Best Book on Salmon Trollling/Rigging

[MEANMACHINE]

I am new to the site and trolling for salmon. I have posted some questions and have gotten help but I have so many more and do not want to overload the forum with my questions. I trolled back in the late 80's early 90's with my dad and we did fairly well but things have changed dramatically. We never ran more than four rods and always on downriggers and we only used 20# mono. I am rigging my small non fishing boat from scratch but want to do it the right way and keep it affordable. That may be an oxymoron but I am going to try anyways. If anyone can recommend a book on salmon trolling and rigging I would really appreciate it.

Thanks,

Bradley

[Nailer]

Brandy, what area do you fish? Fill out that area in your profile, and there will be plenty of help.

Most everyone on the forum will gladly help with any questions you have.

Each lake, has a bit different setup that consistently works.

Post a picture of your boat (if you need help on how to do that just ask) for specific questions.

We all learn from discussion.

[MEANMACHINE]

Thanks Nailer. I live in Oxford so no real home port. I think my best plan of action would be to try and gear/rig to be most versatile. I will post a picture or two of my boat soon so I can be more specific with my rigging questions.

[KJ pluggin]

Bradley, feel free to ask any questions you may have, chances are your not the only one who has that question. As for some good books to read, take a look at "Great Lakes Salmon and Trout Fishing" and "Keating on Kings." Keatings books have some good information on tactics and presentations.

Edited February 15, 2012 by KJ pluggin

[Turfwrench]

Something to consider. Anderson's ProBait in Port Huron has a spring salmon seminar on Sunday Feb 19th at 9:00am. Tim Cook will be presenting this topic and puts out some great information. Well worth attending - - and it is free to attend!

[N II Deep]

Another way to learn is ride with a member. Most of us will post if we have an open seat.

You get to see how others setup are run.

[pentwater bite me]

ask away,good fishing for you is good for us all.

[sherman51]

welcome, the best advice i can offer without having a speicific question. is you want to start out with a couple of good riggers, electric if at all possable. i used manuals for 30 yrs. when i did get electric i was just amazed how much more enjoyable rigger fishing was. then learn as much as you can about running divers. you can run atleast 2 divers off each side and stack your riggers, that will give you 8 rods in the water right there. its easy to run divers. just set the outside diver to run alittle farther out than your inside diver and run the outside atleast 20 ft farther back than your inside diver. so when you put the outside out over your inside it will clear it on the way out. but divers are a cheap way to get lines down.

some people will swear by the old dipsy divers. and then there are the walker deeper diver. then the ones i like to use the lite bite slide diver. here are some of the reasons i like them better than the other ones. you can use them as a slide diver or i just use them like a standard diver except i use the lite bite feature. you can make 2 adjustments on them. one setting is for the tension from the main line. then you adjust the lite bite arm. you can set the lite bite arm so light that a good sized crappie will trip the diver when it hits and still not have false releases. then you can set it tight to where it takes a pretty good tug on your lure to trip it. i catch alot of small fish, so i keep it set light. then you can get a kit for them that comes with 2 oz and 4 oz weights and 2 size rings. if you want to run deep use the 4 oz weight and the large weight. but then the mag dipsy,s will get you down pretty deep. but the higher the setting out to the side you set your divers the shallower they will run. a 5 setting and 150 ft of line out wont get you as deep as a 3 setting with 150 ft of line out. hope i havent just confused you.

and like someone elce said. watch for open seats, and go out with some other guys. you can learn more on another boat than we could teach you here in months. and ask questions while on there boat. then you can combine what you already know with what you learn on there boat. and never be afraid to try some things on your own.

to get my dive curve on the divers i went to 50 ft of water and let out line on each setting until i started bumping botton. then i just devided 50 foot by the amount of each 10 ft of line out. like on my 4 setting i had to let out 185 ft with the diver with the stock weight and little ring. so i devided 50 by 18.5, that gave me 2.7 ft down for each 10 ft of line out. then you just do the same thing on 3 setting and then 2 setting and 1 setting. but say i want to run 65 ft deep on the 4 setting i just devide 65 by 2.7 and it gives me 24, so i know thats 24x10=240 ft of line out. you can get charts that are somewhat close but to spend just alittle time you can get real close. just set the diver up how ever your going to use it and run the speed you use most. like a lite bite slide diver with the big ring and the 4 oz weight is going to be alot different than the small ring and stock weight. so to get your dive curve use the diver set up the way you plan to use it for fishing. does any of this info help you any.

when i moved from the western basin of erie our trolling was mostly 2 riggers and 4 flatlines with deep diving crank baits. we were fishing water that was like 28 to 31 ft deep. we moved to the central basin, the water was 60 to 75 ft deep. the only way to get that deep was to use something to get you down. i didnt have a clue how to fish except with riggers. so i went out on a charter a couple of times. now i can run 4 riggers and 4 divers on each side, and then i can run a couple of outriggers with 15 lb braid and a small dipsy out about 3 or 4 hundred ft and pick up a few shallow fish. but most of the fish are deep in the summer when i fish. but i hadnt ever even seen a diver except hanging on the wall, or in a book. i learned how to use them and get alot of rods in the water. now i can run up to 14 rods if i need to. but in ohio you can only use 2 rods per person. so i usely only run 10 t0 12 rods.

and there are other ways to get your lures down, wire line, lead core, and some even use wire on divers. but walleye fishing i just never liked using wire or lead core. you can even use boards with inline weights or divers.

but i didnt even know about these forums when i was learning to fish. so i had to use charter boats. which still isnt a bad idea, i would always reccomend anybody that can get a few friends together to go out on a good charter atleast once. just talk to the capt and make sure they fish with what you want to learn. and then tell the capt you want to go to school. but you dont want to go out on a charter thats going to run 6 riggers only, when you want to learn about divers or lead core or wire. and you can still take some of the open seats thats on here. just be ready to help pay for expences and maby even help clean the boat. its best to ask what will be expected of you. then try to do alittle extra. maby pick up a box of donuts.

sorry for such a long post guys. just trying to help.

sherman

[Blaze]

I have read "Keating on Kings" , and " Great Lakes Salmon and Trout Fishing" both are very good books. Also Dan Keating puts on salmon seminars, there are a few this winter yet...if you can attend one it would be very informative. There's one coming up in March at BirchRun expo center....good luck.

[Blaze]

Nice post Sherman....tough to follow up on that one, there's some experience right there....I wanted add that another book for mean machine is the " precision trolling...big water edition 2".....I think it's a must for big water fishing....

[Priority1]

Sherman, You don't have to apologize for a great post. TYVM:)

[MEANMACHINE]

Thanks everyone. I'll try reading through more posts and a few books.

I started the year off buying used Cannon electrics and dumped way too much money into them before selling them for a loss. I ended up buying manual Big Jons which I am fine with. Now it's time for rods and reels.

My boat has a 7'6" inch beam and the gunwales are really too narrow to mount anything on so I think my best bet is to run the riggers off a trolling board out to the side or on a 45 degree angle. That way I can mount two additional rod holders outside the riggers to run dipsey's. I am also thinking of using the pedestal in the bow to mount an additional board to run a couple boards. That will give me six rods.

[Nailer]

A very nice easy spread is 2 riggers 2 divers and 2 core/copper lines.

Riggers in the back corners, divers mid area, and core/copper lines forward in the setup.

I really like to have the divers in the mid area to help get the line in the water before the back of the boat. This helps when a fish comes in for netting.

[sherman51]

Nice post Sherman....tough to follow up on that one, there's some experience right there....I wanted add that another book for mean machine is the " precision trolling...big water edition 2".....I think it's a must for big water fishing....

yea, i was afraid i might just confuse him. its really pretty simple as long as you dont get it to involved. there are just so many options when it comes to using divers. i could write a whole book on them. so i tried to keep it as simple as i could and still give him the basics. i guess the most important thing would be to run your outside rod on the hightest setting, then use a lower setting and a shorter length on the inside rods

i want him to feel free to pm me if he has questions. i will try to answer them without taking over his thread.

sherman

[MEANMACHINE]

Here is the first pic. As you can hopefully see I am limited on what I can do. I am going to mount two 6" Bert's Tracks on the back platform. I bought two 12" risers and will attach a 2" x 8" board to them. The sides of the boat cannot be used because they are only 1 1/2" wide and my wife won't let me. I have looked into Eagles Feet and other possibilities but to no avail.

http://www.greatlakesfisherman.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=5708&c=member&imageuser=3938]

[MEANMACHINE]

http://www.greatlakesfisherman.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=5710&c=4]

[MEANMACHINE]

Hopefully you can see what I am working with here. The boat is a 2009 Bayliner 185 which is not made for fishing but it will have to do for now. I will definitely not be heading too far offshore unless the conditions are excellent.

[sherman51]

Hopefully you can see what I am working with here. The boat is a 2009 Bayliner 185 which is not made for fishing but it will have to do for now. I will definitely not be heading too far offshore unless the conditions are excellent.

your boat is plenty big enough as long as you respect the water you are on. and always check the weather, and trust your eyes. if the forcast is for scattered showers and you see a big storm coming your way, get out of dodge.

i used an old 18 ft cherokee aluminum open bow on the western basin of erie for maby 12 or 14 years. and the western basin can get rough in a hurry. but we never had a problem. we have spent a few nice mornings in the parking lot because of the weather forcast. then in no time flat it would get rough, and we were glad we didnt go out.

you sure dont have alot to work with on that boat do you?? but once you get the board going across the boat you can always mount the riggers alittle inboard and mount a couple of rod holders on the outside of the riggers. if not for the boss saying no, the best thing you could do would be to mount some tracks up the side of your boat. even if you had to drill extra holes in the tracks to get them to work. then you could take the holders off when not in use. i use the cannon ratchet rod holders and tracks on my boat. amazon.com has the single axis ratcheting holders for 66.00 right now, and they work awesome for using divers. when you want to bring one in you just ratchet the holder to the upright position and lift the rod up out of the holder. keep us posted on your progress.

sherman

[Phishy]

You don't know how lucky you are w/ that boat. Until just recently, I fished out of a 2001 16.5 foot Lund Explorer SS; go check out gunnels on that raft....shallow draft, shallow freeboard, shallow everything...it was meant to be a shallow water boat, yet I was able to catch some very nice salmon out of Algoma (WI side) and walleyes out of Green Bay. Pick your days and you will be able to fish more water than I was ever able to out of that Lund. Your engine box will help you stand up in a chop and keep you in the boat; I was always worried about falling out and spent a lot of time on my knees to lower my center of gravity. Plus if you get a bus tub, you can put the fish in the tub and work on unhooking them standing upright, utilizing all the space in the back end, there are advantages to a dog house…but I digress….

As for your ?? Keating's and Porter's book really helped me get a grip on the "new" stuff being fished nowadays...get on some one else’s boat too, a little gas $$ donation goes a long ways to the education, you'll probably be forced to take home most of the fish from the days catch,

I am now hopelessly addicted to salmon fishing and this site was one that was able to help me kick off my education, ask questions, even if you feel they have already been asked, they probably have, but it is just as useful for those answering the questions to strengthen their knowledge by answering questions, it make them think about it and put an answer in writing, which then solidifies confidence and reiterates past experiences to confidently go into the up and coming season.....you're doing some of us a favor by asking and making us think about it too....

[sherman51]

You don't know how lucky you are w/ that boat. Until just recently, I fished out of a 2001 16.5 foot Lund Explorer SS; go check out gunnels on that raft....shallow draft, shallow freeboard, shallow everything...it was meant to be a shallow water boat, yet I was able to catch some very nice salmon out of Algoma (WI side) and walleyes out of Green Bay. Pick your days and you will be able to fish more water than I was ever able to out of that Lund. Your engine box will help you stand up in a chop and keep you in the boat; I was always worried about falling out and spent a lot of time on my knees to lower my center of gravity. Plus if you get a bus tub, you can put the fish in the tub and work on unhooking them standing upright, utilizing all the space in the back end, there are advantages to a dog house…but I digress….

As for your ?? Keating's and Porter's book really helped me get a grip on the "new" stuff being fished nowadays...get on some one else’s boat too, a little gas $$ donation goes a long ways to the education, you'll probably be forced to take home most of the fish from the days catch,

I am now hopelessly addicted to salmon fishing and this site was one that was able to help me kick off my education, ask questions, even if you feel they have already been asked, they probably have, but it is just as useful for those answering the questions to strengthen their knowledge by answering questions, it make them think about it and put an answer in writing, which then solidifies confidence and reiterates past experiences to confidently go into the up and coming season.....you're doing some of us a favor by asking and making us think about it too....

great post phisy. the only dumd question really is the one that didnt get asked. there is alot of knowledge on here if he just asks.

sherman

[SUPERTRAMP]

You don't know how lucky you are w/ that boat. Until just recently, I fished out of a 2001 16.5 foot Lund Explorer SS; go check out gunnels on that raft....shallow draft, shallow freeboard, shallow everything...it was meant to be a shallow water boat, yet I was able to catch some very nice salmon out of Algoma (WI side) and walleyes out of Green Bay. Pick your days and you will be able to fish more water than I was ever able to out of that Lund. Your engine box will help you stand up in a chop and keep you in the boat; I was always worried about falling out and spent a lot of time on my knees to lower my center of gravity. Plus if you get a bus tub, you can put the fish in the tub and work on unhooking them standing upright, utilizing all the space in the back end, there are advantages to a dog house…but I digress….

As for your ?? Keating's and Porter's book really helped me get a grip on the "new" stuff being fished nowadays...get on some one else’s boat too, a little gas $$ donation goes a long ways to the education, you'll probably be forced to take home most of the fish from the days catch,

I am now hopelessly addicted to salmon fishing and this site was one that was able to help me kick off my education, ask questions, even if you feel they have already been asked, they probably have, but it is just as useful for those answering the questions to strengthen their knowledge by answering questions, it make them think about it and put an answer in writing, which then solidifies confidence and reiterates past experiences to confidently go into the up and coming season.....you're doing some of us a favor by asking and making us think about it too....

This post just about says it all. 1 more thing u might want to look at is Captain Ken Neidlinger has a couple of Videos out that help newcomers with the basics. He does not however go into wire and leadcore techniques. He has been fishing out St Joseph for over 40 years and is a wealth of knowledge if you can get to know him. I slip just down from him and have known him for all of 35 years. His brother Dennis Neidlinger developed the Pro King spoon some years back. Ken runs the SilverKing charter boat and is still going strong at 74 years young. If you want to take an early trip for Coho give me a pm and I will let you know when the MC2 is going to get in the water, always glad to help a relative newcomer find some programs that work. I am thinking the last week of March if weather continues as it has.

[MEANMACHINE]

Thank you very much for the offer Mike. I would really enjoy learning a few things out on the water. Hopefully the weather trend continues and I will be able to take you up on your offer.

Bradley