Luhr Jensen "Salmon Bungee"...?

[CW]

I've seen them and I read the tech sheet on them from the manufacturer written by Buzz Ramsey ( http://www.luhrjensen.com/search.cfm?searchterm=salmon+bungee&search=GO ) and am cureous if anyone here has experience with them.

I mainly fish salmon while anchored in a hogline in the Columbia River and though the fish run big, a good day might be just one or two takedowns, so it is important to make the most of every opportunity. I use heavy gear (40 lb. leader, 80 lb. braided line, stout rods & reels) to increase the chances of boating fish that are not line shy in water that is filled with anchor lines that fish can wrap around. Last summer I had great success in the two weeks the season was open during the peak of the run. One day though, I had many takedowns and didn't get one fish into the boat. That night, I swapped out the big Owner hooks with their curved in tips for some same sized Gamakatsus. Some of these fish may have been lost due to inexperience of two of my guests that day, but not all. I replay events over and over in my mind and wonder if something like the Salmon Bungee might have made a difference. We fish big wobbling spoons like Brad's Wobblers or Alvins and when there is a take down, the fisherman flies to the rod and immediately sets the hook. On this one day I did that, I waited, I loosened the drag, I tried everything. The hooks were sharp.... With the braided line I know there is less stretch in the system. Would these bungees replace that without compromising the strength and sensitivity to the bait/lure/fish I like? For a downloadable PDF of the Tech Sheet describing them goto: C.W http://www.luhrjensen.com/search.cfm?searchterm=salmon+bungee&search=GO

[lloyds]

The tech sheet doesn't seem to be on the Lure Jensen site for some reason. Maybe it is just me and my computer challenges.

[flapbreaker]

It sounds like it was made for trolling. I found an article on it by Buzz Ramsey. He said on a typical snubber the internal cord is 1.5 times as long as the tubing but on the bungee the cord is 3 times longer than the tubing. Might be kind of sloppy if you ask me. I just think that sometimes we win and sometimes we lose. I've fished next to a boat that hooked/landed both of their take downs and the two we had didn't stick. Using the same wobblers.

[C-Hawk]

I've used them while trolling. Sometimes when we seem to lose the shakers, we'll put on the "bungee" and it allows the sharkers to shake without pulling the hook out.
Don't know how well they would work while mooching.

[Larry Q]

CW-
I use the salmon snubbers all the time in the ocean while trolling. They work great behind a diver or ahead of a dodger on the downriggers.
I tried them in the Columbia only once and didn't get a bite. I was useing a k-15 kwick fish with a sardine wrap. The only fish caught that day was on a Brad's wobbler without a snubber.
I have lost far fewer fish at the boat after I started useing the snubbers.
Heck they are cheap, give one a try.

[Not For Hire]

CW,

I don't know about anchoring in a hog line, but I am not unwilling to try it. The theory of the snubbers was to place a snubber between your dipsy diver (or similar diving disk or device) and your lure. Fishing with monofilament with many yards of line in the water the line will stretch. If instead there are only six feet in the water when a fish hits the lure it can tear the lure out of its mouth because there is not enough give in the line. There is only about six feet of line between the dipsy and the lure and, as the dipsy provides resistance, there is not enough give and powerful fish can tear the lure out of their own mouth. Nowadays many anglers, me included, have switched over to the newer, thinner, less stretchy, modern, braided lines. I use these for dipsy trolling as they are thinner and sink better (will go deeper with same amount of line out). A bungee is more important than ever because these lines hardly stretch at all. Some anglers also use these new low diameter lines for downrigger trolling. Some of those anglers are using the snubber on the lines because they believe there is not enough stretch in the line in case of that savage strike. Now the bungee comes along and it is longer and thinner to provide the same type of stretch/give but has less water resistance and is easier to troll. It is supposed to do the same thing as the snubbers. Provide some stretch when a fish hits but still set the hook. I am not sold that bungees or snubbers are necessary for downrigger fishing. I suppose if you have a real firm grip on the line at the ball (or are using sturdy rubber bands) as is necessary when trolling flashers, etc., they could help. But I think the ball will move, there is more line in the water, and the release should release. I can't say whether snubbers have saved fish for me at the boat or not, but at that point the rod and my clever angling buds provide the give.


So back to the beginning. not sure if they would help you or not.

Regards, Mark

[CW]

Sorry about the inoperative link. This one should work and if not the same exact article, is very similar (again quoting Ramsey). http://www.gameandfishmag.com/fishing/salmon-steelhead-fishing/RA_0405_01/[url]

When we backbounce -fish, we usually have quite a bit of line out too. I switched over to braided line a long time ago (standard Tough line [not the XTP or newer version] is good but Power Pro is my favorite and yes, 80 lb. test line has about the same diameter as 12 lb. monofilament). Many guys use medium weight rods with a fast action and very flexible tip to indicate strikes yet still have the backbone of a sturdy rod. If the tip is flexible enough, it seems that might be all that is needed especially if combined with a moderately set reel drag. The fish hits, the rod goes down, the line peels out a bit and then the fisherman still yanks the rod out of the holder, puts thumb on spool and reefs back, setting the hook on the fish (salmon are not tender mouthed, say like grayling, shad or kokanee).

I also use heavier, stiffer rods besides the above set up and so think I'll try a bungee on these first. It does seem they'd be effective on trolling herring (which we also do in the river for spring chinook) since fish then don't typically hammer the bait in one massive strike but instead grab at it, "wounding their prey" and come back again for a nibble and then finally take the hook on their third of fourth nibble. Here, it seems the stretchiness provided would keep the herring from tearing off prematurely and buy a little "wiggle room" so the fish wouldn't feel as much resistance from the boat and rod either... more natural?

Though cheap to buy, I think I could fold up three lengths of braided dacron (the cheaper, thicker braided stuff approx. 50 - 80 lb.) inside a piece of surgical tubing about 8-10" long, tie each end to a swivel or bead chain swivel and then tie some more braided line (finer, like tough line) around the tubing cinching it tight between the swivel eye and the barrel of the swivel and then folding the top of the tubing back down over the tie resulting in what Lurh Jensen manufactures. Too long of tubing or interior line could result in too much stretch before the interior cord tightened up and could make setting the hook difficult... not good. Something to think about between now and March. C.W.[/url]