Hoochies

[Mako 22]

How long of leader do you use

 

[Redfisher]

Naw. Gerstner!

Touché

 

[paguy]

I've tried these two the last couple years and had high hopes for them but they never seemed to produce more than the old faithful for me in the Parksville area so they've been benched

That top one has been a killer on summer kings in port angeles the last couple years.

 

[fishin_magician]

Leader length should be tied to the speed which your boat naturally trolls at and the species you are targeting. what works on one boat may not work as well on another boat. I usually like to have a couple of Hoochies in the mix when fishing other gear....even spoons....bait....As a means of putting more rods in the water. Rigging 6 Anchovies is a little bit of work when running 6 rods.....and when you're in them.... Hoochies are super fast to get in the water while changing leaders and Anchovies.

Ever been next to a commercial troller when sport fishing? Their gear is perfectly tuned and always working and they'll leave most sportfishers on this coast far behind... in more ways than one.

 

[Mako 22]

Leader length should be tied to the speed which your boat naturally trolls at and the species you are targeting. what works on one boat may not work as well on another boat. I usually like to have a couple of Hoochies in the mix when fishing other gear....even spoons....bait....As a means of putting more rods in the water. Rigging 6 Anchovies is a little bit of work when running 6 rods.....and when you're in them.... Hoochies are super fast to get in the water while changing leaders and Anchovies.

Ever been next to a commercial troller when sport fishing? Their gear is perfectly tuned and always working and they'll leave most sportfishers on this coast far behind... in more ways than one.

42 works for my boat speed. When running a whole rigged herring behind a flasher I go to 48. I have used 60 inch leaders on larger hoochies (6 inch).

Check your hoochie action when you first drop the flasher in the water: Just below the surface, watch both the flasher and the hoochie. Adjust boat speed if required. It is called "Tuning your Gear".

I put in a week on a commercial troller way back in the early 1980's. Best fishing lesson I ever had! Learned a lot about flashers, hoochies, plugs, spoons and how to rig a whole herring. Fun stuff except for the big swells and sea sickness!

 

[fishin_magician]

42 works for my boat speed. When running a whole rigged herring behind a flasher I go to 48. I have used 60 inch leaders on larger hoochies (6 inch).

Check your hoochie action when you first drop the flasher in the water: Just below the surface, watch both the flasher and the hoochie. Adjust boat speed if required. It is called "Tuning your Gear".

I put in a week on a commercial troller way back in the early 1980's. Best fishing lesson I ever had! Learned a lot about flashers, hoochies, plugs, spoons and how to rig a whole herring. Fun stuff except for the big swells and sea sickness!

Exactly! Get your gear doing what it should be doing.

Plugs are an interesting animal though.

 

[Mako 22]

Exactly! Get your gear doing what it should be doing.

Plugs are an interesting animal though.

Oh yea plugs.

My all time high producer in the Straits is the Tomic 4 inch no. 158.

I have caught fish on Tomics up to 7 inches, and the 6 inch Tubby is slowly becoming a producer.

I have always pulled plugs with the ring. This year I will be trying a few directly tied with no ring.

Most of the time I am running the plug 20 feet behind the downrigger wire.

Best rigging for me on a plug is to run the plug 5 feet above the downrigger ball. Then double stack a flasher/hoochie 18 feet above the plug. Flasher 20 feet behind the downrigger, same as the plug. This is the standard commercial spacing when stacking gear, but the commies have no limit on how many lures they can stack on a wire. The flasher pulls in a lot of fish that go for the plug instead of the hoochie.

Or run a plug on one side of the boat and the flasher/hoochie on the other side.

Don 't forget spoons!!!!!!!!!

 

[bones]

On the turn.....
If the plug is above the ball and the flasher/hooch is above the plug
When the boat slows doesn't the plug float up and the flasher sink? Thus having the odd tangle?

 

[Reeltime]

I like the whipping action of a 36" leader on the hoochie ... especially when fished with anchov or spoons ..

 

[RogersonCrusoe]

36" leader (bottom of swivel to top of hook) has been my go-to for squirts and 42" for regular size hoochies. So far I haven't found a length I like for cuttlefish hoochies yet.

 

[fishin_magician]

On the turn.....
If the plug is above the ball and the flasher/hooch is above the plug
When the boat slows doesn't the plug float up and the flasher sink? Thus having the odd tangle?

No. You're moving rather briskly with plugs... at least that is me.....and plugs dive and keep their distance from the above lure.

 

[fishin_magician]

Oh yea plugs.

My all time high producer in the Straits is the Tomic 4 inch no. 158.

I have caught fish on Tomics up to 7 inches, and the 6 inch Tubby is slowly becoming a producer.

I have always pulled plugs with the ring. This year I will be trying a few directly tied with no ring.

Most of the time I am running the plug 20 feet behind the downrigger wire.

Best rigging for me on a plug is to run the plug 5 feet above the downrigger ball. Then double stack a flasher/hoochie 18 feet above the plug. Flasher 20 feet behind the downrigger, same as the plug. This is the standard commercial spacing when stacking gear, but the commies have no limit on how many lures they can stack on a wire. The flasher pulls in a lot of fish that go for the plug instead of the hoochie.

Or run a plug on one side of the boat and the flasher/hoochie on the other side.

Don 't forget spoons!!!!!!!!!

I am going to be running plugs more this year especially when hunting.

 

[fishin_magician]

36" leader (bottom of swivel to top of hook) has been my go-to for squirts and 42" for regular size hoochies. So far I haven't found a length I like for cuttlefish hoochies yet.

Same lengths...it's just a bigger presentation.

 

[Mako 22]

On the turn.....
If the plug is above the ball and the flasher/hooch is above the plug
When the boat slows doesn't the plug float up and the flasher sink? Thus having the odd tangle?

You never stop until all gear is retrieved and stowed.

Never had a tangle in my 37 plus years of fishing here in the Straits.

Basically any forward movement keeps the plug line and the flasher line straight back.

Remember, plug is 20 feet below the flasher.

 

[eaglemaniac]

Hey Mako, you are full of *****. Everbody get's tangles. eman

 

[Seafever]

Oh yea plugs.

My all time high producer in the Straits is the Tomic 4 inch no. 158.

I have caught fish on Tomics up to 7 inches, and the 6 inch Tubby is slowly becoming a producer.

I have always pulled plugs with the ring. This year I will be trying a few directly tied with no ring.

Most of the time I am running the plug 20 feet behind the downrigger wire.

Best rigging for me on a plug is to run the plug 5 feet above the downrigger ball. Then double stack a flasher/hoochie 18 feet above the plug. Flasher 20 feet behind the downrigger, same as the plug. This is the standard commercial spacing when stacking gear, but the commies have no limit on how many lures they can stack on a wire. The flasher pulls in a lot of fish that go for the plug instead of the hoochie.

Or run a plug on one side of the boat and the flasher/hoochie on the other side.

Don 't forget spoons!!!!!!!!!

At the speed I go at using plugs, there's now way in Hades I could run a flasher setup above them.

I run plugs all by themselves off the ball....a plug on both sides of the boat.

And even at that it's hard enough to keep the ball from coming up too far.

 

[Seafever]

Same lengths...it's just a bigger presentation.

Those big hoochies offer more resistance in the water. To get 'em to whip around nice behind a flasher I go shorter than a regular hoochie or squirt.

 

[fishin_magician]

Those big hoochies offer more resistance in the water. To get 'em to whip around nice behind a flasher I go shorter than a regular hoochie or squirt.

Depends on what pound test and speed you troll at

 

[Seafever]

These are all you need on the east coast of V.I...

 

[RogersonCrusoe]

Is the purple hues inside the glow turd an insert, or camera foolery?
Thanks for sharing.