Yo, Should I go to 18 lb lead? I use 14 cause thats what the shop set me up with. But, if I need to go deeper it may be good to get an 18lb set up. To me 24 feet does not sound that deep, Im surprised i have been able to catch salmon and lakers at that depths.
Thanks alot

If your looking for a good 18lb leadcore set-up take a cruise over to AJ's in meredith, His prices are hard to beat and it comes already set-up rod/reel/and leadcore with backing and mono, I bought one there and i absulutly "Love" it the action on that eagle claw rod is Great and Alan is a nice guy to deal with Take CAre God Bless and Tight Lines LOL Dave From up North

I am not saying you should or shouldn't but it has been my experiance that i stop catching fish on the "mini leads" about this time of year specifically because i can't get it deep enough. You say you are trolling at 1.5 mph and that is slower than i go and you may be getting enough depth out of it. Most likely you are if you are catching fish. The thermocline is really solid right now and the fish are not very likely to go above 32 feet from now until october. Winni is a clear lake and if they see something above them in 28 feet they don't mind going up 6 or 8 feet and grabbing it. If you are catching fish early on your lead and then it stops working completely it is a sure sign you just are not down there. Also they will leave the thermocline for deeper depths by 7am or so. Then they get caught around 40-70

Last year i threw out all my "mini lead" because i couldn't handle the slower sink rates. If i want to go deep i want as short a piece in the water as i can get. I believe that about 7 colors of 18 lb. lead is equal to 10 colors of mini lead at 2mph. Those 8-9-10 colors on the 18lb. are what gets it done in august and september.

Whatever shop set you up with 14lb. is fine there is nothing wrong with it and it is easier to handle and it's great. Most people don't continue to fish salmon throughout august and the lost 30-40 foot depth is never an issue, but now is the time you need to get deep.

If the 14 works for you that is great because it has a smaller diameter and fits on a smaller reel and is less drag on the pole and gives a better fight. But if you can't get deep enough the better fight doesn't matter because there will be no fish to fight.

MY NEW SETUP
Shimano speedmaster IV reel
150 Yds 30 Lb. flyline backing
10 colors 18lb leadcore.

Speed master is 6:1 ratio (DUH SPEEDMASTER!)
with 150 yds of 30 lb. backing the spool diameter is bigger than my regular mono downrigger reels like okuma 15 or 20 and has a faster ratio. Then put the lead on and it reels up FAST. no more 1 inch per turn with an empty spool to fit the lead on and lost fish because it takes a week to reel them in with no pressure.

I just set them up this week and i will let you know how they do. the drag is super good on the speedmaster even down really light. I think it will be awesome. only drawback is no levelwind but i can live with that.

Hey buddy, Quick question for ya!!!!!! you mentioned your backing and the 10 colors of leadcore, How much mono do you run on the end of the 10 colors? i have around 65-75' just was pretty curious how you do yours? then i usually run a leader after my mono that's about 6'- 7' Thanks Yo, been out fishing again yet? How's the apples and produce doing? Take Care god Bless and tight Lines LOL Dave From up North P.S you should see my wild apple tree's they got more apples then last year Fishing season ain't done yet but i can already see my Big buck eating those yummy apples LOL

Thanks for the info. I use an okuma CL300L levelwind it works great! I have actually caught fish with this set up up until labor day. In fact I got my biggest salmon on an evening last august. I was 8 colors down with a db guide near buoy 76 off of welches he was about 3.5-4lbs. This was in the evening. I did not have a depth finder last year so I dont know how deep the water was.
Thanks,