planner boards vs down riggers

[towlek]

I have a 24' center console boat, I am new to walleye fishing, I would like to purchase either down riggers or planner boards for my boat. I would like to get your thoughts on the pro's and con's of each.

[Night Stalker2]

It depends on how deep of water you are fishing in. If you are talking about fishing in 5-50' of water I personally would get inline planners. There also alot cheaper!!
just a thought

[Hook N Book]

Heck, buy both. On a serious note, I think you're overlooking Dipsey and Jet divers though. To save a lot of money now go with Dipseys, Jets and Boards and get the Riggers next year. Spend the rest of this season honning your skills and techniques with these devices and work with the riggers next year.

Good luck and be safe...See ya! :)

[CarpetBagger]

Hook has a definate point. When looking into fishing deeper areas like the great lakes Dipsy Divers, and Jet Divers are great tools to have as well as riggers and planers.

Before you fall into the hype of a planer mast system 1st figure out how many guys you fish with. Typically i fish with no more than 4 guys on my 22' sport fisher, i rarely use planer boards. I can fish 6 dipsys and 2 downriggers off my boat fairly easily. Mastering the usage of dipsys and how to let them out without having a mess is key on any basin in Lake Erie. Jets are ok, mostly i only use these off of inline boards when I use them. I never use my mast system anymore.

A spread of dipsys and riggers i feel works just as good if not better than any board set up on the great lakes. Especially if you are fishing for fish in the 35'+ range.

My opinion hold off on the boards, buy a nice set of riggers cannons, penns, vectors, big jons, or whatever then invest in some dipsy rods and line counter reels spooled with some no streach line like Power Pro, Ripcord, or Fireline.

If you fish salmon in Michigan, or Ontario dipsys and riggers are definatly the way to fish, especially if you only have a few guys on board at a time. Riggers i feel are an essential addition to any spread of lines, i use them as my bonus rods some days, its a quick way to get a few lines into that strike zone where the fish are suspended.

Good luck on your search for answers i hope i may have added a little insight to your problem.

CB
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[Bob G2]

Hook's point is valid. Both are tools that are designed for a specific job(presentation). It would be kind of like a carpenter trying to decide whether to buy a hammer or a saw. He would need both.

Which one would you use more than the other would be contingent upon where and what you were fishing for. If the fish are above 30' for instance, planers might be the way to go. If you are fishing below 30', then riggers might give you an advantage.

If money is an issue, I would buy the riggers and in-line boards', then think about buying the big planer boards later, if needed. Got to say, though, alot of guys (like me) go to the in-lines more and more, they are easier to deal with and set up.