RiverChuckNorris

My first foray into tv land. Grant invited me to co-host an early ice episode on Mille Lacs last week. We showed up like any weekend warrior with no intel and proceeded to try to figure the lake out. The full will air in January and then be available on Superior Angling's YouTube channel. Here is a video we made this week Give it a share/like if you enjoy it. Thanks in advance!

All the True Values are Strikemaster service centers. You can also email Strikemaster off their page and they'll get back to you pretty quickly (usually an hour or so). Mine wouldn't disengage even at idle at the end of last season (first season for drill) and they serviced it, replaced the idle spring and had it back in 2-3 weeks for free.

Buddy and I each have a Bearcat and we're looking to ditch the handhelds and mount a GPS/Depthfinder unit behind the windshield. Anyone have any tips? What units did you use? (seems like Helix's are common) I'd also like to mount a lightbar somewhere on the front for improved lighting. My auger cradle up front blocks the headlight somewhat and it sure would be nice to have a really bright light up front at night. I was thinking maybe mount it somewhere on the cradle (it's steel and then I'm not ruining my sled hood) and then have a quick disconnect somewhere on the wiring in case I want to ride without the auger/cradle on. Pictures + ideas appreciated!

For sure, I meant an extra $8-10 grand over an IC

Walleyehooker - I own a 2011 8x16 IC with a beavertail and rubber flooring. There's a lot of griping on the boards about them but keep in mind, there are also more IC's out there than any other maker by a wide margin. It's had it's share of issues, but nothing too overwhelming. I'll admit, I take pride in everything I own and am a bit of a perfectionist as I like my gear to work when I get out on the lake and I like it to look good. I often sell my used equipment to my buddies because they know I take care of stuff. In my experience, as long as you do preventative maintenance every year, you'll avoid most major headaches. This past season, I did have to have one of the trailer brakes re-wired and had to replace the co-ax cable to the dish (about $800 by the time things were diagnosed and completed). If IC built it with a (ground box?) in the V, I'm told this would've been a simple/cheap fix, but of course, they didn't, so all wiring had to be replaced. Annually, I like to: Grease all pivot points (I had an extra zerk installed on each side near the pivot point several years ago for good measure) Re-pack the bearings (I did this for the first time myself, a few weeks ago, pretty easy; although they should probably just build them with bearing buddies IMO) Sand down any rust spots on the frame and repaint (I use a 3M cordless drill brush attachment and some anti-rust primer and spray paint). Keeps the frame looking great and only takes 3 hours or so while enjoying a few barley pops. Replaced the chrome hub and lug nuts for the first time as they had rust developing Spray the beavertail surround with silicon to avoid sticking and keep the foam/rubber from cracking. Other larger projects I've had off the top of my head include: Replaced flimsy tongue lift with heavy duty crank lift (shop welded it on) Replaced steel cable with stainless steel cable several years ago (I have crank up/down). This should be standard but I suppose stainless costs more. Over several years, I've replaced all screws (probably 300+), internal (mostly hole cover surrounds) and external, with stainless screws. Again, this should be OEM but I suppose stainless are more expensive, which is pathetic but oh well. After this coming season, I'll probably replace the tires for the first time. Not sure any of this will help you, but thought I'd share my experiences based on the past 5 seasons. I will say, if/when I buy a new one, I'll probably look at Yetti the hardest. The lighter weight (about 1,000 lbs lighter I believe in an 8x16) along with never dealing with rust again, are very attractive. That being said, I'll also be looking at a $8-$10k price premium, so we'll see. I am kind of curious what my IC would go for (I'm definitely not selling it this year but maybe next). Would love people's input just for curiosity.

No. Why am I so certain? Because I've been fishing with one 15' from my IC for the last 5 seasons and I've iced a lot of fish. As far as shallow vs deep goes, I was on URL couple years ago, fishing 8 fow in sleds and portables. EVERY time we fired up one of the sleds, we caught a fish. Not exaggerating. Could've been a fluke, but it happened all weekend, became the running joke to fire one up if/when there was a lull in action.

There are 3 grounding points on your castle. All 3 are grounded via carriage bolts on the bottom of your frame. There is a bolt directly below both of your tail lights and then there is one on the passenger side, just aft of the V portion of the trailer. Make sure all 3 are tight (that may be your fix). If that doesn't do it, take them off and wire brush them. If that doesn't do it, you may not be looking at a ground issue. FYI, just had to troubleshoot my brakes not working. Turns out my passenger side brake had to be re-wired. If IC wasn't so cheap, it would've been an easy fix as most campers/wheelers are built with junction boxes in their nose. Low and behold, IC just wires them straight through which then requires ripping off diamond plating to rewire. Coates RV in Forest Lake was great to work with and fixed that, along with a couple other things quickly and at a resonable price, IMO. They also have great electronics for troubleshooting.

+1

Looks great so far!

+1 there. That was an epic trip although our numbers were probably closer to 40 fish per day per house, between 2 castles. Only time I can remember actually reeling up the rattle wheels at night so,we could sleep cause we just didn't care about catching more fish lol.

I think first time wetting the lines this year will be URL on 12/16. 15 day looks terrific (finally). Who knows, might even be able to pull the castle out by then. On the flip side, I don't think we'll see enough ice before then down in the cities to do a local first-outing.

You can order to size diamond plating online with Midwest Steel and Aluminum. You pick the measurements, thickness, etc Shipped to you a week later.

Huh, had no idea. Also have never noticed any signs of water in my frame, but I suppose that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. So my immediate question then is how do folks keep road grime from going in the holes and having the salt/chemicals accelerate erosion inside the frame tubing? Sure, the holes allow drainage, but they're also going to increase corrosives exposure exponentially, right?

No, I wasn't aware: The frame was water tight? That there's standing water in it? I just sanded the exterior. I'd presume you're speaking from experience? I've seen guys drill holes for galvanization dips on their builds but haven't heard of drilling holes in frames otherwise. This is going to be my 5th or 6th season with the IC and I've never heard/seen water in the frame.

Hey rl - In all honesty, it simply was due to availability. Didn't realize I'd have an open weekend to work on the project until Friday. I think I would've had to order the POR product online vs. running over to the Fleet & Farm store. I know guys on here swear by POR but the devil's advocate in me also likes trying things differently, in general. After looking over the Rustoleum products, seemed purpose-made enough to give it a shot. Maybe I'll end up regretting it, but fingers crossed it holds up as I have NO desire to do that project again anytime soon.