# Floating Spawn Techniques



## rtoe (Aug 13, 2012)

Looking for some opinions. What is the best setup for floating spawn? Hook style and size, bait sizes and cure colors, lb test leader and mainline etc. 


Thanks in advance


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## swaprat (Oct 1, 2011)

a lot of guy are adapting the style and technique from the lake Erie tributary's s like center pining and float fishing do a Google cause now you know. basically it is a 2 or 4 octopus hook with a egg loop with me i use fresh skein no cure. it will work if the trout do not get to it. that or cured in big chunk's not single eggs. any ways they just weight out the weight for the bobber so it ride low in the water. so when a fish pull it goes under then you set the hook it that simple some use jig heads ie in 1/4 -3/8 once etc.... weight the bobber/ floats with steel head hooks etc... you want to just tick the bottom of the river this takes a wile to dial in but it works. a lot of the jigs look like crappie jigs some are just bear hooks.read up on it be fore you do it with a spinning rod or a center pin a lot of people get pissed cause of long drifts center pinners take. any ways best of luck to you.


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## Benz (Sep 25, 2010)

Center pinning is the best technique for steelhead (period). Give it a try. Long drifts are not required, just an option. And it didn't start in Lake Erie.. it started in England. I bought one 2 years ago, and it stays in my car from August -April.


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## Robert Holmes (Oct 13, 2008)

I will use my way and out fish any center pin guys out there. I buy the cheap spring balsa floats about $1.25 ea. I use spinning gear okuma rod and okuma reel with 6 or 8 pound test mono. I tie up a #14 or #16 treble and place a small split about 1 foot up the float is usually 2 feet up. I place a spawn bag or skein on the treble and let her go. Simple Cheap (less than $100) and it works fantastic.


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## Benz (Sep 25, 2010)

Spinning reels work well, I just have better luck on my center pin and I like the long rod for fighting fish on very thin line.

http://www.fishusa.com/Okuma-Aventa-Center-Pin-ReelFloat-Rod-Combos_p.html

Can't go wrong with that set up. Cheap & works great. You can spend as much money as you want but you really don't need much more than this to get you started. And for line I always go with 16lb Sunline FF. It's hard to find but imo it's well worth it. then I use a 8lb flouro leader, and a 6lb mono tippet. Flouro can be great as a tippet but it doesn't move with the current as nicely again imo. The main key is to have a strong main line, slightly weaker shot line and slightly weaker tippet to your hook. Nothing sucks more than losing a $4 float, 5-10 split shot, and 2 swivels + hook on a snag. Which I have done more than I care to admit. rtoe if you live near GR or Ludington and want to try out a center pin on the Ro--- I mean grand, or PM let me know via pm. If you want you can find tons and tons of info on Center Pinning on this site by searching or by flipping around on google.


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## pimp'n hens (Dec 14, 2009)

Robert Holmes said:


> I will use my way and out fish any center pin guys out there. I buy the cheap spring balsa floats about $1.25 ea. I use spinning gear okuma rod and okuma reel with 6 or 8 pound test mono. I tie up a #14 or #16 treble and place a small split about 1 foot up the float is usually 2 feet up. I place a spawn bag or skein on the treble and let her go. Simple Cheap (less than $100) and it works fantastic.


 
Are you drunk? :lol:


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## Steve_D (Mar 8, 2011)

Robert Holmes said:


> I will use my way and out fish any center pin guys out there. I buy the cheap spring balsa floats about $1.25 ea. I use spinning gear okuma rod and okuma reel with 6 or 8 pound test mono. I tie up a #14 or #16 treble and place a small split about 1 foot up the float is usually 2 feet up. I place a spawn bag or skein on the treble and let her go. Simple Cheap (less than $100) and it works fantastic.


This is how I fish, and it seems as though everybody outfishes me. That being said, I am still fairly new to steelhead and salmon fishing, but I'll let you know after this years run how it turned out for me haha.


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## Robert Holmes (Oct 13, 2008)

pimp'n hens said:


> Are you drunk? :lol:


 Glorified fly guys. I don't need an Escalade to get me there and I sure don't need a center pin to catch a bunch of steelhead. The guy wants to know how to get them on a budget and I told him how to do it. The guy does not want to invest in a $500 pin outfit. I forgot more about steelhead fishing than most guys on this site will ever know. :yikes::yikes:I am sure that will trigger a response


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## Robert Holmes (Oct 13, 2008)

Steve_D said:


> This is how I fish, and it seems as though everybody outfishes me. That being said, I am still fairly new to steelhead and salmon fishing, but I'll let you know after this years run how it turned out for me haha.


 Alot of it depends upon how fast the river flows and how you prepare your spawn. With a pin you can slow your presentation down more than you can with standard spinning gear. I do not fish in real fast water so spinning gear works very well for me. I also do not use borax to prepare my spawn......hate it will never use it again. Does not produce fish.


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## pimp'n hens (Dec 14, 2009)

good info. Just a little pompous. Must be nice to be a legend.


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## FishKilla419 (Feb 22, 2008)

Depends on where your fishing. Where I fish a couple split shots won't get a skein glob down 6" all the way through the run. And I'm not sure what you'd accomplish with 6# test. 2 Years ago I got bit off 6 times using 12# maxima for leader(maybe i'm slow on the hooksets). Don't make it more complicated than it needs to be. Big bobber on your 17+#main with 1/2 or 3/8 egg sinker sliding on your mainline with a bead between the sinker and swivel. Leader of choice I prefer 14-18" with a 4-2/0 gammy on a egg loop with 1 split shot in between swivel and eggs. Water conditions dictate line size. 
Search this forum from last year this topic was hammered.


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## jerrob (Aug 6, 2011)

rtoe said:


> Looking for some opinions. What is the best setup for floating spawn? Hook style and size, bait sizes and cure colors, lb test leader and mainline etc.
> 
> 
> Thanks in advance


The "best" way is purely subjective as you'll see as this thread goes on. 
I started with spinning gear, then moved into centerpin fishing, I don't have to choose the best way, I just have two ways to choose. Trying a baitcasting rig for float fishing for the first time this fall, and hoping to have a third option. The spinning rig, by far, will get you introduced into float fishing with a modest investment, and you can use all the terminal tackle in the same manner on a centerpin or baitcasting set-up if ya ever choose to expand your arsenal.
Get out there and give it a try, it's a great way to catch fish.

Good luck,
J


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## swaprat (Oct 1, 2011)

Benz said:


> Center pinning is the best technique for steelhead (period). Give it a try. Long drifts are not required, just an option. And it didn't start in Lake Erie.. it started in England. I bought one 2 years ago, and it stays in my car from August -April.




probably right that it did come from Europe but a lot of people used it on the Erie tribes then then kinda half ass it for the northern waters like pm white etc... . like state above. any ways your right that ware they get there bad name is those long drift is all i was stating. lol's


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## swaprat (Oct 1, 2011)

FishKilla419 said:


> Depends on where your fishing. Where I fish a couple split shots won't get a skein glob down 6" all the way through the run. And I'm not sure what you'd accomplish with 6# test. 2 Years ago I got bit off 6 times using 12# maxima for leader(maybe i'm slow on the hooksets). Don't make it more complicated than it needs to be. Big bobber on your 17+#main with 1/2 or 3/8 egg sinker sliding on your mainline with a bead between the sinker and swivel. Leader of choice I prefer 14-18" with a 4-2/0 gammy on a egg loop with 1 split shot in between swivel and eggs. Water conditions dictate line size.
> Search this forum from last year this topic was hammered.


you to on the red part


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## swaprat (Oct 1, 2011)

jerrob said:


> The "best" way is purely subjective as you'll see as this thread goes on.
> I started with spinning gear, then moved into centerpin fishing, I don't have to choose the best way, I just have two ways to choose. Trying a baitcasting rig for float fishing for the first time this fall, and hoping to have a third option. The spinning rig, by far, will get you introduced into float fishing with a modest investment, and you can use all the terminal tackle in the same manner on a centerpin or baitcasting set-up if ya ever choose to expand your arsenal.
> Get out there and give it a try, it's a great way to catch fish.
> 
> ...


some great advise there thumbs.


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## brookies101 (Jun 23, 2008)

Also, you could always just bounce your skein/eggs/flies off the bottom. Cheapest and most effective way to go if you ask me. Main line to a ball bearing swivel, leader (with choice shot somewhere in this area), and a hook with some skein is the most effective way to fish for salmon, imho. But then again, I like to feel everything thats going on while bouncing in the river. Others like to visually see the strike occur. Either way will work, but to each his own

But there are many, many ways to catch them legally, just have some patience, and it'll come, whatever method you choose.


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## Benz (Sep 25, 2010)

Well said Jerry! It's nice to have a lot of differnt techniques in the bag. As for the 6lb test, it's what works best for me. When fishing the boardman last fall, I had a great opportunity to watch the fish react to different presentations, one guy would stand above the hole near the hotel and then I would stand on the bridge or up where I could see the drift coming to the fish. We tried many different things to see what the reactions were of the fish. Fish were pouring in from the bay and it was new fish almost every cast. I found that mono line allowed the bait to move around in the water a lot more and looked wayyy more natural, fish that had seen the exact same rig with 10lb flouro would come out and smash it while ignoring the flouro as it wasn't swaying in the current like the mono. It was really interesting to see. He asked for some advice and that's what works for me. Theres way more than one way to put a fish on the hook but I have found I get a lot more hook up's with small pound mono tippet. And with a 13.5 foot rod there is a lot of give so heavy line isn't required and I do snag up on something it's really easy to break off just the hook.


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## REG (Oct 25, 2002)

jerrob said:


> The "best" way is purely subjective as you'll see as this thread goes on.
> I started with spinning gear, then moved into centerpin fishing, I don't have to choose the best way, I just have two ways to choose. Trying a baitcasting rig for float fishing for the first time this fall, and hoping to have a third option. The spinning rig, by far, will get you introduced into float fishing with a modest investment, and you can use all the terminal tackle in the same manner on a centerpin or baitcasting set-up if ya ever choose to expand your arsenal.
> Get out there and give it a try, it's a great way to catch fish.
> 
> ...


Yeah, this! The biggest factor to productivity is the person holding the rod. And, great bait! There are a few people out there that can get more hookups using a snoopy rod than most anglers using "the most effective" methods.


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## salmon fever (Aug 10, 2006)

Ah, tis the season. Water and location dictates everything as previoulsy stated. I use medium spinning gear, 7 ft 1 piece rod with medium weight reel with 12 pound flouro and I use no leader (more knots equal more weakness/possible break points). Small sharp hook like a Gamakatsu will help with good hook set and I used something new for float last year that was pretty darn neat and did not compromise my rig but made it stronger. I went to a fly shop and was introduced to an "indicator float" which is threaded right on your mail line with no pinching or cliping to your line....it was awesome.....down side is float is a one use only rig....when it comes off it is done. 

I also don't use an egg loop...it is a PAIN and if you have good skein it should stay on anyway. 

Fun way to catch kings! Good luck!


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## thousandcasts (Jan 22, 2002)

The best way is the way that keeps it simple and catches fish. Don't worry about re-inventing the wheel and don't worry about this method or that method. At the end of the day it all comes down to a bobber, some weight and a hook. The challenge is where to cast, how deep to set your offering and what offering you have on the end of the hook. 

If you spend all day worrying about the terminal set up of it, then you're not focusing on the other things. Bobber...weight...hook, no more, no less. You gotta get your confidence and that only comes from hooking fish. If you've got fish around and you've got good bait and they're not biting, start playing around with depth...start playing around with the size of gut you're putting on the hook. The biggest mistake that people make is they start switching up terminal set ups before they master the basics. 

Set it up...work with it...get practice...get confidence...then start worrying about this float or that staggered shot pattern or whatever. 

Sounds simple, but it's not. That's why you have to MAKE it simple and not over-engineer the process, if that makes any sense?


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