One of the most often asked questions I receive deals with summertime fishing. Most fisherman find it easy to catch large amounts of fish when they are at or near spawning peaks or in late fall when they are foraging for food and will hit anything that looks inviting. During the summertime however, many people find it difficult to actively find and target fish.

Trolling can be one of the best fishing techniques during the dog days of summer when the fish are scattered over vast areas seeking cooler waters while trying to exert as little energy as possible to catch a meal. The name of the game is to cover lots of water and put your baits in front of as many fish as possible.

In the early years of trolling, the fisherman was limited on how he would get his bait to the desired target depth. Usage of heavy weights, trial and error, and guessing all played a part on getting a bait to a desired depth. In today’s modern trolling world, we are surrounded by tons of different tools that give us a distinct advantage over the fisherman of yesteryear. In many cases, it gives us the advantage over the guy fishing to the left or right of us. Most of them have not taken the time to learn these new tactics, have fear of “technology”, or have not had someone explain how simple and easy these new practices can be.

Downriggers, lead core lines, jet and dipsy divers, bottom bouncers, drop weights, inline weights and copper line all play their part in helping the trolling fisherman get down to the desired depth. Unfortunately, many of these systems can be expensive, cumbersome, and require specialized equipment in order to properly utilize them. Another disadvantage of the above mentioned tactics happens after the fish takes you’re offering. In most of the above cases, you are left with a device on your line that detracts from the fun of it all; fighting the fish!

The team at Off Shore Tackle has been around the trolling industry for a long time. They know all too well about the effects of cranking in hundreds of yards of copper and lead core line simply because they needed that much out in order to reach a target depth. Being innovators, it didn’t take them long to come up with a product that aids in getting a bait to a desired depth in a more efficient manner. This product doesn’t need any specialized equipment, can be added to your existing trolling rod platform, aids the bait in getting to a target depth much quicker, doesn’t negatively affect the fighting of a fish once it is hooked, and is light on the pocket book. I’m talking about the OR36 Tadpole.

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The OR36 Tadpole from Off Shore Tackle is available in 4 different sizes: 1, 2, 3 and Magnum. To simplify what the number system means, the bigger the Tadpole, the less line it will take to reach a target depth.

Before we begin, I feel it is important to note that the practices I will describe are carried out with the help of planer boards. Planer boards aid the fisherman by getting their offerings out and away from the boat, help avoid tangles, and allows the fisherman to cover a wider path of water. In places like Michigan, spider rigging and pushing and pulling jigs or crank baits can often be ineffective. This is attributed to our crystal clear water that often sends boat weary crappie to the depths of Davy Jones Locker. Planer boards get the baits out away from the boat and allows the angler to target fish that have not been spooked by the boat.

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Out of the package, the Tadpole comes with two Duolock snaps. One at the top along the ridge (which attaches to your main line) and the other at the tail (where your leader attaches). One of the first things I do is to take the rear Duolock snap and turn it around. Out of the package it is not conducive to quickly make leader changes. By turning it around you can utilize the snap as intended and affix other terminal tackle to it.

Attaching your main line to the Tadpole can be done in a multitude of ways. All of my trolling rods are setup with Duolock snaps attached to the end of the line. I utilize the Duolock to attach my main line to the included snap on the top side of the Tadpole. I have found no real reason to add a barrel swivel to the top end of the Tadpole because they don’t seem to twist in the water or cause line loop issues. On my leader end, or the part that runs from the tail of the Tadpole to my bait, I run a SPro barrel swivel. In most cases, I prefer to run a size 6 swivel.

It should be noted that the leader end (part extending from the Tadpole to your bait) should be no longer than the rod you are using. I like to make mine about one foot shorter than the rod I will be using just to make up the different for any rod bend. If you make your leader too long you may have to extend your rod high above your head in order to net your fish. I keep a ready supply of premade leaders in different lengths on board at any time.

Unlike other diving aids on the market that require the angler to set an arm, calibrate the trip strength, and trip the diver when you want to retrieve your line, Tadpoles were designed to require no such device or cocking mechanism. To make the Tadpole dive simply put the snap in the “V” shaped grove located at the top. This can be done by hand before it enters the water or once in the water. To set in the water, simply slacking the line slightly will automatically set the Tadpole into the dive position. When the fish hits the bait on the terminal end, the Duolock will slid from the dive position to the front nose. This releases all of the downward dive angle pressure and allows you to fight your fish. In the unfortunate event that you lose the fish, simply slack the line backwards and it will reset to the dive position.

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Bait selection is based on the type of fish you intend to target. Spinners, crawler harnesses, floating jigs, and lipless crankbaits all work well behind Off Shore Tadpoles. Although they were not specifically made to run big lipped crank baits (they have a tendency to trip the Tadpole and not allow it to dive) we have found that smaller lipped baits such as size four and five Berkley Flicker Shad, smaller Bandits, and even small floating Rapalas work well behind the Tadpole.

Trolling depth is achieved by the amount of line you have played out from your rod. We utilize properly calibrated line counter reels to ensure we have the exact amount of line out in order to ensure we are running at the correct depth. When trolling, I wouldn’t be caught dead without my Precision Trolling App. This allows me to know exactly how much line to play out in order to hit my target depth. All of the Off Shore Tackle Tadpoles (as well as several of their other products) are available for download in this App. It will precisely tell me how much line I need out in order to hit a target depth while running a specific speed. No more guessing!