drift chute questions

i recently had to use my drift chute for the first time and it was a lame operation. it was a little chute they sold me at the kayak shop and it didn't slow me down much at all. i tried to take it back but they said it was plenty big and since i had used it they couldn't take it back. i told the guy i've seen vaginas that open up wider than that thing and if he didn't take it back he might wish he had. he gave me a partial refund.  my question is what size drift chutes do you guys reccomend and how long of a tether line should i use to attach it????

The smaller kayak sized drift chute should work just fine.

I think the effectiveness of a drift chute depends on a lot of factors, especially in the ocean. 

In particular, how well the chute works depends on strength and direction of the tidal current relative to the strength and direction of the wind.    If those two forces are opposing each other, the drag on the chute will easily slow you right down.  In fact, if the current is strong enough it can actually start to drag you in the opposite direction.  However, if the current and wind are both going in the same direction, I've found that my drift chute is far less affective.  At best it will just keep my bow pointed into the wind which in itself slows me down a fraction.

On a lake however, the lack of tidal currents should make a drift chute fairly fool proof.

Brian

You win the prize for "best anthropomorphised drift chute"!   

I use a BIG homemade drift chute and it is pretty effective.  As Brian stated, the current / wind relationship plays a factor.

I attach my chute, with about 4 feet of shock cord to my bow line, so I probably have 10 feet of line out to my chute.

I would not get a small chute just because we're on kayaks.  There isn't really a down side to erring on the large side.  When I say large, I mean that the opening of my chute is probabbly 3.5 to 4 feet in diameter when it is open.

EK

I  When I say large, I mean that the opening of my chute is probabbly 3.5 to 4 feet in diameter when it is open.

WOW!! maybe I need to upgrade.
I think the best instruction for using a drift chute on a kayak is in Dennis Spike's Kayak Fishing video.
I sure learned from it.
He incorporates a bowline running through a loop on the chute line. This allows the chute line to slide towards the front of the kayak.The line from the chute to the loop should be 4 to 6 feet. Leave enough line from the loop to where you are seated so you can easily pull it all back in.

I just attach the chute line directly to the bowline.  To retrieve the chute, all you need to do is paddle a few strokes toward the chute to grab the chute or line and pull it back in.

I do it like erik does, off the bow. to retrieve it I paddle forward, put my paddle blade in the chute as I pass it and dump it in the tank well, paddle to new spot deploy again. so my cord is about 10 or 12 feet.

my chute is not huge, but one thing that erik and I have going for us is if you run it off the bow you present less area to the wind. usually the swell is coming mainly from the wind direction so if you get a big one that breaks over the bow it won't be much of an issue.

mine definitely slows me down.



you can see mine out in front of the boat if you look carefully. (erik, after I make it one season without losing the rod you made me I'll remove the extra ugly flotation,  )

if you run the chute off the side of your boat, you have more boat area presented to the wind and you may drift faster.

As others have stated, a drift chute is only effective in countering WIND, not current. you may have had current out there as well.

One other option you have on a kayak is trooching. I always rig wth a slido above the swivel on my mainline. then you can attach an 8 or 10 oz weight to the slido and a light swimbait or other lure on the leader. Now put your rod in a rodholder and use your GPS and paddle to 'motor' slowly over the bottom.

If you really want to fish, and can only fish on some days, there are ways to get it done.

J

John:  Great illustrative pic.

I have a big chute and a smaller kayak chute. both work well, the big one works better.  I use the Spike technique, but let out 10-12 feet of line to the chute.  also keep a tag end in the boat for retrieval, tho Eric's technique makes sense, just paddle up to it.....

I am thinking about ading a shock cord "in-line" to my chute, kinda lioke they do with the meat line for albacore, to take care of the jarring motion some waves create.

Allen

John:  Great illustrative pic.

I have a big chute and a smaller kayak chute. both work well, the big one works better.  I use the Spike technique, but let out 10-12 feet of line to the chute.  also keep a tag end in the boat for retrieval, tho Eric's technique makes sense, just paddle up to it.....

I am thinking about ading a shock cord "in-line" to my chute, kinda lioke they do with the meat line for albacore, to take care of the jarring motion some waves create.

Allen

I added a few feet of shock cord to my drift chute line after nearly getting jerked out of my kayak by waves. Works great.

allen, an old longboard leash is ideal for a drift sock line.

it stretches, absorbing the shock. but does not spring back.

as you know jack o'neil lost his eye when he used bungie material for a surf leash way back when.

so there's a reason that surf leashes have this shock absorbing capability.

I do not use a tag line at all. I just paddle up and retrieve it using my paddle into the chute.

John

On a recent trip to the coast with Mahimahi(Dan) I used a 18" drift chute. It didn't make much difference other than keeping my bow into the wind. When we drifted side by side our speed was the almost the same.I would definitely go for a larger chute to slow your drift. I'm going to try the 36-38" size. I had the chute deployed maybe 4-5 feet off the bow.  With line rigged through a carabiner on the bow handle back to a pad eye and through my drift anchor quick release cleat. I would paddle up like Erik does, then grab the dump line for an easy pickup. I think I will add a small bungie loop to soften the jerking action.

ok, even though I'm a relatively low-tech KISS type of paddler, now you guys have me seriously considering one of these drift sock dealie-o's.
Erik, how did you build your drift chute? (I did search for a how-to but couldn't find one). I've got the HD sewing machine & rigging stuff, but I'm not sure where to start to make a decent one. If anyone has some tips I'd appreciate it. There have been several days this year (as Jmairey mentions) that it would have been nice to have one. In a pinch one day I used my gunnysack but it would be too heavy for a regular application I think.
I like Allen's idea of the loop & on board tag end, and an inline shock cord of some sort seems handy too.

I believe Erik's drift chute is an old tarp, some fishing line, and maybe some duct tape.

If you've got the heavy duty sewing machine to handle the job, I'm sure you can come up with something that might be more aesthetically pleasing.  Most of the drift chutes I've seen look like a funnel/cone to some extent with a larger opening to catch the water tapering down to a smaller opening at the back.  I think this keeps the water flowing through the chute which in turn keeps it open.

Brian

Most chutes are a cone with a 3-4"diam. hole in the end approx. 36-38" long,diam. of your choice. They have 4 -1" nylon web straps sewn the length,terminating in a loop.
                    http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/content/Item/01/90/62/i019062sn01.jpg

Thanks you guys, this seems like a great off season project for me. My old kite building skills seem perfect for this application.