How far back

[Morgan_ warthog]

Looking for opinions on distance from the ball for salmon.
I've had pretty good luck running spoons far back behind my down rigger ball and away from the boat (60 plus feet). I guess I just assumed they where boat shy and I've done well with leadcore way back there so it made sense but I hear some guys running close to the ball even when fishing high in the water column. Does it make any difference?

[Reelax]

Right now 10 down and 10 back can be a killer set. Cheaters run 2-3 back off the main line above the release get hit harder that the main for the last 3 trips.

When salmon are active the tight bite can’t be beat. You also get better hookups with less line to stetch @strike.

Saturday we had a salmon take a cheater thT was running 4’ down and 3’ back in sight looking down at the transom . He skyrocketed right out the lake 5 ft off the transom on his 1st jump then tore of 50ft of line to start the fight. Precious

Ps we also ran bling and those 2 riggers out fired the tigers 2 to 1… same thing that makes them hit short setbacks will make them attracted to bling…

Good luck!

[Morgan_ warthog]

Wow I thought that's what you said Saturday but I thought I must have heard wrong. Seems crazy they'd hit rite near the prop wash. I cant wait to get back out there and try this! Tight lines!

[Crayfish]

I couldn't get hit close on my main line on Saturday, but the cheaters that were 5-7' down and 4' back were getting hit regularly. In fact, the cheaters were our most productive setups. We had one nice salmon jump right in the prop wash after smacking the cheater that was ~7' down. What a blast!

Good luck out there! Those extra lures in the water will make all the difference in the world.

[Morgan_ warthog]

Mind blown! I'm mostly self tough when it comes to trolling and I've been happy with my success but part of the addiction is knowing there is so much more to learn.
Thanks guys

[rfern77]

I am fairly new at this as well so please forgive my ignorance. Is this the technique working right now because it’s not the dog days of summer and the the thermocline has not set up yet with the warm water temps? I assume so but again, I’m just trying to educate myself. Thanks in advance

[Crayfish]

"Cheaters" work all through the season. The only difference is that they will keep getting deeper as you run your main line deeper. There are 2 types of cheaters :

Fixed cheaters that are held in place either by a rubber cheater clip, a rubber band half-hitched around the main line or something like an Alberta clipper. These are typically pinned in place 3-10' above the main line release, depending on your setup. If you are running blades, you'll want the cheater close above the blades. If running clean, then I tend to space them to try to find the active fish.

Sliding cheaters are just clipped around the main line with a clip or snap swivel and will find the natural bend in the line and ride there. I set my rigger to the depth I want and then clip on the cheater to my main line and throw it overboard. I generally assume these are 1/2 way between the ball and the boat. These are what we were catching fish on this past Saturday with the rigger at 12-15', so the cheater was 6-7' down.

Good luck!

[Whitey]

Can I ask if there is a specific cheater that works better than a Harry’s? Thanks

[Whitey]

Can I ask if there is a specific cheater that works better than a Harry’s? Thanks

[Reelax]

Any spoon will work for a cheater. Harry’s is not one of my 1st choices. I usually only use them when nothing else has worked. DBsmelts as cheater have been hit all spring, hard.
Good luck