Bass-Jons

A Maintenance Resolution

By Rob Brewer  

By now, many of you are suffering from an acute case of cabin fever. You’re just waiting for the first warm days of spring to arrive so you can go out and catch those roe laden pre-spawn mules. A few diehards are still out there catching bass, myself included. Whether your boat is hibernating in the garage, under a cover or still seeing use, there’s a lot more to preparing for the coming season than just buying a 2004 fishing license and lakes permit. 

Were going to look at getting your gear ready for the up coming season. The hardest part of which, is getting off your “duff” and actually doing it. Sure, you can make excuses…it’s not going anywhere, the NFL playoffs are on…. but at the same time, nothings getting fixed if you walk that path. Promise yourself that you’ll put aside the next free weekend you have and dedicate it to the task at hand, prepping your boat and tackle, especially the things that are always neglected. Besides you can listen to the playoffs on the radio while you work. Young anglers are always willing to give Dad a hand too, especially when you put a screwdriver in their hand and have them remove bulbs and other simple tasks. 

The first step involves preparation. There are a few things you can do the week before the weekend you’ve dedicated arrives. First, sit down and identify that one major malfunction you had again and again last year. Whether it was a faulty livewell connection, binding tie down strap, whatever…. Identify it. That is first on the hit list to get fixed. The second thing to do is buy a small memo pad that will easily fit inside the glove box of your vehicle. We’ll talk more about this later; just go buy it before hand. Read over the checklist (below) to get an idea of what you might need to buy before hand. Get these items ahead of time so you have them on hand. That way, you can spend the weekend actually working on the boat instead of shopping. Plus it can be construed as another excuse to go to the new Bass Pro Shops. 

I suggest dedicating each day to a specific “group”. Day one is boat, motor, trailer, batteries and trolling motor. Day two is rods, reels, accessories and tackle. Get up “early” on the weekend that you’ve put aside, pour yourself a cup of coffee and grab hold of that memo pad you bought. Get ready for a long day. 

Here’s a checklist (the items are in no particular order) I think makes for a good starting point. It is just the basics of every boat. Some of you will have specific items to repair/replace or improve. Just use it as a guide to assist with anything you may have overlooked. 

TRAILER 

• Remove all the bulbs (one at a time) & record the numbers (types) in your memo pad. 
• Sand all the corrosion off the bulbs and from inside the sockets.
• Spray both with WD40 before reinstallation 
• Go over EVERY nut & bolt on the trailer with a wrench and socket. Make sure they are tight.  
• “Break” the lug nuts and spray WD40 on the threads.
• Record the trailer’s serial & model number in your memo pad.
• Adjust (if necessary) your bunks and rollers. Replace/recarpet any that need of it.
• Grease the tongue jack and winch “teeth”.  
• Inspect/replace the winch strap, transom tie-down straps or other load securing straps.
• Repack wheel bearings and if you don’t have them consider installing bearing buddies. These are “too easy” to install (all you need is a rubber mallet or hammer & piece of wood) and make greasing bearings as easy as squeezing the handle of a grease gun.
• Check the condition of those “cheap” little plastic frames that hold your license plate on the trailer. They get brittle with age. Consider bolting it (license plate) to the trailer or using zip ties. Write trailer license number in your memo pad.
• Check the tires (and spare) for proper air pressure; tread wear and signs of dry rot. Replace any that need it.
• Record tire size in your memo pad.
• Check/clean the “pig tail” (wiring harness) that plugs into your vehicle. Spray more WD40 here too.
• Check the condition/ alignment of your “guide posts” if you have them on your trailer. If you don’t have any, consider installing them. Gone are the problems of “lining up” just so on the trailer when recovering your boat. You can also install some strips of reflective tape on them. They’ll be easier to see when launching in the predawn darkness.

BATTERIES

• Check all cells for proper fluid levels & wipe the tops of the cases clean. 
• Test each cell with a hydrometer (if not sealed cases) Add electrolyte or distilled water pending the results of your test. 
• Clean the posts and all connections. Time for more WD40! 
• Install a means of fastening your batteries in place if not already equipped as such. 

OUTBOARD MOTOR 

• Take it to a professional if you have no clue about anything. 
• Change the oil & filter (4 stroke) 
• Change the gear oil in the lower unit 
• Inspect/ replace spark plugs. Be sure not to substitute wrong plugs and check their gap before reinstalling them. Torque them to specs. 
• SLOWLY pull out the starter rope and inspect for wear, replace if necessary. 
• Remove prop and inspect thrust bearing and look for pieces of fishing line fouled in it. 
• If your motor uses shear pins, now’s the time to buy some spares. 
• Record the shear pin size in your memo pad. 
• Add STA-BIL or other preservative to your fuel if it’s sitting for any length of time. 
• Inspect/ replace fuel filter 
• Inspect/ replace fuel line, connections and tank. 
• Record the propeller pitch and diameter in your memo pad 
• Record the outboard motor serial and model number in your memo pad. 
• Check transom clamps for tightness and alignment on centerline. 
   

TROLLING MOTOR

• Record the model and serial number in memo pad. 
• Now’s the time to buy these shear pins too. 
• Remove propeller and look for old fishing line. Consider replacing if in poor shape or at least file out those dings. It will make less “noise” underwater. 
• Check mounting hardware and tighten/ replace if necessary. 
• Clean/ WD40 socket and plug 
• Lubricate (w/ graphite powder) cables on foot control models. 

BOAT

• Record hull identification number (HIN) and model number in memo pad 
• Record registration number and lakes permit number in memo pad. 
• Remove bulbs from lights & record numbers (type) in memo pad. Remove any corrosion and WD40 them before reinstalling. 
• Clean out the livewell and remove pump. Clean any debris from inside the “pick up” screen. Consider upgrading it to a stronger pump. (500 GPH minimum, 750/800 GPH optimum) 
• Do the same to your bilge pump. 
• Inspect & replace any PFD’s that have frayed or torn. See VDGIF website for specifics. It’s still a fine if you have them, but are not serviceable as defined in the law. Besides, it’s your life were talking about here. Get out of the “It can’t happen to me” mindset. 
• Inspect all your fuses, record sizes in your memo pad and buy spares to have on hand. 
• Inspect or replace fire extinguisher, first aid kit & flashlight. 
• Inspect/ assemble a “spare parts” kit. Keep it simple though. 
• Hide (where you can find it) a spare drain plug somewhere in the boat. Possibly duct tape it in the bottom half of your outboard cowling. 
• Vacuum out rod lockers, under console, all carpet, etc. 
   

RODS

You can get as extensive as you want. Some go as far as wiping down with furniture polish; cleaning cork grips, inspecting guides, etc. Do what you are comfortable with. For me, that’s basically a quick “look see” at the rod. I feel I already “know” if something happened to my rod. But that’s just me. 

REELS 

• At a minimum, peel all the old line off. If you have a lot of reels, this can be done with little effort like so. Get an old wire coat hanger, while holding the hook portion in one hand; place your other hand directly below it on the wire frame. Now pull your hands apart as far as you can. Once you have “elongated” the hanger, bend and flatten the hook portion with a pair of pliers so it can be put in a drill’s chuck. Now you can wind all that line off your reels and toss the whole mess in the trash when you’re done. Don’t refill with fresh line until it gets close enough to when you will actually go fishing again. 
• Next consider lubing your reel’s gear train. This too is something you can ignore, but not forever. When was the last time you did it? Never? Well, if the reel is a few years old you might want to consider it. You be surprised what kind of “life” can be breathed back into an old reel that has dirt and junk inside it. If you don’t know how, I wouldn’t recommend trying it without a schematic of the reel in front of me. These can usually be found on the reel manufacturer’s website. Sometimes a piece just “falls” out when you open it and unless you know where it went, it is one of the most boring puzzles I’ve ver assembled. If you’re still not comfortable going there, at least clean the reel’s exterior with a Q-tip and some more WD40. Be sure to get inside the level wind hole and down inside the frame and atop the reel foot. 
• If you have expensive reels, engrave your name on the bottom of the reel foot. It’s out of sight and just might help convict a tackle thief someday. 
• Someday, I’m going to try “super tuning” a reel. That’s where you open up the gear case, smear some moly sulphide or other lapping compound on the gears, and chuck the reel’s drive shaft in a router or other tool capable of generating something in the vicinity of 5,000 rpms. Chuck the reel in and “rev her up” for about 30 to 40 seconds. Remove the centrifugal brakes first or they’ll burn up. Disassemble; clean the gears and reassemble, then relube. The result is supposed to be one of the smoothest, most sensitive reels you’ve ever used. I have not done it yet, but I have a few old Shimano’s that are volunteering.

TACKLE

Here’s a subject that I could write thousand- page dissertation on. Don’t worry, I won’t. But it’s something that deserves serious thought. I’ll try to focus on these two words. Organize and minimize. 

• Organize what you have so you may find whatever you may be looking for. Consider buying several Plano cases and categorizing your tackle in the cases. That doesn’t mean you’ll need to bring all these cases with you fishing. But you will easily be able to put together a case (or two) of what you may need for a day on the water. 
• Minimize what you take on the water. I know it’s common “phobia” to worry about getting caught without something you need or running out of something you have. But really, when is the last time it happened? Probably hasn’t has it? I mean sure, you may have forgotten the pliers or some other item, but have you ever actually ran out of a given lure? Purge the junk. You don’t have to throw it out, just leave it at home. Its there if you need it. 
• If you have gone over all these items as mentioned, odds are you found a few potential deficiencies that were waiting to “pounce” on you at some point during the upcoming season. Hopefully, your actions staved them off and will let you continue to fish unhindered through the season with no or minimal problems. At the same time, you’ve just become more familiar with all your equipment and how it works. 
• Now take that memo pad you have with all that info in it. Throw it in your glove box and leave it there. Next time you’re at the store and looking for whatever bulb, fuse, or part you need, you have all the info needed sitting out in your car. Just don’t forget its there. 

Once you take the time to do all these checks and repairs, you’ll want to go fishing just to experience the fruits of your labor. By all means do so. 

Fishing is life, Rob Brewer