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Its no big deal to me, I looked at both of them either one would have worked. I just thought the 15 was a little more compact and held less line. I filled 3 reels with 20lb as backer from one 300 yard spool and had some left over. and then put on 100 to 120 yards of 10/4 fireline and hope never have to replace the backer.
That'll work. I do, however really like the thumb bar, started with all 15's and switched to the 20's a couple years ago but the 15's will work fine.Quote:
Originally Posted by clfarms1
Okay, I've seen you say this several times. What are you talking about??? I have bought more than a dozen of the 20's over the years (seems they are always out of the 15's when I try to order) and there is no thumb bar on any of mine. They are identical to the 15's except for size, far as I can tell.Quote:
Originally Posted by majflyboy
Attachment 128435Attachment 128434there is a little plastic piece on top of the reel on the left side to rest your thumb. we dont have it on the 15's it covers up the bar that holds the 2 sides together
Okay, not really what I consider a thumb bar. My baitcasters have a thumbar that releases the spool. That bar on the okuma's does nothing.
right just a bar to rest your thumb on. but now we have pics of both for future reference
Saw creekslick at the ramp today. He has some smooth as silk, low profile baitcasters that have a digital counter on them...SWEEET!
Yep, high dollar Daiwas, sweet.Quote:
Originally Posted by feelay
I saw somewhere someone post that they put cut pvc on the spool so they wouldn't use so much line. Any of yall seen this.?
Boat, motor, trailer, trolling motor, electronics, tow vehicle, etc. etc. And you want to jury rig something to save 5 bucks? Gewber!Quote:
Originally Posted by martyrm
It's the little things that countQuote:
Originally Posted by ATM
Hi yall, new on here. I just want to thank you all for the wealth of knowledge you have out here on this thread. I am just getting started on this pullin cranks business, and it is getting addicting. Yall done got me started now!
Fished Percy Priest here in TN for a few hours Saturday and caught these. Not a lot of numbers, but some good ones.
Attachment 128950Attachment 128951
Very nice, you have only just begun!!! Welcome aboard as well!!Quote:
Originally Posted by Big John in TN
Congratulations on the good catch, and, welcome to the forum.Quote:
Originally Posted by Big John in TN
I learned this this past Saturday at Sardis. (Most of you probably already know this).
I established a track that I wanted to concentrate on fishing the ledges on an underwater river. After I determined the limits of my track I used the TM for the downwind run and went back to the start with the big motor. I had my big Brilla up and I went from 10 on the terror trying to pull going into the wind to 5 going with the wind. I know I saved at least an hour on my batteries. Hope this helps someone.
Hey all...I am totally new to trolling cranks, and after reading this entire thread - a couple of things stand out. One of which is consistency being key. It appears that it is crucial to know my depth, and to be able to replicate it on all poles. Therefore - obviously it is important to know how much line to have out. A lot of you cranking guys with experience on here use line counter reels to let you know how far out you are. I just spent a lot of money getting a Terrova IPilot, lures, GPS, etc...so Im not too much in the buying 4 new reels mood (or more to the point - I'm not in the mood to listen to my wife anymore when she gets the credit card bills). So I am looking for a cheaper alternative to the line counter reels but still being able to count out my line with some ease, and consistency. I don't want to pull line out by hand (5-10-15-20-25-30-etc...) - that sounds just awful!
First thought was that I could tie on a bobber stopper, and run it up my line and tie it off at whatever length of line I may start trolling (say 50'). Then I thought well what about the metered line that changed color every 10', so I would just count out my colors to know how far out I am? I don't really see anyone talking about doing that on here, so I was wondering - does nobody do this? I found a metered line marked every 10' at BPS made by Tufline. It is 30lb braid that is the mono equivalant of 8 lb mono (which is the same size as the 30/8 PowerPro HiVis Yellow that a lot of folks on here talk about).
Does anyone on here have any experience using metered line?
AND/OR
Does the bobber stopper idea hold water? Or would that be too tough to manage for some reason I'm not seeing?
AND - HUGE thanks to everyone on here giving their tips. You could put this thread in a book and sell it to guys like me. VERY valuable info on this thread!!!
Sorry....one more question (and maybe a dumb one)...
When someone says that they have 50' of line out to get to their desired depth like what is on the Bandit depth charts - what does that mean exactly. Does that mean that you are counting the line back from the reel, the rod tip, or from where the line hits the water?
If you stopped at 50' at the reel, you'd then have the length of the rod and the distance before the line hits the water. If you were using 16' poles, and then the line didn't touch the water until it was 10' back - would you add 26' to your desired 50', so the line counter would read 76'?
Sorry for the dumb question - but I want to be 100% sure I'm doing things correctly.
THANKS for reading this!!!!
Line is already down the pole when u zero the counter.Quote:
Originally Posted by duxrok
How many poles u figure to use? 4 reels 100 bucks. 6, 150
Nit on a gnat for what u already spent. Counters will finish the objective..
Hey, fly into Jackson, I'll pick u up, an u'll get first hand experience of how one redneck geezer does it right here on Barnett Rez.. Then ud really b n trouble...
I never thought of being out already. DUH! See...just goes to show how little I know. Thanks!!!
I made the big purchase of the Terrova. I thought I was gonna have to call out someone with heart paddles on that one and the Birrrd when she asked (and I foolishly told her) how much it cost. Since then - I've bought a second battery, dual bank charger, in-line 60 amp fuse, quick release for the TM, braid, and good lord only knows how many crank baits. I still have a "wish" list....but its gonna have to be "wish" until the shock of the other stuff has worn off. (Rods, Reels, more cranks, more cranks, more cranks, etc...) :) I'd love to see how someone who knows what they are doing does it....but fly into Jackson? Boy - that's just asking for a butt whoopin' from the Birrrd. I'll just have to add that to the ever growing wish list for down the road! ;)
I don't even know if this will work where I fish.
I don't have any counters to sell, but from time to time, u'll c them on here. Just start with a couple. To me it a necessity.. Jus me, but I'd sell that quick release and buy reels, way more bang/buck..
i bet I have 400+ baits and only use a small percentage..
Just pull off a foot at a time from your reel. If you want, take a Mark a Lot or Sharpie with you and mark your line for reference after you pull off desired length. Sounds like you don't need to be spending anymore money on fishing for a while. A divorce will be much more costly!
Oh, I can't sell the quick release. I really like it because I can't keep my boat inside, so I just snap the TM off and run it into the garage. I like the idea of a TM that cost that much being protected when I'm not around.
I'm gonna keep my eyes open, but I'm guessing that once I get a few trips into cranking I'll be able to spend a little more and grab up those Okuma's. But for now...I'm gonna wait. I think that for now, I'm just gonna mark the line every 10 feet and see how that works.
No worries on a divorce. My birrrd is awesome. I believe her issues were only sticker shock. No matter what...she didn't say no, so...big points for her. I have a feeling that I'm gonna go home and find out that I bought her a new ring and a fancy purse that I had no idea I was even shopping for! :)
Thanks for the tips!!! Much appreciated!
One way I used to count line when I was trolling was just to count the line spool from side to side. Watch the line guide each pass to one side of spool got you about a foot of line. Worked well when I was trolling for snook in the intercostal rivers with Rapala shad raps in Florida . Started cranking for crappie got a couple okuma reels fairly cheap just makes it easier. Had momma in back of boat handed her a counter reel told her how many feet to let out within minutes she was telling me she was snagged on something. That snag was her first slab crappie. Get momma hooked then break out the MasterCard.
I marked all of my line with Sharpie last night in 10' increments. What a huge PITA that was. I don't see me repeating that again. That line is thin...dunno how it will work in practice. This is gonna be interesting.
Tsnook - getting the Birrrd hooked on fishing is a tough proposition. I've tried. If I take her "fishing", she thinks I'm taking her "tanning".
After my experience last night - those Okumas are looking better and better. I'll probably have them soon. I can't tell you how many times I went on the Northwoods site this morning and hem-hawwed around with those Okumas. Add them to the cart....pull them out and add them to the wish list....close the page...think about it....pull it back up....add them back to the cart...chicken out...close the page. One of these times I'm gonna holler like one of them blue faced guys in Braveheart, and just do it. Unfortunately, I'm at work...soooooo....that will be awkward. :)
Hey duxrok, u cud get this an it'd b a lot easier. Jus remember, a spool of this is not much less than a 15D..
Academy - PowerPro Depth Hunter 20 lb. - 500 feet Braided Fishing Line
You will find out through experience that when you get busy pulling in fish and letting your bait back out that you will not be able to keep count of how much line you are pulling out, like when you're letting the bait out and another pole gets a hit. You'll have to stop the reel and chances are you'll forget your footage ( I would anyway ). Get the 20DX line counters now and you'll be done with it (that part anyway). Good fishing.Quote:
Originally Posted by duxrok
Well - I couldn't take it any longer. Should I? Shouldn't I? I just ordered 4 Okuma Madga 20DX line counters from Northwoods Wholesale about 5 minutes ago.
Now I get to start hem-hawwing around about how many and what color Bandits to get. :)
Congratulations. You will be glad you got the line counters. Now for the Bandits, black and pink, 300's.Quote:
Originally Posted by duxrok
Black bubblegum, sardis gold, mad cow, orange crush, chome/blue back, chrome/char back, char/blue back, ect,ect,ect.Quote:
Originally Posted by majflyboy
Quit putting it off, it will drive yuou crazy!!!!!!!!! :Rofl
Thanks Maj...I feel better about it already. I did run it past the war department first, and there was no backlash, so its all good. Once I knew that - it was a done deal.
I have about 20 Bandit 300's on an order consisting of the following colors : Hotty Totty, Mistake, Black, Red Crawdad, Mad Cow, Orange Crush, Solid Chartreuse, and Pearl. The place I am getting them doesn't show the Black Bubblegum or the Sardis Gold, but I figure this lot will get me started. I also already have a box of mismatched colors of mismatched manufacturers (Bandit, Berkley, Strike Kings, etc...) that are crappie cranks.
Rebel makes some good ones too, similar to the Bandit, but they have some colors that Bandit doesn't have and they run true out of the box. Good fishing.
I have finally read this whole thread..Thanks to all that have contributed their expertise. Hit the lake this morning with the reluctant girlfriend, she had rather shoot docks, had 2 rockfish about 12 to 15 pounds each but no crappie.....Not enough time to find fish this morning......I see the addiction starting.....
pulling at night was touched on earlier....Does anybody pull at night and if so how?
Tried it a couple of times last year, only caught one.
I haven't seen any reports on here about pulling at night.
Suppose if you attached some of those little glow sticks for bobbers on the rod tips you could watch for the bite?!
Trolling in the moon light it's not hard to see your poles pulling cranks, just haven't had any luck at it.
Rees, what if I'm using 15/8 braid? How will the depths change?Quote:
Originally Posted by Rees Guide
Not a hole lot, will run a little deeper.
Was using some 6 pound mono and was dumping botom in 17 foot of water when the crank would have been running 13 with 10 pound mono. Using that formula if the chart says 13 then your 15/8 should be running around 15.
Yep, been seeing about a 3-5 foot advantage on the 6 lbs tests, but not liking the bait loss ratios. Going back to 10lbs mono. Braid may not see the break offs, but 6 lbs mono is just too light for me. That was 6lbs Pline and Viscious monos.