Welcome to our newest column featuring the latest and greatest in drool-worthy, must have gear for the year! Get your ‘hooks’ into these. We have, and we did well! We’ll update you with new gear that we’ve tried every month. If it appears here—it’s Gear for the Year 2018 – Part 4…
Maxima Ultragreen
Fishing dirty water? Watch this line blend right in. An island favourite for years, Maxima Ultragreen is a great go-to for leaders. It’s abrasion resistant with great tensile strength, so tying leaders quickly at 30-lb or 40-lb test hasn’t been easier.
Blue Meanie—Yamashita 3.5 OA84R
This ultraviolet hoochie is a fish magnet. While the Beatles’ Blue Meanies in Yellow Submarine may have represented all the bad people in the world, these ones represent fast food. When you catch with them, remember to praise “Your Blueness!”… just for good measure.
Brad’s Super Bait Cut Plug—Blue Hawaiian (TPSCP-22)
This bait-holding lure will turn your day of fishing into a luau. Open the cavity and put in your bait, like a fillet of anchovy or herring, and you are good to go. There’s also a scent pad inside that will retain all that irresistible smell. Troll it, cast it, back bounce it, or wear it as jewelry—your choice, it’s all good. Mahalo, Brad. Mahalo.
Pacific Net and Twine pre-rigged downrigger setup with clip and snubber
If you want a no-fuss setup, you really have to consider this one. The stainless steel split ring allows for quick change of snubbers, clips of various lengths, and if you are having a problem with blowing fuses when your first rolling swivel hits the auto on/off switch, you can ask to have a smaller, #1 rolling swivel installed on a ” loop for easier transition into the auto on/off switch.
3.5” Luhr-Jensen Coyote Sardine Glow Back
It didn’t take long for this new fella to rise to the top of the list in local waters. Good luck finding one, but if you do, can you send one to us, please? Ours is getting pretty beat up from Barkley Sound and Nootka waters. Oh, and you know what happened to the sardine that showed up late for work? He got canned. Right, moving on.
Big Shooter Purple Gold Embossed Flasher by O’Ki Tackle
Yeah, that ol’ chestnut. How many of these do you have? This is just a great all-around, all-season flasher. If you aren’t sure which flasher to use, simply go for the gold. We love gooooold.
Allure Cannibal
Maybe not as sexy as their flashers to fishermen, Allure made this 8-section swimbait pretty dang sexy to fish. Try trolling this like a plug with large single hook and swivel, and you’ll be flirting with your next dinner date.
Avet JX 4.6 Lever Drag
This is a great reel for bottom fishing. It’s also not uncommon to see it used for trolling on downriggers. Tony Stark has nothing on this reel—precision machined 6061-T6 marine-grade aluminum, stainless-steel components, and carbon fiber drags for smooth super-stopping power and wear resistance. A really nice oversized soft-touch handle knob, too. Just a pleasure to use, and low maintenance. No question you’ll be reelin’ in the years with this one.
Risky Business 3.0 Purple Viking Bucktail
Sometimes you just gotta say, “What the heck.” If you have a couple lines set in downriggers, throw this out as a surface line in your prop wash or 20+ feet behind your boat. You can bend the front hook to act as a rudder if you don’t like the way it’s running. Great presentation also means good grooming, so it’s recommended you comb out the hair to keep it in good shape. A great August treat, especially if you can find them in pinks and purples.
This article appeared in the August 2018 issue of Island Fisherman Magazine. Subscribe today and never miss an issue.
