Snapper releases on off shore boards?

[RKG]

I got new Off Shore OR-12 boards for christmas and I would like to know how to switch them over to snapper releases. Do you use a or-14 or 16 release in back, or just a swivel snap in back.

[Chairman]

Your asking the biggest question in the fishing world! Everyone seems to have a better way to run them. I use the Snapper on the front and a 16 on the back in normal water, for salmon and big water walleye I run the snapper only and do not hook the back release up at all. This is a good way to be able to bring big fish in since the board will surf on top of the water while your bringing her in. You do give up a little of the boards ability to go out to the side, but not enough to really matter. Rich Mealy NPAA 55 fishes them this way. Best way is to try several and discover which fits your situation best. Good Luck and thanks for using Off Shore products
Chairman
NPAA #6

[JBL]

Never tried only hooking to only the front snapper release; seems like the back of the board would walk out and the board wouldn't run out to side of the boat at all. I'll definitely try it though.

It's pricy to setup but I started running snapper releases front and rear last year. When trolling with powerpro the slack line would slide thru the rear OR16 release and then the tattle flag can't work... Many don't use the flags but when there are numbers of small junk fish in play they really pay off for me. If you only run mono lines or no tattle flags the rear snapper release isn't going to do anything for you.

[RKG]

I do not have the Tattle Tail set-up, I was thinking if I have the Snapper releases in front all I would need would be a swivel snap in back so if the release would pop I could still retreive the board without it floating away. If the OR-14 releases slip off Power Pro I don't see the good of keeping them on there.
Also, what do you do with all those OR-14 releases that you take off. Will they work as Snap Weight releases????
One more comment, I have seen these board work and they are a good product, but why doesn't Off Shore set them up with the Or-16's or Snapper releases right away??

[FROGMAN]

They simply choose to offer the basic model and allow each individual angler to upgrade as they wish. Some anglers will want to rig for Salmon/Steelhead or other hard striking fish. Others wish to rig for Walleye. Some with tattle flags some without.
This simply keeps things simple as far as maintaining and shipping stock to suppliers.

I myself carry two sets of boards in my tournament boat wherever I go. One set with OR19/OR16 releases, and the other with OR18 "Sanpper" releases. All my walleye boards have the tattle flag upgrade. It can make it so much easier for someone to see a fish on if they are not as experienced as I am in reading the boards.

Tight lines

Keith Segar
NPAA #260

The Snappers won't "release" unless you set the tension to do so. There is a tension screw underneath the Snapper release that can be set to whatever tension you want to give it. It can be adjusted by just giving it a quarter turn in either direction, to get your desired results. I have never had one "pop" with the Snapper release.
I like the boards set up with the Snapper on the front and the OR-16's on the back. I have some boards set up with flags, and some set up without. On Lake Erie, I opt to use the boards without flags, for two reasons, bigger fish...and not a lot of floating debris. Most other lakes though, I will use the flags.

Juls

[pwrfshn]

RKG,

All good advice. I would agree with Juls that if the Snapper is set appropriately, it will NOT release.

I fish for many species with my boards and as Frogman said, I now also carry 2 sets of boards. Tattle Flag rigs on one set and NO flags on the other. The no flag rigs I run for Striper and when I am back home on Lake Michigan (home will always be the big water).

May have missed someone mentioning this already, but the OR 14-19 clips can also be adjusted with the spring moved from the front to the back. I use the lighter tension black clip with the spring pushed toward the board to release easier when I am running a crosslock in the back. If you run with the boards to release (never for walleye) make sure you use a Speedo Bead or similar to stop the board from hitting the fish.

Good luck,