PZ Tackle and Fishing Adventures Fin-Wing Lures, Guide trips, Vexan Rods
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My You Tube Channel
Go to my You Tube channel by clicking the link below to view the many informative and fun videos. Enjoy viewing the tips and information and watching the fun catching fish using the Fin-Wing® and other lures. Also some great scenery from the water. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pz+tackle
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Cut Throat Trout on the Fin-Wing®
Nick made a trip to Utah and luckily brought along a Few Fin-Wing Spoons. Enjoy the Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEHjMCoTwwY&feature=youtu.be
Walleye in the weeds Fishing tips from experts
Weed Walleye Trolling Techniques and Details
Each species of fish you can catch using the Fin-Wing spoons may require some detail in your technique and presentation. Trolling is by far my favorite way to use the Fin-Wing Spoons for Walleye.
My First Step is to Choose a Snell
Depending on areas, conditions and depth, I choose a lure size that fits the situation.
In shallow weedy areas in late summer, hungry aggressive Walleye will on some bodies of water stay in the shallow weeds year round. As the water warms in the summer they can become very aggressive. I will then choose a single weedless hook on a Snell.
- See upper left photo
- To remove the original treble hook on the Fin-Wing Spoon
- Always use cut proof gloves or hold the hook with a small pair of needle nose pliers. Never hold the hook in your fingers as the hooks are sharp.
- Use split ring pliers to slightly open the split ring. In the open gap of the split ring slide on the end of a barrel swivel or the eye of the single hook you plan to replace the treble with.
- Slide it on and around through the split ring opening. Continue sliding it on until the current hook simply falls off.
- The new hook or swivel is now installed on the ring.
- The Snells may be available at some point in the future in my store.
Setting the Boards
I use Off Shore Planer Boards to keep the lure away from the boat and avoid spooking any fish. I place a split shot 2 -3 feet ahead of a swivel attached to a Fin-Wing spoon with a weedless Snell. Add half of a Night Crawler or a Leech to the hook and attach the Spoon to the swivel on your line. I generally only let out 15-25 feet of line, depending on the depth and thickness of the weeds, before attaching the planer board. Usually less line is better. A #3 3/4 oz. or #1 1/2 oz. Fin-Wing Spoon works the best in the weed trolling situations.
Keep some tension on the line as you let the planer board out and away from the boat. This will keep the Fin-Wing Spoon from sinking and burying in the weeds before you begin your trolling pass.
Start your trolling speed at about 1 MPH. If the fish are aggressive you can speed up to 1.6 MPH and cover more water. If they are tentative, keep your trolling pass slow and allow the Fin-Wing to be in front of the fish a little longer.
Fish ON!
The action of the trolling board will vary quite a bit when a Walleye tries to eat the Fin-Wing Spoon. At times the board will lunge back. Sometimes it will just show some weight on it and slowly drift further back. The use of tattle tale flags will be a big help in noticing bites. When you see the board acting differently and not keeping in line with the other planer boards, you may have a Walleye on the Spoon. My favorite way to solidly set the hook for Walleyes is to leave the rod in a rod holder and crank the reel handle very fast and aggressively about ten revolutions. This will set the hooks into the Walleye very well. Then take the rod out of the holder and fight the fish in to the boat. The rest is standard - remove the planer board with a tight line, finish getting the Walleye into a position to net it, and bring it in. Enjoy your catch!
Questions?
If you have questions regarding this technique, feel free to email
timp@pz-tackle.com for more details.
Open Water or off shore Walleye Structure trolling
OPEN WATER MUD BASINS AND STRUCTURE TROLLING THE FIN-WING SPOONS
Find the Fish and Structure
Locating fish or edges of the structure you plan to fish on your sonar in open water areas is a big plus for saving time and getting the Fin-Wing Spoons in front of the Walleyes quickly.
Trolling Techniques
- Choose a Snell or use the Fin-Wing Spoon as is directly out of the package.
I like to use a 2 hook Snell on the Fin-Wing Spoon for the open water and structure trolling applications.
The Walleye in the photo on the left was caught using this method.
Depth and Speed
The depth and speed you troll the Fin-Wing Spoon will dramatically affect your catch rates. In open water basins over mud flats the Walleyes can be very high in the water column, often less than 10 feet down over 20-40 feet of water.
- I will usually run a split shot in front of the Fin-Wing Spoon on the outside planer boards in areas where multiple lines are allowed. Check the local rules and regulations prior to trolling more than one line per angler.
- On the next lines I like to run 1 oz. Off Shore snap weights or an Off Shore Tadpole weight. The 1 Ounce snap weight is a fairly easy method to determine how deep your Fin-Wing Spoon is running. With a #3 3/4 oz. Fin-Wing Spoon and a 1 oz. snap weight, the Fin-Wing will run at approximately the depth you let your line out. For example I will let out the lure on a free line 20 - 25 feet before I add the 1 oz. snap weight to my line. If I want to run the Fin-Wing #3 3/4 oz. Spoon at 15 feet deep, I let the spoon out 20 feet, then attach the 1 oz. snap weight and let out another 15 feet of line. This method is fairly accurate to achieve a 15 foot depth at a trolling speed of 1.4 MPH. If you go faster the Fin-Wing Spoon will run higher in the water column and if you go slower the Fin-Wing Spoon will run lower in the water column. To determine the depth using the Off Shore Tadpole weight system, consult the Off Shore tackle website, it is very dependent on the size of the tadpole weight and trolling speed. The easy simple answer is that when using the tadpole weights, you will need much less line out to achieve the desired depths.
- By running the outside line with a split shot and 20-25 feet of line out, and the inside lines with a snap weight,or tadpole weight you can run your Fin-Wing Spoons at multiple depths in the water column while trolling.
Questions? More details? Ask Tim
Email Questions to timp@pz-tackle.com