pickeral rigs?

[Christofficer]

I like to fish for burbot during late fall. I was wondering what a good setup you guys have for casting smelt? I've been doing this for about 4 years now, and am just wondering if there's a better way than I do it. I'm not a fan of pickeral rigs....at all..... the line that comes packaged with the hooks is way too thick for me, those things are an abomination really with all those wires and crap. And I only hook up one smelt at a time anyway. Previously I've been snelling my own hooks, and tying that to a 3 way swivel with a tin bell sinker on the end.

I'm gonna swing by the store next week and need some recommendations on types of hooks that will hold my smelt on better. Also some advice on how to atttach the smelt would be good too.

PS: I'm no expert bait fisherman, my skills with lures and flies far surpass my bait using techniques by a long shot. Can you tell? :budo:


EDIT: I almost forgot...

I'm gonna buy a new reel as well. I bought a spinning combo at can-tire a few months ago on sale (lost my lucky one when I moved :( ), the rod is good, but the reel sucks. It doesn't hold enough line (maybe at best 110 yards of 8lb fluoro), the drag is terrible on a good day, and it's ugly/cheap feeling. the only good part is the rod. I just want a plain colored reel that holds a decent amount of line with a decent drag system. Without spending too much money. Can anyone recommend anything for me?

[mulecrazy]

I hear ya on the pickeral rig headache. I hate the things. When I am baitfishing for trout I just put a heavy weight on the end of my leader and have a pre-packaged hook with line attached on there as well. Buy a good quality hook. When attaching the smelt push the hook fully through the bait just under the spine. then, push the end of the hook back into the smelt near the spine, just behing the gills. This "double hooking" will hold the smelt or minnow on much better. as for the reel, the least I would spend would be around $60. you get what you pay for. I would also recommend using a braided line like the original spiderwire. Much less knots due to line memory.

[Guitarplayingfish]

I agree, Pickerel rigs are garbage. I prefer to use bottom bouncers. not only are they strong, and you can hook up any length of hook to it, and pike and walleye will hit it when you reel in. They won't with a pickerel rig.

[Geezle]

I also am not a fan of the pickerel rig. They're a huge PITA to cast and swing around like mad.

Lately when I'm baitfishing on the bottom I'll use a drop shot rig, with the weight on the very end of my line and my snelled hook tied directly on to my main line a foot or so up.

[gprime27]

just use alindy rig :).

[ericlin0122]

Pickerel rigs are the best. never have any problem with that.

[Stu]

Can anyone recommend anything for me?

I usually buy a rod/reel combo from can tire, and when the reel craps out i usually slap a mitchell on there. The last one i got was $40 at bass pro. Ive seen them at UFA as well. Mitchell 300xe i think. They come with two spools so you can easily change line.

[WayneChristie]

I used a Quantum snapshot for years, til I broke the handle, Recently picked up a new one at Walleyworld for less than 40 bucks, with a spare spool. It holds a lot of 8 pound line, but I spooled it with 12 pound mono for backing, then finished with a spool of 30 pound powerpro to bring it up to full, since the powerpro is 8 pound diameter, and one spool doesnt put near enough line on for good casting distance. I like the reel since you cast one handed with it. Goes great on my 7 1/2 foot uglystik light.
Smelts for burbs and for pike I like to use a treble, push it up from the bottom of the smelt, eye thru the back then hook on your leader. My choice, for you treble haters out there. Keeps the smelt on a lot better than a single hook too.

[npauls]

I would go with a reel around the $60 or higher also. The reel is the major part of spin fishing that you need to have quality. The drag on a spinning reel is the main part. Without a good drag you can lose alot of big fish. It will skip and jump if its a crappy one.

Also I would try a lindy rig for bait fishing from shore. You can make the leader as long as you want to and I would use either a fluoro of choice or a good solid mono for that leader to the hook. Use a Mustad bait hook set up and a bit of weight on a line through clevis on your main line. Put a swivel between your main line and your leader so there is no twisted line.

With this set up you should be able to leave it sit or jig it back in.


Nate

[fish-man]

Really simple... tie a look in your line above the weight (double know so it doesn't sleep) and put the hook in the loop.

If that doesn't work, put a sinker on the line, put a bead or something on the line to keep the weight from sliding up to the hook, and tie the hook on the end.

Pickerel rigs are annoying, I don't see the point and I never use them.

[omega50]

x2 on the Lindy Rig-The Burbot that I have caught in the fall were sucking off the bottom and a pickerel rig is not that effective with all the slack required to lay flat. Smelts work ok for me , but I prefer to make dough bait for Burbots with a tin of tuna flavored cat food and enough flour to bind it up.

[fitzy]

My recommendation on a spinning reel is to make sure and get one with the drag on the front rather than the back, the disks are bigger in the front and dissipate heat faster. Shimano is the way to go!
I agree with most of you on the Pickerel rig, kind of pain in the butt, I have caught quite a few Walleye and pike on them though.

I agree with Wayne on the set up, run a treble through a smelt or piece of beef heart and tie off on your leader, I have run them behind bottom bouncers before with success.

[Christofficer]

Hmmm, that dough bait recipe is interesting. Definitely beats buying smelt and keeping them frozen. Send me a PM with some details if you got some time.


Thanks for all the tips guys. I like the basic idea of just a hook and weight, that should do for burbs. I'll also buy some lindy rigs and give em a shot.


Now about the reel, that's not so true on the price. My last reel, before this ****ty one I bought, I had for 12 years. I bought it in a combo for $40 at wholesale sports, it was made by zebco, just a plain silver reel with 4 ball bearing drag. It did great for many years, broke the rod long before the reel broke. I had it in water, dirt, mud, sand, grass, etc, and it still worked perfectly before I lost it.


I looked at whole sports website and found this decent one, anyone have any experience with it?

http://ca.wholesalesports.com/storefront/fresh-sal****er-fishing/spinning-reels/trion-spinning-reel/prod210501.html

[soggysocks]

Here's a good link to setup bait rigs.

http://www.ultimateluresaver.com/bait.cfm

Drop shot works great with slip bobber as well, replace the weight with a jig head.

I hate pickeral rights too, too often a fish will swallow the hook on me.

[honker_clonker]

Ive been trying a method lately that looks like stitching but holds a bait incredibly well. I use 50lb dacron and snell about 36" onto a 4/0 gamakatsu octopus hook. Then when I want to bait up my rig I put the hook through the head of tail section then make a series of half hitches up the bait until you reach an end. The burbs probably wont mind the dacron and the bait stays on basically no matter what. I use it on a fish finder rig in the river for bottom feeders. I have casted a sardine plus 8 oz of lead as far as I could with my gear and a bait hasn't come off yet. Happy hunting. Adjust dacron size according to bait size. Super line also works well for this.

[whitetail Junkie]

[QUOTE=mulecrazy;659304]I hear ya on the pickeral rig headache.

Try telling that to my two co-worker's who won a walleye fishing tournament at lake defenbaker 8 years ago.the water was mud and no one was catching any fish,so they went in the narrows buy a bridge and used pickeral rigs!!! they caught there limit and were the only team to weigh fish They won a $25,000 Strato's 17' Fiberglass Boat.

Never cut down any Fishing Method.:)

[Geezle]

Hmmm, that dough bait recipe is interesting. Definitely beats buying smelt and keeping them frozen. Send me a PM with some details if you got some time.


Thanks for all the tips guys. I like the basic idea of just a hook and weight, that should do for burbs. I'll also buy some lindy rigs and give em a shot.


Now about the reel, that's not so true on the price. My last reel, before this ****ty one I bought, I had for 12 years. I bought it in a combo for $40 at wholesale sports, it was made by zebco, just a plain silver reel with 4 ball bearing drag. It did great for many years, broke the rod long before the reel broke. I had it in water, dirt, mud, sand, grass, etc, and it still worked perfectly before I lost it.


I looked at whole sports website and found this decent one, anyone have any experience with it?

http://ca.wholesalesports.com/storefront/fresh-sal****er-fishing/spinning-reels/trion-spinning-reel/prod210501.html
I've got the rear drag version of that reel and use it on my pike rod. The drag is a little sticky to get it running, but otherwise I have no real complaints about the reel.

Your profile doesn't say where you're from, but if you're in the Edmonton area you might want to check out the big sale at TFH later this week...can probably find yourself a good deal on a new reel there :)

[Christofficer]

Fixed my profile up. I'm in calgary.

You think that reel would perform better with the front spool drag? like the one in the pic? I mainly want that one because it comes with an extra spool and it's not too expensive.

[mulecrazy]

[QUOTE=mulecrazy;659304]I hear ya on the pickeral rig headache.

Try telling that to my two co-worker's who won a walleye fishing tournament at lake defenbaker 8 years ago.the water was mud and no one was catching any fish,so they went in the narrows buy a bridge and used pickeral rigs!!! they caught there limit and were the only team to weigh fish They won a $25,000 Strato's 17' Fiberglass Boat.

Never cut down any Fishing Method.:)

Not saying they don't catch fish, there are just other ways of doing the same thing. Just without the messy knots, and really crappy hooks. I have had several hook snap at the shafts on those things. Fishing a lindy rig the same way they were fishing would have given the exact same results.


My description of rigging I gave is basically exactly the same as the lindy rig. just without the fancy weight and a leader instead of a swivel. They work well, and have outfished many pickeral rig guys right beside me (and used half the bait).

cheers

[whitetail Junkie]

[QUOTE=whitetail Junkie;659773]

Not saying they don't catch fish, there are just other ways of doing the same thing. Just without the messy knots, and really crappy hooks. I have had several hook snap at the shafts on those things. Fishing a lindy rig the same way they were fishing would have given the exact same results.




cheers

No Wrong,all day everyone at the tournament tried jigs\lindy rigs\ bottoms bouncer's and crankbait's and Caught ZERO.So whats left to Try,ahh pickeral rig's!!! My buddy's caught there limit and no other teams caught Fish.

Pickeral rigs won my buddy's a $25,000 Boat.

[mulecrazy]

[QUOTE=mulecrazy;659906]

No Wrong,all day everyone at the tournament tried jigs\lindy rigs\ bottoms bouncer's and crankbait's and Caught ZERO.So whats left to Try,ahh pickeral rig's!!! My buddy's caught there limit and no other teams caught Fish.

Pickeral rigs won my buddy's a $25,000 Boat.

how the heck does adding one more hook equal going from ZERO fish to their limits. Something smells fishy about that claim. I think if anyone had fished a lindy rig the same way (jigging, sitting on the bottom, whatever they did) the results would have been the same. They also, could have been the only people to get on a decent size school of active fish. Bait could be the deciding factor. They likely had the bait the fish wanted that day. The ONLY thing the pickeral rig has is an extra hook, it is not a magic lure, just a plain hook dangling. a really crappy plain hook mind you, unless they threw out the crappy ones they came with and put on something decent, thats the only way I would even think of using one again.

[whitetail Junkie]

[QUOTE=whitetail Junkie;659916]

how the heck does adding one more hook equal going from ZERO fish to their limits. Something smells fishy about that claim. I think if anyone had fished a lindy rig the same way (jigging, sitting on the bottom, whatever they did) the results would have been the same. They also, could have been the only people to get on a decent size school of active fish. Bait could be the deciding factor. They likely had the bait the fish wanted that day. The ONLY thing the pickeral rig has is an extra hook, it is not a magic lure, just a plain hook dangling. a really crappy plain hook mind you, unless they threw out the crappy ones they came with and put on something decent, thats the only way I would even think of using one again.

Well I can kind off see where you can question the story.They went into the narrows at defenbaker by this bridge close to where the water comes in at the lake.There was a Strong current and the only way they could get there line just how they wanted it was with the pickeral Rigs.Like I said they Tried everything else and nothing,but then were catching them on the pickeral Rigs.

These same two Friends I work with have won the Vanity cup Together at Tobin Lake along with many other tournaments,so you cant say that They dont know a Few things about catching Walleye.

My Cousin and I in the picture Fish the odd tourament Together.Last Year him and his partner won the Lund boat and Team of the Year in the Southern Alberta Walleye Trail.So Trust Me When I Say, Dont cut Down a "PICKERAL" (ei:Walleye) Rig as a method of catching Fish,because I know what i'm Talking about:acigar:

[Geezle]

Fixed my profile up. I'm in calgary.

You think that reel would perform better with the front spool drag? like the one in the pic? I mainly want that one because it comes with an extra spool and it's not too expensive.

It might...I honestly can't say for sure though. I've talked to a couple other people on the forum that have the same reel as I do, and it seems I've got the only one with the sticky drag, so maybe I just got the lemon?

It is a decent little entry level reel...I use mine pretty often and it's taken a fair bit of shat and abuse crashing through the bush and getting plonked in the river/sand/rocks etc and it's held up well. I say go for it :)

Not sure if TFH is having their big sale there in Calgary as well, but it's something worth checking out. They have the same reel there as well, so you might be able to save yourself a few bucks to put towards filling those two spools with line :)

[valve god]

I use rigs quite a bit when river fishing. Never use the hooks that come with them, they are garbage. :angry3: I set mine up with floating jig heads and have had great luck. Sometimes you have to change the color to find the one shade that works. I have had fish hit when I have been reeling in. The bait seems to have more action when using the floating heads. Give it a try you may be surprised:sHa_shakeshout:

[ericlin0122]

The ONLY thing the pickeral rig has is an extra hook.

it's not just an extra hook, but an extra hook in different depth.
that's why p-rigs are so effective, you can't go wrong with p-rigs.

[Crusty]

nothing much has changed on here, all about "I". use what you want rather than argue about it. to many variables, man!

[Christofficer]

Valve god and Geezle, thanks for the ideas. I'll check out TFH and see if they have the same sale, and try out some of those floating jig heads. Do those work well with a lindy rig?

[Geezle]

Valve god and Geezle, thanks for the ideas. I'll check out TFH and see if they have the same sale, and try out some of those floating jig heads. Do those work well with a lindy rig?

Yup :)

[Mr. Wilson]

Pickeral rig's work great if you know how to use them properly.
The trick is to keep the bait or hook's near the top or above weed's.
Small styrofoam pill float's like the lindy rig one's work well and not too much weight, maybe 3/8oz or 1/2oz for lake's and a lot more for river's- not that there are any river's in AB we can bait fish in.... or are there and I'm just ignorant to the fact. Bought an uglystick and a 4-bearing shimano reel which hold's 240 yard's of 8lb test at walsmart- reel cost me 64.99.(multipurpose rod)!!!
Just picked up a mitchell combo in the same place last week- 60-70bone's.
That's my medium-light action walley/ whatever want's to bight it bait rod.
Light action rod's are your best bet for walley because you can feel them nibble, then coscequently set the hook.
Going walley fishing this weekend with some friend's and pooch, going to try wrapping smelt chunk's in different coloured "spawn-net" and spider thread.
Hoping to find out what colour's are most attractive to walley- eg. hot-pink, flourescent orange or white. Netting is transparent and meant for rigging fish-egg's(salmon fishing experience).
they will also stay on the separately purchased smaller separately purchased "bait-holder" snelling hook's.
Because those one's that come with the pickeral-rig suck, try and cast bait more than twice on them and the fish will fill up on your lost bait.

That's my two cent's on dat!:happy0034:

[Rovin]

I fished the Red Deer River with a co-worker one day and he was using p-rigs. I have never ued it and never will. Him=0, me=5, 5 of diamonds baby!!!:sHa_shakeshout:

[Mr. Wilson]

5 of diamonds eh, sound's like my speed.
what did you catch? pike,walley???
Where abouts on the river were you?

[Braun]

I used a Quantum snapshot for years, til I broke the handle,

ah man i LOVED my old snap shot. mine was really old though. Grey with the long handle. just retired it in for a new quantum on tuesday. But i think i am going to set it up on a spare rod and use it from time to time. Just took the new set up out today and i did love it. although what i noticed is when i flipped my bail bar up my Pline leader would almost unravel itself from the spoot and hook itself on the reel. that never happened with a snapshot. oh well. have to get used to it though.its only with the Pline leader i use. the braid sticks to the reel. just need to use a shorter leader.

[Christofficer]

Said reel I was talking about in my first post, the 12 year old one, was a Quantam snapshot ss3. Best reel EVER. I can't find one anywhere anymore, do you guys know if bass pro or something has it? I don't think wholesale carries them anymore, which is where I bought it.

[WayneChristie]

Said reel I was talking about in my first post, the 12 year old one, was a Quantam snapshot ss3. Best reel EVER. I can't find one anywhere anymore, do you guys know if bass pro or something has it? I don't think wholesale carries them anymore, which is where I bought it.

picked up mine at Wallyworld even came with a spare spool

[Rovin]

5 of diamonds eh, sound's like my speed.
what did you catch? pike,walley???
Where abouts on the river were you?

I was at the bridge north of Blindloss, south of Oyen, north of hwy 555. I was catching walley and landed a nice 70cm-er. Also upstream of the Hwy 41 bridge was good to me too. I try everything for pike and walleye. The 5 of diamonds always works IMO.

[Christofficer]

picked up mine at Wallyworld even came with a spare spool

I'll check there, thanks wayne :sHa_shakeshout: