torpedo weighted steel line

[hard knox]

Going to be adding some weighted steel outfits to my set up i normally run okuma classic pro glt downrigger rods was wondering if i can use these with torpedos weighted steel or do i need to steep up to a roller guide rod .THANKS 

[Fishmaster 196]

I use the Okuma GLT copper/leadcore rods with the large stainless guides on them with no issues.  You don't need roller rods for the weighted steel.

[hard knox]

Thanks thats what i was hoping for did not want to feel like i was fishing for tuna again lol ,

[LakerTaker]

Are you guys also using Torpedo's 19 strand wire with the weighted wire?  I have a size 50 Saltist LC that I'm debating between full core and weighted wire.  I have several other core reels, just have never tried wire or copper.  

[Fishmaster 196]

I'm using a convector 45 reel which has 750 ft of 19 strand and 200 ft of weighted steel.

[LakerTaker]

Cool, thank you FIshmaster. I'm going to give it a try and send it down the chute this spring/summer. 

Edited January 30, 2018 by LakerTaker

[Fishmaster 196]

I really like the versatility to be able to cover the water column with one rod.  It works really well on walleye on Erie in the summer when the walleye are deep.  I ended up rigging another identical rod recently because it worked so well.

[LakerTaker]

Awesome, sounds great thanks. Yes, I plan on using it for deep walleye as well. I’m going to try one rod this summer and will add more later.


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[MikeyP]

50 minutes ago, Fishmaster 196 said:

I'm using a convector 45 reel which has 750 ft of 19 strand and 200 ft of weighted steel.

I never used weighted steel. Do you attach it at the beginning or end of the 19 strand?

[Fishmaster 196]

The weighted steel is similar (certainly not equivalent) to copper that most people use.  The 19 strand wire is the backing.   There are several YouTube videos that show some of the benefits of using it compared to regular copper.

Edited January 31, 2018 by Fishmaster 196

[LakerTaker]

Do you also use a backer for the spool before the 19 strand?


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[Fishmaster 196]

I put on a small amount of mono on the convectors so that the wire doesn't slip on the reel, about 30 ft or so.  My Tekotas have a small stud on the spool so there is no need for mono on those.

[LakerTaker]

Ahh, ok thanks.


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[hard knox]

I was going to use power  pro hollow core braid as backer and if i need to go deeper then 200 feet of weighted steel i could clip on a small torpedo or tad pole weight .

[bloodruntackle]

7 hours ago, Fishmaster 196 said:

The weighted steel is the equivalent of copper that most people use.  The 19 strand wire is the backing.   There are several YouTube videos that show some of the benefits of using it compared to regular copper.

It certainly is not anything close to an equivalent of our copper or any copper we are aware of. Weighted steel is significantly larger in diameter and significantly lighter than copper.  Calling it equivalent would be defying the physical properties of the wire.  A fatter and lighter wire (weighted steel) cannot and does not sink the same as a smaller and heavier wire (copper).    The depth attainment of weighted steel is dictated by letting out more stainless wire backer not by the properties of the steel wire itself.   Whether a person wants to spool up and use stainless wire as a backer material is a personal choice but most prefer less expensive and easier to use mono or even braid backer.  If a person chooses to use mono or braid backer with weighted steel then all depth attainments are dramatically reduced

Edited January 31, 2018 by bloodruntackle

[juthunter32]

Bloodrun they are talking about being an equivalent in that it attains depths similar to that of copper. Copper obviously is a solid choice for a material if you can have multiple designated rods for the different lengths required to obtain the various depths. Have you ever backed your 200 or 300 copper with wire to see if the same principles apply to your product? As with any product every option has unique properties that make it more suitable at various times. It's all about having a vast arsenal to achieve maximum daily success. No one is saying that it is the same product as copper, or performs the same identically as copper but it gives novices and experts alike another option for controlled depth presentations without the expense of multiple reel and or rod setups.

[Fishmaster 196]

7 hours ago, bloodruntackle said:

It certainly is not anything close to an equivalent of our copper or any copper we are aware of. Weighted steel is significantly larger in diameter and significantly lighter than copper.  Calling it equivalent would be defying the physical properties of the wire.  A fatter and lighter wire (weighted steel) cannot and does not sink the same as a smaller and heavier wire (copper).    The depth attainment of weighted steel is dictated by letting out more stainless wire backer not by the properties of the steel wire itself.   Whether a person wants to spool up and use stainless wire as a backer material is a personal choice but most prefer less expensive and easier to use mono or even braid backer.  If a person chooses to use mono or braid backer with weighted steel then all depth attainments are dramatically reduced

Your right, poor choice of words on my part so i changed my previous post to reflect that.  Thank you for your in depth explanation of the difference between the two, something I was too lazy to type out.

[Fishmaster 196]

4 hours ago, juthunter32 said:

Bloodrun they are talking about being an equivalent in that it attains depths similar to that of copper. Copper obviously is a solid choice for a material if you can have multiple designated rods for the different lengths required to obtain the various depths. Have you ever backed your 200 or 300 copper with wire to see if the same principles apply to your product? As with any product every option has unique properties that make it more suitable at various times. It's all about having a vast arsenal to achieve maximum daily success. No one is saying that it is the same product as copper, or performs the same identically as copper but it gives novices and experts alike another option for controlled depth presentations without the expense of multiple reel and or rod setups.

Well stated. 

[bondouley]

We ran steel line all last year and its definitely 100 percent more user friendly than copper. You will never get a kink in it no matter what you do with it. Its also much easier (lighter) to reel in than copper. I put it on a tekota 800. I have a couple wraps of mono with 300yrds of power pro braid to 1000ft of 19 straind to 200 ft of steel line. I dont think there was a time that we fished over 50 ft of watwr and didn't have it out there. You literally can cover any depth you want with just 1 set up.

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[rolmops]

I got rid of all my copper and the trouble that comes with it. I now have 3 rods with 200 weighted steel backed with 500 feet 19 strand and one penn 345 with 300 copper and a thousand feet of 19 strand. . The Penn has a little gizmo that allows me to use an electric drill to reel the line in fast.

Matthew of Torpedo told me that most of the depth calculations he did were done with lures. When testing depth with flasher flies the lines were about 20 feet higher on average. This is a result of increased water resistance.

[bloodruntackle]

1 hour ago, Fishmaster 196 said:

Your right, poor choice of words on my part so i changed my previous post to reflect that.  Thank you for your in depth explanation of the difference between the two, something I was too lazy to type out.

 Not a problem!   We get asked this question periodically about weighted steel vs copper.   45lb weighted steel weighs the same as 32 copper but has almost 60lb copper diameter.   So the marketing materials used to promote weighted steel as "sinking the same as copper" is misleading.   They should read "45lb weighted steel sinks the same as 32lb copper but is larger in diameter than both 32lb and 45lb copper and must be used with 19 strand wire backing in order to achieve stated depth claims and to fit on standard sized trolling reels with ample amounts of backer left over".

 

We also get asked how much of our tournament mono backer or braid can be used with weighted steel.   It is important to note that depth attainment is greatly diminished by not using stainless 19 wire backing and going with a mono or braid backer, and that the diameter of weighted steel is so large that it consumes noticeably more space on your reel, allowing for less backer overall, not to mention larger knot connections that must past through all line guides and level winds. 

 

We contemplated putting this exact product on the market about 5 years ago, and decided against it for its lack of depth attainment vs diameter issues despite its user friendliness.  

Weighted Steel vs Copper Truth.pdf

Edited January 31, 2018 by bloodruntackle

[bloodruntackle]

5 hours ago, juthunter32 said:

Bloodrun they are talking about being an equivalent in that it attains depths similar to that of copper. Copper obviously is a solid choice for a material if you can have multiple designated rods for the different lengths required to obtain the various depths. Have you ever backed your 200 or 300 copper with wire to see if the same principles apply to your product? As with any product every option has unique properties that make it more suitable at various times. It's all about having a vast arsenal to achieve maximum daily success. No one is saying that it is the same product as copper, or performs the same identically as copper but it gives novices and experts alike another option for controlled depth presentations without the expense of multiple reel and or rod setups.

We do not recommend backing anything with stainless wire, certainly not with a wire that has 19 chances of breaking.   We always recommend a quality braid or mono for backing copper and leadcore setups, particularly when using planer boards and planer board releases that put tremendous pressure and chafing effect on the material.   The durability of braid and user friendliness of both braid and mono are well documented.    We have tested letting out more braid or mono backer and have noticed little additional depth attainment at average trolling speeds.   Braid backer with a much slower trolling speed there is an increase in depth, though variable, with copper.   No effect with leadcore..

 

We do agree that different presentations have different fish catching abilities, which is why we offer stainless wire for divers, two sizes of copper and two sizes of leadcore for a variety of depth attainment options each with their own fish catching characteristics.   There could be nothing easier than fishing with leadcore as a novice, and we feel the same to be true with our 32lb copper.   Our 45lb copper is also recognized as being extremely user friendly compared to differently stranded and twisted coppers available on the market.   Both are definitely more like a line rather than a wire, and any kinks that do occur can easily be straightened and continued to be fished.

 

In fact the claims of the manufacturer of weighted steel has and continues to specifically state, even on the actual product label, as having the "same sink rate as copper".   This would imply the exact same depth attainment as copper, when it in fact does not and can not in a foot by foot comparison.

 

Having a vast arsenal is very beneficial as you suggest.

Edited January 31, 2018 by bloodruntackle

[hard knox]

Wow did not plane on so much info all very help full so thanks guys for that. I was not really trying to reach make depths more of a mid depth rod and if i need to go deeper i can just add a torpedo weight after 200 feet of wire is out i have great luck with this set up on flat lines set way back . I chose to try wire because i  fished with copper a couple times and was not a fan do to weight and not user freindly that being said i have not tried blood run yet so i may have a copper one day .

[bondouley]

Ill make it very simple we fish just about every weekend and a day or 2 during the week from April through labor day.  That includes several tournaments and running charters.  Last year for the entire year we ran the torpedo steel line with great results.  I will say that the 19 strain wire doesn't read the same on your real line counters that mono does so there is some extra measuring involved.  What I did was take it to a large open field and measured in 100 ft sections with a tape measure then looked at the line counter on the reel to see where it was at.   Then i just made a cheat sheet till I memorized it.  Copper line is easier in that sense cause you just let it out till its all off the reel then you know exactly whats in the water.  When it comes to everything else the steel line is much more user friendly.  There is no way to kink it and the weight of it makes it much easier to reel in.   During tournaments and derby fishing we would run a 45 lb blood run 450 copper on one planner board and the steel line off the other board and everyone on the boat would rather grab the steel to reel in.   I will also add that there basically is no difference in the amount of strikes that occurred on the copper as to the steel.  There were plenty of days where the 2 rods would take turns with taking shots.   This year we are replacing the 450 copper with a 2nd steel line cause of the ease of use.  That's saying a lot cause up until last season our 450 copper was by far our most productive non rigger line.   Hope this helps good luck and tight lines always!

[hard knox]

Just got my new weighted steel rod all set up used a Okuma glt copper leadcore rod with 45 dxt from fish usa 85 bucks feels really nice and spooled up with 450 feet of 80 lb power pro 200 feet of torpedo weighted steel and a top shot of 40 lb mono fits perfect cant wait for spring winter boredom only cost me money .