RRV Sportsmen Show

[fishin58]

Anybody been there i have to work til 2 so fishin is out, has anyone been to the big show? How is it?

[eyefever]

I went yesterday, lots of campers and boating stuff. Also lots of guides and resorts. I did get a deal on an Explorer GPS and lakemaster chip. Got the package for $240. I would go if you want to buy some new toys.

[Chuckster]

Give me a call Jason, I got some info on the Sportsman show too, I'm at work right now but can be done at any time.

[Paul]

I jsut got home from parialy working at the sportsmans show. There a few good deals to be had. the 50%off st croix rods caught my eyes. I will be back tommorow with my dogs at the FM obediance school corner on the upper deck. If you are there stop and say Hi. I have the box/greyhound cross.

[fishin58]

I went and browsed, did anyone make the wife mad this weekend and explode their budget , I listened to the walleye pro, I think I will catch more fish this summer.definately! He said crawlers will beat out leaches 99.9% of the time when trolled! I found this hard to believe.. but he makes money doin it.. anyone have thoughts on this?

[Paul]

I personally have found that leeches only work during a small window. But Walleyes prefer a nice juicy worm. Unlike the bass who will fall for a plastic worm. I always a larg selection of worm harness in my box. Walleyes typically will hit a crwawler from the front so I like to re-tie my harness to make it shorter to put both hooks either close up front or farther back on the tail. Depends on what size crawler I guess. the crwalers I get in my yard all year are usually 6-12" long. I like to use crawlers in the spring and fall. seems like summer is ok but not nearly effective as a nice redtail shiner.

[livintofish]

I don't understand how a pro could say a clawlers outfish leaches 99% or whatever, that makes no sense. Every lake is different at different times of the year, on different structure and for different fish. That is like saying a firetiger shad rap is the best lure ever for eyes. Some lakes it could be great while others it baarely produces anything (based on water clarity, time of day, forage(are they feeding mainly on perch). crawlers are great but if that was his main point I can't believe he wins many tourneys fishing crawlers 99 % of the time, getting to know your lake is key.

Paul you have got to be kidding me that I missed 1/2 price st croix, I think I'm gonna cry

[Chuckster]

Dont completely quote me on this but I believe that the 50% off St. Croix rods wasnt that great of a deal. They were marked like $140 and were half price, but if you go on their website they have better deals than that. Also, I saw this weekend that at Fleet Farm and Gander you can purchase these rods for $69 anyway because they are all 2005 models.

[Paul]

I paid $60 for my tidemaster 6' normally about 130-140 at most shops in the area.

[Dahitman44]

Paul --

You usse crawlers in the spring? I use shiners exclusively during early opener time. I use those for at least the firs month or so.

Thoughts?

[Chuckster]

I would have to put my two cents in and say that this guy made a rediculous statement if thats what he really said. There must have been something more to it other than that the crawlers outfish leeches by 99% ALL the time.

UNLESS.......he can communicate with the fish.

[Paul]

Hitman,

I use crwalers all year, though hard to catch in January. IN the spring I will usually have with me in the boat, shiners, fatheads, and crawlers. If one doesnt work the other will. I have about 14 rods in my boat each one rigged for something diffrent. I fish different lake almost each time and not usually the same lake 2 days in a row unless the bit is really hot. You never know what you may need on any certain lake. All I know is that on Fishing opener last year, we caught Walleyes on Shiners in 2 feet of water on Pelican, Walleyes on cranks in 4 feet of water on Cormorant, and walleys on Nightcrawlers in 18ft of water at 12 noon on some really clear lake near vergas who's name currently escapes me. So yes I use cralers all the time. My trick I will share is that you take the crawler harness you buy at a store, cut the back hook off and move it about 1 1/2 to 2" behind first hook maybe even less then hook the worm so it has a good 90 degree bend so it twirls through the water.

[fishin58]

Alright one other thing he haid was, say a lindy rig of some sort either bought or made should be 3 an 1/4 or 3 an 1/2 inch between hooks, based on the studies he has conducted, and also he said a harness should always have a bright bead on the front of the rig. He said him and his partner were hammerin the eyes(he said 200 or so) on lake sharpe during a pre fish, so they conducted a study with 2 lines with beads and 2 lines without, he said the ones without still caught fish but were either caught on the trail hook or misses, with a bead they had a far better hook up percent, but also caught the eyes on the lead hook.. wow.. he said the bead basically serves as a target, where as a harness without a bead they only aim at whatever you have on the hook (nightcrawler) which leads to a lot of misses! i myself have stayed exclusive to leeches, but he made a great case.