Wire lining or leadcore

[trapperdirk]

 Anybody do any wire lining or leadcore for lakers here .

[Mackinaw]

Hi there TrapperD.   I've tried leadcore a couple of times for lakers in your backyard but I havent had much luck yet.  I'm planning on trying steel line but would like to get more familiar with the leadcore first.  There definately is a learning curve.  Do you fish lead/wire? 

[trapperdirk]

 Yes I've fished my share with both . As a rule when I go out down rigging for lakers I always bring a rod with wire . It works awesome when you can use it on a nice run . Got smoked real bad one  day years ago when I had decided not to use it anymore as part of my arsenal . A lesson was learned that day that some old ways can still be the difference between a skunk and many fish .
   Now it always is with me when I am downrigging too . . On occasions that the riggers don't produce I let out the wire and it always seems to do the trick plus that pounding on the old rod sure gives the arms a work out especially with 400 feet out . You feel every headshake of the fish and there is no give . . Just make sure you have someone running the boat that has used it before and keep moving your line in and out so it doesn't develop a kink in one spot or it will break and you will lose all . LOL .

[Mackinaw]

That's exactly what happened to me the first time out.  $20 worth of line + $20 for the cowbells + $8 for the rapala = one expensive lesson!  How often and by how much do you move the line in and out? If I could also ask what kind of rod and reel do you use for the lead and wire?  For leadcore I'm using a penn 209 reel with 10 colours and a pool que of a rod.  I picked them up as a combo on sale but I’m thinking about replacing the rod with either a longer, soft action or one with a roller or spring tip.  With the pool que I couldn’t tell when the bait was being dragged along the bottom.  Or, maybe that was because of the constant pull of the cowbells, not sure about that yet.  I was considering going to steel but not sure if the reel would have to be replaced as well.  This is a tricky style of fishing to master, why couldn’t we just have ice all year long?

[trapperdirk]

 Yes a pool cue is what most of these rods resemble . I use both a 209 and a 309 .
  Mine are the spring tip type . I don't use the cowbells only sometimes on the riggers .
  A pricey lesson you learned my friend . 
I usually find myself a fairly long run with a soft bottom if there are fish there . Then I let out line and stop it once in awhile till I hit bottom . Then I bring it up till I'm just off bottom and stroke the rod ahead then let it back using a big spoon tipped with a minnow .
   I will post you a pic when I dig out my open water rigging and show you my setup .
   Pull up say 6 ft of line and stroke rod 4 or 5 times then let out a foot and do it all over again . Keep doing this till you touch bottom then work your way back up . Drag it for aways too but its the stroking that usually gets you the hits . Just no more than 5 strokes max in one spot on the line or you know what occurs then . . Also these rods need to be stiff like pool cues in order to use wire . Lead you can use something with a bit of give though but not too much because of the amount of line out and to set the hook solid .
    Hope this gives you some idea but I would gladly show you sometime .
   And before I forget S patterns and loops in turning the boat must be done in large turns or you will get into a mess too . . No tight turns ever .!!!!!!

[Mackinaw]

I make S turns while trolling but these are completely unintentional. Seriously thanks very much that’s exactly the type of info I wwas looking for.  And, thanks also for the offer as well, I’ll definitely be taking you up on that one. 

It’s funny that you mention turns, there is a lake I fish that has native lakers and the fish all hold on the inside corner of an L shaped underwater cliff.  Try to troll too wide and you either snag or run aground, too tight and your lure is too far from the structure, pass over the fish and you’ll spook them.  Man it can be just as frustrating as stalking that big buck. 

[trapperdirk]

 Yes I can well relate to fishing such structure Mackinaw .  If it's to hard to do then forget about the wire or leadcore and use a downrigger instead . You can make tight turns and follow the structure alot easier with a rigger . I would also consider just drifting around this structue or if you can anchor on the the shallower part right at the edge of the deep water . A slight breeze and the boat which is anchored shallower will swing out over the deeper water for you and deadsticking .Do either the drift or the achor and it should get you into contact with a laker . Its one of my preferred methods when I can use it . Always a good battle bringing a laker to the surface on light gear .