Planer Board Tactics Infomation from waterbugz.com Reservoir Tactics This technique works best for live bait and can be modified depending on how fast you troll. I use a Minnkota power drive unit and typically run between speed #3-#5, or for others it is just a slow troll just enough to keep your baits off the bottom. The technique will keep your bait near the bottom of the water column and the stripers that are in less than 30` of water are usually close to that bottom. Hooks are your choice but you will need size #7 split shots for this method. • For every ten feet of water use one #7 split shot about four feet above your hook • For every foot of water put one yard of line out EXAMPLE- Fishing in eleven feet of water you would put one #7 split shot about four foot from the hook and you would let out thirty three foot of line then clip on your planer. EXAMPLE- In eighteen feet of water you would have two #7 split shots about four foot from the hook and you would let out fifty four of line then clip on your planer. EXAMPLE- In twenty eight feet of water you would have three #7 split shots and let out eight four feet of line then clip on your planer. Current, wind and your speed are the factors of concern. Remember if your getting hung up occasionally on the bottom you doing it right. If your getting hung up every time you get in the target area then either speed up or remove a split shot. A great spread is two planers on each side of the boat, one about 50 feet away and the other about 20 feet away. HOW TO SET UP YOUR SIDE PLANER: Place your bait out the proper distance using the above formula. Place the line through the snap swivel and close it, then place the line in the yellow clip (do so by squeezing the center of the clip and it opens) just barely in the pad about 1/3 entrance. Remember a rhyme 'yellow clip is closest to rod tip' and you will have it pointing correctly. Questions? Call Jeff Tomlin at (704) 902-7246 Down & Out, Inc. Statesville, North Carolina
Knots: Finally, the last remaining issue for us with the fluorocarbon lines, before making the decision on which products to really spool up and go fishing with, is what knot or knots to use? In Part I of our Fluorocarbon Showdown, we used the popular palomar knot exclusively. We tested each lines' strength with this knot and compared it against tested tensile values. What we found was all but one of our test subjects, including our baseline Trilene XL, fell below 90% knot strength when compared to the tested strength of the line. Disappointing to say the least so we're left to question, was it the line or was it the knot? We hear quite consistently that the palomar is not the best knot to use with FC lines, but we also hear that FC lines have terrible knot strength. So which is it? FC's, it would appear, are not just bad with the palomar knots. We took used one of our more expensive lines to conduct this knot test and we couldn't get a single one to perform above 80% let alone 90% of the line's tested breaking strength We selected one, unnamed, but higher priced product out of our test batch and put it through the wringer with five different knots: the improved clinch; the palomar; the san diego jam; the trilene; and the uni. Each knot was tied, carefully, five times and measured for strength with this one specific product. We then threw out the high and low numbers and compared the average of the three remaining breaking strengths for each knot against this particular product's tested breaking strength and charted it above. The result? Not too far off from our original assessment in part one. Not one of the knots rated within 90% of this line's tested breaking strength. Ouch. It would appear the claims that fluorocarbons lines have poor knot strength may indeed be true. Conclusion: Have we burst the fluorocarbon bubble? Perhaps so, perhaps not. What we have shown for certain is that fluorocarbon isn't perfect, but then again, what fishing line, or product is? More importantly, we've shown not all fluorocarbon lines are created equal. Some, like the Seaguar Invisx actually have very good knot strength, but this same line has terrible stretch performance. Others, like Sunline Shooter FC is great against stretch, but faired poorly in our knot strength test. Our invisibility tests were inconclusive and the strain results were troubling. We say enough with the lab. It's time to take these tests to the next level and experience both the good and the bad of fluorocarbon on the water to see what the true redeeming qualities of these individual products might be. Certainly, not all fluorocarbons are created equal, but we're now prepared to go out and discover which versions, if any, are worth the expense.