Saw this video on You Tube today about "Labeling your crankbaits made EASY".

The guy gives a tip on how to permanently label your crankbait's diving depth. He skips the sloppy Sharpie and picked up a diamond-tipped engraver for less than $15 off Amazon and notches the depth range into the bottom of the bill.

I use the Precision Trolling APP that tells you how deep your lure goes with how much line you have out (either Berkley 10 lb. XT Mono or 10 lb. Fireline).

The youtube poster etches in the average depth range of the lure. Instead, I plan on etching in depth of the lure by how much line comes out.

For example, Rapala's Shad Rap SR-9 package says 8 - 15 feet depth range. I am going to etch in 8 -32 15 -71 .... meaning that if I let out 32 feet of 10 lb. Berkley XT Mono the Shad Rap #9 will run 8 feet .... let out 71 feet and it will run 15 feet deep. In fact, you could even etch in 20 - 144 as the Precision Trolling App says if you let out 144 ft of line the Shad Rap SR-9, it will go to a max 20 feet deep.

Of course, not every one will want to go as far I as want to go and etch in the amount of Line Out and Depth it will run. For this you will need a a "Line Counter Reel" and the Precision Trolling app for trolling your crankbaits.

But there are fishing lines available like Power Pro Depth-Hunter that has 4 color patterns in 25 ft intervals ... and this pattern repeats itself every 100 ft for easy depth estimations. It even has black hash marks every 5 feet to precisely place lures at target depths.

What do you think?

I am still trying to catch that elusive 13 lb. walleye ... hence my Wally13 name. Most folks are suprised that my name is not Wally. LOL I am always looking for new lures and methods to catch more fish ... especially that 13 lb walleye.

I think I am going to give the Engraving idea a try.

Labeling Your Crankbaits Made Easy !

General tools 505 Diamond Tip Engraver

I'm usually contour trolling for eyes so I don't worry about it. For suspending fish I pick a bait that is in the range I want to target and then have to experiment with different line lengths anyways to see where the fish want it.

Will labeling my crank baits help them be returned when I loose them??

Phil,

LOL !

bobbernumber3: "Will labeling my crank baits help them be returned when I loose them?? "

Only if you have labeled them ‘RTS’ (return to sender) plus your initials.

Looks like someone found a cure for cabin fever! lol

Not a bad idea especially while you recover from your robo knee surgeries.

TomT,

Right you are!

I thought I put out a worthwhile topic ... but based on the number of responses, I have to say I came up short on this one.

No worries.

Guess I will be engraving my hard bait lure collection while recovering from knee replacement surgery. LOL

TomT: "Looks like someone found a cure for cabin fever! lol

Not a bad idea especially while you recover from your robo knee surgeries.

"

Unfortunately for Wally13, by the time he finishes etching his bazzillion lures, it'll be time for a second set of knee replacements....lol...

Pineknot ... you only saw a small part of my lure collection on our trips together. If you only knew just how many I actually have stored in my basement.

Time to start keeping my tackle bag for canoe tripping down to a small bag.

Well, I briefly watched the video, and now I don't feel nearly as bad about my own level of overthinking things! I have the Precision Trolling Dive curve app on my phone, and I've purchased the info for all of the crankbaits that I most commonly use.

Then I manually entered the data into a spreadsheet, indicating the dive depth in feet, for every lure, beginning 50 feet back, and going up to 130 feet back, in 10 foot increments.

Then I sorted the spreadsheet from shallowest to deepest (in terms of average dive depth across this range). Then I printed and laminated it, and keep a copy of it in the boat at all times.

Here's the top portion (the shallower running baits) of the spreadsheet to give you an idea of what it looks like....

You have gotta be kidding me, Jackpot!

You should also factor in that red lures are heavier due to pigments in the paint...

Like anything you can put as much detail into fishing as you'd like. I label the lip of all my crankbaits with their depth range but I use a sharpie. It does wear off sooner or later but has worked well for me. Engraving the info on would sure be more durable. I do find the info helpful when selecting baits as it can be hard to almost impossible remembering which baits run at which depths.

The precision trolling chart is one step further down the rabbit hole. I don't go into that level of detail and instead just play around with the lure to get the right depth. If I know the depth I want to be at and the depth range of the lure it doesn't take long to fine tune the distance behind the boat to get me to where I want to be.

bobbernumber3: "You have gotta be kidding me, Jackpot!


You should also factor in that red lures are heavier due to pigments in the paint..."

LOL!

Hey, it's a cold winter here in Wisconsin, and I've got nothing better to do.

I never thought of the weight of different pigments though. I may have to start looking into that, in case I need to make some more charts :-)

jackpotjohnny48: "

bobbernumber3: "You have gotta be kidding me, Jackpot!

You should also factor in that red lures are heavier due to pigments in the paint..."

LOL!

Hey, it's a cold winter here in Wisconsin, and I've got nothing better to do.

I never thought of the weight of different pigments though. I may have to start looking into that, in case I need to make some more charts :-)"

Not so cold, but a lot of snow here in the UP!

I am pretty geaky with spreadsheets... it is a great winter pastime. I keep track of what works for meals, camping, tripping, etc. after each outing, canoeing and winter camping. Working off the sheets now for a few days in the Hiawatha NF starting tomorrow.

I guess using sinkers to adjust the depth of my bait is keeping me from buying more lures?

Jackpot, in checking your chart, it looks like the app says a TD09 (not the Deep version, either) only goes 10 feet down with 130 ft of braided line?!?

That's much too shallow, no? I am sure the box says they dive deeper, no?

Carmike,

Precision Trolling Data Chart says a Tail Dancer TD-09 only goes down 11 feet with 130 feet of 10 lb. Fireline Braid out. I would have thought it would go deeper too.

However, a Deep Down TDD-09 will go down to 23 ft with 130 feet of 10 lb Fireline Braid out.

carmike: "Jackpot, in checking your chart, it looks like the app says a TD09 (not the Deep version, either) only goes 10 feet down with 130 ft of braided line?!?


That's much too shallow, no? I am sure the box says they dive deeper, no? "

Believe it or not, that's actually what the app says. It seemed a bit too shallow to me, as well, compared to what the box says. (The box says 12-15 feet, if I'm not mistaken). But the Precision Trolling phone app actually says 10 feet down with 130 ft of braided line.

It's possible that they screwed up when testing that bait, but I just looked it up again to verify, and that's what it says for the Rapala TD 09.

(Note: Of the 30 dive curves I purchased on the phone app, there were a couple other baits that surprised me as well).

jackpotjohnny48: "

carmike: "Jackpot, in checking your chart, it looks like the app says a TD09 (not the Deep version, either) only goes 10 feet down with 130 ft of braided line?!?



That's much too shallow, no? I am sure the box says they dive deeper, no? "

Believe it or not, that's actually what the app says. It seemed a bit too shallow to me, as well, compared to what the box says. (The box says 12-15 feet, if I'm not mistaken). But the Precision Trolling phone app actually says 10 feet down with 130 ft of braided line.


It's possible that they screwed up when testing that bait, but I just looked it up again to verify, and that's what it says for the Rapala TD 09.


(Note: Of the 30 dive curves I purchased on the phone app, there were a couple other baits that surprised me as well)."

Ever take a lighter and bend the lip down? Just keep it straight. They will run straight and deeper. Try it.

Interesting. I guess you just need to head out and troll over a sunken island that tops out 12 ft down to find out what's right.

That's the kind of experiment I like conducting. :)

To both the OP and jackpot who say they're using precision trolling -- I don't see boat speed etched on the lip or entered into your spreadsheet, so aren't you ignoring a rather key part of the formula?

I just use a combination of my memory, watching the graph, and watching the rod tip. Seems to work pretty well for me.

thegildedgopher: "To both the OP and jackpot who say they're using precision trolling -- I don't see boat speed etched on the lip or entered into your spreadsheet, so aren't you ignoring a rather key part of the formula?


I just use a combination of my memory, watching the graph, and watching the rod tip. Seems to work pretty well for me."

To answer the question about speed, Mark Romanack of Precision Trolling claims that there are two primary variables that determine crankbait lure running depth:

1. Lead Length
2. Line Diameter

He starts talking about this at about 5 minutes, 10 seconds in the attached video.

So, I've always worked on the assumption that these are the two variables that must be accounted for.

The only time I think speed would influence the equation is when you're using a downrigger ball or a snap weight, where blowback would be an issue. In those cases, a slower speed would produce less blowback, thus creating deeper running depth.

But on a standard crankbait with no external weight attached anywhere on the line (i.e. when blowback is not a factor), then it would appear as if lead length and line diameter are the two primary factors, and speed doesn't really come into play in that scenario.

At least that's how I've always thought about it...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBlh5d7XORo

I should qualify my last post with one additional piece of info....

If I recall correctly, I think Mark Romanack said that the dive curves they produce are generally standardized for the typical speed range that most people run their crankbaits at. (I can't remember what speed range they were talking about. Perhaps anything from 1 mph to 3 mph. I don't remember).

In any case, within that speed range window, there appears to be vary little variation in running depth that would be attributed to speed. The two primary factors would then be...

1. Lead Length
2. Line diameter.

Since I do most of my crankbait trolling in midsummer, without the use of downrigger balls or snap weights, and I'm within the standard speed window, I think my baits are running pretty close to what the app is indicating (Note: I normally troll between 2.2 and 2.6 mph).

On a buoyant crankbait with no weight added, yes, you're correct. If that's the only way you ever use your crankbaits, label away.

If you're using a negatively buoyant lure, like say a Rapala Countdown, or if you select leadcore as your line, the PTD app will show that important third variable, speed.

This is great! Just ordered one. I suppose the extra investment of time will make losing the lure more painful...but it's a bitter sweetness.