# Trolling with downriggers



## Gofish2day (May 9, 2006)

I just bought some attwood rod holders for trolling. On the package there are some downriggers for $56 dollars each. They each come with 100ft of SS cable. They look really neat. Now after spending $270 in tires after a blow out several weeks ago and today spending $57 for new Texas stickers on my boat, I don't want to go out and spend another $120. I was just wondering, does anyone use downriggers in livingston for whites or Conroe for Hybrids? I have used downriggers offshore and what is neat is when the fish bite the line snaps from the downrigger and you are fighting the fish instead of the helldiver. I like to troll but fighting the hellbender or jetdiver is not my idea of fun. I want to feel a real fish!:question:


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## bueyescowboy (Apr 10, 2005)

learn to jig and your jetdiver will stay hidden in your tackle box. Latch on to one of them big stipers....and you'll love it.


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## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

I have seen a couple of people use them on the lake, but could never tell if they were helpful. They should work, the only time I have used one was offshore for king macs and they worked great. They were electric and easy to use, they would return automatically, very pricey too! 
The hand crankers would get old I think when you got a good school of white bass. They might be helpful for striper fishing when the schools are down and not surfacing.
I know many striper guides on other lakes use them, but most other striper lakes in Texas are much deeper than Livingston. So far I have not been able to intice Livingston stripers with the techniques that are used almost exclusively on the deep lakes.


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## Gofish2day (May 9, 2006)

I was just curious since they were on the BOM with the rod holders I bought. They looked good but don't have the $100.


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## Lone Eagle (Aug 20, 2009)

bueyescowboy said:


> learn to jig and your jetdiver will stay hidden in your tackle box. Latch on to one of them big stipers....and you'll love it.


Ken, Seems to me that the gentleman was asking a question that has Nothing to do with your REPLY....LOL.


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## Lone Eagle (Aug 20, 2009)

I agree with SS. I think they might work but you also have to remember this lake has a lot more hazards to a downrigger. We have things like old trotlines, trees broken off way neneath the surface of the water. Might be worth a try as long as it was not too expensive.


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## Gofish2day (May 9, 2006)

I have had the jet divers hung also. I always try to jig but once the day gets further along, I start to troll. I prefer to jig or cast since the jet divers and hell benders pull more than the fish. Not as fun. If only I had the luck cowboy is having this year, I wouldn't need to troll.

Matt has me trolling with a crank bait and no diver. I like it better but they don't go as deep.

I was itching to go saltwater this Saturday but the weather man says SSE19. I bet more like SSE25 if I go. I may end up at the dam due to the wind but a little tired of the dam.


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## Sunbeam (Feb 24, 2009)

I have a manual down rigger I used for saugeye and big hybrids in OK lakes. The water was much deeper than Livingston and the fish held in 50 to 60 feet. Without a down rigger you could not reach them. The D'rigger was a pain in the butt but it caught much bigger fish than jigs or live bait. The big hybrids wanted a 10 to 12 inch diving lure and would just ignore a casting rod size bait.
Know what I do about using one I do not think Livingston would be very down rigger friendly. Those big "cannon ball" weights and line clips are expensive to replace when you run one in a fork of a big snag.


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## bueyescowboy (Apr 10, 2005)

yea I should have kept my big (fingers) mouth shut.
I know a lot of people think I am against trollers which is not the case. Believe me I troll with the best of them. I can mark a spot and make circles like you wouldn't believe, and have, and will again.
I am cheap. I average out the fish I catch...well use to. Ain't keeping none, so more the reason not to spend money. I stopped trolling when gas went up and my pay check didn't.
A good question deserves a good reply. Now I know why nobody uses them...or uses them with success on this lake......
I ll still hold with.....jigging is a lot more fun to me.....i like the feeling of the bites I miss....sometimes feels like a machine gun so many wb are hitting the slab. And the feel of a striper hitting the lure then taking off....nothing better.....well maybe crappie hitting a minnow...that was good too.
One last note...it ain't luck and this isn't my first year to pull in loads of fish......got pics of day gone by with a boat load....may have one with ole dad and you can see on the pole behind him a hellbender with pet spoon.


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## bueyescowboy (Apr 10, 2005)

I need to give gofish2day a break...
so I called the doctor and he said he's bring over some liquid Valium, after that I should be much better..........


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## A Draper (Aug 14, 2007)

I've used them on Lake Buchanan for stripers and hybrids. The procedure was actually similar to the vertical jigging. We spent a lot of time looking for fish. Once we found them, we marked it. Usually 50' of water with fish stacking off the bottom. Then just trolled around and over the top of the mark.


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## bueyescowboy (Apr 10, 2005)

I can add this.....gofish2day.....try tubes for trolling the have a lot less pull and I have gotten some really good action off of tubes. to get deeper...add weights to the front and that will make them dive more.


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## Gofish2day (May 9, 2006)

I think I have seen the tubes you are talking about. Winds will be up tomorrow. I might try the dam.


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## Red3Fish (Jun 4, 2004)

We use the jet diver and medium pet spoon on L Palestine....but I am like you...pretty hard pull. I think I might take a jet diver and put it on my bench grinder and see if I can reduce it some, but still work. We generally just troll while "looking" and and "depthfishfinding", then mark them and jig. 

Good Luck
Later
R3F


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## bluefin41 (Jun 9, 2008)

No need to grind jet divers down. Depending on the model, they run from 10 to 50 or 60 feet. Red, 30 ft., green, 40 ft., etc. I use them for striped bass, but they wouldn't work for whites very well. The 20 ft. diver puts so much drag on the line that you can't tell when you've got a white on. You also have to use a lure that doesn't try to pull the rear of the diver down. The 4 inch suspending Wildeye Shad work pretty well.


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