Off Topic Downrigger rods for lake Erie?

[vmuravin]

Hi All,

Sorry for the long love letter to the walleye... I am thinking of getting a pair of downrigger rods for lake E, and would appreciate an advice/suggestion from seasoned pros. I thought it is a good time to ask this as some of you are bored anyways

Long story long, my current set up for Lake O (and what I originally wanted to be for Lake E as well) includes 6x Okuma 10ft MH rods with big game mono, with which I run 4x rods on downrigger for deeper dives and 2x rods with TX-22 for trouts. These are technically dipsy diver rods but they do a great job on lake O as either downrigger or planer board rod as well. When I used these on lake E on downrigger, I could barely see a bite at one point, and at some other times, with bigger and wilder walleye, I could see a bite and a walleye would pop up the release.

So I kinda figured out that, other than the lighter releases, I should have a much lighter rods for Erie if I want to feel the fish fighting and not to drag semi-dead walleye into a boat with a towing stick. So my question is, what is your opinion as to what is the best rod to use on downrigger on Lake E such that it will feel the bites much better than the hard sticks and will feel the fish fighting? Ideally I want it to be 9ft or longer (because my walleye rigs are long) and not too beefy, so I sort-of narrowed this down to these choices. What do you guys think?

1. New 2020 Shimano TDR 8.6ft power ML, 8-17lb, nice and wobbly tip, $45 at SAIL.
(So far I think this is candidate 1)

2. Ugly Stik 8”3 ft or 9 ft power L, 8-20 lb, $79, got my hands on it, feels heavier and more beefy than TDR.

3. Eagle Claw Starfire 8.6 or 10ft ($35-$40), the yellow ones, these ones I could not hold in my hand because there is no store in the area that has these but people are complaining that there is too much flex on then... which is maybe precisely what would make it a good lake E rod?

4. Can I use the 9+ feet salmon/steelhead casting rods (that are not made from graphite) M or ML for this? Basically, throw a small Penn or Okuma on them and that’s it...

5. I would not mind entertaining a trade/swap for a pair of my Okumas or other rods into some lighter power rods... In case anyone is interested, plz msg me on this one.

I should mention that I had looked into the brand-new 2020 Talora 9ft light power TLA90L2A, don't want to spend almost $200 for a rod like that. Not a fan of Daiwa Wilderness also but still might get a few from Outfitters...

Thank you in advance!
Vlad

 

[Josh Roelofsen]

I'd have a look at the okuma Blue Diamond rods as well. They're nicer than any of the above IMO. There are some 'Steelhead' rods that will work but you'll be looking at alot more money for something that will work.

Josh

 

[Ticker]

I picked up 2. 8.7' rods from natural sports in kitchener 2 years ago for Erie walleye they are Rapala brand name medium heavy with okuma convector 20 on them
I can see the hits on the tips no problem and handles even some big sheep heads lol
I had thr same problem with my salmon rods drowning fish that did not relese of the clips
They were under $50 each. Did not want to spend to much on it as I use it only on Erie

 

[Ticker]

I'd have a look at the okuma Blue Diamond rods as well. They're nicer than any of the above IMO. There are some 'Steelhead' rods that will work but you'll be looking at alot more money for something that will work.

Josh

Hey Josh . Are those white, white and blue in color? I seen them at Sails and I did like the weight of them and the bend and response in the tip
I'm waiting for now see if they come down in price

 

[vmuravin]

@Ticker these Blue Diamonds are blue/grey, SAIL has only 2 models, no ML model there, they have 9ft M and 10ft MH. Really beautiful rods (besides having a good backbone). really like them, and I actually bought the last ones from Outfitters last year . There is one model BD-C-862MLa, which is 8.6ft ML but cannot be found in any stores and it a lot of $$$ on amazon.

 

[vmuravin]

I also was at Natural Sports, this is not too far from my home. They only have the above-mentioned Ugly Stiks, with or without the combo (sadly, combo only RH) and lots of stuff coming in after the show but price-wise it is $89 dollars.

 

[done working]

Just my opinion, but it depends on what you are looking to get out trolling for walleye. If you just want to crank in, or skate fish across the top of the water then you can stick with your salmon gear. That is what I did at first and it was about as much fun as it sounds. You read a lot of guys complain about walleye being boring and using heavy gear is likely a big part of that, it was for me.

Several years ago my brother invited me for fall trip on Quinte with 30 year veteran guide. He used 6'6" ultralight rods with Flueger President reels and 10lb mono line. We caught several fish between 8 and 13lbs and it was a lot of fun. So when I started to gear up, on a severe budget, I found some Cabelas depthmaster combos that were only $50 on sale. It was the Kokanee combo with 7'6" light or ultralight rod and 15 series reel. I set them up with 15lb braid. Nice thing about them is that you can set your releases really light and still curl the rod way over.

Everyone that I take out loves these rods and the fight that they can feel. I have caught many 8-10 lb walleye, and chinooks, rainbows and lakers to 12lb while walleye fish, with no problem. I only use the kokanee rods for the riggers but have more than a dozen other rods now for long lining, and planer boards and they are all light or medium light with no more than 20lb line. You can feel the fish on all of them.

An advantage that I have found is that with the light rods, and by keeping the rod tip really high, I don't lose many fish. I read an article in In Fisherman magazine that said that when walleye shake their heads with braid and stiff rods the rod unloads quickly and causes slack line and the fish get off. The light rods with a lot of bend in it keeps the line tight and the fish stay pinned. I fish solo most of the time and had 200-300 fish in the boat last year, and honestly only lost 2.

Again, just my opinion from my own experience, but the lighter gear is a lot more fun.

 

[Stick]

I'm thinking 10.5 foot 6 to 10 lbs class steelhead rods would be a blast.

 

[Extra Virgin]

Wait until Angling Outfitters big spring sale in April, if you are in the market for new combos

 

[hvyhaul]

I'll likely be shelling out some significant coin at that sale. I behaved myself this weekend.

 

[vmuravin]

Wait until Angling Outfitters big spring sale in April, if you are in the market for new combos

Yes, I did speak with Rob; has said about the open house event in April but.... this means that I have to have patience for 5 more weeks!

 

[Fish Farmer]

Remember your only catching 2,3,4 lb. Walleye 6.5', 7' spinning rod is all you need on your riggers.
Dipsy rods 8' with Braid and flora leader is all using Dipsy.
Try drifting a harness with a snap weight, you'll catch your fish, take you all day to enjoy a day fishing, a lot more fun than dragging a limit of dead Walleye in a 1/2 hour then head back home to watch Judge Judy
Whats your hurry, your a long time dead.

Did a trip last year, was on the water early in the dark, jigged a 1 oz. Buckshot and had a limit and released in a half hour. now that's fun, It happens not every day. Sometimes certain days you can't jig strait down because of the fast current.

 

[Puddle Jumper]

I also was at Natural Sports, this is not too far from my home. They only have the above-mentioned Ugly Stiks, with or without the combo (sadly, combo only RH) and lots of stuff coming in after the show but price-wise it is $89 dollars.

I have a brand new in bow Penn Warfare left hand reel (WAR20LWLCLH)
that I would trade for a right hand reel …..either same make model or Okuma Convector. I'm in Kitchener also.

Could also check CatchEM on old king street......terrible selection but sometimes good deals there.

 

[vmuravin]

@Puddle Jumper will send you a PM

 

[vmuravin]

Remember your only catching 2,3,4 lb. Walleye 6.5', 7' spinning rod is all you need on your riggers.
Dipsy rods 8' with Braid and flora leader is all using Dipsy.
Try drifting a harness with a snap weight, you'll catch your fish, take you all day to enjoy a day fishing, a lot more fun than dragging a limit of dead Walleye in a 1/2 hour then head back home to watch Judge Judy
Whats your hurry, your a long time dead.

Did a trip last year, was on the water early in the dark, jigged a 1 oz. Buckshot and had a limit and released in a half hour. now that's fun, It happens not every day. Sometimes certain days you can't jig strait down because of the fast current.

Duly noted but this is exactly how I fished 3 years ago, before starting the trolling and it was a blast

 

[Twister]

Aww the good old days jigging Buzz Bombs. Might just be more fun than skipping in a 1/2 pound fish on 9 colours. They sure fight well on a perch rig.

 

[one.last.cast]

I would buy the New 2020 Shimano TDR 8.6ft power ML, 8-17lb . Seen them and thought about the walleye on Erie. The price is good as well.

 

[jammer]

I use all the same cost efficient rods... Erie twist rods from Angling Outfitters...
For my 1,2,3,3,4,5,5,7 and 100,200 steel lines i use the 8.5'
For both 10 color i use the same rod but in 10.5'
Both braid divers are a matching set...
Both wire divers are a matching set...
Boards are matching...

The reason for this is you can tell instantly if something is out of sink... dragging fish or fouled line...
For walleye i run pretty lose drags... Tighten them just so they stop clicking...

You don't need expensive gear for Erie walleye...

 

[one.last.cast]

Erie Twist Rods from Angling Outfitters. Another reason why I should visit there for the first time. I have 3 Shimano TDR 9' Med. I used for Ontario and Erie. This rod was cheap but even too stiff for Small Salmon. I have a 10 ' med action Fenwick moochin rod I put a level wind reel on it last year. Light and flexible for both walleye and salmon. Erie Twist rods sound light and flexible as well. What is the cost of them.

 

[vmuravin]

Thanks for this @jammer , I am having also as many matching sets as possible. What are Erie Twist Rods? I think Rob mentioned over the phone something like that visavi April open house at Outfitters...