Downriggers, what do I need

benny boy · 12-12-2009, 11:10 PM

Hey guys,
My dad and I just got a boat the other day that is a lot more for what we do. We have been fishing out of a 17 ft. ski boat for years, and finally upgraded to a 19' North River, Jet, and 8 horse kicker. We have downriggers for this boat, but no cannoballs/weights whatever....

I was just curious what we should get? We will more than likely fish for kokanee, and of course East Lake browns. But would also like to fish for Macks as well. This is all new to me, but as Christmas is upon us, I would love to get him some things for the boat.

What are some necessities other than the obvious? What weight, shape, size etc... do we need for downrigger weights? Thanks in advance and happy fishing. I am very excited to get this new (to us) boat out and broke in!

Sling Blade · 12-13-2009, 12:09 AM

For your down rigger weights it all depends on speed, depth and location. I usually use 8lbs or ten pounds in the lakes and 12 or 15�s in the ocean. Shape to me is a personal preference. I have both round and flat. The flat seem to have less drag. I use a rubber-snubber between my cable and weight.

I always carry a cable end repair kit. I like the cannon kit for its simplicity and I have never had issues with it. About $25.00. Keep a good pair of wire cutters and pliers close at hand with the kit.

For release clips, you have several choices. There are the small clips that adjust with a small screw, clips that you just squeeze to open and hold the line tighter the further back in the jaws you place it, the Pro-trolls use a swing post that you wrap your line around and then fold the post back over and it locks in place until a fish takes the lure or bait popping the post out of the lock and the unwraps. I use these on larger fish. There is also a tube style release with a peg that holds your line and you spin a plastic nut up or down the tube to add or release pressure on the peg holding your line. I like them for trout and Kokanee but they can be finicky and frustrating for some. Too much line drag can cause them to release.

Hope this helps some.

fish-on-bend · 12-13-2009, 06:05 AM

I use 10lb pancake weights for everything. I also have some 8lb balls for back-ups. I would go with the largest pancakes you can find. The deeper you fish, the more blow-back you will have and heavier weights are the only way to minimize that. After trying many different releases my favorites are the Offshore light-yellow for kokanee and the black-medium for browns, bulls, and macks. Scotty's would be a good 2nd choice. I second sling blades recommendation of the Canon terminator kit. Also, always carry at least 1 extra ball on board for obvious reasons.

Bloom · 12-13-2009, 08:01 AM

Sounds like your questions got answered with great dispatch. If you don''t have any mounted yet, I would suggest mounting a holder for the weight, mounted near the downrigger mount. This gives you a place to secure the weight while you are fidgeting with the cable, swinging the boom out, hooking up clips, etc.

Canon makes them, but i just took a black plastic plumbing end cap which was large enough to hold a 12lb ball, drilled a couple holes and mounted it. You might want to drill a couple drain holes in the side, near the bottom for drainage.

I like the pancake type weights also, but both of mine delaminated after a couple seasons. You might consider spooling up with braid instead of the stranded wire. Smaller diameter=less drag and they run quieter.

benny boy · 12-13-2009, 04:05 PM

Wow, thanks for the responses guys! A lot of this is stuff I will need to learn as I am far from knowing anything about trolling/downrigger fishing. I think I will be heading to wholesale sports tomorrow and will look around with the list you all gave me. Thanks again as I am excited to try something new!

honker1 · 12-13-2009, 04:59 PM

I've been fishing with a downrigger for 2 year now, and I am just starting to get comfortable with it. There were times I would stop using it because the line kept tripping or I was snagging something, when I should have been 40' feet off the bottom. In time you will learn how tight to set the tripper based on the drag of you spinner or lures. Just don't give up on the downrigger fishing, it will pay rewards once you figure it out. By the way, I like a 10 lb ball. Less blowback.

ElkTalker · 12-13-2009, 07:25 PM

Not sure if you have electric or manual downriggers but if you have manual downriggers the larger weights are a lot of work to bring up over and over wile kokanee fishing. I use a 6# ball with manual downrigger down to 60’ at speeds of less then 1.5mph with little blow back.

Not sure if it matters in your situation but you might want two sets of weights, one for kokanee fishing and one for brown fishing.

Also the yellow sep’s style release clips work well for kokanee fishing.

benny boy · 12-15-2009, 02:08 PM

Lots of great information on here! I am taking it all in and making lots of notes. Any advice, info, or personal preference on everything helps.
Our downriggers are Manual cranks, I know they aren't as preferrable as an electric, but its what came with the boat! I did buy some clips yesterday and looked at the weights, just didn't buy any yet.

When buying weights, do most guys always get the coated ones? I noticed there was a selection of both and wasn't sure whats preferred? Also, do the non-coated make a mess/corrode at all? Coated were more expensive, but as with anything else, I guess you get what you pay for.

Thanks again for all the help. Hopefully I will get to use them this year, and better yet with some of you guys as well! Keep the info coming, it is very helpful!

SilverBullets · 12-15-2009, 03:38 PM

You can always coat the non-coated weights with some rubberized tool dip. If your planning on useing ball trolls, you might want to go with a 8lb...less blow back. Also, do some research on the black box. Go to the Pro Troll website and read up on ways to make sure your boat is grounded properly, then check your voltage on the downrigger cable to make sure your attracting rather than repelling fish. Test out the brake on the downriggers before you head out and adjust them so they pay out cable in case of a snag-up. Always have a good pair if cable cutters within arms reach for emergency situations.

twisted lines · 12-15-2009, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by benny boy

I did buy some clips

I hope you were paying attention and got the yellow ones!

Quote:

Originally Posted by benny boy

When buying weights, do most guys always get the coated ones? I noticed there was a selection of both and wasn't sure whats preferred?

(Coated) You should be asking what color!

don't get in a hurry for the weights as soon as you get them something better will show up

Some are using large rebar its cheap, among other reasons. The dodgers, Flashers, and all the other things make really nice gifts. TL

Splash · 12-15-2009, 06:26 PM

Some good info posted here. My only input is to keep a quality pair of wire cutters handy at all times the riggers are deployed. If a ball gets hung up it could get nervously interesting under some conditons. Better to cut and go than swim.

jzell · 12-15-2009, 06:56 PM

8 lb coated pancakes + vances clips.

jz

Cap'n Ron · 12-19-2009, 08:07 PM

Since Vance clips were mentioned...

Check out the vids Vance did on downriggers. Start here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6Jd2pR_E6Y

Vance Staplin · 12-29-2009, 07:30 PM

Hi Benny Boy,

Welcome to downrigger fishing!!! When it comes to fishing suspended fish you will find downriggers will definitely increase your catch ratio's.

It sounds like you have the perfect boat along with the ever so important kicker to get you down to the important speeds (1.0 mph and up a little) for Kokanee.

Actually a downrigger release is one of the most important features of a downrigger and it is incredibly important to use the correct release tension on different species. The size and type of gear you are fishing and the speed you are trolling can also affect which release you need to use.

Kokanee have soft mouth's and require a very light clip. Rainbow Trout & small Brown Trout (to 5lbs) have tougher mouths and can use the same Vance's (adjustable) release that was recommended earlier in this thread.

For large Brown Trout and Mackinaw I recommend the large Power Grip release by Scotty that has the stacker clip. In fact, I forgot to mention I always recommend using releases with stacker clip whether you stacking or not. The reason I recommend stacker clips is that you can attach the release above the ball to the downrigger cable a minimum of the height of the side of your boat. Using this method prevents the ball from leaving the water to bang the side of the boat while loading your line in the release.

After lowering your weight down to the desired depth. Reel the slack out of your line and "load" your rod with a slight bend so you can see the fish strike. If your release is set correctly the fish will hit, get hooked and pull off the release. If you are fishing for Kokanee and the fish doesn't pull off the release, run back, reel down and pop the line off the release as quickly as possible so the fish doesn't work a large hole in its mouth while fighting against the release.

One other thing while fishing a downrigger is that it is difficult to judge your speed. As you know, trolling the correct speed is incredibly important so I highly recommend using a GPS where there is no current, or a Luhr Jensen trolling speed indicator.

I hope this helps answer some of your questions,

Vance Staplin

flyingd · 12-30-2009, 11:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vance Staplin

Hi Benny Boy,

One other thing while fishing a downrigger is that it is difficult to judge your speed. As you know, trolling the correct speed is incredibly important so I highly recommend using a GPS where there is no current, or a Luhr Jensen trolling speed indicator.

I hope this helps answer some of your questions,

Vance Staplin

Why do you say where there is no current use a GPS? What difference would that make?

Larry

Splash · 12-30-2009, 02:32 PM

A gps gives you SOG or speed over ground. This is basically a land speed like the speedometer in your car. It does does not take into account the speed of any current in the body of water you are fishing.

Let's say the target speed for your lure is 2mph. In a flat lake your gps will give you just that. Now say there is a 1 mph flow in a reservoir. Trolling against the flow your gps will have you going 2 mph (SOG) against a 1 mph current for an actual lure speed of 3 mph (2sog+1flow=3). With the flow the current pushes you 1 mph and the gps will add 1 more mph to reach 2 mph. Your lure speed in this scenario is then only 1 mph.

Remember the fish are looking to bite your lure so lure speed is the critical factor. Not boat speed.

ElkTalker · 12-30-2009, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flyingd

Why do you say where there is no current use a GPS? What difference would that make?

Larry

The reason a gps is not ideal in this situation is because it only shows your speed relative to land. If you need 2 mph for your gear to work properly and the river is flowing 1.5 your gps would need to read .5 mph for the proper presentation.

A Lure Jensen Troll Speed Indicator shows your actual speed through water.

(Splash was a little faster on the trigger)

chartreuse moose · 12-31-2009, 06:05 AM

Not to rain on anyone's parade here,but if you can not afford down riggers you can go to a ( Slid Diver Lite Bite ) and hook all the Kokanee you want.

It will also allow to to get your offering away from the boat. You will not have to stack rods on one down rigger and can reach depths of 90' Many of us will run 2 to 4 off one side of the boat. You will be surprised , when fish do not hit down riggers, you will find they will hit the slide dive, steel line rod and copper line rod as well as shark float set up.