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 Basic
Leadcore Rigging With Spoons
By Capt. Jim Hirt
 Captain
Jim Hirt operates his fishing business out of Milwaukee,
Wisconsin as
Blue Max Charters.
Now
is the time to think about changes to make your trips
more productive next season. There are many ways to go
on this subject. Over the next several articles I will
try to cover topics like rigging, tackle and
presentation. My goal is to provide information, which
should lead to more fish and less slow fishing.
In the last article we
covered rigging diving planers and flat lines. Let us
continue with rigging presentations. The tools out there
are endless. Being flexible on the slow days is the
answer to more fish. It is a fisherman with a full
arsenal of presentations that finds action when fishing
gets tough.
The hot rig for the last
several years has been leadcore. With the influx of
Zebra Muscles, the waters of the Great Lakes have become
very clear. In my opinion the toughest conditions are
calm clear sunny days. On these types of days leadcore
is the way to go. I do not recommend this presentation
for first light. It is far too time consuming to run
during a hot bite. After the early morning bite or about
two hours after sunrise, I break out the leadcore. The
basics are reel, rod, line and planer board. The cost of
a rig will start at about $150.
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The reel you use is
based on the amount of leadcore line you want to
run. The rule of thumb is 4-5 feet of depth to every
color of leadcore. When your target fish is 15 feet
down you should run 3 or 4 colors of leadcore.
Some of you may be
thinking why is there a variation of 4 to 5 feet per
color. The factors that affect this are type of lure
and boat speed. This line is graduated in 10-yard
sections each having a different color. When
selecting a reel, purchase one large enough to
handle the amount of colors you would like to run.
Leadcore is a bulky line and most likely will not
fit on the reels you are currently using. Find a
tackle store that deals with this product to ensure
a correct purchase. Popular set ups are 3 colors, 5
colors and 8 colors. |
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Rods for leadcore need to
have plenty of backbone. I use a heavy action 8-foot
rod. This should give you the power needed to reel in
500 feet of line, planer board and 20-pound Kings.
The line comes in many
test weights. 27 or 36 pound is what I run. It all has
the same sink rate. You will also need a backing line of
mono, braided Dacron or one of the super lines like
Powerpro. From the leadcore to the lure use a 20-pound
fluorocarbon line.
To avoid tangles when
running multiple leadcores, you will need a planer board
for each rig. The purpose of a planer board is to move
the line off to the side of the boat away from other
lines. Several manufactures have boards for leadcore.
Church has a walleye board. Also you may use
Yellowbird's big bird and Offshore boards.
When loading this reel,
start with 100 yards of a backing line, then strip the
lead out of the end of the leadcore and tie a Blood Knot
to the leadcore. Finish with a Willis Knot and 60 feet
of a 20-pound fluorocarbon to a ball bearing cross lock
snap.
To run this rig, snap on
your favorite lure. I like Reaper or Vulcan Spoons by
http://www.badgertackle.com
and let out all of the line to the backing. Then install
your board on the backing so it does not release. I
usually run them 150 feet off each side of the boat.Very
wide turns and low boat traffic are a must to avoid
tangles and getting run over.
I set my drags light. When
the reel starts to scream, adjust the drag as necessary.
Reel in the line until you can reach the board and hand
release it. Now the line is clear to bring in the fish.
Some of my biggest fish
were caught on this presentation this year. The good
news is it produces fish all day long.
Good Luck let's go fishing
Captain Jim. .
Jim charters out of
Milwaukee, WI. with Blue Max Charters. He can be reached
at 414-828-1094 or visit his web site at
http://www.bluemaxcharters.com
Copyright© 2006, James J. Hirt, All Rights Reserved.
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