My question is this: what do you think are the best gurdies for hand trolling? I've used the cheap plastic Kolstrands a little bit, and I was not very impressed. Are the Kolstrand 2:1s significantly better? They're a lot more expensive, so I would hope so.
I've also seen gurdies from Ketchikan that were made from some type of anchor winch-- does anyone have experience with these?
The only other thing I was wondering about was converting power troll gurdies-- I've seen some of these that look really sturdy, but I'm not sure how well they crank. Would some brands be better than others?
Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.
Also, I apologize if this is already a thread, but I couldn't find it.
Thanks,
Ben
best hand cranks?
Re: best hand cranks?
The Kohlstrand 2:1 are significantly better, IMO, if you do the 2:1 or 1:1. Worth every penny if you do a fair amount of hand cranking. I keep mine on 1:1 95% of the time though, as I only fish 25lb balls and 8fa.
Re: best hand cranks?
I have been using the kolstrand 2:1 for about 5-6 years now. I have not had to replace any parts so far and they are working good. When trolling the winter line I normally use 35-40 pounders so the gear does do not drag to far back. It is definitely a workout, but manageable. It seems to be a little easier when there is fish on . Unless you really fish a lot and at deeper depths I am not sure that it would help that much. That said I have not used the other gurdies and maybe the ease of use of the two speed gurdies might make it worth while. Most of my fishing is from 24-42 fathoms. I would say that 30 pounders is probably a good weight if you fish deeper. The speed also makes a big difference in the weight needed. I was doing a little chum trolling last year and found that I could use a 15 pound weight down to 30+ fathoms because I was trolling less than 1 knot.
Good luck
Good luck
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Re: best hand cranks?
Ben,
I hand trolled for 11 summers using a pair of gurdies that had been one power gurdy. The previous owner split them apart and attached a handle. I really liked them; i beat them up pretty good. About the time they were needing a rebuild I sold the boat. They were fairly heavy, but I sure never broke anything on them! IMO it's a good way to go if you can find a pair or have the time and expertise to convert them yourself.
I hand trolled for 11 summers using a pair of gurdies that had been one power gurdy. The previous owner split them apart and attached a handle. I really liked them; i beat them up pretty good. About the time they were needing a rebuild I sold the boat. They were fairly heavy, but I sure never broke anything on them! IMO it's a good way to go if you can find a pair or have the time and expertise to convert them yourself.