otdrmn wrote: After some info if guys don't mind sharing about downriggers and in particular DIY downriggers Some questions I have heard the term blow back when referring to downriggers, what are they referring to here? is it the weight not holding at a desired depth Mate, I think what this refers to is the angle of lift you are getting when using your downrigger. You drop it down and forward momentum causes resistance which causes the downrigger to lift. Ball weight or cylindrical and benefits / drawbacks of each Differing thoughts here - Round has a greater surface area and tends to lift more. They are however the most common shapes out there and easy to replace. Some of the other ones are shaped like torpedos with little keels on them. These also work well, but I think you'll struggle to find them in NZ. Minimum weight required for say a Jack Mac vrs a Skippie From memory, I think most of the weights are around 10 pounds (4.5 and some change kilo's) Minimum strength of downrigger braid (nylon) - is 50lb to light Yep, way too light mate. You want something like 200lb braid. Very thin but super strong - also cuts down that resistance in the water. Are you banding on to the leader with the bait about 2mtrs behind Again, differing thoughts on this. Some guys whip a small loop for the tag and use bands like you mention. Others use the roller troller type release. IMHO I do like the baits a bit further behind than 2 meters. It just seems unnatural to me having a funny ball ahead of a swimming bait - give it a few meters before attaching. Ever run lures from your DR and how successful was this Yes - not the skirted lures I think you may be referring to, but rather the hard body lures for dogtooth and deep reef dwellers. Guys do run skirted lures especially lumo lures for broadies, but I don't have that much experience doing it. There will no doubt be more questions as answers are forthcoming. Look forward to any pictures you can share as well Good luck mate. Thanks in advance G

Edit: Just thinking back, we had to make up some new balls we lost whilst in Indonesia.
We used melted lead we got off an island scrap yard and poured it into coconuts.
Odd shaped, but relatively round if you looked quickly, and they worked pretty ok.

What exactly are you wanting to use the down rigger for??

Down riggers are nothing short of impedance for any form of marlin fishing.

Use them for night time sword trolling ( if that's your thing) ...

Otherwise flag them.

Most predators have a 60m range whether it's eye sight or sense ( give or take) ... If your baits out of sight ... Half the time its had its tail bitten off and the release clip hasn't tripped out ... Well all you've done is towed a head around for 2 hrs.

Yes you catch marlin using on down-riggers... But your success rate in general won't be any better than the next boat without .

And if Peter B Wright thinks the same thing ... Well it's good enough for me not to bother.

I've watched marlin from a long way whether I marked it or it tailed in from a ridulously long way behind the boat nail my live skippie set leader length off the transom .

Honestly .., I don't think you need one unless you were slow trolling for swords at night.just keep it simple

Good luck

Graeme I have a 10 lb weight mold in a fish shape you can make your own if you want , I have also heard that a 2 " galvanized pipe about 2 foot long could work and when I get the time I will try it