tadpole diver for copper

[john1947]

I saw this today and wondered if it works well

thahttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIbzmOmuUVs&feature=player_embeddednks

john

 

[bloodrun]

From what I have seen, you still have to deploy the same amount of line to get to the depth you want.   The only difference is instead of letting out 300 feet of copper and reaching your depth, you would let out 200 feet of copper, 100 feet of backer, and then snap this thing on and they say you would be at the same depth.

 

In my experience these work good running lots of shallow lines trolling for walleye, like the top 20 maybe 30 feet.  Once you get deeper with long coppers, heavy currents, big paddles and flashers....they dont work and they tangle like crazy with gear next to it.   They get dragged around in the current and will inevitably swing into nearby coppers or divers.

Edited October 2, 2014 by profishient1

[Shelby Lynn]

I use the smaller ones in the late spring when the browns get out in 20' to 40' range on my flat lines off the big boards, and they work good for that. Not sure how they would work on the coppers though never tried it!

[BAZOOKAJOE]

I have some michigan stinger dive bombs and they work the same way. Tried them quite a few times. They work...but do have a different searching action than straight copper or core. The heavy ones drop like a rock on the inside of turns. And are a major pia to take off on a hot fish (and require an extra person). Never had tangle problems, but I'm careful with my turns and usually only run 1 junk line per side. If you only have one or two short copper's you can cover different depths on the cheap. But I prefer straight copper or cores. IMO these are better for walleye fishing.

[Gill-T]

The idea of the tadpole is gain depth and reduce felt weight once tripped.  With copper the idea is stealth with no object near the bait.  So the two together counter act their intended design.  The tadpole would be noticeable ahead of the bait and the weight of the copper would cancel out the benefit of the tripped tadpole's reduced felt drag.  If you want to add depth to copper and still maintain it's stealth, put a snap weight on the backing once you let out the copper.

[BAZOOKAJOE]

You can run the tadpoles and dive bombs half way down the copper or on the backing.

[Gill-T]

http://www.offshoretackle.com/resettable_diving_weights.html.  Not sure how you can put these in the middle of your copper and have it work as intended.