04-27-2005, 07:19 PM
A question regarding fishing methods from a tube...
Most of my fishing is for cold water species and when I'm not fly fishing, I like to troll in open water for trout and kokanee - usually from my boat with downriggers. Recently (last year) I became aware of "Snap Weights" produced by Offshore Tackle. These are actually the pinch-on variety of downrigger releases altered to hold selected trolling weights to cover various depths. They are used with success by Walleye fishermen who fish crawler harness spinners. They work quite well for trout and kokanee from the boat but I haven't yet used them from a tube.
Basically they work this way: You let out 50 feet of line, pinch on the snap weight, then let out another 50 feet of line. (This would be altered for shallower water.) You then troll an open water style spinner that is nearly weightless. When a fish hits, you reel it in to the point where the weight is, then you reach up and unclip the snap weight. This allows you to fight the fish near the boat (tube)without the added weight.
You get three things from this method: 1) Some degree of depth control ("dive curves" are available for estimating depth at various trolling speeds) 2) the ability to fish deep, 3) the ability to fight the fish without a weight close to the boat (tube.)
I hope to try it from a tube soon. My question is, have any of you ever used this method when fishing from a tube and if so, what do you think of it?
zonker
[signature]
Most of my fishing is for cold water species and when I'm not fly fishing, I like to troll in open water for trout and kokanee - usually from my boat with downriggers. Recently (last year) I became aware of "Snap Weights" produced by Offshore Tackle. These are actually the pinch-on variety of downrigger releases altered to hold selected trolling weights to cover various depths. They are used with success by Walleye fishermen who fish crawler harness spinners. They work quite well for trout and kokanee from the boat but I haven't yet used them from a tube.
Basically they work this way: You let out 50 feet of line, pinch on the snap weight, then let out another 50 feet of line. (This would be altered for shallower water.) You then troll an open water style spinner that is nearly weightless. When a fish hits, you reel it in to the point where the weight is, then you reach up and unclip the snap weight. This allows you to fight the fish near the boat (tube)without the added weight.
You get three things from this method: 1) Some degree of depth control ("dive curves" are available for estimating depth at various trolling speeds) 2) the ability to fish deep, 3) the ability to fight the fish without a weight close to the boat (tube.)
I hope to try it from a tube soon. My question is, have any of you ever used this method when fishing from a tube and if so, what do you think of it?
zonker
[signature]