Site Bites Q & A Search through our Site Bite Q&A to find information from the frequent questions we get asked a When ice fishing for walleyes, when should I set tip-ups, and when should I concentrate on jigging? a How Do I Be Efficient When Night Fishing For Muskies? a How Do I Rig Tip-Ups for Walleyes a During a tough bite what type of numbers constitutes a pattern unfolding? a What’s the rule-of-thumb for setting the drag on a reel used to jig big walleyes? a What length and action of spinning rod and what line is best for live bait rigging walleyes? a Inline weights vs. Snap weights! What are the real disadvantages and advantages of each? a Would it make a big difference using vanish vs fireline when vertical jigging? a Weather’s affect on walleye feeding behavior? a What characteristics should I consider when choosing a rod for walleye trolling? a When going after open water suspended walleyes on a large lake, how do you determine where to start? a What’s the best procedure for deploying a trolling set-up when using a weighting system and boards? a What line for trolling walleyes? a What’s a good rod and reel combo for river jigging walleyes? a What’s the best line to use for pitching jigs? a What length and action of jigging rod works best for ice fishing walleyes? a What is the coldest water temp you have fished crankbaits in that was productive? a When do muskies spawn? a What are the best ice fishing lures for jigging up walleyes? a How do I target trophy pike through the ice? a What size ice rod and pound test line do you use to ice fish for walleyes? a What are the advantages to using longer rods (8′ to 9′) for casting for muskie and pike? a What Are The Benefits Of Having Trim Tabs On Zv21 a When is it better to use fluorocarbon leaders rather than wire leaders? a What is the best go-to bait for muskies following a cold front? a What are the advantages of using lead core line? a How do I increase my odds of catching a 50 inch muskie? a How, if at all, does turn-over affect the walleyes? a What leaders for fly-fishing pike? a What advice would you give to become better at trolling? a What’s your favorite search lure for muskies? a When do you throw top water for muskies in rivers? a Does a large population of northern pike on weedlines push muskies off the weedlines? a Are crankbaits ever tipped with bait? a I just got my first boat – where do I go from here to start catching walleyes? a What are some basic lures you’d recommend a beginner muskie angler should start with? a When do I jig and when do I use tip-ups when ice fishing walleyes? a What size and color of fireline is best for jigging in rivers? a Is there a difference between hybrids and pure muskies when it comes to night fishing? a Are muskie cradles dangerous to use? a When figure 8-ing at the end of each cast, do you open the spool and ,thumb, it or leave the spool closed? a When would you use a snap vs. Keel weight vs. Lead core? a What’s the best early season muskie lure? a When ice fishing for walleyes, when should I set tip-ups, and when should I concentrate on jigging? a Where should I look for muskies in a reservoir as opposed to a natural lake? a How to set-up tip-ups for walleyes a What’s your favorite flicker shad color? a When do you decide between live bait (minnows) and berkley gulp minnows? a What is the best speed indicator I can put on my boat for trolling? a What do I do to keep my fireline from spinning on my reel spool? a How do we jig without getting snagged? a What are some good color and sizes of soft baits for catching walleyes in stained water in early spring? a Is the lss addition for my lowrance hds 5 worth the expenditure? a What line (mono vs no stretch) do you prefer to use pulling typical bottom bouncer presentation? a What would you consider a good jig selection for fishing both lakes and rivers? a What are some keys to finding baitfish and what are the minimum requirements in a new fish finder? a What kind of pike did I catch? a Is mono or fireline better when deadsticking? a How do you search out fish in the post spawn and early summer period on canadian shield lakes? a During practice before a tournament how much do you reply on the camera to eliminate fish species? a What’s the best way to determine how deep a crankbait will run when trolling with lead core line? a I am interested in what type, size, blade, color of spinnerbait to purchase for larger northerns. a Is the suspended bite a pattern you now look for on all the lakes you fish and how do you determine if it is a viable pattern? a What is the secret in keeping 18′ plus boats under control? a Is there a secret formula for tying crawler/spinner harnesses for big water like saginaw bay? a What do you use to log your fishing information? a What would be the best tactic for ice out pike? a Is there a difference patterning early season muskies in clear water vs murky water? a After a severe cold front and fish are in a funk in a lake environment what do you usually resort to and why? a What is handlining? a If I’m running 2 locators on my boat can I get interference when running both at the same time? a Do I load a backing onto the reel before I load the lead core? a How do you know what your trolling depths are when you deviate from the 50/50 method? a What length of fluorocarbon leader should I use on spinners? a When fishing a fairly clear shallow lake, how close to the boat can you pull a bottom bouncer/spinner or bottom bouncer and rig and still expect to get bit? a Do you segment the leadcore for open water trolling? a Can a person locate walleye while using their gas motor without spooking the fish? a Do you fish for tiger muskies any differently than pure muskies? a When you use a long lead on a harness to a snap weight, do good hooksets begin to be a problem? a Will the slow death technique work with berkley power bait? a Should I use mono or fireline for pulling bouncers over rocks? a A question on jig color for deep water walleyes. a Have you ever used a crankbait as your drop weight from your planner board when trolling spinners in open water? a Need help catching lake erie summer walleyes. a How long do you work an area without any success before you move on? a Is snell length critical when pulling crawler harnesses in open water? a A question about trolling spinnerbaits for muskies. a What’s the key to early season muskies in wisconsin? a How fast do you pull a bottom bouncer and spinner when fishing on structure? a Do you use colored hooks on your nightcrawler harnesses? a What’s the best color of spinner blade to use for walleyes? a Should I go with a 3-blade or 4-blade prop for my boat engine? a Why do you think more muskies are missed on buzzbaits compared to spinnerbaits? a What is the best fishing method for deep rocks? a For vertical jigging what is the best weight to use? a Will removing split-rings from my crankbaits and attaching line directly give them better action? a Where can I get some good live bait rigging rods with fast tips? a How do you find fish on a new body of water? a Are fluorocarbon lines better protection against zebra muscles? a What’s the best set-up on the lowrance x-15mt to get the best performance? a What size triple grip hooks to use on harnesses? a How can I prevent my crawler harness’s from twisting up when trolling them? a How much mono backing do I use before filling my reels with fireline for trolling? a What difference does a unit’s wattage play in its ability to help me find fish? a Does leadcore line have applications on shallow basin lakes like winnebago in wisconsin? a How do your prepare for a fishing tournament? a Is a 24 volt trolling motor enough for a large walleye boat? a How much weight does it take to get cranks down deep? a How do I keep my rods from tangling? a Boat Rigging Wire Connections a Checking Your Engine’s Lower Unit Gear Lube a Are jigs good muskie baits in the spring? a How do I tune my muskie lures? a What do I need to get set up for trolling muskies? a What baits typically catch muskies in the heat of the day? a Will my heavy action bass tackle work for muskie fishing? a How fast can you troll for muskies? a What colors work best in a gin clear lake? a Is it better to troll shallow cranks with weight, or use deep divers? a What’s the best jigging line for deep, clear water? a How much line do I let out for shallow cranks? a What colors are best for walleyes and pike in stained water? a Can bottom bouncer rigs and slip sinker rigs be trolled on boards? a What action rod should I use for trolling walleyes? a How do I calibrate my line counter reels to be consistent? a What features to look for in a sonar/gps combo unit? a How early in the spring can I start night fishing for walleyes? a How do I slow down my 40 hp motor to troll for walleyes? a How to get shallow running lures deeper in a river? a So what’s the scoop on holographic colors for spinner blades? a What would be a good trolling rod and reel combo for catching both walleye and salmon? a What water temperature is best for catching walleyes, and what tactics work at those temps? a Site Bite Q & A What are the best baitcasting outfits for walleye fishing? a How does barometric pressure effect walleye fishing? a What characteristics make a good spinning rod and reel outfit for walleye fishing? a Fishing line shelf life? a What is the best way to successfully fish walleyes on a large river system (like the mississippi)? a Is there a way to effectively troll when covering various depths? a What do you do if the contour you are trying to troll has the wind is crossing it? a What size and action rod do you suggest to use for planerboards? a How do you approach prefishing for a tournament on a reservoir, oahe or sakakawea,for instance? a I have some questions about trolling crawler harnesses. a With lead core is it best to run all lead on the reel or splice it in? a What does leadcore line do that you can’t achieve with weights and regular line? a Is using split-shot weights normally the standard in trolling crawler harnesses? a When do you use colorado versus other types of crawler harness blades? a With the slow death hook in deep water, how can I weight the hook and how far from the hook should it be? a I am new to trolling and in need of tips with line, boards, dipsy and lures. a With the slow death hook in deep water, how can I weight the hook and how far from the hook should it be? a What’s the best way to connect leadcore line to leaders and backing?