Off Topic Your top 5

[Crestliner16]

If you haven’t already, I’d invest a portion of the lure budget into premium, razor-sharp hooks. Some stock hooks are crappy, and even good hooks will get dull or have the points rolled over (often from abuse with pliers). Sharp hooks do put more fish in the boat regardless of lure type or colour.

The original post also mentions losing lures (and fish) to break-offs – that’s a solvable problem! Should be exceedingly rare with good knots and proper drag setting. Worth figuring out what’s causing that (lures are expensive!).

FWIW my top 5 presentations for Erie and LPB are bass-centric and wouldn’t focus on walleye at all, would be something like this:

• Spinnerbait
• Drop Shot
• Jerk Bait
• Ned Rig
• Texas Rig

I have found that bass jerk baits do just fine on leadcore or dipsy when it comes time for a central basin meat run.

 

[Reel-ist]

When someone talks about "lure budget" ... lol !!!! What does that even mean ???

You need to bear in mind that experiences differ, i.e. what works for Mr A does not necessarily works for Mr B. So you have to get enough lures to juggle until you find what works for you on a particular day in a particular weather. But yes, everything that is shiny, pink and noisy is good.

The Luhr Jensen Shoehorns are 80% of all of my spoons, I run size 3 on E and H and seizes 4 and 5 on O and sometimes H. These are no longer made, so you might hope for leftovers at Peter's Tackle or ebay.

Hence the request for the "top 5". The contents of your tackle boxes/bags and those of the other "shiny object" addicts on the site are worth more than all my gear combined - including my boat and motor! No way I can compete with that - it would cost me half a pension - one way or another!

I will see if I can get my hands on few of those shoehorns. Besides your "go to" colour, are there a few close seconds? Given that they have been discontinued, one particular colour or pattern may be a big ask. Perhaps it will be like the Bomber, where a new greedy parent company mothballed it and later realizes they the bed - big time.

 

[Reel-ist]

hey the RRF is a classic and has had stellar performances, best overall RRF rainbow action for numbers august 2013 landed over 25 bows with buddy Jeff with his RRF vintage collection, ya we released that bow, fished all day..we fished an area inbetween Glasgow & Stanley..I know plenty of guys that targeted bows on RRFs..and off the riggers..
heres a few photos to share..

No way I would knock RRFs or for that matter, anything else, at this point on my learning curve. Until two days ago, I only owned one of them. So really not enough in/on-water time to evaluate them at this point. Obviously, judging by the wear and tear photos, blue/silver combo is a top personal choice for you. Do they make an unpainted version? Just thinking that the way some of them get beaten up, they will eventually end up that way in any case.

 

[Reel-ist]

A little add to this what size spoons?Ive been running the minis and size up with equal results.RRF black and yellow was the leader though.

BTick: I have some of each. In a few cases I will buy a particular pattern in one colour as a mini and the next size up in the reverse colour pattern or vice versa, (blueberry muffin being one example), especially until they work for me to avoid duplicates of poor performers. So far, my results have been inconclusive. Unlike my experiment with the "bigger bait for bigger fish" philosophy - which seems, at least for the species I have targeted, been total bunk.

 

[SonsofFishes]

That Greasy Chicken Wing has the usual teeth scratches like all the others . The first rainbow I caught this season destroyed the paint on my original Monkey Puke . It was scratched like the others but after that fish , a large portion of paint was gone . I was quite surprised because the finish was holding up very well prior to that .

The original post also mentions losing lures (and fish) to break-offs – that’s a solvable problem! Should be exceedingly rare with good knots and proper drag setting. Worth figuring out what’s causing that (lures are expensive!).

Excluding my first time using the dipsy , This is my 4th season doing this kind of fishing , I never had an issue with leader failure until this summer .
Then 2 trips out in a row I had 1 each . I always give them a good tug before I put one on to make sure the knot is good and make sure the line is in good shape . So I was a little confused but did find the difference .
A few yrs ago I found some top quality swivels at Bass Pro in St Catharines but wished I bought more and of different sizes . End of last June I went to the Vaughan Bass Pro and got the swivels I wanted . After 2 failures I was looking for any differences and found that the swivels I got in Vaughan had split rings on them and the originals I bought were a single , welded rings . So I took out the split ring leaders from my box and haven`t had any issues since . I`m blaming the split rings for having sharp edges on them and will never buy them again .
The cost was 2 lures and 2 fish . The one was one of the biggest walleyes I`ve seen on camera and went thru the pain of watching it on cam confiscating my original, favorite Blue & Silver RRF .

 

[hvyhaul]

"Heavy Hitter", riiiiight, I just post more of what I do than others. LOL

This was strangely enough a very difficult question to answer.

I sat down with my neighbour for a bit this morning and asked, "Top 5, not hit and miss, but for the last two years.

Top of the list was a no brainer, but by number 3 we were struggling with the over time old reliables.

Here it is.

	Dreamweaver Super Slim Perch	Most reliable for 2 years, most effective once fish are down 40 and below. Always one in the water.
	Greasy Chicken, these are Silver Streak, currently favouring Super Slims.	Old reliable in many cases, a go to for sure.
	Dreamweaver SS1438 UV Black Green	New standout for 2021, put a lot of bows in the box with this one
	Luhr-Jensen Shoehorn Poison Ivy	On tough days this one can put multiples in the box.
	Dreamweaver Super Slim Captain Gary MI Dolphin.	On some days it's tough to beat

No body baits, or worm harnesses etc., just not finding them productive enough to keep using them.

The past few trips, running a perch out both sides and changing the other lines to find contributors.

Fun fact: heading to deeper water, Starboard is alive, heading back into shallower water, Port takes the lead......... Why?

 

[Reel-ist]

If you haven’t already, I’d invest a portion of the lure budget into premium, razor-sharp hooks. Some stock hooks are crappy, and even good hooks will get dull or have the points rolled over (often from abuse with pliers). Sharp hooks do put more fish in the boat regardless of lure type or colour.

The original post also mentions losing lures (and fish) to break-offs – that’s a solvable problem! Should be exceedingly rare with good knots and proper drag setting. Worth figuring out what’s causing that (lures are expensive!).

FWIW my top 5 presentations for Erie and LPB are bass-centric and wouldn’t focus on walleye at all, would be something like this:

• Spinnerbait
• Drop Shot
• Jerk Bait
• Ned Rig
• Texas Rig

I have found that bass jerk baits do just fine on leadcore or dipsy when it comes time for a central basin meat run.

Crestliner16:
I hear you big time on the figuring out what's causing the expensive break-offs. I kept trying heavier fluoro leaders and still had problems until I did a little digging into the Palomar knot I was using. It tends to cut into itself when under severe stress or shock - like rainbows are known for - it was actually a big catfish hunter that wisened me up to that one. I switched to a double-line uni-knot that seems to have cured that. (No I don't want to start a discussion thread about the all-time best knot here P-L-E-A-S-E!) With that cured, those pesky bastards started finding and exploiting the next weakest link in my tackle chain. The walleye despite their fearsome teeth, never really caused me any problems with their "resistance is futile" fighting philosophy unless of course one of those teeth rakes the leader and gives it a nick; something I constantly try to check for after each one gets reeled in. (I believe snubbers have helped as well.)

That brings us to your next point; cheap-ass hooks. Biggest offender, whomever manufactures the "little Cleo" I have had rainbows bend the hooks on those completely straight in order to get off on two separate occasions. I am aware that many aftermarket hooks are readily available in varying sizes, strengths, price points and presumably, quality. Any suggestions on 1) a good hook brand that doesn't cost as much as a lure per hook?
2) other lure manufacturers to avoid (or at least be aware of) that use inferior hooks that need replacement right out of the box.
3) A device/tool that is fairly dummy-proof to use to give a hook a little touch up frequently before one ties a lure on.

TIA for your anticipated response and those of anyone else with Yoda-like knowledge of the subject.

 

[jerk bait]

Well being more a bass guy my lures obviously will be different.
5. White 3" swim bait rigged with a spinner cage . Been deadly this year
2. Whopper plopper ( any colur)
3. Berkeley general worm in silver flake( generally rigged wacky)
2. Live target frog popper in yellow.
1. Hands down my #1 lure for all species
of gamefish spring summer fall , continues to be the best year after year . If I only had one lure for the rest of my life.
#1. Rapala shadow rap shallow ( white ghost, bone or bud colour) however these get modified heavily from the package to achieve this.

 

[Reel-ist]

That Greasy Chicken Wing has the usual teeth scratches like all the others . The first rainbow I caught this season destroyed the paint on my original Monkey Puke . It was scratched like the others but after that fish , a large portion of paint was gone . I was quite surprised because the finish was holding up very well prior to that .



Excluding my first time using the dipsy , This is my 4th season doing this kind of fishing , I never had an issue with leader failure until this summer .
Then 2 trips out in a row I had 1 each . I always give them a good tug before I put one on to make sure the knot is good and make sure the line is in good shape . So I was a little confused but did find the difference .
A few yrs ago I found some top quality swivels at Bass Pro in St Catharines but wished I bought more and of different sizes . End of last June I went to the Vaughan Bass Pro and got the swivels I wanted . After 2 failures I was looking for any differences and found that the swivels I got in Vaughan had split rings on them and the originals I bought were a single , welded rings . So I took out the split ring leaders from my box and haven`t had any issues since . I`m blaming the split rings for having sharp edges on them and will never buy them again .
The cost was 2 lures and 2 fish . The one was one of the biggest walleyes I`ve seen on camera and went thru the pain of watching it on cam confiscating my original, favorite Blue & Silver RRF .

Ouch! I don't have the fisheye view you enjoy with a camera. In a case such as this, that might be a blessing in disguise, to me it's just another one that got away - to you it's Goliath and $15 boot to the proverbial cahones. A case of ignorance is bliss. You make a point though about really evaluating everything you use/buy so as it does not become your new weakest link. I had zero experience with rainbows until mid-season last year. Love them or hate them, they will certainly show you in a hurry where the chinks are in your armour. I have not had any break offs (that I know of) with walleye other than mid-leader so I suspect an undetected nick in such cases. When a bow bites, even if he's only on for a few seconds, there is no doubt what is on the other end of the line. I have no experience with salmon, so I guess it could potentially be that but they are both salmonids and I suspect have a similar "run and gun" style. Salmon and the few other trout species that appear in Erie seem to be an increasingly rare thing though so I suspect it's always a been a pesky bow. Thanks the info.

 

[Reel-ist]

Well being more a bass guy my lures obviously will be different.
5. White 3" swim bait rigged with a spinner cage . Been deadly this year
2. Whopper plopper ( any colur)
3. Berkeley general worm in silver flake( generally rigged wacky)
2. Live target frog popper in yellow.
1. Hands down my #1 lure for all species
of gamefish spring summer fall , continues to be the best year after year . If I only had one lure for the rest of my life.
#1. Rapala shadow rap shallow ( white ghost, bone or bud colour) however these get modified heavily from the package to achieve this.

Though I only target bass on occasion on Erie, and tend toward live bait when I do, I appreciate the input all the same. If the wind keeps up next year like it did this year, I may be targeting them more since I can go to more sheltered areas to fish them rather than sitting out another windy spell wishin' I was fishin'

"Heavy Hitter", riiiiight, I just post more of what I do than others. LOL

This was strangely enough a very difficult question to answer.

I sat down with my neighbour for a bit this morning and asked, "Top 5, not hit and miss, but for the last two years.

Top of the list was a no brainer, but by number 3 we were struggling with the over time old reliables.

Here it is.

View attachment 49685	Dreamweaver Super Slim Perch	Most reliable for 2 years, most effective once fish are down 40 and below. Always one in the water.
View attachment 49686	Greasy Chicken, these are Silver Streak, currently favouring Super Slims.	Old reliable in many cases, a go to for sure.
View attachment 49687	SS1438 UV Black Green	New standout for 2021, put a lot of bows in the box with this one
View attachment 49688	Luhr-Jensen Shoehorn Poison Ivy	On tough days this one can put multiples in the box.
View attachment 49690	Dreamweaver Super Slim Captain Gary MI Dolphin.	On some days it's tough to beat

No body baits, or worm harnesses etc., just not finding them productive enough to keep using them.

The past few trips, running a perch out both sides and changing the other lines to find contributors.

Fun fact: heading to deeper water, Starboard is alive, heading back into shallower water, Port takes the lead......... Why?

Well hvyhaul, your response was a bit of await, but definitely worth it. The pictures that accompanied your selections were very helpful on a few fronts: I now know that the lures with the golf ball-like dimples on them are made by Dreamweaver, the S.S. designation stands for super slim, the name "shoehorn" for that Luhr Jensen product is self-explanatory once you see a photo of them, and I now have a few more favourite patterns to chose from in Dreamweavers when I inevitably start adding some to my lure collection.

The fact that you post what you do more or more often than others is one of the things that makes you a "heavy hitter" IMHO - that and the box-loads of fish you display when you post reports. I am grateful that you and many others are willing to share information. It is one of the things that makes this such a great site.

As for your puzzling questions regarding port and starboard, interesting. I have a tiller steer boat and until this spring, I was hand-holding my rod - that's correct, no rod holders. It was a bit of an exhausting and wrist-breaking exercise dragging a #1 dipsy on #3 setting all day, but I had no previous experience with rod holders. Of course that meant that I was limited to one rod when I was alone and two rods only if I had a guest fisher on board. That meant that the vast majority of the time, I was only fishing from one side of the boat, the port side. That situation you're describing, needless to say, didn't have the potential to come up until this season. Either I haven't experienced the same thing or, looking back, just failed to notice it. One thought though, does the starboard/port thing happen on all types of trolling (riggers, boards, dipsys and flat-lining) or just with one method. I don't have riggers or boards, I almost always rely on dipsys and it makes me wonder if the active side coincides with the upwind sided the boat where something like wind-drift keeps the downwind line closer to the boat/prop. I am sure though you would have noticed a correlation if it was that simple, but that's all I got.

Be sure and pass along my thanks to your neighbour/co-fisher and thank you again for giving this so much thought. Every one has been really helpful so far and trying to make sense and take action on the responses is going to be a great way to pass the off-season this year. I never actually went to the tackle shop with a list before, so that's a new one.

 

[Reel-ist]

Z-man Green pumpkin goby TRD

Schuberts TT157 3.5" tube

Green pumpkin Berkley maxscent hit worm

Megabass sparkshad swimbait

Kentucky shad Steelshad Bladebait

Wow Ryan, I have not even heard of any of the one's on your list. I : a) need to get out more, b) need to expand my fishing horizons or c) all of the above. You have given me another research project - in a good way of course. Thanks for your suggestions.

 

[mainlymallard]

A purple one
A green one
A blue one
A orange one
A pink one

 

[Reel-ist]

A purple one
A green one
A blue one
A orange one
A pink one

M.M. Are those just your 5 favourite colours?

 

[mainlymallard]

M.M. Are those just your 5 favourite colours?

Taupe is my favourite colour but the fish don’t agree.