The constant cast and retrieve means, that the stress on the
tackle is higher when you do spin fishing than for the more stationary methods.
For this reason it is important to use high quality gear. This doesn't have to
be be the most expensive stuff, but below a certain price region you just won't
find the quality you need. If in doubt, ask in a discussion group, before
spending a lot of money. The use of the new super lines with hardly any stretch
and an extremely high tensile strength has farther raised the strain on the
other components of your tackle. Also the weight and handiness of your
tackle is more important, because you will be holding it in your hands at all
times during fishing and won't lay it down to wait for a bite. I will try to say
the most important thongs about all Components, without indulging in too much
detail. Regarding the matching combinations of rod, reel, line and lure I have
created a small tabular overview.
Normally I tie a snap swivel directly to the super line or I
connect the line to a steal or fluorocarbon leader with a swivel. If there is a
chance of Pike I always use a steel leader. The swivel and especially the snap
have to fit into the other tackle in robustness, the snap has to be easily
threaded through the eyes of the lures you want to use. Most of the time I
carry a small assortment of lead (olives, balls or the like) on me, in case I
want to tie any weighted rigs (like a
Carolina
Rig), sometimes also some plastic beads.
Hook Remover, Pliers and such
What I've always got with me: arterial forceps for removing
hooks.
A pair of small pointed pliers for crushing the barbs of the hooks, sometimes
also used for removing hooks and for any wire work. A pair of cutting pliers for
Hooks, turning trebles into doubles on for emergency cases, when a hook sticks
somewhere it shouldn't ( I have only once had a Hook in my flesh, but was able
to pull it back out the way it came in with the pliers. I was so shocked it
didn't even hurt). I always carry a Swiss army knife with me, even when I'm not
fishing: it's on my key ring. Apart from the knife also the bottle opener and
the cork screw come in handy. A hook sharpener is also an important thing,
especially when your on a longer Trip. Although I do prefer to replace hooks to
sharpening them.
Landing Net
I will always try to land the fish with my hands, if I can and
I've got glove to protect my fingers from sharp teeth. I've been cut a few times
by the razor sharp teeth of a pike (they really have a sharp edge, the're not
just pointed sharp). But sometimes you do need a net.
Polarizing Glasses
If you fish clear water you should really have polarizing
glasses. They filter out a part of the reflections on the surface of the water
and enable you to see into the water much better.
If you hold two polarizing Glasses one over the other and turn one by 90°, they
will become black and non transparent (of course only for so long as you hold
them over each other). If that is not the case, at least one of them is not
polarizing. Because I wear prescription glasses anyway, I used to have some
polarizing clip ons, which is much cheaper than the spherical polarizing lenses
I now have.
Clothes
Well, of course you can wear what you want. But be aware, that a
few hours outdoors in cold weather is not the same as walking from the car to
the door. Wind and
(wet) weather will cool you down even more, so your clothes should resist both.
On a boat you are always likely to get wet, even in sunny weather!
Waders
Wading and spin fishing is an extremely successful and
entertaining combination. It doesn't matter if it's fishing in shallow bays for
pike or in a stream for trout: standing in the water eye in eye with your prey
is just a completely different feeling than climbing through thorny bushes along
the shore. I would always prefer wading pants over boots for everything but the
occasional step into the water for landing a fish. Even "shallow water" can be
quite deep, when you're standing in it and with boots you reach your limits in
no time. I have got a 3mm neoprene model, which saves me a layer of underwear
compared to the cheap thin PVC- Waders I owned before that.
Boat Fishing
I have owned an inflatable boat for years and have to say: a
boat is a really good thing for Spin fishing. You can easily reach even the most
inaccessible and secluded shore lines without risking your neck climbing. You
will still have to cast a certain distance in a lot of cases when fish shy from
the boat (I have observed that for Black bass a few times). You will be much
more successful in getting lures out of snags. And last but not least:
retrieving your lure from shallow into deep water is much better than the other
way round: You will have less snags an especially all the sinking soft baits can
be made to follow the bottom line much nicer.
A chapter of its own is trolling, for
which you obviously need a boat (if we don't count the "walking along the bung
walls" technique).
Also all the vertical fishing techniques with jigging spoons, "hegene" or other
lures are mainly done from the boat.
Boat
I already mentioned my inflatable, at the Moment I own a Porta-Bote.
That is a small foldable boat which is also suited very good for fishing. These
small boats have the big advantage that you can bring them into the water almost
anywhere. You don't need a hanger and a slip. Of course they reach their limits
on larger waters, but I have used the inflatable successfully even in calmer
parts of the baltic ocean. Comparisoner
Porta-Bote vs. inflatable. For fishing I would always prefer open boats,
except for trolling on the ocean or
really big lakes. Especially smaller boats give you more space when the're open
and two people casting obviously shouldn't stand to close together.
Motor
A small out border will make your life easier, with rowing you
will reach your Limits quite soon. Especially when you're not
trolling,
but want too reach that hot spot 5 kilometres away, where you saw a big fish
yesterday. I own a 8 HP "licence free" Tohatsu,
which usually does a good job, even though it did have trouble with the gas pump
once.
For trolling an E(lectro)-motor is
often better suited, because you can regulate the slow speed much better, but
the out boarder will do for that also. The real advantage of the E-motor is,
when your trying to keep the ideal position to an obstacle in a light drift or
for slowly creeping along the shore line. For the fish an E-motor will not be
much quieter than an combustion engine, because they will feel turbulences of
the propeller with their lateral line. But for the fisherman it is much cleaner
and quieter and you will experience more of the nature around you.
Fish Finder
A fish finder is another great gadget to have on board, as soon
as you fish in water which is more than about 5 meters deep. On one hand it is
very informative to know the bottom structure and the depth, on the other you
can really locate fish. Just knowing in which depth the baitfish are holding is
very valuable information as well as the fact in what total depths the fish
prefer to be. When trolling you will
also want to know, when it gets to shallow for your deep diving plugs...
I used to own a primitive Hummingbird, which was still good enough for the
mentioned tasks. Ok, the resolution could have been better, it was in fact so
bad, that I preferred the "fish ID" to the unfiltered data, because fish would
sometimes just show up as two or three pixels. Also it had no Grey line
function, so you couldn't tell if the bottom was hard or soft (except for rising
gas bubbles of course), but still: having a fish finder, however primitive it
may be, is such a big advantage, that every boat fisherman should really
own one.
Now I own an Eagle Fishmark 240, which has all the stuff I missed on my old one.
Downrigger
I also own a Downrigger, but have to admit I never caught a fish
on a downrigged lure.
But I'm not giving up and I'm confident that the principle is good. On the other
hand I own some really deep diving lures and on them I have caught a few fish. My
advice is: get the fish finder first .
GPS
A GPS is useful for two things: marking and finding "invisible"
hotspots on big water. Finding your way home on big unknown and broken waters.
Of course you could also enter the coordinates of Spots from maps, fishing
magazines or friends and find them even on a completely unknown body of water.
