Northern King spoons

[LowTide]

I've just moved to Nanaimo and will be picking up my new, used, boat on the weekend. I have a box full of spoons that I bought from a dingy gas station that still had them on old weathered cards 20 years ago. Wonders, Gibbs Stewarts, FSTs, Super Diamonds etc. But I also have quite a few Northern King spoons that I used in the Great Lakes. Does anyone use these spoons for Salmon on ECVI?

 

[spring fever]

I haven't used them but don't see why they wouldn't work. I have had some good success with great lakes tackle that guys had been using in the salmon fishery down there. Like anything else, time and place for everything. Give them a shot but be fair about it-make sure there are salmon around and have a tried and true lure to fish them against. Lots of tackle gets tried once and stored because the test was flawed!!

 

[Dogbreath]

Northern King aka NK spoons are dynamite anywhere.

They're hard to find now it seems the website has been abandoned they're still produced but on a much smaller scale.

 

[LowTide]

Yeah, good point. I will definitely put them up against comparable spoons that are proven for the area. Should be fun to get these spoons wet again. Thanks.

 

[LowTide]

Northern King aka NK spoons are dynamite anywhere.

They're hard to find now it seems the website has been abandoned they're still produced but on a much smaller scale.

Well that's good and bad news at the same time. I guess I'll have to get some of my Eastern buddies who owe me a favour to check for them.

 

[wishiniwasfishin1]

I was up in the Charlottes last summer fishing Langara. We were staying at a lodge that hires a lot of guides from Ontario for some reason. One of their rookie guides had a few of those on the boat and said he did well with them but we never tried them. Up there there are a lot of fish, so any gear will work to some extent...

 

[Aces]

They work good but sure don't like the saltwater

 

[LowTide]

A couple of my favourite ones are fairly tarnished (the two on the left) they've been used in the salt. I've used anything from Brass/Silver polish to toothpaste, in a pinch. Does anyone have any preference or do they just get "Retired" by most people?

 

[Dogbreath]

At some point they'll be so tarnished no metal polish will work then it's time for some tape.

I'd use the ones on the left in a flash-Springs love green.

 

[LowTide]

Good tip. Thanks.

 

[AlK]

The fourth one from the left looks good to me. Don't forget to pinch the"BARBS".

 

[tykkyt e blue]

If you like them...
I get my old commercial spoons re-plated in nickel at Dependable Plating - good for another 5-6 years of poor maint/polishing

 

[Drewski Canuck]

Clean up the tarnished spoons, and if there is still enough plating to give a flash, paint them with clear nail polish, or spray bomb them with clear coat. this will keep the shine on a lot longer.

Drewski

 

[high tide]

Them Middle two the green and the blue smaller ones will work for ya right out front of Nanaimo ..... along with the others likely too but those would be my first kick at it. Personally I'd be changing though to a siwash hook size dependent of actual spoon ....

 

[LowTide]

Yeah, I'll definitely change to Siwash and pinch the Barbs. I'm glad to hear that they might be useful in my local waters. They sure were good spoons on the great lakes in their day. Some guys even ran black or purple in the summer, they really worked well on deep lines. Of course each year is a little different. I'll keep in mind the plating and spray bomb options. We'll see how well they work first.

 

[Seafever]

I never did get the theory behind Great Lakes spoon patterns........go on the websites back there you see tons of ladderback patterns and a host of psychotic colors. Other spoon makers there have these bizarre patterns they dream up.

I know there' a lot of Ciscos and Alewifes (bait) in the GL........are the spoon patterns supposed to imitate those?

You don't much see those kinds of patterns out here.......

 

[Dogbreath]

... They sure were good spoons on the great lakes in their day. Some guys even ran black or purple in the summer, they really worked well on deep lines...

That Northern King Black & Purple works well down deep off WCVI as well.

 

[LowTide]

It seems like LeBaron still sells them. www.lebaron.ca page 91. I thought they used to have a store in Vancouver but it looks like it's gone now. Mail order only from here.

 

[LowTide]

They have Alewife, Rainbow Smelt, Lake Herring, Cisco, Shiners and others. I think the spoons are coloured like that because the water can be really dirty in Lake Ontario and they really need to amp up the colour. Also there are more than just Chinooks to target. There are Lakers, Browns, Steelhead, Coho, Atlantics, and Walleye among others. Each of these fish tend to stay at different depth levels and respond to different colours, light conditions and speeds. Some spoons even have balls that absorb scent on them and holes that give off sonic vibrations. I think they're called Nasty Boys. Those guys sometimes run a dozen lines off their boats. They can play with many colours and depths that way but when they get a hit it's a gong show reeling them all in. They call it a Fire Drill. I never got that part.

 

[Dogbreath]

It seems like LeBaron still sells them. www.lebaron.ca page 91....

This is The One!!