Sandy 5/16 - crazy story!

[GAMBLER]

Fished 70-110 all day and crushed the kings once again.  20-65 down were the most consistent depths.  Meat, Hawks Tackle Electric Funeral spoon and a froggy glow stinger stingray were the top producers.  Now for the crazy story.  We had a diver out 150' with a brand new Smart Troll 2 probe, paddle, meat rig and a fake meat strip on it.  We didn't notice the wire was around the tip of the roller rod.  A big king hit and immediately cut the wire off losing the entire set up.  We watched the depth change as the fish swam away.  3 hours later, the probe started reading again 50' down!  We watched for a couple minutes and all the sudden the fish dove to 84' down as we went by! 

Edited Tuesday at 05:24 PM by GAMBLER

[Silver Fox]

The closest I’ll ever get to a roller guide is your boat at the marina….lol

Very cool story. He will be a very annoyed fish for awhile.

[HB2]

Proves the boat scares the fish 

[fisherdude]

I don't know much about the smart trolls I've read about them so what do you think that cost you the whole setup cut bait rig , flasher smart troll sounds expensive

Edited May 18 by fisherdude
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[Falcon75]

I sent story to Daryl at smart troll. Get in touch with him by PM. 

[Smart Troll]

PM me gambler and I will help ease the pain of the lost Probe a little  😃. 

[Silver Fox]

3 hours ago, HB2 said:

Proves the boat scares the fish 

I was in Duane’s boat yesterday and we were talking about that same thing. After pulling your riggers in for the day, how many times do you mark fish afterwards. It happens every time and yesterday was no exception.

[Silver Fox]

3 hours ago, HB2 said:

Proves the boat scares the fish 

Also, when it gets tough later in the morning especially when Brownie fishing, I’ll pull my center rigger out and it seems to help.

[whaler1]

52 minutes ago, Silver Fox said:

I was in Duane’s boat yesterday and we were talking about that same thing. After pulling your riggers in for the day, how many times do you mark fish afterwards. It happens every time and yesterday was no exception.

But it also attracts fish as well. Have had hundreds smash Chinook Divers with 20 to 40 feet of line out. Many times in spring they out catch the riggers and board lines by a significant amount. 

[HB2]

24 minutes ago, whaler1 said:

But it also attracts fish as well. Have had hundreds smash Chinook Divers with 20 to 40 feet of line out. Many times in spring they out catch the riggers and board lines by a significant amount. 

Maybe because the boat pushes the fish to the side like a wake and that diver lure is right in their face . 

[whaler1]

I don’t think so. Fish are curious and may mistake the boat commotion for a school of bait. 
I grew up fishing the ocean. Did it for years till I moved here. Lures would be right in heavy prop wash. 
I believe the boat scares some fish but attracts others. Just my opinion. 

[Silver Fox]

2 hours ago, whaler1 said:

But it also attracts fish as well. Have had hundreds smash Chinook Divers with 20 to 40 feet of line out. Many times in spring they out catch the riggers and board lines by a significant amount. 

My wire slide divers were insane when fishing inside skinny water this year also.

[BRsnow]

Hard to lean anything from a fish that has a meat rig, diver and 150 cable on him.

[GAMBLER]

17 hours ago, fisherdude said:

I don't know much about the smart trolls I've read about them so what do you think that cost you the whole setup cut bait rig , flasher smart troll sounds expensive

About $400!

[GAMBLER]

15 hours ago, Smart Troll said:

PM me gambler and I will help ease the pain of the lost Probe a little  😃. 

I already ordered two more probes.  Thanks for the offer.  You have already been very helpful since I ordered your product.  So far it’s been awesome (except losing a probe! 🤣).

[fisherdude]

28 minutes ago, GAMBLER said:

About $400!

I was thinking maybe you had sponsorship. if you don't I think you should look into it you fit the criteria Derby Trophy winning Lake Ontario fisherman, tackle company owner. Toys like that are Out Of Reach for the average Joe guy like me for fishing. 

[Smart Troll]

fisherdude,

This fall...I plan to do something to help the small guy who doesn't have deep pockets get started with Smart Troll.

 

Watch for details on my Web page... probably around September. 

[Falcon75]

It really has made fish hawk obsolete. It does everything fishhawk does plus can check depth and temp on other lines. I make deliberate breakpoints after probe and/or bring it in on a diver or long line once I figure out where it is running. Knowing speed at depth is crucial. I wouldn't fish my buddies boat till he bought the new stick on transducer and power pack so we could run my probes on rigger and long lines. Go in with your buddies and the new kits you can move boat to boat. Gamechanger.

 

[GAMBLER]

6 hours ago, fisherdude said:

I was thinking maybe you had sponsorship. if you don't I think you should look into it you fit the criteria Derby Trophy winning Lake Ontario fisherman, tackle company owner. Toys like that are Out Of Reach for the average Joe guy like me for fishing. 

I started Gambler Rigs to give guys quality fish catching laker gear and to support my fishing habit without taking money out of my 9-5 paycheck (keeps the wife happy).  I purchased a Smart Troll 2 system because minor details can make or break a day.  Now, the guessing is gone and I can dial my spread in perfectly.  I plan on purchasing six probes total.  They are pricey but worth the investment IMO.  

[HB2]

All the guess work is gone . Is that a good thing ? 

 

Went out this evening for a few hrs in my 12 ' row boat . With oars from a garage sale and an anchor from my kids weight set . 

 

Caught about 10 rock bass ( some nice ones ) a few perch , 2 largemouth , and a real nice smallmouth, lost a few more . About half were on a perch Rapala I pulled out of a tree Sat . 

A very peaceful evening of fishing except for the very windy conditions that had me dive into my bag of tricks from experience to present my bait properly . 

No motor , depth finder  , etc . 

 

 

At some point , it begs the 

question ...............

[Falcon75]

Trolling is way different than fishing like that. I like both. Trolling is actually more work and small difference do make a difference. Knowing where you are as opposed to where you think you are is critical. Sitting watching a bobber and having a drink is more fun maybe till you get a 20 lb salmon on a wire diver.

[Gator]

It's great to have a product that works as advertised, and information is power, but the equation only holds if your intent is to catch as many fish as possible in as short a time as possible using every advantage at your disposal. 

 

And at what point does this detract from the simply joy of fishing? For me, fishing is an end not a means. I'm not exactly adverse to new technology and I have the means to acquire it. But we often run a spread with less than our legal limit of rods, and I sometimes take a chance on a hunch rather than sticking with the sure thing. There was an article recently in the latest New England edition of On the Water magazine where they discussed the difference between the most effective ways to fish versus the most enjoyable. Journey before destination.

 

I guess it all depends on your goals, the extent to which you are driven by them, and whether you judge the juice to be worth the squeeze. Different strokes, right? Brian and I have spoken on this, and it's in no way me casting shade on his style of fishing. Although the word style should never be used in a sentence with either his or my name lol.

[GAMBLER]

13 hours ago, HB2 said:

All the guess work is gone . Is that a good thing ? 

 

Went out this evening for a few hrs in my 12 ' row boat . With oars from a garage sale and an anchor from my kids weight set . 

 

Caught about 10 rock bass ( some nice ones ) a few perch , 2 largemouth , and a real nice smallmouth, lost a few more . About half were on a perch Rapala I pulled out of a tree Sat . 

A very peaceful evening of fishing except for the very windy conditions that had me dive into my bag of tricks from experience to present my bait properly . 

No motor , depth finder  , etc . 

 

 

At some point , it begs the 

question ...............

Taking the guess work out allows you to keep your spread in the zone.  It doesn't force fish to hit.  I don't fish a lot of tournaments but the ones I do, I want to be at the top of my game.  Why half ass an effort and give your opponents an advantage?  It's just not the way I operate.  I fish tournaments to win and not finish in the middle of the pack.