need help with sliders

[Ohreelyfishing]

I was going to buy 2 more rods and stack my down riggers been told just to use a slider on rack one how do I make the slider leader for the spoon and the difference with fixed and free slider.

. all help welcomed

[fishmaster13184]

I'd stack the rods

[Yankee Troller]

Not many guys stack rods anymore on a downrigger. Most people people are using "cheaters" or "sliders." 

 

If you want to pin a cheater put your main line on the downrigger, and send it down 10-20'. Reach over and half hitch a rubberband on your mainline then take a piece of fishing line with swivels on both ends (cheater line) and attach one end to your main line AND the rubberband. On the other end of that cheater line put whatever spoon you want to run. A slider doesn't utilize the rubberband. You put your downrigger down to whatever depth you want it at. Grab your main line and hook your cheater to it and toss it overboard. The "slider" will naturally go down and find the bow in your main line. General rule of thumb is half way down.

[tuffishooker]

We only use FIXED sliders ; 5-6 ft. length of fluorcorbon leader with quality snap swivels at each end .Snap one end 6-10 ft up from ball on main line and attach [fix] with an elastic band tied in a half-hitch .

Not sure why but stacking rods has not done much for us.

[bondouley]

yes use a slider instead of stacking so you can get more lines in the water without all the rods.  We like to use a 6 or 7 ft piece of fluorocarbon leader with a swivel at both ends.  Attach 1 end to the main line that you have down already and the other end to a spoon and throw it over board then reel down your rigger rod so its loaded up and tight then your free slider will usually ride about half way down to the ball depending on how much of a bow you have in your main line thats connected to the rigger release.  If you want to pin the slider which i almost never do unless the fish are concentrated at a certain depth you can use a small rubber band and half hitch it around your main line then hook your swivel from your slider on the main line then onto the rubber band rubber band will break when fish hits it.    hope this helps i will attach a couple of pics.  

[bondouley]

Free and fixed

[King Slammin]

One of my best producers is a MUP rig. It's a standard size spoon off the ball and back say 15-20'. Then a fixed slider 5' above with a mag spoon in the same pattern. Just be sure to put a bead above the swivel of your Downrigger rod so when you have a fish on your slider line, the bead absorbs the weight of the fish, rather than your swivel. Also be sure to reel as fast as you can BEFORE you take the rod out of the holder when you have a release as the fish on the slider needs tension or you will lose it

[Firechief48]

If I'm running 4 riggers I'll run fixed cheaters on the middle and sliders on the outsides especially if I'm showing fish in 2 different levels. Sliders pick up a lot of steelies and later on cohos. I use stacker releases on the cheaters myself just set light.

[Sk8man]

I'm with Rick and Dave on the free floating slider. I have used them since the mid seventies and they catch a lot of fish. Once you get your system down they can produce some nice fish sometimes even on the way down in the prop wash . I've also used the fixed cheaters and before that used to stack rods but stacking isn't very economical as it counts in your rod allotment and is just one more thing in the way. The fixed cheater can be useful when the fish are concentrated in the thermocline in the summer and you want to keep the lure within that range but over the years the free floater has been more productive especially with rainbows on the Finger Lakes and steelies on Lake O. You do want to keep your leader length within the span of your rod though especially if you fish solo so that you can net the fish without hand lining them (which can be a problem with kings when you value your fingers ). I usually run them on 8 1/2 rods so I keep the length to 6-8 ft. A lot of guys run them shorter. Using single hooks helps a little sorting things out when after high speeds and multiple turns you experience a "wrap up" when you release the rigger.  Much of the time I run smaller lighter spoons as the slider as over the years I've connected more that way for whatever reason (e.g. action) and I think the longer the leader used the less "constricted" the action is relative to the main line (although I know folks who run 2ft sliders successfully). For either stackers or fixed cheater I use a little "gizmo" I made up for this purpose although I have also used just a rubber band too (see pic). It is basically a trot line holder for catfish etc. with a duolock snap held by shrink tubing. It stays fastened (snapped onto) to the downrigger cable in position but will slide up it at the end when the downrigger is retrieved. I use very small rubber bands that girls use in their hair (no comments please )

Edited April 12, 2016 by Sk8man

[BAZOOKAJOE]

If I'm fishing deep...I prefer stacking rods. The hook-up percentage on sliders is terrible. And I hate untangling the lines every time they get twisted together when you bring them up. But to each their own.

[TyeeTanic]

Sliders are preferred on my boat over stacked rods to get more lines in the water.

Slider leader is 6 ft of 20 lb fluoro. Larger swivel on end that connects to main line and small swivel on end that attaches to spoon.

Use a smaller spoon on the slider line than you have on the main line. Only use spoons on the slider and main line to avoid tangles.

For a free slider drop your main line to the desired depth and then connect the slider line swivel to the main line and throw the spoon to the side of the main line to avoid tangles. It will fall to around 30% of the depth of the main line.

Fixed line you drop Mian line around 10 or 15 ft and then attach the fixed slider with an elastic or OR16 clip. Then lower everything to the desired depth.

[Ohreelyfishing]

Thanks for the help guys with the use of sliders can I use a F/F on main line on bottom and and spoon on slider.

[Sk8man]

Suggestion - Don't mix the two although folks do it but if for some reason they come together you have a real mess especially with wire

[Big Water]

For a free slider drop your main line to the desired depth and then connect the slider line swivel to the main line and throw the spoon to the side of the main line to avoid tangles. It will fall to around 30% of the depth of the main line.

I tend to disagree with the 30%. Based on sonar capturing the lure, I'd say it's at least 50%. When you consider the blowback on the ball and the mainline curvature going to the release, I'd say it often beyond 50% till the slider gets to the belly of the line. My two cents.

[Tyee II]

If you are using a slider spoon above a flasher/fly you may want to fix your slider using one of the methods mentioned above. Fix it high enough above your flasher that they won't come together when bringing your line up to change lures or inspect them.

The other thing I would suggest is to replace your treble with a single hook on your slider spoon. You won't lose nearly as many fish due to the slack in your line that a slider creates.

[TyeeTanic]

I admit 30% is based on what others have told me. I'd love for it to be at 50%.

But the sonar tells you how far it is away from the transducer, not how deep it is. The blowback on the main line is significantly impacted with the drag of the slider.

Maybe if you can post a screens hot of the sonar it would make it easier to see how you get to 50%.

[Ohreelyfishing]

So if I use a F/F on bottom I'm better off with a fixed one. And if I use a free slider put spoons on Main line and slider

[Tyee II]

I have some video from my rigger cam last summer where I was running a free slider above my dodger/spin n glo that was bouncing bottom in 100fow. A fish came in to take a look at the D/F and then looked up at something. It then swam up and pursued something for several minutes, going in and out of the cameras view. I'm 99% sure he was in pursuit of my slider spoon, which had to have been running 15-20 feet above my D/F for me to still see the fish with the camera, so way more than 50% down.

Also, Lake Michigan is so clear now that you can actually see your slider spoon some times, and from whay I've seen I think most of the time the 50% rule is correct, unless you are fishing deep and have more swayback.

[Tyee II]

So if I use a F/F on bottom I'm better off with a fixed one. And if I use a free slider put spoons on Main line and slider

You can use a free slider over a F/F, I do it often. The flasher will roll around you slider line for sure though, when retrieved. Typically I just unclip the flasher and untangle and it is a PITA, but if I'm catching fish I don't even think about it.

[Sk8man]

As far as the 50% goes I think some of it relates to the lure itself on the slider as well as the shape of the snap on the swivel. I stopped using coast locks way back when for that reason. If you use a swivel snap that is very rounded it may not get as "hung up" on the mainline and travel a bit further. The same goes for heavier spoons they do tend to travel further down the main line. Your speed is also a factor  the bow in the main line tends to be more pronounced the faster the speed of the boat and may stop the lure further up.. Just more things to think about I guess

[Ohreelyfishing]

Thanks guys apreciate it love the info ðŸ˜

[Firechief48]

I've run sliders over everything. I myself like Evil Eyes or some other type of light/flutter spoon. I won't get into the argument of actual depth vs distance from transducer. I will say that 99% of the hits on the sliders are at the same depth/distance that I'm marking fish which usually is half of what the deep marks are.

[final flight]

I guess it's my OAS (over analyzing **** ) that keeps me stacking rods, 8ft. Below/10ft. Behind is hard to achieve with a slider or a fixed when your running a 15ft. Set back . I just feel that it's easier to replicate the "program" when I'm stacking , typically only run a 6 rod spread .

[fishmaster13184]

I guess it's my OAS (over analyzing **** ) that keeps me stacking rods, 8ft. Below/10ft. Behind is hard to achieve with a slider or a fixed when your running a 15ft. Set back . I just feel that it's easier to replicate the "program" when I'm stacking , typically only run a 6 rod spread .

I feel you, plus sometimes I like to run 50' leads off the ball