Leadcore is typically used to get crankbaits to dive deeper, but NWT pro John Hoyer uses it for a different reason up shallow. Check the full tip on TargetWalleye.com, but a few excerpts below:
> Leadcore allows me to run four lines at different distances from the boat while keeping the lures running in the same depth range. This keeps the baits from tangling when turning out and in on breaklines with many points. If the lines were all the same length they’d be crossing non-stop.
> I set the inside line with mono back 80′ from the boat…the middle two rods are rigged with leadcore and set back 50′ and 60’…the outside rod has mono 100′ back:
> For leadcore: I like to run 27-lb
Tuf-Line MicroLead. It’s the thinnest-diameter stuff we can find — has way different dive curves than the average leadcore — and pretty forgiving on big fish.
> The clearer the water, the longer the leader. The visibility on Sakakawea was 2-3′, so we were running leaders as short as 10′ and basically power fishing.
> We run
Berkley Fireline leaders anytime there’s debris, that way we can clear a fouled lure by snapping it [instead of reeling all the way in]. If there’s not much debris, we run 15-lb
Berkley fluorocarbon.
> Most important thing in dirty water is for a fish to be able to find your bait. A crankbait hitting bottom is a trigger, and also is a constant noise to attract fish to you. I like the #7
Berkley Flicker Shads because they seem to deflect off bottom the most.
> When dialing in a color program on multiple rods, start with: one natural, one silvery, one firetiger and a purply one. That covers it all, then switch out the other cranks for the top-producing colors.
> I personally like using high-contrast colors like purple tiger, and then firetiger once the sun comes up. Firetiger is just one of those colors you’ve always gotta have tied on. As my buddy [and fellow NWT pro]
Bill Shimota says: “Any color works as long as it’s firetiger.” [lol]
