Was looking at Northwoods and there was the standard board w rigid flag and then there was on option for a Tattle Flag kit? $25 for board w rigid and a $10 upgrade for the tattle kit.
Worth it? Necessary? I’m going up there on Tuesday.
I don’t use tattle flags and never had a problem but then again I only troll walleye in the spring and fall for big fish. I’d imagine smaller summer eyes would drag around for a while.
Just my.02 the flags work good until the spring wears out ( I keep a supply of springs and board parts on boat) what has worked for me is learning to read the board and how it rides/ tracks in water anything different means something is on there or lure is running right. Not to mention the people on the boat that are flag watchers and constantly pull boards just because the flag looks “funny”. If you’re looking at the opti boards I have ran them for years but be sure to keep parts around for them
I have been using Church Tx12 for spinners and cranks and they are small enough to see weeds on them and way easier to get on and off lines as well as smaller to store. My offshores only come out for salmon now
as others have said no need for the flag kits if your only useing them in spring and fall...just watch and learn the boards...one trick is if you think something is on look at the rod...if it's loaded up there's prolly a fish on.
it just makes seeing the board easier...the orange color stands out...another thing if you think a fish is on reel the board in a little bit if there's a fish on it will be hard it reel in...if no fish then let it back out...i've had fish hit it when it goes back in place...must be the little bit of change moving the board that makes them hit.
Mine are all tattle setup but occasionally we still drag a smaller eye around not seeing it fall back enough or pull flag down? But yes I prefer tattle because you can see most fish hit it or pull it right down
Not necessary. Had tattle flags on all my offshores but ended up just taking them off an using the rigid flag. It’s easy enough to read the boards when there’s a dink or weed. Always adjusting the flags was a pain imo
I prefer the orange (church tackle) walleye boards. If you pay attention, you will have no problems seeing hits. I can tell even in 2’ waves and I don’t keep my boards in line either.
kind of our way of making trolling a little bit more interesting. But if you just want to harvest fish and let the flags do everything for you, then by all means....
Aside from when a big walleye hits or a sheep I cant "read the boards" for squat. I put tattle flags on all mine and its definitely made it easier to spot fish.
When you are fishing flat calm conditions and using the electric motor, the sound of the flag wacking the board when a fish slams the bait makes me smile.
1. The flag is fun, it adds another exciting dimension to your presentation
2. If you're a fan of slow trolling spinners, say targeting trophy fish off Pelee at 1.0 mph - you absolutely should use the tattle flags.
If you're a crank troller going 1.5mph+, you don't NEED them. But they're still fun, especially if you have newbies on the boat.
1. The flag is fun, it adds another exciting dimension to your presentation
2. If you're a fan of slow trolling spinners, say targeting trophy fish off Pelee at 1.0 mph - you absolutely should use the tattle flags.
If you're a crank troller going 1.5mph+, you don't NEED them. But they're still fun, especially if you have newbies on the boat.
The fish in Green Bay and the Saginaw Bay must be different then. I have never had an issue seeing hits as they happen on Crawler Harnesses with 1.5 oz bottom bouncers at 1.0-1.3 mph......without flags.
But maybe you need them when you stare at your sonar all day or your iPhone....or don't pay close attention to the fishing part of trolling. Or maybe it is the people who have gotten too used to ice fishing with tip-ups.
When trolling with spinners and crawlers, then tattle flags are a must (IMO). However, with cranks or spoons, they are kind-of useless. That said, I make my own tattle-flag kits for about $2 per board. All you need is a nylon washer, a spring and a 2 foot section of heavy braid. The rest comes with the board.
For me it is less about the walleyes and more about detecting the white perch, white bass and other junk fish that you might drag around for 30 mins without knowing it . If you run 3 of the exact same boards on each side, then it's not that hard to see when one of them is falling out of line. However, if you are running two or less (which I do 99% of the time), then it is much harder to tell. I do set my drags as light as possible with the clickers on, so I can hear when one of them is slipping. However, if it is wavy and we are changing speeds all the time, that can also cause them to slip.
Do the rods not load up when a fish hits using boards? I’ve been trolling straight back out of my rod holders the last few weeks - until I get boards - and my rods are rocking when I get hit. Easily detected.
Nope, the rods usually don't tell you anything with boards, because the boards pull almost as hard as fish do. The tattle flags on the boards are essentially your rod tips once you have them in the middle.
Usually, when you get any "real" fish on with a board, it's not hard to tell. The board with the fish on it will either drop way back or sometimes fish will take them right under. However, I have had large walleyes swim along with it for a while and barely even move the tattle-flag. When you go to check it, all of a sudden it loads up and you can easily feel them.
Tom nailed it. While I like tattle flags whenever trolling, they absolutely are the only way to know when a walleye nips off the back of your crawler at 1.0. If you’re quick and free spool the spinner back in his face, there are days where you’ll hook up a LOT of those. Without a tattle flag you’d never know it happened.
Tom nailed it. While I like tattle flags whenever trolling, they absolutely are the only way to know when a walleye nips off the back of your crawler at 1.0. If you’re quick and free spool the spinner back in his face, there are days where you’ll hook up a LOT of those. Without a tattle flag you’d never know it happened.
There are days when I bet I hook up with 70% of those fish after free spooling.
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