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Curious what kind of downrigger balls you guys like? And what weight seems good for you? I have a 10 lb fish mold that has been great. I have made over 20 molds. I haven't seen any reason to change or try a different style or weight until now.....
I just mounted some downriggers on the side of my aluminum boat. 10 pounds is putting the side of the boat to the test. Hoping I can hear someone that uses the 6 or 8 lb weights. Do you notice much sway? I think i heard an 8 lbs weight will stay directly under the boat but any less than that and your line isn't straight down.
Also, if anyone wants to try a 10 lb fish for a different weight or style ball I would love to trade to find something different.
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]I like pancake weights but I've only seen them in 12 lbs. They track straight with very little drag and I can always see them on my sonar regardless of how deep or trolling speed. I can't say the same about round ball weights and I have never used fish shaped ones.[/#800000][/font]
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Bob Hicks, from Utah
I'm 81 years young and going as hard as I can for as long as I can.
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I have some 10 lb balls but I rarely use them anymore. I have gone to 6 lbers. It's easier on the boat, on the arms ... I have manuals .. And I think I catch more fish with them. They tend to telegraph strikes better than the tens. I never drag a pup laker around wondering why that rod hasn't caught a fish in a while ! As far as blow back, how fast are you trolling ?? Most fish in this area are trolled at 1 to 2.5 , I can always see my balls on my graph so I don't care what the counter on the down rigger says, I can see how deep they are. If you are trolling lake trout at 100 feet with pop gear I could see using the bigger weights, but the sixes are the way to go !
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I use 6 or 8 pounders with no real blow back problems the style doesn't seem to make any difference , I've tried them all but prefer the fish shaped ones for most uses , and the round ones to drag bottom.
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I like use 6 lb when trolling 70 to 110 ft deep
From 40 to 60 ft I use 4lb
less than 30 ft I use 2 lb
I like the small round weights because you can drag the bottom and not get hung up.
I catch a lot of mac's and browns right on the bottom !
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This question will result in answers similar to "what sonar do you like best". With that said, I have tried every type of weight out there. Fish shaped, balls of different sizes (with and without fins), pancakes, etc. My absolute favorite are pancakes, followed by the fish shaped, and then last is round cannon balls. I have come to the conclusion either I'm doing something wrong or I simply fish differently than others with downriggers. I would NEVER go with any weight under 10lbs. I like my rigger balls straight down so I can see them, so the heavier the weight the straighter down they run. The pancakes have the least water resistance, thus the run the straightest down of al the weights. Running them this way allows less "bow" in your line between the release and your rod, therefore you will hardly ever drag a small fish around since I can tighten my line between the rod and release as tight as possible. Plus, my releases are set very carefully to make sure they release when any sized fish hits my lure. And there you go....
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