Scotty Drag Settings

[eriks]

I just bought some 20# balls and my downriggers weren't braking properly when lowering the gear, actually not at all. Scotty says set the drag to 30-40#'s, but I don't know for what weight balls that setting works for.
If I'm fishing 20# balls in winter, has anyone figured out what drag setting works best for them?
What then if I head to WCVI and fish 15# balls, what setting works best for that?
Thx!

 

[SteelyDan]

I just hook up a ball with my hand on the spool and adjust the break as needed right on the boat. Takes 1 minut tops

 

[casper5280]

Only thing I find with the 15-20# weights is you can’t slam on the brakes. Tens to break off a lot if not careful from the sudden stop

 

[sly_karma]

Are these the new style Scotty (LCD counter) or the old style (mechanical counter)? The new ones are optimised for 15 and 20 lb weights, the old ones are better for cannonballs 10-12 lb or less.

 

[eriks]

These are the new style. The old ones can't lift a 20# ball. I also emailed Scotty, and they said set it to 40#'s for a 20# ball, and 20-30#'s for a 15# ball. I will follow Scotty's recommendations, see how it works then try SteelyDan's method if I'm still not happy with it.