Line counter reels

[wajski]

I run Daiwa 27 accudepth with no problems since they came out, I still use 4 with gold side plates. I have used the 47 sl but found them to be to big this is jm2c, I know a lot of people that run Okuma and have no complaints.

[itsbob]

When it comes to matter of importance in catching fish depth is first,speed then lure color.So let's say I'm fishing late April through early May with my buddy John trolling Bandits with my inlines and 6 rods.I will start out trying to cover the water column where bandits usually have caught before.So those leads are 60-120 unassisted or with no weight.So one side will be 120 on the outside,90 then 70 on inside board.The other side will be 100 outside and 80 then 60.The colors will be my 6 favorite producers.So I always put a blue chrome out with a couple white based colors a humble bee to keep John happy and usually one purple, or what color has been the hot color from the posts I read.The sweet leads tend to be around 70 and 80 but the fish will tell you what depth is catching.But rarely do I run more than 3 lures at the same lead.You want to run one like 10 less and 10 more in case they change up.And the fish almost always change their depth you catch during the day.Ususlly the reason is as the sun rises and brighter it gets,
the bite goes deeper.Thats one reason you have other lures at different depths.So you want to be ready for that change of depth and change out those leads to get on em again.
When you make turns trolling don't make fast turns,that causes tangles.Im often telling our driver slow turns.A fast turn will stall out your inline boards and the line will drop down into the water and catch on the flag of another board.It is hard to see that line or how the boards run after that happens.But when you reel either one in the tangle happens.The same thing happens to your dipsies.The dipsies on the inside turn will drop like a sinker.That is when you can catch bottom with your dipsies.The other thing with dipsies,is I weigh them and scratch in that weight in the plastic.The heaviest ones go on the inside and lighter ones outside.The reason is the heavier ones drop faster when they slow down.
Good luck guys.Only a couple months away from the spring fishing.There are still plenty from that 2015 hatch and the females are reaching fish Ohio size. The other great hatches will bring in a mix of great eater sizes too.Should be a great season for walleye on Erie.

[DW72]

Great info, thanks Bob. Nice to hear that you have had success on baits with white on them. That's probably my biggest change for this coming year. I usually do the exact same thing as you are suggesting by staggering depths on both sides of the boat. Was just thinking maybe once I get a couple fish at the same depth and same lure.....I should try only that side of the boat pretty much the same. So for example, if I hit a few at 100 back I'll go to 95, 100 and 105 on that particular side for an hour or two. And use the same or similar colors. Maybe keep the other side 55, 75 and 90. Thought maybe I could pull few doubles on active fish before they move or the bite tapers off? I will try to do better getting out early. Some of my guests haven't wanted to be out at first light. I haven't minded as I have all day to fish. It has been really slow between 10 am and 4 pm many days. They almost always turn on hard in the last 2-3 hours. . I assume the first couple hours are really good too?

[itsbob]

I also have had to deal with the party people over the years who could not get up early enough to fish.Walleye prefer to feed in low light.So the first couple hour after sunrise and before sunset are good times to catch.Another factor that helps is the lack of boat traffic at first light.During the summer on calm cloudless days the fish will move deep and be in a negative mood to bite in the middle of the day.Tough to catch your limit in those conditions.

[sherman51]

some of my best lures lately have been sun spot bandits as the best then chrome and metallic blue then a dark perch pattern. but bandits have so many colors that catch fish. i like a lot of galeforcetackle.com spoons and harness at lower prices than most other good spoons. and the paint is bullet proof. but jawbreaker dr death, nnd anything with some pink or purple has been good. salamander and a black with purple have also been good for us. but when buying lures i do tend to favor lures with some pink or purple. dreamweaver purple alewife has been out best spoon ever for eyes on Erie. but anything is worth a try if things are slow.

when we started trolling Erie back around 86 we caught so many walleye on the western basin by using the 2" hot n tots and wiggle warts using spinning gear. we just let out line until we thought would catch fish. one weekend we weren't doing worth a crap. so we started changing baits. someone put a tiny wart out and it started catching fish. we all started fishing these shallow-diving little cranks and caught our limits of good fish both days. we had just been fishing too deep for them. when we got back to the ramp and were carrying the cooler to our truck a friend up there stopped us mid-way across the lot and wanted to see our fish. when we opened our cooler we had about 25 to 30 guys around us looking at our fish. and they all said the fishing had been the worst they had ever seen. my point is don't be afraid to change things up a bit.

[DW72]

Good stuff! Come on March! Sunspot was my best producer all last year too 100 back. Chartreuse and blue chrome were also goid 55-75 back. I've certainly been missing out by not being out early. I'll change the rules on departure time this year. Would rather get out early and hopefully limit earlier so we can enjoy the day at the local restaurants and get to bed earlier. I frequently find myself not limiting out until an hour or two before dark after a mid morning launch time.

[slimshady]

Sounds great. I do have most of the trusted factory colors. Am excited to have picked up a couple of each pair-a-dice, fermi-nuff, blue chrome and glow wonderbread. I'll run the hell out of them. Thank you for sharing Sir! I'll certainly be out there early to mid March.

Thanks guys! I appreciate the business. Pair-a-dice, Fermi-Nuff, Chrome Fermi and Smokeshow Shad are 4 of my personal favorites. The other one that has been an absolute stud this fall is Gold Digger. On LSC, I would add Nuclear Perch and Chrome Perch to that list. Hard to beat perch patterns on LSC.

Cheers!

[cohoho]

Thanks guys! I appreciate the business. Pair-a-dice, Fermi-Nuff, Chrome Fermi and Smokeshow Shad are 4 of my personal favorites. The other one that has been an absolute stud this fall is Gold Digger. On LSC, I would add Nuclear Perch and Chrome Perch to that list. Hard to beat perch patterns on LSC.

Cheers!

I have a gold digger with teeth marks all over it too!

[DW72]

Hey Slim. What about your thoughts on and experience with gender reveal? They look awesome on the website and I see they are sold out.

[slimshady]

Hey Slim. What about your thoughts on and experience with gender reveal? They look awesome on the website and I see they are sold out.

Thanks! The Gender Reveal was good when I ran it this past summer in clear to light stained water and bright sun. I will be painting more of them this weekend. I am finishing up an order for Captain Juls right now, and those should be dipped and on the drying rack by tonight or tomorrow night.