Do you want to make a set of planer boards?

[dubob]

Now you can make your own planer boards and be the envy of all your fishing buddies. They can be made in two different sizes to suit your needs. Here is a picture of one half the set I made:



The full set of plans are attached below and can be copied and printed out at your convenience. To be able to read the plans, copy the two attached pictures to your computer and THEN open them. If you just open them here, they are real fuzzy and hard to read.





The total cost for a set of two should be less than $40 not including your labor. If you have any questions that you can't answer from the plans, give me a shout. Enjoy.

[SmokeOnTheWater]

Hey Dubob

Where have you been? Nothing like waiting till the end of winter to give us a winter project. I built a pair (singles) a couple of years ago and when I put them to use they were far from perfect. I scrapped them and bought a pair of Off-Shore planer boards. They work GREAT on calm water but get into some wave action and forget it. Also, they really limit the size of lure they are able to tow. Drag even a mid range diving rapala and they're wanting to be pulled under.

How are these for wave action and lure towing ability? I am willing to try another model if they perform well. Any additional comments?

[jacksonlaker]

Smoke, the planer boards Duobob are giving you get attached to a line from a mast mounted on your boat. They do not clip on your fishing line...those work O.K., but like you said have problems in rough water and you loose a lot of fish with the in-lines. Getting back to the big boards, you let line out and the board travels away from your boat, then remains at a set distance depending on how much line you let out. I run mine as much as 75'. You then attach a small release to the line, clip your fishing line in it, and let it slide down the line towards the board. I forgot to mention you have let your lure out behind the boat ( 100'to 150'). Now your lure is 100 back and 50 to the side of the boat. Put your rod in a holder standing straight up, watch your rod tip or line as you would a downrigger. When a fish hits it should release the line from the clip. and then you are fighting just the fish. The release slides down to the board, and to re set just use another release, (I have about 20 of them ). This is a super effective way to troll shallower running baits. Having a lure that far away from the boat allows you to troll a lure right along the shoreline...great for early season rainbows or walleyes. P.M. me if you need more info..JL

[Full_Monte]

That's a great idea! I think I understand the concept. If the port and starboard beams are at 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock, at what o'clock position do the boards usually troll at? Does it depend on trolling speed?

[Trophy Taker]

Dubob,
Just curious what your experience has been using them in Utah. We have used planers on the Gorge & Powell without a problem but about anywhere else we seem to have problems keeping other boaters from cutting between us and the boards.

[SmokeOnTheWater]

Thanks Jacksonlaker! I kind figured they would be a bit heavy for an in-line board system. I was suprised to hear how far away from your boat you run them. I can only imagine the problems one would encounter during a combat fishing trip on a busy weekend.

[Full_Monte]

Yeah..I can't imagine how much fun you could have with these on a water-ski lake. I've been passed by a ski boat when trolling the shoreline at about 75 feet from shore...and they passed between my boat and shore!

[dubob]

Where have you been? Nothing like waiting till the end of winter to give us a winter project.

Sorry 'bout dat. I posted these plans on other boards last year but wasn't registered here back then. But I hope it's better late than never.:)

How are these for wave action and lure towing ability?

You can let these out and as far as needed and troll 3 or 4 lines off each side with no problems at all. And they float and track very well in rough water.

[dubob]

Just curious what your experience has been using them in Utah. We have used planers on the Gorge & Powell without a problem but about anywhere else we seem to have problems keeping other boaters from cutting between us and the boards.

That's what the CCW and .44 Mag is for.

Actually, I've used them on Willard, Hyrum, East Canyon, Rock Port, and Strawberry and never had that happen. But I generally don't let them out more than about 50 feet from the mast. That keeps them within about 30 feet from the side of the boat.

[jacksonlaker]

Full Monte, I have had the same experience. Your'e thinking, they are not going to ski between me and the shoreline ??? And the a#$holes do it !! As for planer boards in combat fishing...yes, I have had 3 lines cut off by one boat. I just run 1 line off the board when it is crowded. You can run lead-core off them also. I like snap weights, you can get depth without a mile of line to reel in.

[Full_Monte]

Would a flag on the planer boards help, or would it just tip over the boards in the wind?

[dubob]

Would a flag on the planer boards help, or would it just tip over the boards in the wind?

I don’t use flags; I haven’t felt a need too. But I’m thinking that if it’s windy enough to flip a board with or without a flag, it’s probably too rough for water skiing so the flags wouldn’t really be needed. They couldn’t hurt in calm weather, but again, I don’t feel like I need them.

[Full_Monte]

How would you run three lines off a planer board? The way I understand it,
the release slides down the planer board line to the end. How would you keep three lines separated? Thanks!

[Neptune]

How would you run three lines off a planer board? The way I understand it,
the release slides down the planer board line to the end. How would you keep three lines separated? Thanks!

When setting up your "spread" on Planer Boards you let the outer line(closest to the planer board) out the farthest behind the release..say 100 feet, put the line in the release, then you spool off line and the release travels out toward the planer board and you can stop it where ever you want. So for the situation you asked about above, if you planer board was 100 feet from the boat, you would let the first one out right up against the planer board, the second would be out about 70 feet from the boat and the third would be about 40 feet from the boat. The distance the lure is back from the release should get shorter/longer the closer/farther you get from the boat. The setback need to be staggered and you can do it either way.

Hope this helps!

[Full_Monte]

Thanks, Neptune. That explains it. I presume that means you only get the tension on the line from the drag of any lure/flasher/dodger setup you run.

I figured I might do a little ski-boat hunting this season,
so I bought some of the hardware today. I don't understand why one needs a mast to do this. Is it to insure you get a good ride when the ski boat runs between you and your planer board? Why can't you tie the planer boards off on the boat somewhere? This is reminding me of whaling in the movie "Moby Dick".

[jacksonlaker]

Full Monte, I made my mast out of some 3/4" galvanized steel conduit, a cheap Shakespear reel from K-Mart, and some hose clamps. The mast sits where my front seat would go. You can tie to the boat, but bringing the board in or out would be tricky. Also the higher you can get your line, the easier the releases will slide down the line into position. The tension comes from the planer board wanting to go away from the boat. It takes some good driving skills to keep the line tight. It will go slack on inside turns if you take'em too sharp. My friends suck at driving my boat which is why I almost never reel in any fish !! I gotta find somebody with a boat so I can catch a few !!

[dubob]

I don't understand why one needs a mast to do this. Is it to insure you get a good ride when the ski boat runs between you and your planer board? Why can't you tie the planer boards off on the boat somewhere?

You can tie them directly to the boat and I did that the first year. It is kind of a pain in the rear putting out and especially pulling them in. I went to a commercial mast and putting out and taking in is a breeze now. But the commercial mast is not cheap. About $150 to $200 for a good set-up.

[jacksonlaker]

You can kind of see the board in this pic. That's not me driving and I have since improved my rod holders so the rods stand stait up. You can see how you can work the shorline without spooking fish. We caught 16 the day of pic, 14 off the boards !!

[Full_Monte]

Thanks for the photo and replies! I have learned a lot. Do you guys catch kokes with planer board setups, or mostly trout? If you catch kokes, is it mostly in the early spring when they are close to the surface?