By: Mark Romanack
The Tattle Flag
kits introduced by Off Shore Tackle more than a decade ago have become a “game
changer” in the world of open water trolling. It amazes me how many anglers I
encounter who have not yet adapted their boards to include Tattle Flags. The 98
cent question becomes are Tattle Flags really necessary?
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| For the angler after walleye, Off Shore Tackle Tattle Flags are essential equipment. Not only do these spring loaded flag systems make it easy to see bites, it helps anglers determine when they have snagged on floating weeds and other debris in the water. |
My answer is
simple.... Tattle Flags are only necessary if you want to catch fish! Sarcasm
comes naturally for me, but in this case Tattle Flags really are as good as
advertised. Setting up your boards with spring loaded flag systems not only
makes it easier to see when you’re getting a bite, it makes it obvious
something is wrong even when your lure has hooked onto a piece of floating weed
or other debris.
Trolling is a
game of numbers and to become an efficient troller requires having all your
gear running at peak performance. Installing the original Tattle Flag kit or
one of the new Economy Tattle Flag kits not only tells us when we are hooked
up, it can even tell us when we have just missed a fish.
READING THE TATTLE FLAG
It’s amazing how
often when trolling with Tattle Flag kits I see the flag fold down them pop
back up quickly before the board even moves. When a walleye or other fish
strikes at your lure but doesn’t get
initially hooked, typically the Tattle Flag will telegraph that missed strike.
If you react quickly, it’s even more amazing how often you can tease that fish
into biting again and with more enthusiasm.
When the Tattle
Flag snaps down and then pops back up quickly, open the reel bail and let that
board stall in the water while continuing to troll forward. After a few seconds
flip the reel back into gear and watch what happens as the line pulls tight and
that board starts to plane out again.
Most of the time
when that board begins to plane out, the flag will snap down and the board
immediately starts rocketing backwards. Teasing fish into biting like this is
highly effective and without the Tattle Flag kit in the first place, you would
never know a bite occurred.
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| Tattle Flags are fully adjustable making them ideal for use with live bait rigs, crankbaits and even spoons fished on diving planers. |
TATTLE FLAG KITS
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| Tattle Flag Kit |
There are two
easy ways to get started fishing with Tattle Flags. The first is to purchase an
after market Tattle Flag kit that comes complete with two OR16 Snap Weight
clips, a new flag, the linkage arm, plus the spring and other necessary
hardware to convert an OR12 board into a Tattle Flag board. It takes about five minutes and a pair of needle nose pliers to make the conversion.
ECONOMY TATTLE FLAG KITS
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| Economy Kit |
For anglers who
already own OR12 boards another less expensive option is to purchase the
Economy Tattle Flag kits. This kit only includes the necessary linkage wire,
spring and hardware required to install a Tattle Flag kit on boards that already have a flag and
the necessary line releases. When Off Shore Tackle started factory supplying
their boards with an OR19 release on the tow arm of the board and an OR16 Snap
Weight Clip at the back of the board, the older Tattle Flag kits becomes
somewhat outdated. Now anglers can
upgrade their Off Shore boards to include Tattle Flags and save money in the
process.
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| Tattle Flags work even when trolling deep diving crankbaits like this popular Reef Runner 800 series. |
SUMMING IT UP
Off Shore Tackle
Side-Planers are the industry standard among in-line planer boards. By going a
step further and adding Tattle Flags, the Side-Planer becomes the ultimate planer
board hands down.
Other
manufacturers have copied the Off Shore Side-Planer and also the Tattle Flag
kits. They say that imitation is a sincere form of flattery, but why not own
and use the original. Off Shore Tackle is the Leader in Trolling Technology,
always has been and continues to pioneer new and better ways to troll into the
future.
