Anyone use Swivels?

[DogtaEff 0]

Hope everyone is safe and well.

 

i have a cottage on a small lake (0.6 miles x 0.6 miles).  It’s small but has some outstanding shorelines for bass fishing on the fly. I have gotten into the habit of keeping my line in the water when I move across the lake. I only have a 2 hp motor and if I’m ‘trolling on the fly’, I will just go on the lowest speed possible and get quite a bit of success.

 

I had recently changed spots on the lake and was fishing my new spot and I got a huge take. The smallie jumped out of the water and it was the biggest fish I have had on the line on that lake. Then he jumped again and the fly came flying out. I furiously stripped my line back and when the fly was visible I could see that the line was wrapped around the hook bend. When I grabbed the fly I saw the leader material coil up and twist like crazy. I released the fly and saw the line quickly untwisting. 

 

I know when people actually troll with spinners they use swivels, but I can’t bring myself to do that between fly fishing spots. 

 

Anyone have any suggestions on what to do other than stop trolling with a fly fishing rod, line and fly? 

 

Tight Lines!!

 

 

[TIER 0]

I use swivels on salmon in Valdez. But they are more for spinning rods in my experience

 

[mikechell 0]

No swivels here ... but I also don't troll with flies.  Trolling, to me, is like sitting on the shore with bait and a bobber.  The only difference is you're sitting in a boat, waiting for something to take the bait. 

So, my recommendation is, find out what structure/cover is out there that's holding those fish you're catching.  Anchor up and cast to that fish holding area and catch 'em "the right way".

[Philly 0]

I'll occasionally troll flies when moving from  place to place on a lake, but haven't notice any twist in the leader.  I  do use use furled leaders and that may be the reason why.  I also use a heavy leader, 20 or 25 lb  fluorocarbon.  The only time I have had problems with twisting leaders is when I went through a stage  where I put props on the front of some of my streamers.   I've since removed the propellers .     I'm not a big fan of swivels for fly fishing.    You can't just use any swivel to prevent the line from twisting.  You're going to need a ball bearing swivel.  They do make them fairly small, but quality ones aren't cheap,   They do work.  When I was making up off-shore trolling lures(think very large tube flies)for one of my friends I used them to prevent the fishing line from twisting.

Another  thing would be to take a look at the flies you're trolling.  If they have stiff hackles or tend to push a lot of water then they're more likely to twist leader.   Narrow profile flies should be less likely to twist your line.

[Jaydub 0]

Some flies, such as buggers with palmered with  stiff hackle can twist leaders. A small micro swivel will help and you won't notice it casting.

[knotjoe 0]

5 hours ago, DogtaEff said:

Anyone have any suggestions on what to do other than stop trolling with a fly fishing rod, line and fly? 

Clouser minnow or anything with dumbbell eyes and a stable orientation at speed.  If you're doing this with topwater, something like a slider.  Poppers and even some divers will spin.

You can also achieve the same stability with an oversize hook on streamers.

Edited September 20, 2020 by knotjoe
dumbbell

[Sandan 0]

14 hours ago, mikechell said:

No swivels here ... but I also don't troll with flies.  Trolling, to me, is like sitting on the shore with bait and a bobber.  The only difference is you're sitting in a boat, waiting for something to take the bait. 

So, my recommendation is, find out what structure/cover is out there that's holding those fish you're catching.  Anchor up and cast to that fish holding area and catch 'em "the right way".

Elitist. (Couldn't resist)

[flytire 0]

No on the swivels

i have no watercraft to go out and troll flies

[DFoster 0]

3 hours ago, Sandan said:

Elitist. (Couldn't resist)

Haha I was about to make the same joke!

[mikechell 0]

3 hours ago, Sandan said:

Elitist. (Couldn't resist)

😡 How dare you call me ...

😲 Oh, wait ... Maybe I Am an elitist!

👍 Thanks for pointing that out.  I'm finally part of a "club"!  😉

[DogtaEff 0]

Thanks for all the feedback. 

 

Mikechell.... maybe you can help me out because you seem like a bass guy. This lake is odd and there isn’t much structure other than the shorelines. 

 

If you venture out and try to swim in the leg you just sink a few a few feet into call soft stuff. Rumour has it that there was a mill around here in the 40s. They used to take huge amounts of sawdust and put it out onto the lake in the winter and then when the ice melted it would just sink. 

 

The lake is about 5-6 feet deep and on clear days the bottom just looks baron. I’ve never seen a crayfish. Not too many minnows either. I don’t know what they are eating. The lake turns on and off as far as fishing. I did more trolling because I was hoping to figure out a pattern but can’t figure one out at all. Ecosystem seems great. Beavers, loons, turtles and snakes are often seen. 

 

This year the fall fish population seems to be up considerably. 

 

Any thoughts?

[mikechell 0]

I've seen many "barren" lakes and ponds in my travels.  In such waters, even a 6 inch change in bottom depth can be a fish holding bit of structure.  Some times, a soft bottom is the sign of lots of vegetation during the growing season.  The soft bottom is "muck" from dead vegetation.  Soft bottoms can also be the result of silt, if there's a large amount of inflow/run off during rains.

Either reason for the soft bottom is not a bad thing.  Both can support insect/tadpole/minnow populations.  Crayfish can, and do, sit still when on exposed, flat terrain.  They are most active at night.  If you want to check on a crayfish population, go out at night with a powerful spotlight and look for them then.  I've seen thousands along shorelines that looked dead during the light of day.

Loud top water action is a great attractor on such waterways.  With little to no cover, and mild bottom changes for structure, fish can come from far distances to attack something struggling on top.

Good luck

[j8000 0]

I used to troll when my children were too small to cast, so I'd cast for them and row a canoe or raft and just have them hang on until they caught a fish with a type of spoon lure.  I would also toss in a wet fly or nymph fly and throw that in the water too while I paddled.  What I found best for trolling with a fly is to go slow.  Slower the better.  I didn't have the best luck trolling, but that was fine since I was also preoccupied with my child trying to catch a fish as well. 

 

Jeff

[DarrellP 0]

Swivels are a good option for trolling.

[niveker 0]

Like @Philly, I'll troll when moving from spot to spot in my kayak, so I'm not getting much speed, but will still occasionally get a twisted leader.   Also it can happen when throwing larger, top water foam patterns.  I don't use swivels, instead I've taken to using a heavier leader/tippet, which has mostly solved the problem.