Bandit's

[Madd Matt]

Also what about color choice in the jets?

I have all of the colors in the TT-40 divers and have found that the color has little effect on catching fish. It may make a difference in the clearer waters in the central basin though but does not seem to bother the fish in the western basin maybe due to the murky water.

I must agree with Wakina. I too have several of just about every color TT and pay no attention when we are replacing them on the rods while fishing. When I set everything up on shore I usually grab all "smoke" color... but that is just because they all match.

One thing I want to mention in regards to the different divers (you asked about TripZ's) is that the TT seemd to be the most common among guys on the radio (if you listen to it). This is important to know even if you are not using TTs.

You see, when SaraJ Charters are talking to one another and you know what they are using that is working, then you can duplicate it. If SaraJ says, "We can't keep our rods in the water 65 back on the inside" then you have to know a few things. 1- What diver they are using and where it is in the water column at 65 back 2- They are trolling from a 34' CAT and their inside lines are 10' off the water. Let's hypothetically say that they are using a Leur Jensen Diver with a custom trip system and an added 1/2oz weight (just hypothetical). Then I can figure out what depth they are fishing and I may need to be 90-100 back on a 40TT.

Maybe Pooh Bear Charters uses 50 TT. He isn't going to say that on the radio and announce his program. However, if you listen and one of his buddies on the water asks, "What leads?" he may respond "50 back."

Let's compare:
50 Back on a 50 TT = 30' Deep

It takes 75' Back on a 40 TT to get 30'
It takes 125' Back on a 30TT to get 30'
On a TripZ 30 it takes 200' Back to get 30' or 190' Back on a TripZ 40

If you are running TripZ 30's 200 yards back on my boat, I would spend all day untangling lines because I run 6-8 rods out each side and people don't wait long enough to reel in and wind up across multiple lines.

For me, I want shorter leads out on all of my rods. I do run the 40TT because of their size and the commonality of them. You can run tadpoles or any kind of weight or diver system you want. As long as you know the dive chart for what you are using, and then have a dive chart for whatever anyone else is using when giving hot spot info, then you are fine.

I can ask about 30 different boats "What are you leads?" and they respond, and I know that they are using 40TT, and I know what depth they are catching at and can instantly duplicate... Of course, this is considering that I have my reels calibrated and my line counter is accurate, and so is theirs!

-Matt