In this section I have compiled information from various sources:
It is rare for a professional fishing guide to give his fish-catching secrets, so please make good use of the information contained of the article below, written by Ernie Lantiegne. This article made me realize how many things I had been doing "wrong" for 40 years!
a) using the treble hooks that came with the store-bought spoons (where legally allowed), instead of immediately installing a lighter single hook that maximizes the spoon's action
b) using snap swivels for quick lure changes, not knowing that the weight of the snap swivel affects the spoon's action
c) not always matching the spoon to the trolling speed, or vice versa
d) not adding a touch of color to otherwise "plain-looking" store-bought spoons
P.S. For your convenience I have in stock a variety of snaps, hooks, and split rings at the best prices in Canada, to allow you to perform the necessary "retrofit" to your existing collection of fishing spoons.
https://www.glangler.com/blogs/articles/spoon-tuning-trickery-for-browns-brown-trout-by
Tipping your trolling spoons (by Denis Canuel)
I have recently fished with someone who tips his plug with a half-worm, and this made me ask myself: "why not tip my trolling spoons?"
I have researched the topic and was surprised to see no article or video on that topic, apart from numerous mentions of that practice in ice fishing, and one video from my guru Cal Kellogg:
The concern seems to be that the added weight of the bait could dampen the spoon's action. I decided to give tipping a try and the results have been outstanding: in just a few hours of trolling my favorite flutter spoon tipped with half of a Gulp NightCrawler, I hooked three large cutthroat trout (3 lbs, 5-6 lbs, and another large fish that got away). The results speak for themselves.
I believe that tipping could be applied to salmon fishing spoons as well (tipped with a brined anchovy tail, or the tail of a Gulp minnow, or with a pompom as discussed below).
Tipping adds natural scent and a color the game fish are familiar with. The extra 1 to 2 inch length makes the lure more attractive to large predatory fish.
Dec. 18 update: on my last 2 trips I hooked a total of 8 nice trout using mostly a new method: I added a 10mm pompom to the hook, soaked in corn oil.
I researched the topic and could find no article or video about using pompoms on trolling spoons. But I did find a very informative article about using pompoms to assemble fishing flies. Much of the information contained in this article is helpful:
1- Purpose: the main reason for using a pompom is as a scent disperser. A pompom is much more durable than natural or artificial bait for that purpose, and much less expensive. And the pompom looks like a trout or salmon egg, which is natural feed for gamefish.
2- Size: I have only used 10mm pompoms so far, and they worked well for trout, on a size 1 hook. For salmon fishing with a size 3/0 hook, 10mm will work, but you can also use 12mm (1/2 inch). Please note: I have tested clear rubber bands and they do not perform well for holding the pompom on the hook.
3- Instructions: Slide one piece of rubber band on the hook, Then slide the pompom on the hook, then the 2nd piece of rubber band. Adjust the rubber bands so that they hold the pompom centered side-to-side in the hook bend. It is important to make sure that the pompom does not interfere with hookset. If the pompom is not centered "top to bottom", make sure that the bulkier side of the pompom is not in the hook bend, but outside of the hook bend.
4- Colors: I have only tried red and pink. Both worked. I will be testing many more colors in the coming weeks. Here is a cool video about the efficacy of different colors of trout eggs:
5- Scent: for trout, corn oil is most effective when the fish are actively feeding. When the fish are inactive, I had good luck with garlic gel, to trigger bites by aggression. For salmon, corn and anise oil are supposed to be effective, but I would think that any fish oil (herring, anchovie) would work too. Please let me know what oil worked best for you. Pro-Cure makes an oil called "salmon egg", unavailable locally unfortunately.
6- Maintenance: pompoms can be discarded at the end of the day. They are easily removed from barbless hooks. For those of you who fish barbed hooks, I recommend purchasing some scissors at the Dollar Store and keeping them on the boat to cut the pompoms off the hooks. I assemble my pompom hooks at home and store them ready to go in a small plastic box, so that I am not wasting my fishing time baiting hooks. I use some split rings pliers to simply change the hooks on the spoons.
Important safety note: another reason for assembling pompoms at home and not on the boat, is because dexterity is required. You are trying to punch a hook point through a rubber band 4mm wide, and it requires force to slide the hook point through the pompom, especially with barbed hooks. I can hardly imagine trying to do this work on a rocking boat. Tip: use a plastic hook storage box as an "anvil" to place the rubber band on, and push the hook point through the center of the rubber band to get started.
Update: I just found that Cabela's sells "Bait Buttons", which seem to make the task easier than fiddling with small pieces of rubber bands.
7- But all of the complications explained above can be avoided if you are comfortable using Power Eggs instead of a worm. I was skeptical, but I was wrong: results have been outstanding with Power Eggs (especially orange color, garlic scented), and they stay on the hook much longer than a worm does. The only downside is that a Power Egg will not absorb a liquid scent well. So I will still use worms/pompoms when I want to use corn oil, because I did not have success yet with corn gel. Garlic scent is available in gel form and works great. It will stay on for one hour.
8- I have been using fish scents in oil or gel form with no issue with the lure tape peeling off the spoons so far. But we must be aware that any time we use an oil-based product over a glued product, there is a risk of chemical reaction. I try to apply the fish scent to the back of the spoon near the "bottom" (hook), to minimize contact of the oil with the lure tape.
Do not use products such as WD-40 on spoons with lure tape. They will cause the tape to peel off.
Trolling "strategy" or "game plan" for trout (by Denis Canuel)
It is easy to get lulled into doing the same old thing again and again when trolling. After all, "that method" has produced results for us in the past, right? Maybe, but conditions are constantly changing under water. And what worked yesterday or even 15 minutes ago might not be the best technique right at this time. I have been guilty myself of trolling at the same speed of 1.6 MPH for hours and days, because that is the speed that has produced the most trout for me over the years. But a recent discussion with a fisherman at the boat ramp made me reconsider my views on trolling speed (thanks Dustin!). More testing is required, but preliminary results indicate that preferred trolling speed for trout might vary randomly throughout the day. Since I have become aware of that, if I troll for more than 15 minutes without a trout hitting my lures, I either increase or reduce trolling speed significantly. I am not talking about minute adjustments, or short bursts of speed. I am talking about trolling for 15 minutes at a speed 0.4 MPH higher or lower.
The same holds true for trolling depth, and location of my trolling pattern on the lake. I tend to favor relatively deep trolling in relatively deep water because this seems to be what produced most large fish for me over the years, but I do not hesitate to vary my trolling depth drastically from one 15-minute fishing window to the next. And if I do not get hits in deep water close to the middle of the lake, I move as close to shore as I dare, without snagging bottom. In other words, if my current trolling pattern does not produce hits, I do not make a minute change. I do "the opposite" of what I was doing before, to try and create opportunities for fish to bite.
At the beginning of a fishing session I use 2 lines, to quickly find the depth where fish are biting, and what color/size of spoon the fish are biting at that moment. If your boat is large enough downriggers are the easiest way to fish precisely. On smaller boats leadcore lines are precise too. Using lead weights of 2 to 3 oz on monofilament or braided lines also works. I will typically troll one line 35 feet deep with a large True Gold spoon, and one line 24 feet deep with a small Black Chrome spoon. Usually within 5 minutes I will get a hit, and adjust depth and spoon size/color on the rod that did not get hit - or just fish the one rod that got hit, if I do not want to deal with the tangles created by double headers. If I do not get other hits after 15 minutes, I start experimenting again, as preferred depths and size/color of spoons can vary through the day. Sometimes the bite comes in "waves" of 5 to 10 minutes of non-stop action every hour or so. I keep an eye on other boats. If there is no action on other boats, this means that there is a "lull" in the fish feeding activity, and not necessarily any need to change my depth or lure.
Professional guide Cal Kellogg explains the effectiveness of black lures:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXf4TJmiweo&t=250s
Leadcore line: for boats that don't have downriggers (by Denis Canuel)
If you have downriggers on your boat, you have the ability to reach fish deep.
But for those who fish tiny boats on lakes with no boat launch, you can fish deep by using a leadcore setup. Here is a tutorial by Cal Kellogg, that explains how:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JnQ_eDKRqg&t=1517s
Cal Kellogg and his thoughts on why leadcore line catches more trout:
I also believe that leadcore line produces an oscillation in the water, that adds a bit of action to your lure. I recently ran a comparative test, running two lines with the same spoon at the same depth for 2 hours. The leadcore line outfished by a ratio of 4 to 1, the braided line with a 3 oz weight.
Here is the leadcore line I use:
I recommend 18lb test, as it is the line that sinks the fastest.
Here is a quick formula to calculate how many colors of leadcore you need to let out to reach the desired depth:
Trolling speed 1.6 MPH: 7 feet of depth per color of leadcore
Trolling speed 2.0 MPH: 6 feet of depth per color of leadcore
Trolling speed 2.5 MPH: 5 feet of depth per color of leadcore
In between the leadcore line and your leader, it is better if you add something called a "topshot". I have run experiments and I am catching just as many fish with a 9 foot or a 25 foot topshot. I use fluorocarbon because it is invisible to fish, but if you don't want to spend this kind of money, any 20 lb test monofilament will do just fine (as long as you use fluorocarbon for the leader that attaches to your spoon).
Here is the easiest knot to tie, to attach the different components of this system:
https://www.netknots.com/fishing_knots/double-uni-knot
If you just want to try leadcore without spending a lot of money on a new rod and reel, you can use just any old Penn reel with a downrigger rod.
But once you start hooking more fish than anyone else on the lake, you will want to actually land these fish consistently, and this is where good equipment matters. I use a Penn Squall similar to this, because of its fast retrieve ratio, useful when a large rainbow swims to the surface after biting, and you need to "reel in the slack" before this fish gets to the surface to jump:
https://harbourchandler.ca/penn-squall-ii-30lw-level-wind-reel/
And I use a custom leadcore rod, because I have not seen yet a mass-produced rod that has the needed characteristics: a strong bottom portion to handle the weight of 5 colors of leadcore deployed under water (3 ounces), and a soft top portion of the rod to absorb the shock of fish fighting close to the boat. On a small boat, a short length of 6.5 feet is ideal, especially if you are fishing by yourself, so that the fish are within your reach for netting.
https://www.fishhuntshoot.com/product/cals-leadcore-trolling-rod/#reviews
The downsides of leadcore line:
Leadcore is very effective at catching fish, but also has downsides:
1- your line extends far behind the boat, so it is not suitable for fishing crowded areas, because of possible tangles with other fishermen. And if such a tangle occurs, it could damage your line to the point of you having to replace it (always carry a spare spool of leadcore line). Tangles can also occur if a fish crosses your 2nd line during a fight. Because leadcore line is abrasive, this can cause your leader to break and losing the fish.
2- no matter what you do, you will experience line twist eventually. And once leadcore line is twisted, it cannot be straightened and you will notice that it takes longer to deploy. For someone who fishes a lot, this could mean replacing the line every few weeks. I consider $15.00 an acceptable price to pay, to catch fish consistently. For someone who fishes less, line would last one season. I have noticed that not using a dodger or other attractor greatly reduces line twist. I have never encountered a situation trout fishing where a dodger produced more fish anyway. So when fishing leadcore, it pays to troll a high-quality spoon by itself.
3- just like braided line, leadcore line can cut you if you are not careful. Do not try to pull a snag with your hand. Always wrap the line around a fish club.
You can combine the benefits of a downrigger and leadcore line with something called the "Secret Weapon Rig" or "Skunk Buster". Just add 2 colors of leadcore line to a downrigger rod and reel, and clip the downrigger release to the monofilament.
The "Skunk Buster":
https://www.glangler.com/blogs/articles/stealth-downrigger-tactics-by-dan-keating
Here is an article about using trailing hooks to reduce mortality in catch and release fishery:
https://outdooraddictions.wordpress.com/2015/01/01/the-trailing-hook-method/
https://outdooraddictions.wordpress.com/2018/03/09/the-trailing-hook-method-faq/
Solid rings: a solution for rigging spoons while salmon fishing (by Denis Canuel)
Comparisons of the various methods used by anglers to secure their salmon spoons has revealed regional differences: some of the Great Lakes spoon manufacturers do not use a split ring on the top end, as their spoons are designed to be secured directly by a snap into the top hole of the spoon. Other manufacturers use a split ring. In British Columbia, it is customary for anglers to attach a leader directly to each spoon. That is why a soldered ring is preferred, as a split ring has sharp edges that could fray the leader. But soldered rings do not come with a lb test rating from manufacturers, because ultimately the strength of the rings is determined by the consistency of solder from ring to ring.
To avoid this lack of consistency, another solution exists, that has been adopted by tuna and grouper fishermen in the Atlantic, who regularly fight fish weighing up to 600 lb, with 200 lb test line, and 60 lb of drag on their reels. These anglers prefer to use an "assist ring", which consists of a split ring rated at 200 lb test or more, to which they attach a solid ring rated at 200 lb test or more. The solid ring offers a perfectly smooth surface to tie to, and a consistent lb test rating from ring to ring.
That is why I have selected this solution for the spoons sold on this website, by default, for the salmon fishery. It is also possible to order the spoons with split rings only, or with no split ring on the top end of the spoon. This way, I can cater to the personal preferences of each fisherman. A split ring is always used on the bottom end of the spoon, to make hook changes easier.
The split rings are stainless steel, manufactured in the USA, and rated at 30 to 40 lb test. The solid rings are made of perfectly smooth stainless steel and rated at 300 to 350 lb test depending on model. I have done some "torture testing" in a vise, and was not able to break one of these setups by applying maximum human force with pliers. The 40 lb test leader always broke first.
Bonus: the addition of a solid ring to the split ring improves the spoon's action, by allowing the spoon more freedom to wobble - comparable to what happens when you use a loop knot.
How to control your boat in windy conditions to avoid "crabbing" and tangled lines, and catch more fish:
https://www.ifish.net/threads/combat-trolling-in-the-wind.446070/
How to catch trout in difficult conditions (by Denis Canuel)
There are times when trout are less active. Some of these times are predictable: full moon phase, cold water, low barometric pressure, calm wind, etc. But sometimes, you go out in good fishing conditions and the trout are just not cooperating. Here are a few tips to "save the day":
1- use garlic scent on your bait or lure. Garlic is a scent that is perceived by trout as an intrusion in their territory. Trout that are not feeding might hit your lure just out of annoyance.
2- downsize. If the fish are inactive, the odds are better to attract them with smaller spoons in the 2.5" range.
3- slow down. Inactive fish will not chase high-speed offerings. Try trolling at 1.5 to 1.6 MPH.
4- fish deeper or shallower. Conventional wisdom dictates to fish deeper than usual for inactive fish. But I have seen days where fishing slightly shallower than usual also does the trick. I usually fish 36 feet deep for inactive fish, but 28 feet sometimes seems to work. These depths are for late fall/winter/early spring fishing (cold water conditions). In summer, you might have to go as deep at 70 feet.
5- use more subtle spoon colors. If you are getting no bites, or only "nibbles" on nickel/chrome/silver spoons, use spoons with a stainless steel, gold or black chrome base instead. Nickel/chrome/silver spoons are just too bright, and scare away inactive fish.
6- search for pockets of warmer water. Trout sometimes follow these warm currents, that can be just a few feet away from your usual "hot spots". Don't be afraid to do things differently, when the going gets tough
Maintaining your spoons
To maximize lure tape durability, I recommend storing the spoons in dedicated Plano boxes or similar, away from sunlight. After your day of fishing, leaving the box open overnight allows the spoons to dry, and prevents corrosion. Tip: Dollarama sells inexpensive clear plastic tackle boxes in the crafts department, and in the hardware department. If you are fishing in saltwater, use your water bottle to fill the tackle box with freshwater, give it a quick shake, then drain the box. This is a quick way to get rid of saltwater residue.
If a spoon's finish tarnishes, you may try rubbing toothpaste on the back side of the spoon to bring back its shine. Please make sure not to apply any kind of polishing compound or toothpaste on lure tape. Metal polishes like Brasso are designed for use with solid metals such as brass. If you choose to use metal polishes on plated spoons, be gentle. These polishes are strong enough to remove the thin plating, and expose the brass underneath. To remove patina on a nickel spoon, I apply a small quantity of metal polish to the back of the spoon, and I rub gently, wearing latex gloves. Then I polish with a paper towel. You can restore a nickel spoon a few times with this method, before wearing through the plating. Do not use products such as WD-40 on spoons with lure tape. They will cause the tape to peel off.
I have been using fish scents in oil or gel form with no issue with the lure tape peeling off the spoons so far. But we must be aware that any time we use an oil-based product over a glued product, there is a risk of chemical reaction. I try to apply the fish scent to the back of the spoon near the "bottom" (hook), to minimize contact of the oil with the lure tape.
How to choose lure color
Below are two articles by local experts:
Salmon Lures: What Colour and When?
Choosing the Right Colour Lure
In addition to what the articles above mention, here are the observations collected by Custom Fishing Lures, based on discussions with hundreds of fishermen in the last two years:
1- in addition to the "decorative" color pattern, the base color of the spoon is to be considered. Most mass-produced spoons have either a nickel or painted white/"glow in the dark" base color. These are effective base colors in most conditions. But there are days when a true gold or black chrome base color has outperformed other finishes.
2- when we are fishing in the top 50 feet of water in summer, it seems that the multi-color glittery patterns such as "Sardine" outproduce other patterns (and even bait most days). We speculate that this is due to the light being reflected in multiple ways all at once on the spoon, which maximizes the visibility/attraction of the spoon. UV reflection is not really required in shallow water and we can focus on more subtle/"natural-looking" patterns.
When we are fishing deeper, patterns that include at least one UV-reflective (or "glow in the dark") stripe of color in the pattern seem to catch more fish.
3- for trout: orange highlights allow us to target rainbow trout/steelhead specifically. Other productive patterns:
- pink highlights on Black Chrome
- green glow highlights on True Gold or nickel
- pink or pink/black highlights on True Gold
- half-and-half (silver tape on True Gold spoon)
- chartreuse on nickel
- Blueberry Muffin (chartreuse/pink on Black Chrome)
- Frog pattern on Black Chrome
- silver glitter on Black Chrome