Lucas

The wait blows, but the rods are second-to-none.

Niceun' spawny tail?

I don't want to go on record with the price I heard because it may not be correct, but if it is, you'll see a lot of the same reactions as you've seen in this thread. Still, some people will be willing to pay it. Me, I'm going back to basics; Hudds, Slammers, and Triple Trouts.

Twice as much as the 175 I bought from Japan more than a year ago, but still cheaper than the Alumni Negotiatiors that are coming.

Word on the street is that Precision got in a shipment today.

I'm much like you in that I run a 15-foot decked-out jon boat with both a bow-mount and a transom-mount trolling motors. Most of the lakes around here are electric-only. You can buy whatever batteries you'd like; I use Everstarts from WalMart. They've never given me a problem, they're inexpensive and they have a decent return policy. I can't see me paying a ridiculous price for a battery when I can get another brand for half the cost and it does the same thing. I run two 24v motors so I have four batteries and two two-bank Dual Pro on-board chargers. Dual Pros aren't cheap, but I'll pay more for a decent charger than I will batteries. ...just my $.02 I keep my chargers plugged in all the time as they'll trickle charge as needed and the boat will be ready to go on the rare instance I get the chance to take it out of the garage. One bit of advice I would give is to upgrade your bowmount to a 24v-sized motor. A 12V bowmount will drain a battery quick when pulling a heavy, decked-out jon. It's not the end of the world if you don't upgrade, but it will make life easier.

In

Here you go... Straight out of Bill Murphy's bible.

In

Excellent report! Thanks for sharing.

so true.

Nice!!

I saw those videos and it looks decent, but I don't think he posted any videos of a straight retrieve; each video made it appear as if the glide was imparted by twitching/jerking the rod. My thoughts are this... I'm a little disappointed. Mickey was always super cool to me anytime I spoke to him on the phone and there is no denying that his hardbaits are tough-as-nails and are of top-notch quality. My disappointment comes from the fact that, IMO Mickey is one of the true Godfathers of swimbait lures. While there are plenty of topwaters that produce, I feel that his topwaters set the bar for all competitors. The Real Deal was ridiculously innovative, the Freestyles trend setting, Mission Fish are proven, and I will sing the praises of his Rising Son until I'm blue in the face; but I can't help to think that Mickey, a true innovator (whether you like him or not you must give him is props) has jumped on the bandwagon by creating a glide bait. Maybe it's me but I'm surprised and possibly a little let down that he would do that. Then again, WTF do I know?

Don't get caught up buying a bunch of baits. Learn the ones you have. If you're dead-set on adding to the collection, get a couple 3:16 Rising Sons. They're inexpensive and they produce.