Downrigger recomendations?

I’ve trolled as deep as 85’. After cranking up the 6# weight 10+ times at that depth, it really made me want to figure out how to mount an electric downrigger lol. But they are a lot heavier, not sure about their power draw and it’s pretty rare that I troll that deep. I prefer to keep the kayak as light as possible and 95% that I troll for Kokanee I’m around 40’-65’ deep.

Santa Cruz is really the ONLY place on your list that you'd need to get deeper than 50 feet on a downrigger.   Within kayak range north of that, we simply can't really get to those depths in the range we can handle.

I ran 4 pounds hanging on 100# braid all last season and never felt like that was a problem.

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I run the Scotty Laketroller and it works just fine for me. 

I run up to 60ft in the ocean and have done over 100ft in a lake.  I wouldn't want more than 4lbs as a downrigger weight.

It's lightweight, cheap, needs no modification/extra mounting gear at all, just stick in the Scotty holder and you are good to go.

My Scotty holder is in the mesh pocket area of my Revo.

I can almost always see my weight on my fish finder.  If it does disappear it's not hard to figure out roughly how deep you are because 1 turn = 1 foot.  Also I use colored braided line with depth marks on it so even if my fish finder isn't working it's easy to see how deep I am.

Santa Cruz is really the ONLY place on your list that you'd need to get deeper than 50 feet on a downrigger.

But, if you go a few miles further to Moss Landing, you might want to go a lot deeper…

Santa Cruz is really the ONLY place on your list that you'd need to get deeper than 50 feet on a downrigger.

But, if you go a few miles further to Moss Landing, you might want to go a lot deeper…

I got enough line on my downrigger to go around 1500’ deep in the valley out there. My arm would fall off cranking up after that drop 🤣

Santa Cruz is really the ONLY place on your list that you'd need to get deeper than 50 feet on a downrigger.   Within kayak range north of that, we simply can't really get to those depths in the range we can handle.

I ran 4 pounds hanging on 100# braid all last season and never felt like that was a problem.

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There have been days fishing off Bodega Head when the radio chatter was of fish at 100'+ which was always frustrating, but I can't justify the cost of upgrading for one or two days where the fish are deep.

If the purchase is still pending, Try shopping at Facebook Marketplace, Offerup, Mercari, Craigslist, eBay, and any other used resale sites for your area. 

I tried the Scotty lake troller and did not like that it is difficult to operate with one hand and limited to 4lbs.  Downriggers with horizontal spools are also more susceptible to the line jumping the spool.  I had a cannon lake-troll for a while but eventually upgraded to the Unitroll 5 with a cut-down boom for faster retrieval.   Been using the Unitrol for over 6yrs and the only flaw I have had was a worn-out dog spring that Cannon replaced for free.

It has been interesting to read the different perspectives on this thread.  Especially pmmpete -- nice writeups on your gear!

In SE Florida, my go-to saltwater trolling depth is 90ft.    I use 80-100lb braid instead of wire, with a 60lb mono breakaway for a 5-6lb sinker.  I have tried a variety of release clips, and like the Black's style release clips as they are less likely to get fouled up when compared to the ones that have a line leading off the main line.   I am usually trolling a 8-12" live bait fish.   With an engine on the Pro Angler, I now use 8 lbs of lead as getting tired of peddling the weight is no longer an issue.   I have taken pelagic species as deep as 300ft on the troll during hot summer days.   

The mod in the photos was originally used on a pro angler but later cut down to fit the outback.   It sits in the rod holder and no holes were made in either kayak for attaching.