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[Every Day]

Hi,
Thats a really cool setup.  Did I read somewhere before where you said (or someone said) that they like to use a lighter lb test on the trailer setup so if the spoon gets shagged up just the trailer hook will break and you wont lose your spoon?  I see there you are using 30lb - is there a reason for the heavy line?

I never intentionally use light line. 30 pounds is as light as I would go. I would also highly recommend using dacron. Braid, with it's think diameter, can and will (I have had it happen quite often) get cut by the back end of the spoon. The braid also seems to slide around and fray more easily. The dacron forms nice connections and stays put, and never really breaks. SOMETIMES, if you get snagged and pop your rod for a while (we're talking you don't wanna lose the spoon and spend 5 mins sitting there popping your rod), you can saw through the dacron and get your spoon back. My best suggestion if you want to be able to pull out of snags, is use a size 1 or 2 matzou sickle hook. They have really light wire, so you can bend these out on a snag if you're running the 15 braid/15 flouro leader combos like I do. I only use those hooks when I know there is a high % chance of snagging up, but I still want to fish. Hooking fish on those of anything bigger than 8 pounds, you'll have to baby them quite a bit to avoid straightening the hook out.

I should mention, the odd time, you'll get a dud spoon. It's only happened to me twice before, but with both those times I had fish break off my dacron loop 3 or 4 times in a row. Upon checking the spoons, they both had several burrs that were sawing through the line during fights. My advice, if you have a fish break your loop off for no apparent reason on a spoon, put a split ring and a swivel on that one, as you won't really be able to fix it, and it will keep happening.

Cheers,
Dan

[westcoastercoho]

Thanks for the detailed post and pictures. Going to use spoons a lot this fall and winter so this looks great.

For anyone wondering how to fish spoons, I picked up Bill Herzogs book and it is great!

[Tangles]

hi Dan and thank you for the great post, I just like many others wanted try the trailing hook method so it's coming right on time for the season.         

if you're running the 15 braid/15 flouro leader combos like I do.

can you please elaborate on the fluoro leaders setup? Do you use blood knot to tie the fluro straight to mainline or you use swivels? also how long of a fluro to the spoon would be adequate? I've tried blood knot to 10ft fluoro in the past but I thought it maybe a bit overkill. cheers and thanks for input

[Every Day]

hi Dan and thank you for the great post, I just like many others wanted try the trailing hook method so it's coming right on time for the season.          can you please elaborate on the fluoro leaders setup? Do you use blood knot to tie the fluro straight to mainline or you use swivels? also how long of a fluro to the spoon would be adequate? I've tried blood knot to 10ft fluoro in the past but I thought it maybe a bit overkill. cheers and thanks for input

I use a loop to loop connection (Perfection loops).

Double up the end of your braid line and then tie the loop in. The doubled up braid will bind better, and the doubled up braid won't cut through the flouro loop as easily as a single strand of braid would. If you don't double up the braided line before tying, the knot will generally pull out.

I don't use swivels. I always attach directly to my braid. I tend to run a 10 foot flouro leader. 15 pounds for steelhead in big water on the swing (20 for larger rivers like the T - the fish hit hard enough to break 20). 10 pound in slow frog water for coho.

Cheers,
Dan

[Tenz85]

I've haven't caught over 100 salmonoids yet but you mentionned the trailing hook rig not only reduces risk or dangerous hook sets but also increases landing ratio.

Possible the improved %'s are attributed to your gained experience over the years or upgaded rod/reel ?

Edit - BTW, great info regardless

[Every Day]

I've haven't caught over 100 salmonoids yet but you mentionned the trailing hook rig not only reduces risk or dangerous hook sets but also increases landing ratio.

Possible the improved %'s are attributed to your gained experience over the years or upgaded rod/reel ?

Edit - BTW, great info regardless

Definitely not. I notice the same things when I go back to normal hooks.
Not only that, it has drastically improved Kitty's landing %, and she just started.
Every friend I have had try this method has increased their landing ratio. Even back to back days.

Rod/reels are all the same since I've found my favourites.

Give it a try and you'll be surprised.

Cheers,
Dan

[Hoop71]

Hey Dan

What brand spoons are you using in the pics?

They look like they all have the same stamping on he backside but I can't quite make it out.

Any spoon recommendations from personal experience?

Cheers,
Dan

[ride604]

They're R&B spoons
http://www.trophytackle.ca/collections/rbspoons

[Every Day]

Most of my pics have an R&B spoon.

My spoon recommendations vary actually, depending on target species, etc.

For steelhead/salmon under most/all conditions:

1) R&B - lots of colours, good price, supplied locally (shipping cheap and fast), catch lots of fish, do very well swung, jigged, or retrieved

2) Little Cleo's - colour options are good, good price again, have deadly action and catch tonnes of fish

3) Gibbs - Lots of colour options, lots of different styles, ironheads and koho are great on the swing... price is what turns me off of them

4) RVRFSHR - Not many colour options, normally a decent price, work well swung, but overall a good spoon


*Exception for beach fishing is to put Gibbs at the top of the list, specifically the gold hammered orange stripe croc (3/16 size). At times the crocs work very well in the rivers too, but once in rivers I much more prefer R&B as they can do more (swung, jigged - whereas crocs seem to just do best retrieved and suck on the swing). The R&B also seem to just catch more fish in river period, not sure why. On the beach the R&B's work, just not as well - probably partly due to the casting distance (Gibbs are narrower, so cast farther and don't catch wind).

Trout fishing:

Gibbs and R&B are a top tie. Crocs are deadly, but so are the 3/8 small wobblers R&B has.

[Ambassador]

I like the looks of those R&B ones and am going to order a bunch next week. Tied up a few last night with your method on a few of my crocs, but brain-farted and left them on the coffee table this morning. Will try them out tomorrow with undoubted blazing success (how's that for optimism?).

Love to know how and other successful anglers choose what colour throw in - but I'm going to start another thread on that as to not derail this one. I've heard some arguments for copper vs brass vs gold regarding water clarity, but am wondering what would make one choose their specific colour combos.

[Every Day]

The trailer hooks on the R&B spoons worked wonders this weekend....
Over 50 hookups on coho, most of them beautiful specimens like the ones below - give it a try! 













Happy fishing everyone!

[Hoop71]

The trailer hooks on the R&B spoons worked wonders this weekend....
Over 50 hookups on coho, most of them beautiful specimens like the ones below - give it a try! 













Happy fishing everyone!

Bought some new spoons from R&B and purchased my 30lb dacron line today!

I can only hope to have 1/4 as much success as you Dan (and Kitty?).

Just take my $$$ and come over to the mainland to teach me your technique

Dan

[Ambassador]

Just take my $$$ and come over to the mainland to teach me your technique
Dan

Me too! Dreaming of a day like that.

[skaha]

--I use a similar system on my trolling/wobble spoons. I use both orange and green Dacron backing.
--Even on smaller wobble type spoons for kokanee. It seems go give some increased action on the hook which may be an attractor at slower speeds. Also allows quick change of hooks and use of a variety of hooks that do not have open eyes for attaching to the spoon.
--Taking lessons learned from one method of fishing and applying them to others can yield nothing or unexpected results.
--I have been trolling traditional river spoons and spinners in larger lakes.. mainly as they give a greater variety of colours and actions. In particular I like to use sickle and circle hooks behind spoons and find them more effective if on a trailer than if attached direct. Also if it is difficult to find sickle hooks with straight open eye or longer shafts that I use on some of the compleat angler tumblers.

[Flytech]

I've tried and got nothing yet, location is key.