TV shopping can be confusing I hope it helped some rather than just confuse you more. Here is a great website for info on HD tv’s http://www.cnet.com/4520-7874_1-5102926-1.html

I fish a ton of jigs on the river. Mostly Precision heads from Bfishntackle by the way. I think the best way I have found is to leave them in the bags they come in if you order from bfishn. Or get some small resealable bags and put your jigs in there. Then I just use plano boxes or tackle logic boxes that are more or less plano boxes. I think the best piece of advice i can offer for keeping jigs in good shape is only carry with you what you are going to need for the day.

If you are fishing the mississippi below the lock and dams that can be quite a few if you are vertical jigging. Keeping a small amount in the boxes keeps the heads in better shape but more importantly it keeps the hooks sharp. The less time jig heads spend getting banged around in boxes the sharper the hooks will stay.

That being said I still find myself with a full tackle bag of just boxes of jig heads. There are just to many different sizes and colors of heads out there now . However I never want to be without something that the fish are going to bite on that particular day.

Here is another vote for the mxf68 Avid or Tournament walleye series by St.Croix. They really are second to none when it comes to pitching jigs. Like others have said it is almost like they built these rods specifically for the application of jig fishing.

You can also vertical jig with them without a problem. I prefer a shorter rod for going vertical but that is really a personal preference. As far as comparing them to the Gander rods I am not really sure. Other than picking them up in the store I have not used them. I cannot bring myself to buy anything other than St.Croixs they are just that good.

I use both pink and hi vis green. I have noticed no difference fishing for walleyes. However I mainly fish the river so it does not matter much. Unfortunately they discontinued the pink fire line. The 6 pound is my favorite line ever. Fourtunately I got a heads up and bought up a few thousand yards. So I am set for a while. Once it’s gone I am going to be one sad guy.

Try a nice Dose of Cayenne pepper. Dogs hate it. I used it in holes my dog was digging. A couple times was all it took and she does not dig anymore. It did not seem to hurt her but it must really irritae there senses.

May or may not work but it is natural and worth a shot.