Help! Chinook Salmon Tackle Setup Suggestions

[TyeeTanic]

Gentlemen, and ladies!

I have been catching Coho's and Steelhead with ease, but no luck with Chinook.

Am trolling 3 mph in 130 ft total water, at around 40 - 80 feet lure depth. I use spoons

like the Williams Dartee 2 or Syclops - blue, red, green.

What am I doing wrong????

Mark

[carpedium]

All of my kings this year have been on reds and pinks except for one which was the scottB special green/silver/copper cup with a glow eye.

I think they have been spotty for people up until this weekend.

Just like with all fishing I'm learning there actually is some sort of luck involved. Otherwise it would be called "catching"

Good luck

[TyeeTanic]

Okay, I'm not that good with the lingo.

When you say reds and pinks - are you talking spoons??

[carpedium]

correct. i'm not that good on specifics I guess. haha.

[TyeeTanic]

Thanks Carpedium.

What size/make spoons do you use.

I am using the dartee no 2. It's shaped like a fish and kind of kicks side to side.

That lure has helped me hit a lot of coho and steelhead, but no luck with chinooks.

Are the little cleos any good?

[dewey123]

A lot of guys use dream weaver michigan stingers and northern king spoons. I have been doing good on black and green colored spoons as well as natural born killer color. I do real good using spin doctors and flies. Green spinies and green flies for me.

[ Post made via Android ]

[carpedium]

Thanks Carpedium.

What size/make spoons do you use.

I am using the dartee no 2. It's shaped like a fish and kind of kicks side to side.

That lure has helped me hit a lot of coho and steelhead, but no luck with chinooks.

Are the little cleos any good?

Mark, as far as I know the little cleo's are casting spoons (weighted) as opposed to trolling spoons. Another good spoon this year has been "steely dan"... until something big chewed it off!

[tcon]

Here's some of the Colors I've come up with just from the information shared on this site.

Tom

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

1 42nd spoon

2 Diehard

3 frog

4 glow frog

5 green gator

6 Natural born killer

7 Purple thunder

8 Sea sick wadler

These are all taken from the Northern King Website.http://northernkinglure.com/ But most companies make the same colors in some way, shape or form.

Good Luck!

Tom

[TyeeTanic]

Coincidently, I just bought spoons 1, 5, 6 and 7 on a good friend's advice.

I also got a colour called Monkey Puke - awsome name, eh?

[chowder]

I'm not familiar w/ your location but unless you are in an area like the west end of Ontario where the king fishing has been good you may not have many kings around to catch. This is another popular site to look for specific site info http://spoonpullers.proboards.com/index.cgi?

What I can tell you for sure is that in general 2 things are crucial for consistently catching Kings. You need to be trolling in the right temp water and at the right speed down at the bait (not surface speed). To do this you need down temp and down speed - or you need to be in radio contact w/ somebody who has figured out the right depth (temp zone) and speed and you must be going the same direction they are. It's true you need the right stuff in the water but if it's not where the fish are feeding(the right depth/temp zone) and/ or it's not running at the right speed (down speed), you will be really leaning on Lady Lucks arm pretty hard.

Check this out viewtopic.php?f=16&t=20724&hilit=attractor%2Ffly & happy fishing!

[TyeeTanic]

Thanks chowder, I am on the west end of lake Ontario.

I fish off Oakville - Bronte Harbor. Sometimes I head east to Port Credit, but no more than that.

I haven't tried Hamilton Harbor yet, but may give it a go this weekend.

[dewey123]

42 second spoon has been on fire for me this year, another one I just bought and did well this past weekend was a dream weaver spoon in the "roy-boy" color(black spoon with sparkley birght green sticker on half of it). Little cleps are casting spoons but hang on to them for fall and cast them off the piers for kings especially at night with glow cleos and glow rattle traps. I like 2/3 and 3/4 oz spoons and 3/4 oz rattle traps.

[TyeeTanic]

What is down speed??

How does it different from trolling speed?

[dewey123]

down speed is the speed youre lure is running underwater. basically the effects of under water currents ...going against the current will make your lure react faster and going with the curent will kill your lure and make you have to speed up to get the proper action in the lure. I dont use a down speed unit but id liek to get one for next year. I try to keep my speeds between 2.6 and 3.1 mph on my gps unit.

[TyeeTanic]

I just read the articles in the links above - and figured out there what down speed is.

I generally troll around 2.5 mph - 3.1 mph, but that is essentially the idle on my motor.

Guys say to troll slower down to 2.0 mph - but I won't be able to do that, not on my boat.

[Gotta Bite]

Invest in a depth raider or fish hawk. It's money well spent. it's help you find the thermocline and colder temps in the summer which will help put you on the kings.

[chowder]

I just read the articles in the links above - and figured out there what down speed is.

I generally troll around 2.5 mph - 3.1 mph, but that is essentially the idle on my motor.

Guys say to troll slower down to 2.0 mph - but I won't be able to do that, not on my boat.

You just need to get some trolling socks to slow you down. Get them from these guys http://www.amishoutfitters.com/

Don't buy the light duty stuff from Cabelas,etc -they will not hold up to trolling.

[Broadhorizons]

If you can't afford a speed and temp unit (Depth Raider, Sub Troll, Fish Hawk) set up a wire rod to run as a thumper down the chute (straight off the back between the riggers and you will want to reel this in or move it to a side if you get a fish on another line, wire is can be like a razor to other lines). That will atleast give you some kind of speed indication. If you don't want to use it for actually catching fish, just put the dodger down without a fly/hook.

And probably your next question...

A thumper is wire rod with a pound ball and a leader to a dodger. Same as a dipsy only a pound ball instead of the dipsy. If you use a snubber from the terminal swivel to the weight, then the leader from the terminal swivel to the dodger, it has better action in the rod tip. Just like a 3-way rig. You watch the rod tip to judge your speed at the depth the dodger is. if it's bumping/bouncing maybe 2 beats a second, it's a pretty good speed. No bounce and you're too slow (dead action) or may be too fast (dodger spinning not swaying side to side) generally.

Before I had the x4, I had an 840 with a problematic probe. I ran a thumper all the time and you'd be amazed at the difference in speed from the surface/gps to speed at depth.

Good luck, keep asking questions, and don't forget the search function for looking up some common information.

[TyeeTanic]

Thanks Paul!

What does a electronic down speed and temp cost? I already have a decent GPS fish finder, the Lowrance Elite 5 Gold, so I only need the down speed and temperature functionality.

I am pulling the boat out of the water next Monday for a service, and this would be a great opportunity to install anything I need to add to the boat, provided it does not cost an arm and a leg. They can take the leg, but I need my arms for fishing...

[carpedium]

They have sole on here for anywhere between $250 and $600