Trolling Swimbaits

[Threemuch]

For those of you trolling Swimbaits, please dish some hints. How fast do you drag em? Are you tieing direct to the lure? Are you using a leader? What pound test? How many oz head? Are you supergluing the tail to the head or welding it with a lighter? Both? Niether? Inquiring minds want to know!

I have tried trolling fishtraps but never hit fish on the troll, only occasionally after we slowwed the boat to fight a rod and reel fish. Of course, they are awesome for fishing the slide.

Thanks in advance,
KB

[Nofish]

KB,
I can only pass on what I know (which ain't much). Most guys like to troll them way back with a 1.5 oz leadhead. When you get a jig strike and slow or stop the boat, the albacore will often hit it as it is slowly sinking. I have a buddy that trolled a whole spread of them last year and did really well. He slowed down to about 4 knots and was in an area that had lots of fish. A drop of super glue does work well to keep the swim bait from sliding down the hook.

[Salmonator]

Kurt, the only time I got out last year we trolled some swimbaits and a couple of cheap plastic jet-heads. The swimbaits were the only thing we hooked fish on. Hooked two trolling with the stand-up gear and three casting with salmon rods. As far as trolling goes we used 80lb tuff+ main and crimped 6' of 100lb mono to the bait. Seems we only got hit when trolling at 8mph+. Maybe not great advice since we only hooked two trolling but it was our first trip ever so we were pleased. The lure we used had the lead integrated into the head so no bodies get lost... Joe


[ 06-24-2003, 07:03 PM: Message edited by: Salmonator ]

[Booja 1]

Kurt: Nofish does just like we like to do..It was the first to get bit for us a few times on the troll last year..We too like to troll it aways back and if it doesn't get bit on the initial hook up, make it the last rod you crank up,,that is if you stop your boat on jig strikes, as there is a great chance like Nofish says of getting bit on the sink. Try and troll the "trap" rod in the rocket launcher up top and see if you like that but if it gets hammered, you'll have to stop the boat to get the rod out of the launcher. We troll it on 40 lb mono to have a little give..Used 1 1/2 oz leadheads last year but I think we're going to try either 2 or 2 1/2 oz head this year to keep em under the water for sure. No leader is necessary unless you feel better with one,,just make sure you thread the "trap" on straight and it'll swim straight.. Same speed as the feathers worked fine for us....

[Mark Mc]

Hi Kurt, nofish is on the right track. We have found that the Fishtraps work quite well on a slower troll (4 to 5 knots), but will still get bit at higher (zuker/clone) speeds. Go lighter on the line: 30 and 40 lb test. You can tie it directly to the jighead, but this can cause some twisting. I like a small swivel with 3 to 4 feet of leader. A good technique is to have a couple clones or zukers out, then the fishtraps further back behind them. When you get a hookup, slow down some but not completely. The traps then sink down, tails 'a wiggling, and get bit. Also, in those situations where you see jumpers but no biters on feathers, the traps work well trolled way back, trolling slow, and turning the gear over the jumpers / jumper spot. On the hooks, you gotta be careful because even the good Fishco heads with Owner hooks are a small wire, and if you troll 7 to 10 knots they'll rip out easier. Charkbait does have a "tuna tough" jighead with a beefy hook if you really want to horse them.

Like you said, they are deadly on the slide. We ALWAYS keep rods with 20 or 25 lb gear handy with traps tied on, both for the slide and especially for casting at jumpers. Marty just loves to stalk a spot of puddlers / jumpers, with the crew ready to cast into them. Just about every time we tried this last year, we got hooked up. You gotta slow down though. You can't troll at 6 - 10 knots around a spot of jumpers and expect the guy to get in a good cast, plus the fish don't get spooked as easily with the slow stealth.

I can't flippin wait for the first chance to cast at jumpers this year. Bring it on!!

[ 06-24-2003, 08:46 PM: Message edited by: Mark Mc ]