Sk8man

Stiffer may help (like a lot of things) but the drag setting of the reel may also be the culprit. With dipsies I use 50 MONO for the leader from the attractor to the fly as it has a slight amount of give to it where the wire has none because fluoro has less give and seems less forgiving. The drag should be set a bit tighter than say for coppers or leadcores so that the dipsy releases and the hook sets. This means that you also have to set the dipsy release tension accordingly in conjunction with the drag.

The guys have given you a good summary of the issues to ponder. Another initial consideration relates to whether you intend to use the rods for both uses at different times. Having downrigger rods that double as dipsy rods when needed can make sense but as with other things like boats and vehicles some do a better job than others at specific things. In that case dedicated rods make sense if your budget allows for it. In the first instance you want something versatile in action (e.g. strong butt but flexible near tip yet stout enough that it isn't too flexible if a dipsy is used on it. Some inexpensive rods (e.g. Okuma Classic Pro medium, Diawa Wilderness medium etc.) can serve this purpose but may or may not do it as well as one selected for the specific purpose. Length of the rod can play a role as well; especially if intending to run multiple dipsies where one rod runs inside of the other and as has been said this is another case of "personal preference" too. Some of the selection process can be a "crap shoot" if done online because you can't actually feel the way the rod acts so if you are able to check them out firsthand in a store (questionable right now with covid) it can help with the "feel" issue I have friends that are happy with the Okuma Blue Diamond rods and I like the Okuma Classic Pro 8ft 6 mediums for outside rods (can double as downrigger rods) and 6 1/2 ft. roller tip Shakespeare Tidewaters (medium action) for the insides. again it is a matter of personal preference and there is generally no right or wrong answer. Although you may experience more fight with lighter rods if you are intending to release the fish at the end it may take more time to get them in with less leverage and that may not be a good thing.

I honestly don't unless you buy a setup with it already on it and I don't know where you live As I said it is much easier with two people. A simple way is one person holds the spool of wire with a pencil or screwdriver through the hole in the wire spool and placing constant pressure against the sides but allowing the spool to revolve. Use a 50 ft or so strand of 40 or 50 dacron or mono on the empty reel spool and fasten the wire to it with a #8 Spro swivel crimped onto the wire and the other end tied at the swivel.. You can use just the reel mounted to the bottom half of the rod to make things easier to reel. Make sure when you start to put the wire on after the mono that the line guide is in the middle of the spool of the reel so it starts putting the wire on straight. Work slowly with even pressure on the wire the entire time and when it gets to the end of the wire spool be careful to keep maximum tension on the wire so it doesn't unravel on the reel spool. I use a crimp connection very carefully applied to the business end of the wire with a heavy duty solid ring ball bearing swivel. I then use clear hot glue on the crimp connection to seal it in to keep the crimp from moving back and forth to avoid any chance of failure at that point. By using clear hot glue I can see inside to monitor the connection. I have never had a failure at that point. Some folks use electrical tape to fasten the wire directly to the reel spool.

The other guys have a point too. Braid is somewhat easier to work with and maybe with the larger diameter braid most of the fleas won't be able to hook on but fleas can be a problem on wire too if they are concentrated too thickly .....even downrigger wire as thick as it is.Another factor is that with braid you don't need a modified rod tip (twilli or roller). We all have a our preferences and the bottom line is: If it works for you its all good If you have more than one rod try using one of each and see how you think they stack up against each other.

The short answer is yes you should start over. It would be wise to examine the wire on there though to determine if the spots are true kinks in the wire. Unless you have a good quality line winder putting the wire on it is usually a 2 person job to do right with constant pressure maintained throughout the process. Thankfully my wife has got it down real good now after many years as far as exerting just enough pressure on the sides of the spool as it is reeled on. I start the process with the line guide of the reel centered on the spool. After it is on there and prior to first use I try to put a sinker or dipsy on it and let out a great amount of the wire and reel it back on with that degree of tension beffore actually using it.

I know you don't feel sorry for them though Brian

Yep. thought I had a few but never imagined that many...they just kept coming (bird feeder out back) was impressed with the pellet rifle with the Bushnell scope though a lot of head shots

trout1 you have a PM

I took out 71 of them this year Dave (Gammo Silent Cat .177 cal.)

The launch is open however the water level is as low as I have ever seen it. Small boat with shallow drive may be OK and there were two trailers there just now in the parking lot.

I'll try to have a look today

I can just hear the fish saying to themselves while trembling " Oh no not those guys....we'd better head for the Canadian side".