Sliders

[Nucleus]

First of all, yes i have used the search function and read all posts there is but i still dont understand how you rig a slider on the downrigger.

Does any of you have a schematic picture os this rigging?

Will it work with mono line ?

How many rod do you totally use and how many rods on each downrigger?

I also wonder what depths you are fishing at?

Another question, i have noticed that all used spoons i have bought in the US comes without the split ring to attach the line to, Dont you use split rings? and why?

Thanks in advance.

Kjell

[Line Dancin]

I'll take a stab at answering your question without a diagram. For your downrigger i run one rod on it to the depth i want it set to, with mono. Then you take a piece of mono 6-10 foot in length i usually use 8 ft. tie a snap swivel on both ends of the mono. Attach the lure to one end and then the other snap swivel to the line from the rod going to the cannon ball. pitch the lure ver the side and it will run down the belly of the line and stop somewhere in the middle. Or you can let the cannon ball donw 10 to 15 feet take a thin rubber band tie a half hith with the rubber band on the line from the rod pass the snap swivel through the loop in the rubber band the attach it to the main line. This will peg the lure in one place and when a fish hits it will break the rubber band. One thing to remember when a fish hits a stacker there will be slack till the snap swivel gets down to the lure on the main line so reel reel reel till you feel the fish. the lure on the main line will stop the stacker traveling down so you want to make sure that you use a snap smaller then the luer on the main line. 1 rod per rigger is what i run

[Nucleus]

Ahh ok i see.

I normally run three rods off each of my downriggers so this technique wont work well along with the way i fish today.

But i have to try it and will give you feedback on the results.

Another question, i have noticed that all used spoons i have bought in the US comes without the split ring to attach the line to, Dont you use split rings? and why?

[1mainiac]

Sliders are a moveable lure and leader attached to the fishing line we use 2 terms fixed or free sliders. In a fixed Slider we let the downrigger and main line down a set depth and attach a leader and lure to the fishing line in a fixed position with either a rubber band to secure it or a device like the Alberta Clipper which will hold it in place till a fish hits it. When the fish hit a fixed slider it will trip the down rigger and then must slide all the way to the end of the line before it locks against the swivel or lure it often resembles a false trip when using rubber bands as once the rubber band breaks it is free untill it hit the end of the line. I prefer the Alberta Clipper as it maintains friction on the line allowing you to keep some pressure on the fish during the slide down the line.

A free Slider is just that you set your down rigger as normal and after it is set you add a lure and leader clipped onto the main line and send it down it will follow the line down and back to the belly of the line usually 50 to 70 % of the ball depth but no exact figures as they vary greatly from setup to setup. When a free slider goes off it releases the the rod and goes slack till it hits the end of the lines so nearly allways looks like a false trip you just have to grab the rod and reel like mad to take up the slack often hitting the fish but sometimes the fish is gone before you get the slack removed.

Stackers are a way of running a second fishing rod off the down rigger where a second release is added to the down rigger cable above the weight similar to a slider. You have a few options here as well in how you do it I use the stacker release made by Off Shore tackle it has 2 pinch pad releases and a snap you let the down rigger down a set depth and connect the snap to the down rigger cable and connect one of the pinch pads to the down rigger cable then attach a second rod to the other release and let the setup go down this allows you to run a lot of rods on a few down riggers while I have heard of guys running 3 rods per downrigger I have never tried it it can be done. In theory you could add as many stackers as you want to a down rigger however in practice the results are often not pretty as quite often a fish hitting the bottom setup tangles in all the rest or vise versa. When I run a stacker I say a prayer as I let it out and pray like mad if one of them goes off I run very long leads off my top rod in a stacker setup this allows the lure to run well back of the mainline from the bottom setup and reduces tangle when the top lure is grabbed it also gets me a second or 2 to pray when the bottom rod goes off that it clears the top rod sometimes it even works. but my best results are when the top rod goes off as it clears nearly every time and often as soon as the fish is clear and I will move the bottom setup up to where the stacker was running. So if I am running down 80ft with a stacker at 60ft and the stacker goes off as soon as I know the stacker is clear I move the rigger up 20ft and leave it I have picked up doubles doing this. I hope this makes it more clear.

[1mainiac]

Ok I see you are already using some form of stacker setup so the sliders would not add well. As to split rings they fail I look at every connection between the fish and me as a point of possible failure and the more I remove the better. Split rings are easier to connect to and I have left them on a few spoons but not many.

[Nucleus]

while I have heard of guys running 3 rods per downrigger I have never tried it it can be done. In theory you could add as many stackers as you want to a down rigger however in practice the results are often not pretty as quite often a fish hitting the bottom setup tangles in

We try to avoid tangle by using a downrigger cannonball(name doesnt fit this one) that looks like this one and we bend the fin alot to make it pull outwards away from the boat.

Two of them bend alot and only minor adjustments to the second two.

Works fine for me.

[Line Dancin]

Ok As to split rings they fail I look at every connection between the fish and me as a point of possible failure and the more I remove the better. Split rings are easier to connect to and I have left them on a few spoons but not many.

Typically the line fails and breaks first. As far as a failure point i have not seen many fail in the close to thirty years of doing this. second it also changes the action of the lure by removing the split ring. making it a slower action. this may be ok on some days, but the design of the lure is to include a snap ring. With the snap ring the lure achieves the proper action. So do i take them off? Never!

A lure that has a snap ring i run it with on. a lure without one can achieve the proper action without one so i do not add one to those.

[Line Dancin]

neucleus the olny problem i have with the cannonballs with the fin bent is if i am running four to six lines off each side it is easier to tangle a dipsy when the cannonball is pulling out to the side like that. We used to always run bent fins, but i don't anymore with running all the side lines.

[Paulywood]

With some of the wicked currents we run into the cannonballs with fins are m ore trouble than they are worth. Tangling 2 riggers together is ugly. As far as snap rings, if they come with them I run them. If they don't I don't add one.

[Priority1]

If I'm running sliders fixed or free, I keep my main line lure no more than 10 ft behind the ball. The shorter your main line set up the quicker your into the fish. I never slide anything but a clean spoon, on a main line with a clean spoon. Sliders attached to a main line, with a flasher or dodger running on it, will only result in a mess.

[2UNREEL]

It is very possible to run 2 rods with fixed sliders on each rod with one downrigger. Shorten up your sliders to around 6ft and that makes it more manageable at the net. When you put your rods in the rod holders spread them out from each other and this will help with releases on the bottom setup. If you are releasing them your self just pull the top rod first......Give it a try....I agree with Paulywood on the split rings, run them how they came in the package. I would look closer at the type of swivels your using on the non split ring lures and make sure its nice and rounded on the side the lure hooks to, that will keep that lure movin and groovin.

[1mainiac]

I run primarily Duo lock snaps which are every bit as round at the connection as the split ring and I have had split rings fail so my goal is less connections less chances of failure. I don't buy coastlock snaps anymore but still have a lot of them so untill they are gone will leave the split rings on the lures they come on if they are good quality rings. I am sorry but too many compaines develope lures with the finest componets then have them mass produced with lesser componets to hit the price market. Perhaps I am being to picky but I for one hate to spend full price on a fly only to get it home and find it made with Walmart quality fishing line and cheap hooks when there are guys out there making flies with top end componets selling for the same price. We spend too much on our gear and gas to risk failure with cheap crap. I can't say how many times I have watched people think nothing of snapping on a 7 dollar lure with a 2cent swivel.

[slipknot]

We run two rods off each of our four riggers all the time. Usually each of the rods will have a free or set slider on it as well. Have not had a problem with sliders getting tangled yet. I would think a third rod off the same rigger would pose a problem for sliders though.

A lot of days, its the sliders that get all the action. I won't put a rigger down anymore without a slider on it.

I'm a big fan of free sliders as the slider will change heights in the water column depending on currents and speed. (The belly of the main line will expand and contract according to the pressure on it from those forces, changing the location that the slider rests.) I think this extra up and down movement of the lure really helps entice bites from otherwise uninterested fish.

However, some days the fish are looking for a consistent depth and possibly less movement in the lure. On those days we use the rubber band method to "fix" a slider anywhere from six to twenty feet above the main lure.

I almost always only use a six foot slider length. It is easy to control while landing a fish and seems to never tangle in the water.

I do the same as mentioned above... I put a good duolock snap at the lure end of the leader and a duolock with ball bearing swivel at the line attachment end of the leader. I buy my swivels and snaps seperate and make my own "ball bearing duolock snap swivels" so that I get the quality I want while keeping the overall size down.

We can't use sliders here in NH... but I use them every chance I get on Lake Ontario. They've always been a huge success.

As far as split rings... I almost always remove the front splitring from lures. I always attach my leader to the lure with a nice rounded duolock snap. I have tested lures alongside the boat and I see no difference in lure action doing it this way. Too many times I've seen a brand name splitring uncoil. I've also seen several times where feisty steelhead will somehow manage to twist a splitring off a lure. This happened twice last spring with some new lures we had not removed splitrings from. The first time, the lure came off and the fish was gone. The second time we netted the fish and then noticed the splitring was 3/4 of the way unspun from the lure! Crazy. So, yes, I remove splitrings.

I use finned rigger pancake weights and bend mine so that the outside riggers spread a bit for more room. As long as I don't go crazy with the bend, I have no problem running a wire dipsey rod off each side as well. Although, I do use a 10' 6" dipsey rod to help keep the wire from touching my mono in the turns. I also never set my dipseys at a "0"... always at "1" or more to help maintain a safe spread of the lines.

[slipknot]

I forgot to mention one thing. On our fixed sliders, we use a medium sized rubber band. Most times this band does not break from the hit of a fish. What happens is the band slowly slides down the main line... OR... 70% of the time it stays in place and acts as a sort of shock absorber to the fight of the fish. This makes it so we don't have the big lag time between a fish hitting and finally getting tension on the fish. Much less lost fish this way.

If a fish hits the main lure, be prepared to remove the fixed slider when it gets near the rod tip. We quickly unclip the duolock, but leave the rubber band. We keep the band just small enough that it can be reeled through the guides of our rods easily and feed back out easily if a fish decides to make a last minute run (this wouldn't apply to a fish on the cheater lure as you'd be able to land it without getting the band into the rod tip).