Great Lakes fishing tips for the advanced to the beginner. It's my great pleasure to share my hands on knowledge with you. Been a dedicated big water fisherman since 1968 & was a fulltime charter skipper from 1983 thru 2003. 2004 marked my entry into tackle manufacturing & online sales at: www.michiganagler.com
I'm under the impression that the fish set the hook on themselves just from the tension to the clip and the speed of trolling. The problem is the slack from the bubble in the line after it releases. The hook sets, but then the fish is able to spit it once it hits that slack after the clip releases. Chamberlain makes a release that you can crank down really tight on that "bubble" and it doesn't affect the tension of the release. It has two different tension settings.
My wife and I bought a new boat and decided to run trolling bags before investing in a kicker motor in a few years. It took a couple times out and some forum reading to perfect it, but it works so well that we might not even buy a kicker now. We run one on each side of the boat and then bump the throttle up the desired the speed. If anything, I might eventually invest in a simple electric bow mounted trolling motor just for steering. (Not propulsion)
My wife and I opted to run trolling bags before buying a trolling motor on our new boat. It took a couple times out and some internet forums before figuring it out, but it works so well that I don't think that we will even buy a trolling motor. The two bags slows the troll down to like .8 miles an hour and we just bump the throttle up to the desired speed. If you run two identical bags on both sides of the boat and hook the taglines to the rear cleats, it will effect the steering very little.
So I am getting an inflatable 14 foot boat and I already have the 20hp motor to go on it. At idle, would I need these bags? How fast would that boat go at idle?
Ok Captain John could you tell us a little more what sizes of rubber bands you recommend and their relative breaking strengths. This would be most helpful.
Try a "leader" rig I use to get more action from your spoons (or any other type of lure). Start by tying your main line off to a sturdy (I usually go with a size 4) ball bearing snap/swivel. Then run a leader of 6 to 8 feet with a swivel on one end that attaches to the snap/swivel your main line and a duolock snap at the spoon end (there is no swivel on the nose of the spoon). This keeps the weight of the swivel off the nose of your spoons and it allows the entire spoon to move more freely through the water, instead of having the nose of the spoon more "anchored" by the weight of having both the snap and the swivel. The length of the leader can be adjusted so it is easier to stow the rod while up and running. You don't want the leader too long, but it has to be long enough so the action is at the maximum level - (usually at least 6 feet). A tip: Slide a plastic bead (same type that is on a salmon fly) on your main line before tying on the main snap/swivel. This has a couple of benefits - The bead catches a lot of junk or sea fleas before they get to the leader and swivel on the terminal end. It also keeps your snap/swivel from getting jammed in your inline boards and keeps it sliding free. There are variations with the leader setup, but I like using a snap, or snap swivel tied to the sturdy or heavier main line and using a more subtle/flexible line, fluoro or lighter line for the leader. The leader has just a swivel (I always use ball bearing) that is clipped to the snap swivel on your main line and just a snap on the end which attaches to the spoon. If your spoons have a split ring on the nose you can go with a cross lock, but since some of my spoons do not have split rings on the nose I typically go with a duolock because the rounded end allows the spoon to swim freely. I pre-tie a bunch of these on a tackle tamer or a section of a swim noodle and if I feel a nick in the leader (always check the leader after netting a fish), I can quickly be back fishing by simply taking the old leader off and putting a new one on. An additional benefit of using this "leader" terminal rig is you can use a tough or higher poundage line for your main line so it will take the abuse of snapping in and out of releases, boards etc. and yet the leader can be any poundage you want, (or fluorocarbon) or a more flexible line that isn't quite as stiff as abrasive resistant types often used as the main line, which allows the spoon to have better action. This system works for inline boards and you can add a bead chain sinker for shallow or high fish. This is just a suggestion and it's all about what works for you. I like a strong snap/swivel (usually a cross lock) tied to the main line in case you want to switch from spoons to a dodger/flasher rig (a good thing for guys who have a limited number of rods). Just remove the leader, wrap it back on the noodle and you can quickly snap the main line directly to the flasher. I'll be ordering some of your spoons to try out and will give some to charter captains I know on the south shore of Superior in the UP of MI. They always appreciate something new. What attracted me to your spoons is the wide effective speed range. That means more doubles when slowing down to play a fish and they will be able to handle down currents and variations of boat speed in heavy seas, etc. Looking forward to trying your product. Take care, Kirk Harmes.
+Mark Melton Depend on what size boat, 36s work best on 22 footer and up to 28'. Bag featured is not for whoa, cuz of the kicker. Bag size depends on how slow you want to go too.
Have a gopro black edition is a poor excuse for a camera for the 400 bucks. Battery life sucks and it does not pick up sound very good when I had it on the hardtop. Cheaper Sony HDR AS10, now under a 100 on eBay is all I need. New 2015 fuel injected Suzuki is light years ahead of the 2007 Johnson. Cold weather starts are instant, no warm up time either. Have trim and tilt on the 2015. The difference between the old and new cannot be compared.
ya I know Johnson is same as Suzuki just wondering if something went wrong with it I troll with a Johnson and tr-1 anyways have u tried gopro on top of hardtop instead of hat cam?
So then do you put the loop of the rubber band to the metal shower curtain type clip? Is that clip hooked right to the cannon ball? Thanks..very new and trying to figure it out.
Hi. Downrigger noob here. I'm confused. Let's say you have let out your line so your terminal tackle is trailing the downrigger by 25 feet as you troll. Now you have a fish on, and it pulls the rubber band free of the clip. You have this knot in your line with a rubber band attached, which looks too big to reel up through the smallest eyelet on your rod. How does that work? Do you have to stop and remove the knot and rubberband before you finish landing the fish? That makes no sense. I guess I don't understand. What am I missing.
Once you're straight line to a fish, the rubber band falls off most of the time. If not? ...you can clear the band before it goes thru the guides. Over sized knot is for demo purposes.
