Long range LiveScope, Sprengel talks soft plastics, Skags can disintegrate

No doubt electronics companies have been going back and forth 🥊 1-upping each other, which is good news for us. This new technology from Garmin brings “an extended range for deeper and open waters” to their LiveScope system:

Info from here:

> …today unveiled LiveScope XR , the latest addition to its award-winning live-scanning sonar lineup, now with an extended range for deeper and open waters. With excellent image sharpness at both close and long ranges simultaneously, LiveScope XR delivers real-time images of fish and structure up to 500′ in front of or below the boat – over 200% more range than the leading competitor system.

> With an optimized design for deeper water, the LiveScope XR transducer has extended elements so anglers can see both long- and close-range views in real time. Anglers can see further around and below the boat – up to 500′ in freshwater… – and the Reverse Range feature allows them to utilize more of the screen to display fish and structure.

> To see detail closer to the boat, the Compress Range feature displays a live look in sharp detail up close, while still allowing the angler to keep an eye on targets further away at the same time.

> The LiveScope XR System includes a compact GLS 10 black box with a LiveScope XR LVS62 transducer, along with a trolling motor barrel and shaft mounting kit, perspective mount bracket and a simple plug-and-play Garmin Marine Network connector for easy installation and integration with a compatible [screen].

> With a free software update, the LVS62 transducer…can be added to an existing LiveScope System black box for customers who want to upgrade.

> Both the LiveScope XR System and the LiveScope XR LVS62 are available now, with suggested retail prices of $2,999.99 and $2,499.99 respectively.

I originally assumed it was geared more towards salt water (?) but could definitely see crossover in the walleye world. Specifically walleyes suspended over open-water, which are usually BIG ones.

Imagine being able to scan 500′ 😳 when looking for wads of Lake Erie walleye….

No doubt there’s a ton of great “fake” alternatives out there to live bait. With SO many options, it can be downright overwhelming to pick a pack off the shelf. So where should you start?

I really don’t think there’s a better way to transition into using more artificials (instead of live bait) than deploying Berkley Gulp! The stuff is literally “chemically engineered, and laboratory tested to appeal to a walleye’s sense of smell.”

This Wired2Fish video has a great rundown of how Korey Sprengel trolls soft plastics using slow-turn hooks and bottom-bouncers to fool walleyes without needing live bait. Instead of listening to me blab about it, let’s hear it from the maestro himself:

Caught by Doug while fishing with central-MN guide Garett Svir of Slab Seeker Fishing:

Hint: It was a popular hair style in the mid-80s…. 🐀

I’d totally be calling that an 11.5-incher!

Definitely one of the better rattails I’ve seen – other than this one, of course:

Speaking of unique tails….

Wonder how many spots this one would bump ya up in an AIM catch-photo-release derby? 🤣

Or this one tagged by fisheries biologist Becca Perry on Buffalo Pound Lake, SK:

Some interesting-looking backsides that I’d love to have in my 5-fish bag!

Now just ‘cuz 🤷‍♂️ here’s the hindmost parts of some other critter I’d rather NOT see:

One of the things you should maybe be doing at the ramp to help stop the spread of invasives (but I don’t think is required?) is tilting your motor all the way down and letting any water drain out before launching or leaving – you’d be surprised how much will come out of there.

That’s part of my usual ramp routine, and it ALWAYS freaks me out that I’ll get busy doing other things and forget to trim back up before driving off. Especially if there’s an AIS inspector at the ramp doing a survey…seriously appreciate everything they do [!!!] but the only time I seem to miss a step (forgetting a buckle or strap, the drain plug, or whatnot) is when I get busy talking and out of my “normal process” or rotation that I always do those things in. Can anyone else relate?

These pics posted by JP DeRose on Insta hit me right in those anxious feels:

Yikes! I mean starting to drive off is one thing, but you’d almost have to try to make it from point A to B without feeling or hearing THAT going on. #LetTheSparksFly

Assuming they were either:

A) Heavily-bumping the music,

B) The catalytic converter is somewhere not attached to their tow vehicle, or

C) They were having one of those moments where you don’t even remember the drive home ‘cuz you’re mentally beating yourself up for getting your butt kicked by the fish:

1. Check out Z-Man’s new Micro Finesse BaitZ.

There’s 5 new snack-sized baits that bring the benefits of ElaZtech to the panfish world:

2. Garmin brings LiveScope Plus to their lithium ice-fishing bundle.

The included lithium battery weighs 1/3 of comparable lead acid batteries and up to 65% more battery life.

Few LiveScope Plus highlights in case you missed it:

> …35% more target separation over the existing system with sharper resolution, reduced noise and Garmin’s clearest images.

> …capable of identifying and separating targets as small as 14″ at distances 100′ from the boat so anglers can see exactly what they need to with improved stitching, reduced noise and fewer on-screen artifacts….

> …3 unique vantage points with 1 mount that can be adjusted to fit…no tools required. Simply turn the transducer forward for a live look at what’s out in front of the boat; point it down to see directly beneath the boat; or turn it sideways with the included Perspective Mode Mount to enable the ‘top down’ perspective mode to see a wide view of what’s in front of the boat up to 50′ away.

> With a free software update, the LVS34 transducer, sold separately, can be added to existing LiveScope System for customers who want to upgrade.

For you visual learners that means the new LVS34 can throw up screenies like THIS:

3. KastKing has a new director of product development for fishing line.

Rex Nelson, who has over 30-yrs of experience in the fishing line manufacturing industry.
Believe he retired as the president of Western Filament last year.

4. Mercury has new 25 and 30hp 4-stroke outboards.

> For the first time, electric-start 25 and 30hp models are now compatible with Mercury SmartCraft digital technologies, offering boaters access to a wide range of intelligent gauges, displays and other connected technologies.

> Mercury also engineered the first-ever 25hp ProKicker outboard, bringing precision trolling control to large freshwater and saltwater boats.

5. American Tackle partnered w/ Autism Anglers…

…to build “the most complete and thought-out youth fishing combo.”

6. Precision Trolling Data updated 12 more lures…

…with the 50+2 method = a technique that lets you fish crankbaits deeper than they’d normally run by attaching a 2-oz snap-weight ahead of the bait.

7. Gamakatsu now has “feathered” G-Finesse Treble hooks.

I’ve used the original G-Finesse Trebles and they’re insanely sharp + strong. These new feathered versions will come in 5 sizes (6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0) and 2 colors (white/tinsel and chartreuse/tinsel):

The #6 size is probably the most common for walleye cranks and jigging spoons, followed by the #4s on bigger baits.

I wish one of these brands would add a #8 feathered treble to their lineup for smaller jigging spoons….

8. DC: Tackle industry weighs in on proposed lead weight ban.

> …in response to a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service draft rule prohibiting the use of lead fishing tackle on certain National Wildlife Refuges, the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) sent a letter signed by 234 individuals representing companies and organizations in the recreational fishing industry to USFWS Director Martha Williams, urging the agency to reconsider the proposal.

> The letter calls on USFWS to recognize that anglers should be allowed to use traditional fishing tackle unless science demonstrates negative impacts. The proposed rule provided no scientific evidence that lead fishing tackle is endangering wildlife populations in these areas.

Jon Thelen’s top tips for trolling cranks in BIG wind.

And uff da was she ever rollin’ that day! 💨

Another meme-y gem from Troy Lindner:

Love it or hate it, they straight-up get bit!

This comment from @hookedupwi under Troy’s IG post wins ⭐️x5 for selling the Ned rig:

> Imagine you found a bait that catches a smallmouth bass almost every single time you put it in front of one, works at any depth and takes very little skill to fish correctly. If you had such a lure, you would probably use that lure all the time, right? Now imagine that same lure is also the toughest SOB you’ve ever seen and you can literally catch 100 fish on one bait without needing to change it out. Amazing? Yes. NOW imagine that this little bait is actually very inexpensive and readily available at almost every single tackle shop in the country. I suppose you are thinking “there is no such bait…it’s not possible…there couldn’t be….”

Dude nailed it! And yup, you know by now they work for walleyes too.

Huge props to NFL’er (and Target Walleye reader 😏) Frank Ragnow on sticking himself a dirty-30! Keep in mind Frank is 6′ 5″ and 309-lbs of Detroit Lions center…so he’s gotta be a little “generous” on the hold to do fish justice lol:

National Professional Anglers Assoc. 

MN-FISH