Old school Laker fishing

[Dirt23]

So got my great grand father's old copper setup for yanking bottom and a box full of big suttons and pfluger spoons.  The rod is probably four and a half feet with roller guide on end and a huge pfluger salt water fly reel with about 400feet of copper on it.  Grandma said you'd let line out till hit bottom then hand line once on bottom dragging back and forth, she never really fished with them so don't know much more than that.  Anyone fish like this or possibly have some tips on how it's done? Judging by box full of news papers that had fish traced with charcoal it was pretty effective technique

[seamonkey84]

I don’t know about letting it touch bottom… as far as I understood, you use copper just like lead-core line.  the more you let out, the deeper it will get your presentation. Adjust for speed you’re going and type of lure you’re using.

[Mac Attack]

Yes, they dragged bottom.
It kicked up a lot of silt, etc. which attracted the lakers.
Guys that troll with downriggers for lakers will often drag the cannonball on the bottom for the same effect.
I never wanted to do this for fear of losing a $20-35 weight.
A chugging iron would work well for this as it wouldn't typically hang up.

[filetandrelease]

 There are depth charts for different cooper lines and speed
 Lot of people use dipseys and cooper for salmon , browns , lakers and walleyes saves on the shoulder , you put out a few  hundred feet of straight cooper and start pulling you’ll see 😉, I occasionally still see guys jerk lead

[lowaccord66]

The 500 copper was always my least favorite. 

[filetandrelease]

The 500 copper was always my least favorite.

lots of  reeling , especially with a big king 🤪

[mcully]

perfect rod to hand off happily!
Watch some of the midwest walleye river tourneys and you'll see guys pulling lead and it's basically the same thing.

[lowaccord66]

lots of  reeling , especially with a big king 🤪

We'd stick a balloon on that one so we knew where the line was.  Id drive the boat and try to stay on a heading and my buddy would yell "thats about all you got" in other words straighten out before the 500 crosses all the lines.  Good times.

[seamonkey84]

Yea…I pull leadcore with a 8wt fly rod and reel  . Any more than 5 colors out is too much lol.

[Jethro]

Yup, once I got downriggers I never fished more than 3 colors on the leadcore. And then my buddy would laugh at me when he was catching at 8 colors on the lead and I couldn't buy a fish on the riggers.

[Mac Attack]

Yup, once I got downriggers I never fished more than 3 colors on the leadcore. And then my buddy would laugh at me when he was catching at 8 colors on the lead and I couldn't buy a fish on the riggers.

The lead core imparts a slow up/down rhythm action to the lure Geoff.

Try this, and I'm sure some out there are going to give me crap about it.

Tie 2-3 colors onto a downrigger rod and send that down.
You get to use the rigger, which I also like, but still get some of that lead core action on the lure.
Charter captains have been doing this for a while now.

Remember that things are now running UNDER the ball.

Good luck.

[lowaccord66]

SWR Mac.  Works like a charm.

[Mac Attack]

SWR Mac.  Works like a charm.

I didn't want to call it by its proper name.
I was sworn to secrecy.
 

[hunts2long]

Back in the 70's I fished Senaca Lake often and there was a woman in a 14' boat "pulling" copper almost every day. I swear her one arm was twice the size to the other.....h2l

[Jethro]

The lead core imparts a slow up/down rhythm action to the lure Geoff.

Try this, and I'm sure some out there are going to give me crap about it.

Tie 2-3 colors onto a downrigger rod and send that down.
You get to use the rigger, which I also like, but still get some of that lead core action on the lure.
Charter captains have been doing this for a while now.

Remember that things are now running UNDER the ball.

Good luck.

I have a rod and reel that has 3 colors of lead on it just for this purpose but I don't seem to use it much. I seem to be a one trick pony.