Chat with a Pro.

[Walleye Express]

My fishing board recently had a chat with John Gillman, a very successfull local Walleye pro from Freeland Mich. Thought I'd share the transcript with you guys here.

2009-10-24 20:00:44 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: John. All of us here at saginawbay.com would like to thank you for your willingness to share with us some of your fishing wisdom. There should be no other post in this fish chat section by members until the main chat is over. If there is John, please politely ignore them until the main pre-submitted questions that are asked by me are answered. Then at that time John, you can choose to stick around and answer any fallow ups or new questions that may arise. I believe you told me that this is the only site on the entire Internet that you have ever considered joining, and for that we all thank you. It is indeed a shame that many of the fishing pros are afraid to interact on very few of the other fishing boards out there, because of the ridicule and slams most get for no apparent reasons, while trying to help out the common anglers. Tonight John, I'll be asking you some questions that I have pre-typed and/or taken from some of our board members. I'm guessing most will be mine because frankly, we still have many members who still think "Mark Martin" is a race car driver. And even though I know of your many years of fishing tournament successes, most may not. Anyway, here's the first question.

Question from Bob Charmicale/ChamookMan. John, I'd like to know how you feel this economy is going to effect the future of Walleye tournaments? And if think it has already?

2009-10-24 20:04:51 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: Hi Guys, Thanks for having me! I think the economy has taken it's toll on tournaments. I hope things turn for the better because I feel tournament anglers bring a lot of new cutting edge information to the weekend anglers! In the last few years the price of boats and equipment rising at the rate it has does not help!

2009-10-24 20:05:12 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: Question From Mark Smith. If you could only have ONE crank bait in your tackle box, what would you choose? Follow up, and if you could have two, whats your 2nd choice? (softwater season) Mark Smith aka msmith5531 thanks.

2009-10-24 20:10:01 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: The one crankbait I would have would probably be a #5 Shad Rap. Second would be a Husky Jerk! I do have a new favorite and it is the Madeye Shad from Spro. I do not want to sound like I am advertising here but I have been fortunate enough to be involved in the promotion of this bait with the guys I fish(Team) with and we are excited to be a part of it. It is similar in size to a #5 Shad Rap ecept it is equiped with Gamakatsu hooks and has a unique paddle tail. It, like the #5 Rap can be casted or trolled.

2009-10-24 20:10:32 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: Capt. Dan Question 1. John, if you had only one fishing technique or disciplines you could pick as your own (ace in the hole) when it comes to tournament fishing, what would that be and why?

2009-10-24 20:26:00 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: My number one favorite tournament technique is trolling spinners. I have cut my teeth here on Saginaw Bay pulling spinners and have a lot of confidence with them. I almost exclusively use 1 Oz. in-line weights and try to stay at 1 mph. With this combination I can target the fish on my electronics because I feel confident where the bait is in the water column. There are times that I do troll faster than 1mph and slower than 1mph, I try to let the conditions dictate that or let the fish tell me what they want. Mixing it up and changing helps to get a feel for what works best that day. All of my best tournament finishes have come in a trolling situation and again I feel it is due to my confidence from doing it so much here on Saginaw Bay. If I can troll spinners at any event I will.In many situations and at different bodies of water you cannot troll so my confidence lacks! Confidence is probably as big a factor in fishing as anything.

Capt. Dan Question 2.

What are you favorite tournament baits/cranks/tackle and techniques when fishing Saginaw Bay?

My favorite baits on Saginaw Bay..Obviously spinners.. Chartreuse beads with Silver or gold Blades.I keep it very simple. I do also like the rainbow holographic blade from Northland. Anyone that knows me, knows that this is the combination I pull almost exclusively!! All of the tournaments I have excelled in on Saginaw Bay or any open water event have been with that color combination. As far as crank baits I have always loved Rapala, probably like most. I use the Deep Husky Jerk, size 10 and 12 and #18 Rapalas trolling. The # 5 Shad Rap casting the man made Island is also a go to for me. I do have a new favorite though and it is the Madeye Shad from Spro. I have been fortunate to be involved with this bait and it has been exciting getting it off the ground and promoted. It is similar in size to the # 5 Shad Rap and runs similar also. It does have a unique paddle tail and is equipped with Gamakatsu treble hooks. I wanted to take this opportunity to talk about it and to generate questions or interest. You can email me at [email protected] with any questions about it.

Fish Chat: Capt. Dan Question 3. Do you have a BIG FISH strategy at all on Saginaw Bay, that may differ from your (just fill the box) strategy?

2009-10-24 20:30:48 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat:

This will probably sound redundant to some but my BIG fish technique for Saginaw Bay would be to fish the bottom. Again this is due to past experience and success doing it. I would pull 2 oz. bouncers or 1 oz. in-lines in the mud!! I know that the bay has evolved in the last few years and it seems as though where ever in the column you fish you catch a lot of fish. I still believe the Big girls lay on the bottom. I realize they suspend but I would still always target the bottom. I feel the biggest fish are in the inner Bay, but to catch 5 is almost impossible. You need to run North to get consistently bigger fish! The tournaments keep proving that!

2009-10-24 20:31:16 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: Capt. Dan Question 4. I've seen you work on the water and I must say you are a speed demon. You sat up and fished 3 different spots around me one day on the Bay, and I bet you never stayed in any of those 3 spots more then 20 minutes each. What were you looking for in that short period time and what didn't you see that made you move so much?

2009-10-24 20:37:15 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: As far as moving around, I will do that frequently. Over the years I have learned to use and trust my electronics. If I am not marking (catching) fish, I move. I think that a lot of guys will relax, sit back and keep trolling. As a tournament fisherman my time is limited so I try to capitalize and find fish. As for Saginaw Bay I always move if I am not Marking fish. With today's electronics it helps out immensely!! Invest in good electronics and try to use them to benefit your success.

2009-10-24 20:37:33 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: Capt. Dan Question 5. John, I've heard some say that it's your positive attitude that keeps you in the game during tournaments. But I know through personal fishing experiences myself that the bag of tricks one has, along with attitude can be worn down when you've exhausted all the options. So what keeps you and your head in the game when all seems lost and the fishing SUCKS?

2009-10-24 20:41:09 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: As for keeping a positive attitude sometimes that is tough. You can only control so many things.The weather is a huge factor in walleye fishing as all of you know. Try to do the best you can with the conditions you face. As a tournament angler sometimes it is frustrating because the experienced anglers will shine, and a big part of that is the fact that they have fished a certain body of water in many different conditions. I think that for myself I am not as knowledgeable as others due to the fact that I have not played the game as long. What I try to do in that situation is focus and fish harder. I typically have a different energy level than most and in certain situations that helps me. Lastly, It is always better than working!!!!

2009-10-24 20:41:43 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: Capt. Dan Question 6. We recently had a post subject that caused some tempers to flare up a little on our site. It was about "Big Bite Bio Baits" and their own product quality, effectiveness and success rates when compared to the Berkley Gulp Product. I've personally never used the Big Bite product for comparison, but found myself defending what I know personally to be true about Gulp. And that is, "that you can re-use the Gulp product after its initial use" if you reconstitute it. I know you are a Big Bite and Spro fishing gear Rep. But I also know from our brief meeting that you are (IMO) an honest man willing to share good information with anybody willing to listen. (I did not quite get that feeling President Bush got when he first met president Putin "thank God", but I'd trust you to drive my boat.) And that's at the top of the latter with me. Anyway, to both be fare and introduce to us what might be a new product for us guys to use on the Bay, could you give us an honest overview of your own experiences with Big Bite Bio Baits, how you run them and any other tid-bits on products you use that would enhance our fishing catch rates? And it may be helpful after you've answered this question, to take a few questions about the products from the gallery. As this is my last pre-submitted question.

2009-10-24 20:49:57 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: Big Bite baits is a scent impregnated plastic. It is a bass plastic company that is now breaking into the walleye market. The guys I travel with, Tom Keenan, Pat Neu and Dean Arnoldussen are all involved in helping to promote and develop some new baits. We have the Bio-Minnow, Bio-Bug jig and the new Bio-Crawler. All of these baits we have used with good success. It will not dry out and is not immersed in liquid substance. Some of these items obviously compete with Berkley. Berkley has done a fabulous job with their products, they work and a big part of their success is also their marketing budget. Big Bite has decided to employ some prostaff to get started and I have been very fortunate to be one of them. We are introducing the items to the public and hopefully people will give it a try with an open mind! Locally, Franks has some of the products and will have more this spring. I am more than willing to discus the products with anyone and you can reach me via email, which I have given above. The Bio-bug is a jig designed similar to a fuzzy grub but the body is scent impregnated and it is a Gamakatsu hook. The body is also attached to the head so it does not slide. The Bio-Minnow is also scent impregnated and comes in 9 color combinations and 3 sizes. 2.5, 3, 4 inch. Lastly the crawler comes in natural and 5 other colors. I have used it for jigging and also on spinners trolling. Please check out the items also on the Big Bite website at bigbitebaits.com.

2009-10-24 20:51:37 [Message] Chamookman -> Fish Chat: John - What's Your favorire River technique ?

2009-10-24 20:53:36 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: Chamookman.. My favorite river technique would be live bait rigging. Although in the last 2 years I have been handlining and it is a riot!

2009-10-24 20:53:46 [Message] ozzgood2001 -> Fish Chat: John-who was your first sponsor and how did you approach them or did they approach you?

2009-10-24 20:55:36 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: Ranger Boats. I have been with them since I started and I appreciate what they do for tournemet anglers!

2009-10-24 20:57:12 [Message] Reel Fishn -> Fish Chat: John, I know everyone says they troll 1 to 1.5, I have been next to you and you seem to troll slower than that??

2009-10-24 20:59:50 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: I do typically troll at 1, some times I do troll slower than that. It depends, I let the fish tell me what they want. There are many situations where you may make a turn and all of a sudden you get bit. So I do mix it up a lot!

2009-10-24 21:00:07 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: What size blades are you favorites on the Bay John. Have you ever tried what I call thumpers? #7 & 8's? Ever use any of Tommy Harris Blades?

2009-10-24 21:03:06 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: I have not used those blades! I typically use #4 or #5 but this year at Lake Erie I made the cut and did for the firts time use bigger blades. I will again in the future. Again it was a confidence issue and from now on I will practice with larger blades and if it produces bigger fish I will definitely run them on game day!

2009-10-24 21:03:36 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: Ever use any Keel Sinkers versus Bouncers?

2009-10-24 21:06:11 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: I almost always use in-lines (keels) over bouncers. I know sometimes that the vibration of a boucer may have an effect but my confidence is for the most part with in-lines. I will always use bouncers next to the boat though. I almost exclusively use 1 ounce also!

2009-10-24 21:06:34 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: Last year on a few days when it was dead calm, I used what I call the "Haul and Stall". I would key my TR-1 to almost idle speed and then key it back to 2.3 MPH or higher. This caught me some fish. Have you ever tried this?

2009-10-24 21:08:57 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: I have! It was in Dunkirk New York and I was pulling spinners on lead core in 80 feet of water. 3 colors of lead so the spinners were suspended, I would take the boat out of gear and let them sink. As they would fall I would get bit. I caught all of my fish that day using bthat technique!

2009-10-24 21:09:20 [Message] ozzgood2001 -> Fish Chat: john-when do you like to go shallow for eyes.. i mean 5 feet or less. besides the obvious answer when the fish are there lol

2009-10-24 21:12:08 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: Obviously in the spring or fall. I prefished the PWT championship with a fellow travel partner in the spring of 2008. We caught fish on spinners in 2-5 feet of water 10 feet behind the board with no weight. It is very similar to what is done in Green Bay and we applied it here and it worked, problem though was not quantity but size!

2009-10-24 21:15:07 [Message] chuck -> Fish Chat: JOHN Thanks how long a spinner leader do you use behind your keels

2009-10-24 21:16:50 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: All of my spinners are tied the same, about 5 feet. I also always use florocarbon line, again it is a confidence thing.

2009-10-24 21:17:16 [Message] Chamookman -> Fish Chat: Thanks for the time John and good luck next season !

2009-10-24 21:17:21 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: John, I want to thank you again for coming in tonight. Also be sure to get those answers that did not post tonight to me in an E-mail so i can add them to the chat for the guys.

2009-10-24 21:17:34 [Message] jauls -> Fish Chat: Thanks John

2009-10-24 21:17:40 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: Thank you, I appreciate that!

2009-10-24 21:18:11 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: We'll get the bugs worked out and you can come back for another chat if you don't mind.

2009-10-24 21:18:26 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: Definitely!

2009-10-24 21:18:52 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: One more thing, we have to fish one day on the river day or night. The night has been rocking the last few times out.

2009-10-24 21:19:29 [Message] jgillman -> Fish Chat: We will for sure, I need to pick that brain of yours!!

2009-10-24 21:20:06 [Message] chuck -> Fish Chat: Thank you all for putting this together.

2009-10-24 21:20:28 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: No problem Chuck and don't be a stranger on the board.

2009-10-24 21:20:45 [Message] capt.dan -> Fish Chat: Good night John.