Depth Finders and Spider Rigs

My bother-in-law wanted me to get on here and ask a few questions. He is a novice on crappie fishing.:D (He will hate this when he looks at this). His hands must have been cut off as well, because he asked me to come on here to ask the questions.:D

We are going on a trip with Jerry Blake in May. Jerry, you may even have to bait his hook for him!!:eek:

Anyway, here are the questions.

1. Out of all of you that use fish/depth finders, what do you use and why (what do you think is the best)?

2. For those of you that have spider rigs, what do you think is the best and why? I like CEB's set up but I don't know what it is.

I run an Eagle 480 on the T/M. I love the graph but wish it had GPS.

I use Bee ready rod holders. They are simple, adjust at any angle and stay there for ever. The riser will come out of the base when your not using them.
They are made of Stainless/Aluminum and ABS Nylon. I've been using them for many years and have yet to have a failure. I use the same holders I use for Crappie to drift fish for Blues.

i use a Lowrance 522c GPS/Sonar mounted on the bow dead center of the boat with transducer on the t moter. i split the screen so that i have GPS on one side and sonar on the other side. This gives me a chance to mark structure as i go along for future trips. This is fun when the fish are slow. I also have a lowrance x125 next to the console with the transduer on the back. I have both the graphs mounted on 7" ram mounts so i can move them around. My rod holders are Hi-Tek and i have two sets (4 holders each) up front. i use a Minn Kota powerdrive t moter and i have the wirless pod add on. I can run the whole boat with my thumb.

I use humminbird ff's, matrix 17, & 535. the resolution is very good, and they are easy to set up & personalize.
My spider rig set up is the driftmaster "lil T bar". I use pole holders with 3/8" threads on them, & was successful on cane creek this fall, even taking in a couple of fish @ 2lbs. CEB's setup is home made, but his is a real good one. the biggest thing about spider rigs are the fact that you need to get your rod handles up around your hands so that when a fish gets on, you don't have to bend way over to pick up your pole. the rods that I use are b & m trolling rods, & I use jig poles also. I have 2 10 ft'ers, & a 11' & 12'. I like running my 10' poles on the end, and the longer ones in the middle, so that if a fish runs, I have at least a chance of getting it around my other poles without tangling them up. I am a big, big fan of #2 circle hooks (not 2/0) when minnow fishing, & I like the kentucky/carolina rig using a 1/2 oz egg sinker down to a swivel, & a 12-18" leader to my circle hooks. I love the circle hooks because the fish hook themselves, & don't come off as easy. you are always tempted to set the hook if you hold it in your hand, but when they are in the pole holders, they take it, hook themselves, & you pick up the rod & get them in the boat.

Hope that helps.

Humminbird Matrix 17 on the front of the boat transducer shooting through the hull near the bow (glass boat), soon changing to a 585c for the color detail. Humminbird 997si on the console transducer on the transom.

I'm not quite as fancy shmancy as these dudes...:D

I use a HB Pirhana Max20...the ben franklin unit. Bigger and better is always nice, but for lakes like conway and the river and such...any of the new units will get you what you need. Make sure that you mount the unit to where you can see it easily when slo-trollin'.

I have my mounted on my transom right now, but plan to add another transducer to the TM. Probably won't make too much difference in my fishin', but I would like for the transducer to be as close to the poles as possible.

I run an Eagle Fishmark 480 on the TM, and a Fishmark 640C on the console. The 480 is plenty of graph up front for spiderrigging/trolling. Best graph under $200...period.

Bee Ready rod holders are the way to go. Best rod holder on the market, and the absolute quickest hookset from a holder...period.

Don't worry...I was using them well before I became a Pro Staff member. Tons of mounting choices, and are just the most simple holder out there.

I have drift master rod holders simply to hold the baited rods while I am casting (or eating something). I have a smorgashboard of rods 6' to 7.5'. I don't do too much spider rigging. I have a Hummingbird 525 (535??) on the TM. I have what ever Tracker provided on the stern 8 years ago. But, It will be replaced soon with the same thing I have on the front. I am technology challanged. So, I don't need anything too fancy. I don't even know what all my cell phone will do.
DP