TyeeTanic

Hmmm, what was the down temp? I would have guessed 80 - 150 is too shallow, as that rain yesterday didn't seem to do too much. I would have probably started in 140 fow and gone to 200 or even 250 ft. But I hear you, evening fishing has been tougher than morning fishing.

Right now green spoons are generally working well. The NBK 42nd spoon always does great for me. Watermelon has also worked well only if the fish are in the top 40 ft though. Monkey puke seems to be getting some good hits as well. But to be honest it changes day to day. We have a program of colors. Start with glow spoons early in the morning, change to greens, then blues and silvers as the sun comes up. Put out a variety, and see what's working. Change up every 20 to 30 minutes, especially if we mark fish and they don't hit. Give each spoon a chance, very speed, heading and depth before we decide to change.

^^^^ What he said.

I have a place very close to St. Pete's. This time of the year the water is REALLY warm, bath water. The gulf is very shallow - they have to go out like 17 miles to get 100 feet of water. So the water is super warm, even out there. You really need to go offshore to catch game fish this time of year, and an overnight trip is normally necessary. There's still a few options though: (1) party boats will stay in close, maybe 15 miles out, and you'll catch a lot of small snapper (2 to 3 lbs). They use light tackle so it's non stop fun. (2) shark fishing. I've caught plenty small guys like 3 ft, 15 lbs or so, on shore, particularly at night. I wouldn't say they are really strong, not like a salmon. Bigger sharks are something else. You can obviously do this, but I think night fishing is going to be your best charter time then. (3) goliath grouper. You can charter a boat for around $650. They'll stop to catch some snapper on the way, lot's of fun. You keep some to eat, the rest is used as bait for goliath grouper. They'll head to some structure (like a sunken boat) and lure those beasts out. Unbelievable strength. A shark has nothing on a goliath grouper. (4) Deep offshore fishing, overnight trip. Hubbard's Marine at John's Pass offers overnight fishing. They get really deep and always come back with some really good fish. They normally post pictures from each day's catch. Here's the link https://instagram.com/hubbardsmarina/ What's fun is to get a 4 or 5 ft rod and wade into the water and toss a light line in with some shrimp on it. Can catch flounder, sea trout, etc. With a light say 4 to 6 lb line, they are really, really fun to catch. Have fun.

Maybe the tiny probe will induce a bit more drag (definitely not a lot) but for sure these are your options: Option 1) No probe - and you don't have a clue where your copper is at all. Don't try and convince me you do. You may have speed on your rigger which is normally running a lot deeper than the copper. Also, as copper has a shallower dive curve, more of the line is in shallower water than the rigger which will likely be a different current then where you are measuring speed. So, in the end it is pretty much impossible to tell where your copper is. Option 2) Put on a smart troll probe and yes, maybe the line lifts like 2 ft higher, but you know exactly where it is. Put in the 300 ft, expecting it to be at 60 ft down. Oh wait, why is it only at 45 ft???? Man, maybe I should put out the 400 ft. Or put out the 200 ft copper, oh wait it's at 51 ft, huh? Wow, maybe I should throw out some leadcore if I want to target 35 ft. You have the data. Option 1 you do not have a clue where the lines are. I've been using smart troll for 3 years now, and I haven't even come close to losing 1 probe, not even a scare. I normally put the speed probe on my rigger, which carries the same risk as losing a Fishhawk probe. I put the cheaper and slimmer depth/temp probes on divers and board lines. Gives some good insight. And a lot of people are starting to move over to smart troll. It was a slow start for them first couple of years, but in the last 4 months, I personally know 4 guys who have added it to their boat, and many on the fishing forums who are definitely using it or thinking about using it. I didn't say it was the market leader in depth/temp - I meant to say, it's definitely picking up speed and gaining ground. I would never knock the Fish Hawk X4D - it is a great system, and very reliable. But I can tell you that the Smart Troll can do something the Fish Hawk can't and that is measure depth/temp on up to 6 lines simultaneously including divers and copper/leadcore, and you can get speed off the rigger as well.

We have been using anchovies a lot this year. Easier to use, but this year, especially the beginning, the whole anchovy has picked up more fishing than cut herring. We're not dead set on it, herring did do well for one of my friends this weekend, but we like keeping at least one anchovy out, and if it hits we put out more.

X4D - your ball is not at the depth you think (it isn't line out on the rigger or what's on your fish finder, due to blowback). Blowback is significant unless you are using +20 lb balls. Even with 16 lb balls down +130 ft, there is significant blowback. But consider the Smart Troll - it is a much more versatile system. A lot of guys are switching to this.

Good choice. The speed probes are now available. Did you get one?

At the time, the only shortfall for smart troll is they didn't have a speed probe, which gave the X4D an edge (the gap I referred to). Now that Smart Troll has a speed probe (which I have purchased and am using), it is the most versatile system out there. You can add the speed probe and up to 5 other depth/temp probes on the same system. If you want to check where your copper is, where your leadcore is, where your divers are in terms of depth (vs. where you think they are, which could be a whole lot different), then you can do it. No other system can do this. How do you think bloodrun produced all of their copper depth graphs? Using smart troll.

I have the system. Just added a speed probe. System is great, very versatile. I think it's the best system out there IMO.

Don't forget to check out Smart Troll. It is more versatile than anyone of the systems you listed. It does what they all do, and more. Check out their website, and I am not affiliated with them, just a happy user.

Need specifics. What are you fishing with (rods, line, lures), and what is your depth, temperatures and speed?

I don't know, but just about all of my UV lure hits have come when the sun is bright and shining.

This is what Jake is saying, except he's right, tie the overhand knot first (basically follow these instructions backwards). http://www.lotsa.org/Wire%20Line%20Knot.htm

I wouldn't do it. You are just asking for problems. When bringing a fish in from the riggers, the line will rise and center, straight into that dipsey diver line.

Yes I have done this many times. The deeper diver should be on the inside. So the mag should be on the inside. Use a 1 setting to get max separation. The #1 dipsey should be on the outside on a 3 setting. If you get a fish on the outside diver and want to put it back out, be very careful. We actually move the inside dipsey to the chute to get it right out of the way. Let out the outside diver very slowly and as far out to the side of the boat as possible. The problem with divers being let out is they do not bite into the water and instead just sink right down and straight. So it can tangle with the inside diver. By letting it out slowly, you are imposing some drag on it which will hopefully allow it to plan out far enough to avoid tangling into your inside diver.

So I got the CV45 reel. I managed to get almost 700 ft of 30# power prO and 250 ft of 45# copper! I spooled 200 ft at first and knew right away I could get at least another 50 ft on. I measure the line independently of the reel counter to make sure how much line I had on.

You should sell yours to wantmorefish then. LOL.

I use Rhys Davis teaser heads - they have a long enough leader.

Ahh, I don't know. Full moon is great dusk fishing. New moon is great dawn fishing. If there's a full moon out, I don't bother getting out until around 10 am, as the salmon have been feeding all night and have full bellies at 6 am.

Fishing charters are out there every day. They know the currents inside out, and know when they are changing. They know what the bend in the rods need to look like. They pay attention to the smallest detail. If you are able to know the water that well, then maybe you can rely solely on GPS speed. But like most of us, having downspeed really helps.

OK thanks. Are they only making 30 lb copper? Anything lighter that might fit on a 30D reel?

They work. Not all the time, just like all the other bait choices. But they work, my biggest on an MC rocket is a 26 lb king. I like using silver with black dots, and light green with black dots. I always use ones with glow. I have caught on purple with glow as well. Work well behind an 11 inch paddle - all silver.

Will 200' copper (plus braid backing) fit on a Convector 30D reel? Not sure if I can swap my 5 color leadcore out for 200' copper. Thanks.

How does bait move in current? Isn't that the answer? I suspect in a strong current the bait has no choice but to move with the current. In a lighter current, the bait will probably face the current and slowly make ground.