Sk8man

Hey Mark I ran my 15 footers from my 13 ft Whaler for years (about 22yrs.) so each one was actually longer than the boat by a couple feet I've also used the bungi approach at the boat end to secure the halyards (the paracord lines) to the outrigger holders and if more tension was needed lengthwise I just tied a knot in them for more tension. I think after your decription of the alternate method of retrieval of the halyard lines I'll stick with pulling them in by hand....I neede the exercise Since my outriggers are mounted to the gunwales they ride a lot closer to the water than a hard top mounted set. There are some advantages in terms of more easily keeping your lines and lures deeper with less fuss but maybe not as great in real rough water with tipping of the boat in waves. Each mounting strategy has its strengths and weaknesses but all in all after using big boards, inlines and everyhting else under the sun (yellowbirds, kite rigs, balloon rigs etc.) I still prefer the outriggers in many situations although I use inlines a lot too. As for the outrigger and dipsey use I mainly use them with small dipseys or regular size at most (not my 124 mm Walker DeepDivers) and relatively short lead set on 0 or 1 and then run some inlines outside them and that way if fish comes on the boards they just go across and back and don't hang up on the dipseys. I run my downriggers at a 45 degree angle on the inside of the outriggers and usually with sliders on each.The outriggers work great for long toplines run way back too in the Spring for browns .when I may or may not feel like messing with the boards. Just another option in the arsenal really.

Even back then the Fishawks were pretty good products. Back in the seventies I had the battery operated model that you reeled up and down with the thermistor that went to 100 ft and was quite accurate. Unfortunately I left the 9 volt battery in it over the winter and it corroded inside and it was history after that

Both you guys have sweet looking rigs and certainly know what to do with them I forgot to mention that the lines on the poles of my outriggers are rigged with large ball bearing swivel snaps ((hundred plus test?) that I snap the Black outrigger releases into. This is so that if I ever need to replace the release or have problem with it I can just quickly snap in another one rather than undoing the line itself.

I was hoping the "outrigger king" (Mark) would pipe in Great info as always and spot on. One of the things not mentioned yet is the quality of the outriggers versus cost. The really good holders and outriggers (usually mainly saltwater users and brands such as Taco and Tigress etc.) are quite pricey (e.g. 1,000 -1500 or more depending on length and brand but they are heavy duty and will last a long time. The ones the "big boys" use in the saltwater environment may run into the thousands. There are cheaper ones such as Dotlines that cost a few hundred for the kit including the holders and outrigger poles. There are also fiberglass outriggers which are substantially cheaper but keep in mind they are better for calm days because they flex and "whip" considerably in rough water. The cheaper aluminum outrigger poles are a bit stiffer and better but they don't compare with the better one like Taco and Tigress. The more critical thing is the outrigger holders. The more expensive ones mentioned are pretty "bulletproof" in terms of the materials and stablity/durability but you need the right design and size of boat to support them as they are pretty bulky and relatively heavy and require a real spacey place and very sturdy base to mount them. This can be either on a hard top boat or from the gunwwales. Here the height of the hard top and gunwaales is important and the poles need to be angled in such a way to avoid "slapping" the water when it gets rough. Something worth mentioning about the cheaper recessed mount Dotlines is that the recessed holders themselves are relatively short length so if you already have deeper recessed holders the holder inserts that angle outward won't fit the holders because they are too short and may also be at the wrong angle to the bottom pin of the recessed holder in your gunwale. There are other potential ways around this problem if you already have the recessed holders installed in the gunwales....you can use separate heavy duty stainess steel rod holders (see pic below) inserted into the recessed ones but your recessed ones have to be heavy duty and mounted very solid on the gunwales as the outrigger poles will sit up off the gunwale pretty good and there is some torque involved. I have a "double" setup on my boat as I can run mine off the Perko rod holders mounted to the front SS rail in the front or the recessed holders at the sides toward the back (4 of them). When running solo I use the sides for easy reach. The left side pic is the SS rodholder/outrigger holder. The one at the right is the Dotline outrigger holder with mount and to the right of it unnamed outrigger holder I had in the late seventies. These options are used on smaller boats.

Nice going wishinfishin....always great getting into the elusive crappies

There certainly isn't ANYTHING to be embarrassed about because it can happen to anyone at any time and when you do a lot of this stuff the probabilities can catch up with you and it has little to do with being experienced either or being real familiar with the appearance of the ice or even taking measurements as you go out. Walking on water is always uncertain and dangerous. We ice fishermen are a curious breed and as most folks who don't do it including family think we're freakin crazy.....but love of the game drives it and hopefully as time goes along we become a little more cautious and say to ourselves....there is always another day to go after them when conditions don't appear great

They have changed the motors in Cannon downriggers at least a couple of times to heavier duty and higher speed motors over the years and its kinda like using Windows 3.0 the 10A's are way outside the support limit of the company... I have my fingers crossed on mine

Chris - Very glad you made it off there OK. That was about as close call as it gets and you are now a "cat with 8 lives". Your situation does however point up some things though that bear mentioning for the rest of us and especially folks new to the game. Ice fishing is ALWAYS dangerous no matter how experienced someone is or how well they know the outward appearance of the ice. I was on three to 4 inches yesterday along with many dozens of people and you'd normally think it is safe but the reality is that no matter what the ice appears like above you have no way of knowing what is going on underneath. For example glaciers miles thick calve off unexpectedly. Ice thickness and observable integrity factors are only one part of the equation. Everything from metyhanne pockets, the unseen nearby streams undermining it from underneath, high winds on open water long distances away from the ice constantly see-sawing it underneath, or strong underwater currents eroding it....all of these factors UNSEEN or undetected from above. We can never lose sight of those possibilites while out there. When in my thirties I used to go by myself at night on 4 inches of ice after walleyes and be the sole person out here but not these days. Ice fishing is one of my favorite times of the fishing season but after some of the things I've experienced myself or seen happen to others I always maintain a healthy respect for the fact that I can "walk on water" but never let down my guard or take chances anymore. I'm sure those other guys out there share your sense of relief after getting back home alive.

Slammin I have to hand it to you....you're as hardcore as it gets and sure know how to live

Excellent job on them Mark.....VERY cool! Nothing like the experience of making your own tackle and having it come out real well.

That article on Burbot was extremely well written as well as entertaining. Always great to see something that holds your interest like that.

Next few days are supposed to be pretty cold and right now 28 dgrees here. I think the south end of Honeoye may be OK but still may be sketchy in spots and some sections of open water when you head north. The problem the past few days has been that the fish have lockjaw big time which often occurs during Feb. and lots of dinks present. The other significant problem on weekends in addition to the crowds is the motor cycles racing around the south end...they make a hell of a racket and seem to spook the fish.