So here’s what I’m wondering about this morning: When it comes to nylon monofilament fishing lines, who is using what? There’s a huge array of brands and styles out there, so I’m curious to know what your response--and that of others--might be.

Fair is fair, so here’s what I use. Most often, it’s Berkley Big Game mono in various sizes because it’s fairly consistent, predictable, and--most of all--cheap. A 10-pound-test spool containing 1,500 yards sells for about $8 at my area Wal-Mart. Sometimes I want a little extra edge and spool up with Trilene Sensation, which is more expensive but a bit smaller in diameter.

What I do not use is the no-name stuff from the bargain bin at a Sports Authority or similar. Line needs to be trustworthy above all, and I figure you get what you pay for--which in the bargain bin isn’t much. Some may prefer that, though, which is fine by me. Any line is probably better than no line.

Last fall I started using some McCoy Mean Green, a monofilament brand out of the Northwest that some of my bass-fishing buddies like a lot. I thought it worked fine but not significantly better than some others. And for ultralight-spinning line, specifically, I like the German Tectan sold by Cabela’s in sizes 6-pound and lighter. That particular line seems to be accurately labeled as to its fine diameter, unlike some other brands that tend to exaggerate.

But what’s your take? Any Stren fans out there? Anybody newly in love with Sufix mono, or maybe P-Line? Let’s hear it....

Two major brands of marine-electronic devices are at each other’s throats this week as Humminbird (Johnson Outdoors) filed a federal lawsuit against Lowrance (Navico) alleging patent infringement. At issue is a patent--granted to Humminbird this week--regarding Humminbird’s side-imaging sonar.

Humminbird introduced side-scanning units (like the one shown here) in 2005. Last winter, Lowrance introduced a “StructureScan” add-on module for its high-end, multi-function displays. To my admittedly untrained eye, the screen views in each brand are somewhat similar, but I’m not enough of an electronics geek to ascertain--or even perhaps to understand--the difference.

What I have found from using it on the water, though, is that side-scanning sonar is very cool. The Humminbird unit I once tested would allow me to sonar scan a swath up to 480 feet wide from a slow-moving boat. Schools of baitfish around rock piles at one side or the other became quickly evident, as did underwater structure and downed trees that I never knew were there. In talking with several crappie specialists down South, I also found side-scanning to be the greatest thing ever for searching out schools of suspended or structure-hugging crappies.

It’s almost seems unfair to the fish. In fact, maybe it is unfair. I’m old enough to have fished back when “marine electronics” consisted only of a handheld compass. I located underwater structure by trial and error and marked its location by visually triangulating from shoreline landmarks.

So maybe while the big-time lawyers are duking things out over who has the latest technology, we could declare a few lakes to be “electronics-free?” That is, a few places where you have to do things the hard way. Or is the electronics genie out of the bottle, never to go back again?

Speaking of winter projects, have you ever considered building your own boat? I thought about that for a long time, researching boat plans on the Internet and measuring my basement door to see if what I might build would fit through it.

My wife was terrified, wondering if some huge project would linger for years unfinished. Then I got lucky and found the home-made skiff shown here. The guy who made it in his garage soon decided he wanted a bigger boat. So I was able to buy this boat very inexpensively (partly because the resale value of owner-built boats is typically very low).

I’ve used this particular 16-foot skiff very happily in fresh- and saltwater for several years now. With a Honda 50 four-stroke, it’ll do 32 miles an hour wide-open while cruising easily at 20-plus all day long. The high bow and lots of freeboard have gotten me safely through rough water more than once and create a nicely curved sheer line that gets lots of compliments at various boat ramps.

The boat, as with most homemades, is just marine plywood and fiberglass. Plywood is cut to a pattern, bent and clamped over some simple molds, then wire-stitched and epoxy-glued along the seams. Then the wire stitching and molds are removed, and you’re left with a more-or-less instant hull. The particular model I have is called a Glen-L Console Skiff. You can learn more about boat-building and various boat plans at Glen-L’s website.

Boat-building is a lot of work. Make no mistake about that. But I’m still very tempted. A drift boat, maybe, or perhaps a small rowing skiff that would fit in the back of my pickup to be used in fishing smaller ponds. It just seems like such a cool thing to do....

Mostly I hate jet skis, those fast and noisy personal watercraft often driven by obnoxious kids whose idea of a good time is harassing fishermen or generally tearing up a quiet lake. When I was in my late teens I might actually have enjoyed using one if they had existed back then. But not now.

Maybe I’m changing my mind. This morning I found some very cool web postings by a guy calling himself “Jet Ski Brian.” He’s rigged a large Yamaha PWC for fishing in his Virginia Beach area. Rod holders, a cooler, batteries, VHF radio, a GPS/sonar rig, and more--all for what might be called the ultimate “personal” fishing machine seen here. It’s fast, plenty stable for fishing, and it’s cheap to run. It’s also trailerable and can be launched almost anywhere.

It also turns out he’s not alone. Jet-ski fishing is becoming increasingly popular in New Zealand, for example, which only confirms what I’ve thought for some time--that a lot of those Kiwi anglers are at least partly crazy.

But maybe jet-ski angling will be the next big thing here. A used machine isn’t all that expensive and has lots of power and range on the water. And it would certainly be nice if all those juvenile jet-ski menaces started seriously fishing with their machines instead of mindlessly ramming around.

So what do you think--ready to grab your rods and go for a ride?