Sk8man

Thanks for the report. It underscores previous comments I have made about the DENSITY of fleas being the critical factor where diameter of line becomes basically irrelevant to the point that 150-200 lb downrigger wire becomes clogged and no matter what diameter or composition of line you are using becomes clogged with them.....very frustrating but that is the world we are living in now.

That sure says it all. I've been making that case about trolling against the current for years and that is proof positive Thanks.

Hang  in there John. We have been dealing with the same issue with my mother-in-law. very stressful and time consuming but necessary. Finally got her into a facility so there is light at the end of the tunnel. Haven't fished since first week in June but hope to get out soon. Great pic by the way.

One of the reasons I suggested that that fish may have put in there is because during the late seventies through the eighties I used to night fish for trout at the south end of the lake where salmoseine is talking about along with dozens of other folks some of whom became charter captains on Lake O around that time and I never caught one,  either saw a walleye caught, nor did I hear of any being caught despite that area especially around the diagonal bar where the drop is being the historic "hotspot" for walleyes and whitefish. The oldtimers caught both species in the late 1800's and early nineteen hundreds when Sutton and Hinckley were developing their trout spoons.

I have a fiberglass boat (Whaler) and an older Lowrance Elite unit with a transom mounted transducer and I can mark them going consistently 20-30 mph and bottom etc. around 40. That is why I said what I said before going through the process of installing a through hull.

I think your first thought should be to check the setup of your current transom mount transducer and make sure it is set up properly on your transom. You should be able to see fish going at that speed if you have the correct transducer for your unit and it is set up properly on your particular hull.

If you go with coppers limit it to 300 ft max (the length of a (FOOTBALL FIELD). If you need additional depth add snap weights above the copper wire. There are times when copper outperforms leadcore and their signature in the water is different. If you use a 300 copper and intend to release fish it may require longer stabilization time for the fish in the water and some may not make it (especially rainbows). Because the copper wire does not stretch and most fluoro leaders have minimal stretch there is less "forgiveness" when hauling a large fish so you have to be a bit more careful. If using it deep with weights for example you may wish to go with a mono leader to provide a little stretch and where "stealth" may not be as critical. Like all the other setups copper is a "tool" in the box along with the other setups and l;ike the others it can be the most effective one in the box depending on conditions and circumstances. As mentioned a lot of care is needed in deploying copper (don't freespool it) to avoid kinks and birds nests. Having the right reel and drag system is also important

VERY cool Paul! Both Walleyes and Whitefish were in here in times past and I think they were getting a few still in the fifties and sixties. You do have to wonder though if it is one that someone planted in here from say Honeoye. What a surprise though (and great eating)

1 hour ago, Sweet Caroline said:

J If a six foot tall man and woman had a baby, the baby most likely will be tall too. Pure logic on that one. 

Unfortunately that is not the only outcome possible as it doesn't take into account recessive genes. which could have a totally different outcome than that expected.

The ones I have are willowleaf spinner blades sizes #0 and #1. The plastic ones are for jigging baits like the Swedish Pimple.

In addition to the boga method two things NOT to do: Don't bring them in the boat to the hot floor and don't hold them VERTICALLY with hands in their gill area.

If you go with the Saltist I'd say go with the new ones without the line counter on the side.

Diversifying the gene pool with solid components is always a good idea.

You are welcome. I still have some so if you can't get them anymore I can perhaps send some. Probably quicker through Netcraft They are very small willow leaf spinners

Are these what you are looking for? Two sizes..... I got them from Netcraft some years ago. Be aware that they have tons of things in their printed catalog that don't appear online.

The position of Brian's rod in the holder in the pic is just what I was talking about and depending on how many rods in the holders that position of the holder may be different but the position of the reel facing should remain the same as he captured in the pic.

Respect for others goes a long way in life. Unfortunately these days it is in rare supply in our culture.

Ive been out here since the 60's and that one was a singular specimen. I would be surprised if there are others that big....

Possibly check Netcraft

It can work and it helps to know the lake but look for bait (which can often be right on or near bottom about now). 1 1/2 oz jigs with a tail from an alewife or shiner or shad. If you get light bite stay with it they can be finicky.

Exactly what I was thinking.....

You got it

I live right here and fish it but the recreational traffic in summer pushes me to fish other Fingers and Lake O. I have fished Canandaigua since the late 60's so I'm fairly familiar with it

There are probably a million things that could be said here but each of these setups presents differently in the water and differ in flexibility of use. I would say the longest copper that is worth running on the Fingers is a 300 and with leadcore a ten color. The time of season makes a large difference. In the spring shorter lengths of each type are effective running  ether sticks or spoons I have dedicated 1, 3, 5, 7, and ten color options.. As the summer moves on the thermocline (and desired temps) go deeper   so the coppers and leadcores need to go there. The thermocline often goes to 70 ft and beyond so neither of them may get quite there so they may not be the best strategy then or use weights attached to them to get down further. A lot of care needs to be maintained running one of each at the same time of similar length in the spread as if they overlap and you will have the worst mess you can imagine. As far as cons to their use coppers can kink if you aren't careful letting them out or reeling them in. They can also "birds nest" on you for the same reason. They both vary depth according to your trolling speed. Leadcore can kink but is more forgiving but the lead inside can break and somewhat weaken it without your noticing it but the main strength is actually in the sheathiing that surrounds it so usually you are ok. There is a learning curve to deploying either of them and you should attach either above them on the braid etc. not on the leadcore or copper itself. Either can be run from boards or straight off the back down the "chute" and with a complicated spread you may want to do this and run it short down the middle avoiding riggers etc. These are the basic considerations - others may have additional things. Tip: deploy each of them slowly.

I have used roller tip rods for the past 50 years or more. I do not use the swivel type because I like to angle the rods in the rod holder so that the tips remain in a 45 degree angle or so. I don't know what roller tips yours are but a lot of the less expensive ones have more spacing between the roller and side plate so that smaller diameter braid and 7 strand wire wire nests between the side plate and the roller and it can actually snap the braid or wire if a big fish hits or you snag up on something if the wire is in that position. Another thing is that the cheaper roller tips have aluminum side plates which the 30 pound 7 strand wire can actually cut through like a hack saw, One solution is to purchase better roller tips but they can be quite expensive. Another option is to look around for some of the older Allen brand stainless roller tips (sometimes on older freshwater Seth Green rods or salt water rods). For years I have used these tips and moved up to 60 lb wire on my Seth Greens and problem solved but the wire has more "blowback" (from water resistance) which I have learned to live with. When using braid it is necessary to move up to much larger pound test than the 30 lb to avoid the problem. I quit using braid on wire setups for that reason after losing an entire Seth Green rig years ago. Another potential option is to switch to 19 strand wire as it doesn't cut through the side plates of the cheaper aluminum sideplates and just use straight wire to the fluoro leader dispensing with the braid. I have rods with twilli's as well and they work fine so that is another cheaper option but the rollers tend to be smoother when reeling in big fish.