Author: Ron Ballanti

Quality fuel system treatments are an important part of keeping any gasoline-powered machine running clean and strong and should be part of any regular maintenance routine.

Siren’s cellular-based technology gives owners the ability to monitor their boat whenever they’re away — keeping tabs on position/movement, unauthorized entry, battery status, shore power connection, bilge pump activity,  and much more. 

Key West is truly a world-class angling destination — kind of like Disneyland and Christmas rolled into one. 

Slammin’ Salmon In the Bay The summer of 2019 has been an epic one for king salmon fishing in the coastal waters off of San Francisco.  I know, because every time I would talk, text, or email with my brother Don, the conversation would usually involve something about how many salmon he caught that day, how big a salmon he caught that day or how fast he and his buddies got their limits. Don is retired and keeps his beautiful Alumaweld 28 Offshore cabin boat Weatherman — which looks straight out of an Alaskan lodge fleet — in Richmond Harbor,…

Whether you’re a tournament bass pro, weekend warrior or an offshore fishing enthusiast, you always want your boat to perform at its absolute best.    The same holds true for family pleasure boaters who find their on-the-water thrills racing across the lake or pulling skiers, tubes and wakeboards. Fortunately, there are some easy steps you can take to make sure your rig runs strong and fast, while squeezing the most range out of every gallon of gas.   And remember, there is more to performance than just acceleration and top-end speed.   Easy starting in cold conditions, smooth, even idling and trouble-free trolling…

Lobster Time Daytime highs are still hovering around 100-degrees where I live in the San Fernando Valley, but the calendar tells me that my favorite fall ritual — the opening of Southern California’s recreational spiny lobster season — is about to go down. The lobster season is about to open and although you won’t catch me anywhere near the opening weekend mayhem, you can bet there will be throngs of hoopnetters and divers playing bumper boats at every breakwater, jetty, rockpile, reef and wreck from Santa Barbara to San Diego. The popularity of lobster fishing — particularly using baited hoopnets —…

Cousins Tackle for Tuna Given this season’s epic offshore fishing, we asked the folks at Cousins Tackle Corp. in Huntington Beach, for their thoughts on which Rods Every Southern California Tuna Angler Should Have.  Now, we realize that this may be hard to narrow down, especially with a summer season that seemingly began in April and has seen everything from triple digit bluefin to finicky, chunk-eating yellowfin to little “pocket rocket” tuna blowing up on surface poppers.  Not only that, one day there’s 1-pound mackerel in the receivers, the next, there’s pinhead anchovies that are barely two eyes and a…

Cousins New Rail Rods Premium rod manufacturer Cousins Tackle Corp. has added five long-range “Rail Rod” models to its popular, American-made SE Offshore Series graphite composite rod collection. These rods have been specially engineered by leading rod designer Wade Cunningham to provide the strength, action and features needed to beat big fish — including giant cow and “super cow” yellowfin — aboard long-range boats. “For more than a year, fishermen have been asking us when we were coming out with a rail rod,” said Cousins CEO Bill Buchanan. “We didn’t want to bring one out until we had created the…

Cousins Tackle Expands Northeast – Cousin Tackle Northwest It’s only been about 18 months since Cousins Tackle Corporation began production at its rod and lure-skirt manufacturing facility, and already the company has a staff of 50 cranking out product at its 13,000-square-foot factory in Huntington Beach, California. Cousins Tackle — named for real-life cousins and tackle industry veterans Bill Buchanan and Wade Cunningham — has quickly become a full-line manufacturer, offering fishermen an extensive line of premium rods with actions fine-tuned for all styles of fishing and every type of fish from bluegill to bluefin tuna. Now, Cousins is bringing…

5 Chart Plotter Fishing Tips One of the best tools coastal and offshore anglers can use to catch more fish might be literally staring them in the face. That is, the chart plotter portion of their boat’s multifunction navigation system. Many sport fishermen use their charts to navigate from Point A to Point B, and their echo sounder to find fish ”” without benefitting from the true power of the two systems working together. And with today’s latest crop of advanced chart plotter/sounder combos and new-generation electronic charts, there are many ways savvy anglers can use this combined technology to…

Well, we’re about three weeks into the 2012 California spiny lobster season, and by all accounts it’s been a good one so far. Since I wrote my pre-season lobster primer article called Hoop-Netting California Lobster, I’ve kept thinking about more details that were left out. So, here are some additional thoughts on how to improve your bugging success over the 2012-2013 season. RIGGING YOUR NETS My friend and I were working one of the crowded breakwalls recently, when he mentioned something about the different ways people rig their lines and marker buoys. One set of buoys had long spars sticking…

Boaters have more choices than ever when it comes to radar technology, and it’s very important that they choose wisely when purchasing a new unit for their boat. First off, radar represents a significant investment in equipment that boaters will likely live with for many seasons. Second, it’s an important piece of technology that, when properly used, has a direct role in safe navigation. Boaters considering the purchase of a radar have to decide which of the many options is best for their vessel, their needs and their budget. This is where the guidance of an experienced boater and NMEA-certified…

Grundens Ladies Bling Collection Thanks to the new “Bling Collection” from Grundens, the ladies can show that they love to fish and also like to wear a little bling. The new line of rhinestone-studded T-shirts feature the company’s popular “Wear Grundens” seafood artwork. This Bling Collection is part of the growing Grundens Everyday family of casual wear and accessories designed to celebrate the fishing lifestyle every day of the week. The distinctive black T-shirts are stylishly cut and made from premium-quality 6.1-ounce cotton for superior fit, comfort and durability. Each shirt is adorned with an intricate logo and artwork design…