Simple Ideas

[Redfish12]

Thought a thread of simple tips might be a good idea before the season kicks off.

Fishbites - cut them into small pieces before you leave the shore, makes baiting a lot easier.

Leader - PowerPro spools make great leader dispensers. Use some of the sticky tape they include, load the spool with your choice of mono (I used 30lb HiSeas for this one), and then use a zip tie to hold it all in. The cut off is nice and it beats bringing the whole spool out.

There are tons of tips like this, what do you guys do?

[mytmouse]

I do the same thing with all my bait! Fish bites, Shrimp, Blood worms... whatever! I get the small little ziplock tupperware dishes. It works great! I don't have to haggle with cutting bait. I just grab a piece and put it on the hook! As much as I would like to take credit for this, I kind of stole it from Grady-Black! LOL

I also, if I remember, like to use frozen water bottles for my ice... last a good while, not a whole lot of water in the cooler and I can drink em when they melt!

MYT

[ictalurus]

I use empty tippet spools to hold leader material since they're a little smaller. I have a couple fullsize spools I use, too, but I really like the PowerPro dispenser trick.

I don't really do anything clever, but here are a couple of cheapskate alternatives.

My anchor line is a floating line I picked up from Lowes that comes on it's own plastic spool. I figure I can just chuck the entire spool if I ever hook something big while anchored. That way, I don't have to have an additional float.

I use ID clips for rod leashes, the kind with a quick release clip. I usually don't leash the rod I'm using, but if I'm in rough water or a high traffic area, I can clip a longer leash to the split ring on the ID portion.

[DOGFISH]

I use the frozen water bottle idea also. They keep all of my drinks cold and as others said, if needed I drink the water when it melts. They work great keeping my adult beverages cold.

I also use left over spools from line for the few pre-made leaders that I carry.

Not really a cheap altenative, but a huge time saver. On my collapsable crab traps, I put springs in the bottom of the trap to hold down the chicken necks. This way you do not have to tie the bait in the trap. It makes the initial baiting of the traps a breeze. During your crabbing trip, when the bait gets worn out, you can easily refresh your bait simply by lifting the spring and putting another piece of bait under the spring. At the end of the day simply pull out the old chicken necks and toss them over. This saves alot of time and effort. The springs are available from most any hardware store. Just buy some that are long enough for your purpose.

I have also used a waterproof food container from Bed, Bath and Beyond, to place my battery selector switch. It is sealed and makes for easy access under the hatch, when I need to switch to the second battery for the electric motor. I have even seen some kayakers using these food containers for tackle.

[surfdog]

i also use water frozen in gator aid bottles they fit perfectly in my cooler which fits in my crate.

i keep a ton of stuff in my fly vest hooks, leaders in zip locks, sinkers, signal mirror etc. also carry a spool of 20# seagar fluro. i can tie a leader if need be in a couple minutes. crank baits and plastics are in plano cases inside the center hatch.

i keep bws in the plastic containers that potato salads come in from the super market, it keeps them happy and i flip them over twice a day while in the refrigerator to keep them off each other. i dont cut them before using they bleed out too quick for wp and croakers i just pinch a piece off when needed

[jet]

power pro comes with that red case thing?

i'm defintely going to cut up my fishbites prior, why didnt i think of that?

yup, frozen water bottles for me.

lets see what i can think of...

[Capt C-Hawk]

Pre cutting the fish bites is the only way to go. I use short pieces to tip beetle spins and small twister jigs for perch Cut them 1" long then split them like an old Uncle Josh spin strip. Finally take an ice pick and punch a hole for the hook. I cut up a whole bag and just put them back in their own pouch. Another trick that works for me, I have 2 dry boxes from the Wal Mart camping section (under $10 instead of $25 for a Pelican). Before launch I put my wallet, phone, camera and anything else that needs to stay dry in one of the boxes then attach both to the ring on my anchor trolly line. Drag them forward out of the way, but easily retrievable when needed

That power pro spool is a cool idea.

[MetroMan]

One thing I thought about doing was clipping my treble hooks down to two hooks opposed to three. And then mashing the barbs on the remaining two hooks. Numerous times I ended outings with a lure or two attached to my pfd. (in fact, I still have a little shad dart lodged in there...we'll just say its for good luck)

[Memory Maker]

One thing I thought about doing was clipping my treble hooks down to two hooks opposed to three. And then mashing the barbs on the remaining two hooks. Numerous times I ended outings with a lure or two attached to my pfd. (in fact, I still have a little shard dart lodged in there...we'll just say its for good luck)

.......a little Shard Dart ....... and lodged in there too ........ now that's an image ......

sorry ....... that one was toooo easy to let pass ......

[MetroMan]

LOL...set myself up for that one I guess

[DOGFISH]

Hope that shad dart was barbless.

[eastonkayaker]

Power up your fishfinder before you get in your kayak.

Learned the hard way, I placed the battery inside forward hatch, thought I had pushed slip-on connectors all the way on battery terminal. Got in the kayak, pushed off the beach, went to power up FF, nothing, back to shore, out of kayak found loose battery connector.

While I was messing with that someone else probably caught the 30" rockfish I would have caught that day.

[ictalurus]

Checking your fish finder is a good one. I learned that one the hardway, too, but I can't say it cost me a 30-incher. It just required me to go back to finding the drop offs using the channel marker and crab pot method. It also made me realize how much I watch my fish finder. It's almost like a portable TV.

[the_kegs]

Thanks! Great tips for a yak fishing newbie like me.

[Redfish12]

Testing your fish finder is huge. Also, bring extra fuses, electrical tape, and some needlenose pliers with you in a dry bag. Frozen water bottles work great for your fish bag and back up beverage. I have been considering using a drybag with frozen bottles and then putting it inside my soft cooler. I know it would make for a very smelly dry bag, but it'd be nice not to have to worry about the fish juice leaking in my car...

Another simple tip - Twist your cam straps before tightening, it will reduce/eliminate wind buzz vibration.

I'm sure I have a bunch more of these, I'll see what I can remember as I go.