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Nothing feels better to be than when a fish hits your lure on the troll. That's all fine and good in the spring because fish are usually higher up in the water column. But as warmer days arrive and boating pressure the fish go down so getting down deeper is important. I like a lead line set up, but it seems if you let out to many colors you get a real bow in your line and your hooking ratio goes down. The DR is great, I only let out my line ten to twenty feet, let it down, and because there is no slack they sure hook themselves. But the rods taken out of your hand. On the positive side it opens me up to eat more goodies and enjoy more what's around me. I have two lead line setups. One with sixteen lb. line and the other with twenty six lb line.
Which do you like best Downrigger or lead line?
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Since you rarely should be "setting the hook" when trolling, I don't see much difference in the sporting aspect. Actually, yes I do. It is more fun fighting a fish on mono than bulky old lead core, plus mono's forgiving stretch saves more fish than lead core. I certainly do see a big difference in the ability to locate fish, however. Lead is not that precise, when considering turns, speed, etc. Give me my Penns any old day!! Mike
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DR's will take you to the science of fishing at depth, water color and light as well as temperature all play a part in what you will experience. If you Kokanee fish you'll never get to depth during the summer months. With lead core the fish is leveraging it's weight against the bulky line for easy releases. The blow back from resistance limits what you can do with lead core. DR's put you where the fish live and feed on the big water.
Yup, my name is Don and I'm a DR addict!
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I have a small aluminum boat that I fish out of with one small down rigger and one pole with lead line and I prefer the down rigger. The down rigger is much easier for controlling depth and you don't have to let out near as much line. I usually only let out about 10 to 15' of line before I clip my line onto the down rigger weight. I have a hard time figuring out exactly where the strike zone is when I am using the lead line.
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ill be the odd man out, i tore the downriggers off my boat after the first time using them. the vibration and sound they made drove me crazy.it was like aboriginee's playing that weird instrument. with 50lb power pro, and magnum dipsies, i can hit 100' very accurately.most of my fishing is in the 30'-80" range , i dont know how deep you have to fish , but if its 100 or less try a dipsy diver.like i said the magnums dive to 100' with 250' of line out.
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If the vibrations bother you, the fix is easy. Switch over to either downrigger braid or 200 lb. mono. No vibration and some swear less blow-back due to a smaller diameter. Also, no cable unraveling. And, if it gets in the prop it is less likely to damage the prop. Easier to cut if you get in trouble. So, have I switched? No, because I don't mind the occasional vibrations, and don't think it bothers the fish at all. Captain John Kaiser of Salmon University claims that the vibration lets him know he is trolling at the proper speed for salmon, and is convinced the vibration actually attracts fish. Don't know about that, but I do know that John's Sporting Goods in Washington now spools 300# braid on every downrigger they sell. Just remember mono degradation is not visible by the naked eye, and you need to spool new line on eventually. Mike
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[quote buiboater]ill be the odd man out, i tore the downriggers off my boat after the first time using them. the vibration and sound they made drove me crazy.it was like aboriginee's playing that weird instrument. with 50lb power pro, and magnum dipsies, i can hit 100' very accurately.most of my fishing is in the 30'-80" range , i dont know how deep you have to fish , but if its 100 or less try a dipsy diver.like i said the magnums dive to 100' with 250' of line out.[/quote]
Can you tell you are reeling in a Kokanee with that diver in front of it?
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Never tried down riggers but i think they would be nice. we use a long shot of mono on our leaded line and when fishing a couple colors it doesn't take long to get the lead back on the reel so your fighting on mono.
The only advantage of lead line is cost and being able to use it in your buddy's boat as well. I can see a lot more advantages to down riggers but none have found there way onto our boat yet.
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Downrigger, because you have more depth control. With lead core you can only estimate how far down you're running, because it varies depending on the boat speed and the lure you're running. With a downrigger, you don't have to guess.
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I tend to do a lot of fishing by myself. I use the downrigger on one side and a lead line on the other. Kind of creepy leaning out of my little boat getting the rigger set up with no one in the front to counter balance. Last year I was on Henry's by myself, yes even in shallow I will run the rigger, leaned over to hook up and didn't see the big wave coming. About six inches of wave came over my back end of the boat. Good thing the outhouses were close. Have to say though that lead line at henry's for me works better. So often you grab salad on your lures and it can make the job of using DR tiring.
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You may want to invest in a Cannon downrigger weight retriever. It's a little roller that you thread the cable through. The roller is attached to a line that goes through a cleat and suction cup, which you can stick on the boat or downrigger. When the weight comes up, you just pull on the line to swing it toward the boat and stick it in the cleat to hold the ball in position. No more reaching out over the side. Fits all models and costs about $15-$20 depending on where you buy.
http://www.amazon.com/Cannon-2250122-Ret...B000MN2C4C
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This is a no brainer question, downriggers all the way!
I kokanee fish a lot by myself & run (2) Walker Kokanee electric down riggers on my Lund Alaskan. I fish 7'-6" UL custom kokanee rods with Abu Garcia 5601 reels spooled with P-Line Fluorocarbon 8# test. I ditched the cow bells & switched over to pulling a 5" sling blade with a short leader followed by a small hoochie. This set up allows me the maximum enjoyment in catching a 15"+ kokanee. Heck even those little pesky 10 inchers feel big on those buggey whip rods. [laugh]
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[quote Tazasorus]I tend to do a lot of fishing by myself. I use the downrigger on one side and a lead line on the other. Kind of creepy leaning out of my little boat getting the rigger set up with no one in the front to counter balance. Last year I was on Henry's by myself, yes even in shallow I will run the rigger, leaned over to hook up and didn't see the big wave coming. About six inches of wave came over my back end of the boat. Good thing the outhouses were close. Have to say though that lead line at henry's for me works better. So often you grab salad on your lures and it can make the job of using DR tiring.[/quote]
Henry's is barely deep enough to run riggers in the spring. 14'. I set my riggers 2' down and run 150' setbacks. The riggers just assure that someone doesn't cut across the back of my boat and cut my lines.
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