TyeeTanic

Yes, it was a bit tough landing the kings - basically we lost the one on the starboard wire, it shook off. I had a 22lb'r on my line which I reeled in while my son realed in the 18 or 20 lb'r (forgot now). When I got mine close he put his rod in the holder and took my rod so I could dehook the fish and release, then we moved onto his rod and landed that one. I don't know if I was more tire from reeling in the fish or from the emotional meltdown!! Ya, it's all good. Told him I loved him no matter what. He was so excited to go out tonight again, but the rain held us off. Did anyone test there luck out there tonight?

So, we were out yesterday evening, my 9 year old son and I. Got the lines out and trolled for about 10 mins - bam one line starts screaming out. Bam another line screams on the wire. So I pick up the one rod, and the other rod is to hard for my son to pull out of the rod holder, so we tighten the drag a bit and just leave it. He grabs the net and goes to the dive deck on the stern as I reel in the one fish, and bam the third rod goes. By this time the second rod in the rod holder stops bobbing so I figure fish is off. I ask him to drop the net and grab the third rod, as it looks like a more manageable fish. What does he do???? Drops the net into Lake Ontario .... He's like, uh Dad, was I supposed to do that. Figuring he shouldn't have he almost jumps off the boat to swim after it!!! I'm now screaming like a lunatic to prevent him from jumping, in between the bleeped out words because my $70 net is now sinking to the bottom of the lake, and we have 2 big fish on!!! Holy smokes, I nearly had a brain artery blow! After the screaming got done and I managed to calm down, it was all good. We had a good laugh at it. Ended up going 6 for 8 and had to pull out 5 salmon all between 15 and 22 lbs out with my bare hands. Off to buy a new net today ... I think I'll tie this one to the boat! By the way if anyone snags into a 20" net with a red retractable handle between Bronte and Sixteen Mile in about 130 feet of water (think it has my name on it Mark Bellino) - would appreciate a PM!!!

Okay, so I dropped the snubbers and landed this safely! Weighed in at 25.3 lbs using my digital scale.

Use tongue...

Okay - all my eyes have been put on the back of my spoons. Will test Ray's theory out tonight. Pray that I catch 30 fish!!!!!

I have a 20ft Tahoe Sfi with a 190 hp engine. No major problems with 3-5 foot waves. I have a bow rider, so the occassional big wave puts a few cups of water in the front, but nothing that would concern me. Where are you planning to fish? Just watch the easterly winds.

Okay Ray, You have me convinced - all the eyes are going to the ass of the spoon. I'm not joking. Let's see what happens tomorrow night! What color eyes should I put on em - red, silver or green?? Give us the scoop!!!!

Okay - I can always try. I think all of my rods are flexible enough to handle without the snubber. I have to 10'6" Rapala RSC Dispey Rod's heavy action, but the tips are very flexible due to the height. Also have 2 medium to heavy action Rapalay 8'6" rods, these are definitely flexible enough. I already use 40lb lead - so all I have to do is remove the snubber. I can't say I've lost too many fish, unless they are small rainbows jumping to the heavens 200 feet back!

Bazooka - I'm not sure what the reels cost on their own, but the rod/reel combo was $105. So I'm guessing reel on it's own probably $80???

Just got back from Le Baron. They had the Rapala RCS Trolling Rod (10'6") and Reel combo on sale for $105. The RCS reel looks amazing. Here's pic.

Doesn't the snubber prevent the hook from tearing out of the mouths, especially with wire?

Not needed - but I prefer having rollers - much smoother action. If you do get normal loop guides make sure they are made out of hardened steel or silicon carbide. If they are normal ceramic - the wire will likely saw through them in no time.

For what it's worth - I've use 4 Rapala Magnum II's all season and they are holding up just fine. Great reels, drag control is precise. Easily holds 1000' of 7 strand wire - probably could fit another 500' on if I wanted to. Mark

You can probably order them from one of the fishing stores here and have it shipped. Le Baron seem to offer worldwide shipping. Here is their web address: http://www.lebaron.ca/english/main.htm I would find out which reel you want and call them. Give them the model name and take it from there. Mark

Is it just downrigger rods you are looking for, or also dipsey rods. For my dipseys I am now using Rapala RSC 10'6" wire rods with roller guides.

Paul, Are you talking about a willis knot that uses two overhand knots. If so, you get no fleas holding up on the overhand knots?? I tied an albright to connect my braid to mono lead - which is about the smoothest knot you can get, and still got fleas holidng up on this, although not badly enough that I couldn't reel past it. Maybe there's something I don't understand.

I use Rapala Magnum II's. They are good rods - and pretty cheap. I got mine as a rod and reel set - was $80 for the set.

You defintely need a line counter for steel line. I have a Rapala Magnum II reel - it has a side line counter and works fine with wire.

You shouldn't connect the wire directly to the mono. The wire will eventually cut the mono under strain. I use a micro-swivel, as Mick says it is around 30lb test. I join the wire to the micro swivel using this knot: http://www.lotsa.org/Wire%20Line%20Knot.htm I then use a uni knot to connect the swivel to the mono. If you use 20 lb mono lead, the knot should be small enough to get through your reel guides. The rod roller guides won't be a problem - what the normal issue is when you are releasing the line in the water, if your mono knot is too large it gets stuck in the back of the guide and if you are not careful, leads to a birds nest in the reel. So when releasing be extra careful until the knot is out of the final roller in the rod. If you have hoop guides on your rod, same issue - it is the release that causes most of the problems. But, it does work nicely though. Keep in mind another thing - and this has been a major issue for me, enough for me to get rid of my mono lead connection on the wire. Fleas will accumulate on the knot/swivel, etc. whatever you use to connect the wire to the mono. This means you will not be able to reel in past this knot or connection, which means you will have 30+ feet of line still out if you need to land a fish. It won't be any fun, trust me. So I do not recommend this setup during flea season. Mark

Thanks for this daker. It will help me with another problem I am having lately. Last weekend I found my snubber chord wrapped around my mag dipsy on 3 out of 4 casts. Try pulling a mag out of the water if it doesn't unclip! Try pulling it out of the water with a screamer on as well!!! That would be like pulling in a 100 lb salmon! Haha. I couldn't understand how it was happening - but now I do! This is especially an issue with mag dipsey's as the drag force could easily push it farther ahead than the flasher. I didn't find it happening too much to the #1 and #0 dipseys but that is because there is a lot less drag force. Hopefully now I can get things to set in the water properly. Thanks again!!!

Yes, they are 8.5 ft Starfire's with wire guides. Like I said the top wire guide is not that great - the wire keeps getting stuck in between the roller and the guide frame.

Not enough choices. I use a hearing gel that I pour onto the spoons and fly hooks. I'm not sure how much it helps, but I think it does a bit. I caught 16 fish in 3 hours the first time I started using scent gel. The previous fishing trip was only 6 fish. It certainly doesn't hurt to use scent - it can only add to the numbers.

This talks about bass fishing and river fishing - which is generally shallow water. Do you think the voltage makes any difference if we are fishing down 40 - 80 feet? The current should be well dispersed by then right?

Hey Bazooka, I bought the Rapala RSC 10.5' dipsy wire rods at Le Baron in Mississauga. On special - was $160 per rod, now $99. Mark

Adam2000, yes they are Eagle Claw Starfires 8.5 ft, 2 piece, rated for 30 lbs. They are breaking on the top half section, where it slides into the bottom half section. See pic below. The first one broke when I was reeling in a 20lb lake trout. Was going gentle on my pulls - yes there was alot of pressure but steady, no sudden jolts and then CRACK - rod breaks in two. This happened 4 weeks ago. Got the top section replaced. Second was even more pathetic - no fish. I was simply reeling in a line to change the fly - it had a Mag dipsy on it. The snubber got wrapped around the dipsy, so it wouldn't pop open. I was pulling it up and CRACK - second rod gone. This was on my other Starfire, and happened this past weekend. So two different rods, break at same point - at the joint on the top half. Also I find the wire gets stuck in the side of the top roller FREQUENTLY. I would not recommend this rod, given my current experience.