Downrigger

[cronullafisher]

Hi guys,

Im a keen amateur kingfish fisherman who gets out as often as I can in my small 13ft rubber duck, outside the heads off Cronulla trying to catch the hard pulling fish we all love.

I haven’t had much luck lately trolling with lures and am hearing a lot of talk about down riggers.

A few downrigger Q’s:

- How do they work?

- Whats a good one I should buy? How much?

- Are they ok to use with a rubber boat?

- Do they only work with live yakkas or only live squid?

- Are they worth it?

Any advice is very much appreciated, as im trying to head out Saturday and gotta get prepared!

Cronullafisher

[DGF]

ive actually been looking into this too i wouldnt mind finding out sommore info

[framedtrash]

the large downrigger weight holds your baits at the desired depth which is set via the crank handle on the downrigger

you bait is connect to the downrigger weight via a release clip

the release grip is designed to hold onto your baited line until a fish takes the bait then the line pops out of the release clip and you fight the fish

price depends on brand

you should be able to set one up on a inflatable but you wouldn't be able to use one of the big ones prob only one of the lake versions (like the Cannon Lake) which retail for around $180

they work will all baits live or dead and work with lures too

downriggers aint a sure way to catch kings but when they kings are down deep they are a proven method to get to them

they also work on many other fish inc snapper flattys jews

heres a nice little pic that might help with how they work

Edited November 17, 2009 by Framedtrash

[nic_ally_king]

Gday mate,

I know you want to get set-up by sat, but I recommend you check out #$#$#$.com

I may be wrong and I can't speak for everywhere but downriggers here - rip-off! and very limited choices!

With the dollar at the moment I think you'd be very wise to get one from the US. A mate of mine did this recently actually I think shipping was 20% of the cost. He was stoked with the price and we love downrigging.

Nic

[hornets]

I agree that I would buy U.S before here . I brought a scottys strong arm 1085 for all up $350 Aus with a bomb last year when dollar was 90 cents . Do you home work on if it will mount on your boat & where

[Captain Spanner]

DOWNRIGGERS

The first thing you will need is somewhere sturdy on the boat to mount the Downrigger that is in a managable location and not going to get in the road of driving. There are alot of different arrangements that you can purchase, make, modify to get your downrigger mounted where you want it. You will also need a sturdy rod holder as most of the plastic rod holders that come mounted on the downriggers are not up to the task of kingfish. Without seeing your boat it's difficult for people to give you advice on how to set it up so you might want to think about posting some pics.

I would guess that you may need to mount it on the back board/transom near the motor. If you mount it here you need to have a long enough boom (the arm of the downrigger) to keep the cable away from the prop. either behind or mounted sideways and reach over the side. The over the side method will be easier for you to reattach the line to the release clip when you are setting each bait up. You can get swivel mounts for your downrigger so you can rotate them as required. Some brands come standard with a swivel mount and others are an extra.

There are also safety issues with the downrigger bomb getting stuck on the bottom or a mooring and ripping the downrigger/back of your boat off if you dont have the drag system/clutch set properly on the downrigger or have a sacrificial weak link in the system that can break so you dont destroy your downrigger or boat.

I'd reccomend shopping around for the most appropriate and best priced downrigger for your situation and not rushing into something just for this saturday. Make sure you checkout both Aussie made and overseas made Downriggers if you have a tight budget before making a decision. Think about ease of use as well as price.

SATURDAY

To keep you occupied this Saturday you can try the poor mans down rigger that i used for ages and i use when fishing mates boats that dont have downriggers.

I fish with a running sinker clip above a 2 to 3m leader. I attach a snapper lead (ranging from 1oz to 12 oz depending on depth, current etc) to a swivel with line alot weaker than your main line and clip the other end on the swivel onto the running sinker clip. This way in the case of a big fish or snag the sinker can break away and you hopefully keep your rig and bait. Some guys use rubber bands instead of the weak line, swivel or sinker clip.

You can run baits at different depths with different weights. I troll at up to about 2 knots (walking pace). You can use a bigger lead to keep the bait down while you are moving with a bit of pace, but if you slow down or turn it may sink and snag easily depending on how much line you have out so be careful.

As an alternative to this you could use a smaller lead or small torpedo, bean or ball sinker and troll along slowly and when you get a touch or see fish down deeper on the sounder slow down and let the bait sink through the school.

These methods are most commonly done using live or fresh squid and livies. If you run 2 rods i'd run an unweighted livie on one and about a 4oz sinker with a live or fresh squid or squid strip to get you started on the deeper rod.

Good Luck

Edited November 18, 2009 by Captain Spanner