Salmo, I was referring to the big bright yellow rod/reel combos i see in the gas stations or truck stops anywhere near salmon or steelhead water. If that is your preferred weapon of choice more power to you. But if someone was bragging to me how good they were and they pulled out one of those...hmmm. Even better would be a guide showing up with them.


Maxmad,
I could use 8 pound and maybe get even more bites. I prefer to count the springers that end up on the BBQ, rather then counting bites. My hookup to net ratio is about 3:4 for springers. If your fishing fast water why not bump up to 14 pound leaders or better?
I'm going to keep a good count next year, but my guess is that the average hookup to net ratio for the
wimpy leader crowd is 1:4 or worse. Out of five fish I have tried to help net (none came within 15 feet of the bank) all were lost to broken leaders. That was a big point of my post. Its not how many hook ups you have, its how many chinook you take home.
BTW the rest of your recipe is pretty close to what I use. Small corkies, little bit of yarn, sz #1 hooks, lots of scent oils. My leaders are never longer then four feet. I think that might be a regional thing. If you fish in Idaho (Clearwater, Snake, or Salmon rivers) you'll rarely find a leader longer then 3-4 feet. I was flabbergasted to see 6-8 foot leaders on the cow. I can see where they might be more effective once your hook is quartering downstream, but on the up stream part of the drift...I just don't know. Seems that a fish would end up hooking itself way before the line tightened up and you were able to feel it.

thanks for the reply too.

By the way, i have chased summer run chinook in very clear water with a flyrod. I don't find kings particularly sensitive to line size. I DO think they are more likely to bite smaller offerings when they have been pressured.

When I finally figure out how to post pics I will put up my 41.5 inch summer chinook I took on a fly last summer. South FK Salmon River near Cascade Idaho, still greenbacked and shiny.