Speed

[HB2]

I have, no speed indicator on my small boat other than my handheld GPS for SOG . I can't get a paddle add on for my depth finder and I'm not going to drop 900$ on a fish hawk . 

 

Anyone have any experience with the Luhr Jensen manual type indicator for 75$ ? 

 

[Sk8man]

I don't remember what that one in particular looks like but I used to use a manual one years ago that had a weight dangled over the gunwhale attached to a wire and a gauge that you positioned on the gunwhale that had a colored scale on it that went from green (slow end of troll)  orange then red (fast troll). You looked at it in conjunction with the angle of lines and rod tips. When you had a hit you looked at the exact spot on the scale so you could return to  it. I used to keep very small thin strips of tape nearby and would apply a piece to the spot when I had a hit.

Edited May 17, 2021 by Sk8man

[Shakemsam]

I've always been able to get by with finding speed by listening for the Downrigger cable hum and looking for bubbles off the cable.

[HB2]

Yes I judge speed by all that also and have for years ,  but I have been struggling this spring( sounds like most have out my way )  and I doubt what I  am doing when I do . So I  figure for 100$ I can have piece of mind . Maybe 

It makes a difference , maybe it doesn't . 

The thing looks simple enough , maybe I make one . 

[Sk8man]

HB2 I took a look at that Luhr Jensen model and it is basically what I used way back when but it is updated and the scale appears to be a better rendition and it should work fine. You may have to play around with the location on the gunwale so that the weight stays in the water consistently but they are a lot better than just eyeballing n your rods etc.

Edited May 18, 2021 by Sk8man

[VooDoo]

I had one. Keep in mind that will still only show surface speed. At least you would have a reference point so you could reproduce speed but you can do that on your gps. Down speed and surface speed can widely vary.


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[HB2]

I have a fish hawk on my big boat so I know all about the speed difference top to bottom . 

 

I just want a reference point so I can feel better when I'm not getting hits . 

 

 

And SOG ain't the best . 

 

I fished for years not having anything on my small boat  and did well . This year has been tough for everyone , so it not just me . I'm going to hold off and see what happens .  

[FishingFool34]

Find a nearby boat that you can pace, that's what I did on my old boat a lot of the time before I got my fishawk. Another option is to do S turns, if you get hits on the inside of the turn then you need to slow down and speed up if you get hits on the outside of the turn.

[HB2]

I'm just looking for a cheap way out to get some sort of gauge of speed to satisfy my doubts when I'm not hooking up in my small boat which has been a lot this spring . 

 

I think I'm  going to buy a new depth finder for my big boat and put the old one on my little boat which has a surface speed probe. 

 

I've done very well in my small boat without having speed for years but this year has been tough . But that has been the norm this year . 

 

 

Edited May 27, 2021 by HB2

[Fat Trout]

4 hours ago, HB2 said:

I'm just looking for a cheap way out to get some sort of gauge of speed to satisfy my doubts when I'm not hooking up in my small boat which has been a lot this spring . 

 

I think I'm  going to buy a new depth finder for my big boat and put the old one on my little boat which has a surface speed probe. 

 

I've done very well in my small boat without having speed for years but this year has been tough . But that has been the norm this year . 

 

 

That would work.  When I started back trolling with a small boat and no fish hawk I had a GPS speed reference on my Ipilot that I was using as a poor mans autopilot.  best you can do is have some sort of speed reference gps or water speed and use that with your best judgement on cable angle etc from there.

[Great_Laker]

Not sure if your big boat and small boat are near each other but you could always buy just the fish hawk transducer and a new power cord for the fish hawk and then use your existing display and probe from your big boat. The screen pops off the mount easy enough and then just grab your probe and you can use it on either boat. New fish hawk transducer is ~$200

[HB2]

Honestly , I'm probably going to do nothing , and just keep bringing my hand held GPS with me , which I only turn on once in a while . Or make one .  

 

I usually do pretty well out there . But this year I struggled so far . And from what I gather , I'm not alone . I have boxes full of lures in my basement that I ran out and bought when I struggled .

It'll turn around . 

 

When I'm small boat`n , I try to stay as  primitive as I can.  And let my talents get me by . I get a lot of satisfaction from that . And it makes me a better fisherman . 

[Sk8man]

When fishing is easy the learning curve often heads downward. The natural thing when fishing is way off is to figure you're screwing up somehow and it's YOU. Not necessarily the case and the actual reason may complicated and have absolutely nothing to do with you or what you are doing out there and it gets to all of us. We may be experiencing the usual June transition period a little early this year (and it isn't just Lake O) so hang in there

Edited May 28, 2021 by Sk8man

[TyeeTanic]

I wish I had the money to buy the right stuff at the beginning, instead of the wrong stuff 3 x over, before I spend the money anyhow and buy the right stuff.

[ontherise]

Gary D rigs work at any speed.

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[dickey]

I would always use the bend in the dipsey rod as my guide. Worked for me until I spent the money on the fish hawk.


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[HB2]

13 minutes ago, ontherise said:

Gary D rigs work at any speed.

Sent from my LM-G710VM using Lake Ontario United mobile app
 

 

Yeah , well they haven't been working so good lately . 

 

 

 

I'm pretty good at judging speed . In fact I have kind of perfected trolling in my small boat without having it . And I really don't want a fish hawk . A surface speed gauge will do just fine , and I'm apprehensive about that . And yes I know all about the sub surface currents.  I have ways to compensate for that . 

 

I don't think some of you guys know what I want to accomplish when I'm out there  in my small boat .

[1lastweekend]

I started the same way several years ago on my small (17') boat.  I had an older Humminbird FF with an inaccurate paddle wheel.  I took my older Garmin car GPS that mounted to the windshield of my boat, and it had an internal battery that lasted about 6 hrs.  Got me pretty close, enough to catch fish.

[Bozeman Bob]

For less than a 100 .00 you can buy a Garmin FF with GPS .

[HB2]

As I said , I want surface speed thru the water , not SOG , which I already have . 

[ncej03]

First year with Fish Hawk for me this year.   Did pretty well through the years with SOG and knowing my rigger kickback and dipsy bend.    Somedays the current is crazy and those days you're really guessing.   On the good days, you should do just fine without it.   When they are feeding, getting anything in the range usually works.    The slower days I feel this will help me get on more bites.   Speed and Temp.

 

My experience so far has been positive.   Definitely "wow" a few times seeing my down speed.    In general, I see the biggest difference in surface wheel speed and the down speed.  Sometimes pretty drastic in my opinion.    SOG always seems to be closer to my downsized.    In general 2.2-2.8 SOG produced a decent down speed.