Simple, effective Kokanee rig

dirty bird · 01-11-2009, 01:03 PM

I would like to share what I've been using for the last several years that has yet to let me down. It's accounted for limits at Odell , Crescent, and Paulina on several occasions. I only troll with downriggers.

TIMING: I will not fish a full moon or any time near it. Especially coming up on one. You can sometimes get away with going away from one. All of my skunk days are always around the full moon. The best months for me are late May, June, and early July. I always take my kokanee vacation the first new moon in June.

RODS and REELS: Long ago I got rid of the rubber snubber. It always seemed to affect the action of the lure. I now fish a rod that bends from the butt to the tip. That is now my shock absorber. I had an old fiberglass Fenwick spinning rod that worked really well, but have since upgraded to a Shasta Tackle 7' mid-line kokanee troller. A rear drag spinning reel worked well with the Fenwick because you could back it off instantly when the fish ran, tighten and adjust it perfectly. The level wind I now use is a 5601C4 Ambassadeur because of the 27" per turn retrieval rate. Once the line is off the clip you need to get it back as soon as possible and this does great. I love the Scotty downrigger releases.

LINE, LURES, AND DODGERS: I prefer 8lb fluorocarbon line ( Or at least leader). The heavier line imparts more action to the lure than lighter line. I run short leaders (between 14" -20"). My dodger of choice is a Vance's nickel silver fishscale. It is a 1/4" longer than a standard 4/0 and their website says it allows for more action at slower speeds. I have not tried any others because I haven't needed to. The lure is made by Sep's and is called Kokanee Kandy. Other spoons I'm sure will work but again haven't needed them. I only fish 2 colors. Orange and Orange/Chartreuse. The Sep's is gold on one side and I think this is better than silver. The fish just hammer them and chip the paint off. I tip them with the standard 1 piece off corn (fat end to the hook). This combination sort off jigs the lure thru the water.

CONCLUSION: This method has worked time and time again for me. I have had lots off people come up to me on the lake and ask me what I'm using because they are catching nothing. I have shown them the setup and given them a couple of lures and later on they said they caught fish. I hope you can use something out of this. See you on the lake and let me know how you do.

01-11-2009, 01:13 PM

Cool post! I am going to make some notes from it! Thanks!

SilverBullets · 01-11-2009, 01:39 PM

Great write up, thanks for sharing!

moknots · 01-11-2009, 08:18 PM

Thanks! Great details. What speed do you like? Do you like to fish at the same depth as most of the fish you mark, or just above them? How much line do you let out between your release clip and your dodger? What time of day do you like to fish? Do you scent, color or cure your corn? (Just getting you caught up on some of the topics you could have had good input on last year). And again, welcome to iFish.

Lou · 01-11-2009, 08:27 PM

Good info! Thanks for sharing!
Orange? I tried to order some Kokanee Kandy, in orage, but
Sep's does not show it. Did you paint up some?
Just wondering?

Welcome to Ifish!

FallRiverGuy · 01-12-2009, 07:45 AM

Dirty Bird,

Thanks for all the info. I am glad someone catches fish with Kokanee Kandy. I have had several in my tackle box for years and have never caught a fish with one. Your leader lengths are not that short. My hoochie leaders are about 8 inches long.

Do you put corn on hook? When I have tried to add corn it kills the lure's action because the lure is s0 small. It there a trick to adding corn without killing the actions?

Thanks

dirty bird · 01-12-2009, 12:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lou

Good info! Thanks for sharing!
Orange? I tried to order some Kokanee Kandy, in orage, but
Sep's does not show it. Did you paint up some?
Just wondering?

Welcome to Ifish!

I usually buy 3 packs at Wal-Mart. Boy do I hate that. If there's any independents out there let me know and I'll buy them from you. I end up with a bunch of colors I don't like so I do paint them. They should have orange on their web-site. I just looked it's called flame. Good luck.

dirty bird · 01-12-2009, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FallRiverGuy

Dirty Bird,

Thanks for all the info. I am glad someone catches fish with Kokanee Kandy. I have had several in my tackle box for years and have never caught a fish with one. Your leader lengths are not that short. My hoochie leaders are about 8 inches long.

Do you put corn on hook? When I have tried to add corn it kills the lures actions because the lure is some small. It there a trick to adding corn with out killing the actions?

Thanks

It's funny how some things work for some and not for others. I cannot catch a fish on a Koke-a-nut but I know they work. I have had a few favorites over the years but this is the best that works for me. It's what you believe in, right? I am interested in your hootchie setup. Info? I do add 1 piece of corn (scented with shrimp). It does mess up the action but like I said it kinds of jigs it thru the water. I think that's where that leader length comes into play. Too short and you'll miss strikes and too long and you won't get strikes.

happybrew · 01-12-2009, 07:16 PM

Ditto on the Kokanee Kandy. Both orange and hot pink will knock 'em dead. They are my go-to's for kokanee. Third choice is a frog pattern triple teaser, fourth is a shiny speckly flatfish. I'll try each with and without a dodger until I get them dialed in.

I don't have a downrigger, so I'll use a dipsy diver, either silver or pink and count pulls. I use a light drag until after I hook up, then tighten it just a little. I try to have it so it will pull line out at about 2 pounds pressure on top of whatever pressure the diver is putting on the line, so the hook will set but be less likely to pull out of the kokanee's mouth.

FallRiverGuy · 01-13-2009, 06:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dirty bird

I am interested in your hootchie setup. Info?

Check out this link and you'll find many pictures of hoochies. Let me know if you have more questions after looking at the pictures and I'll try to answer your questions. I guess I'll have to give the kokanee kandy a little more swim time this season.

http://www.ifish.net/board/showthread.php?t=85453