How Much Weight to Use With a Shelton Fish Descender?

The most important bit of information that's not in the instructions!

I fish in 30-50 feet of water, the fish weigh maybe 4 pounds.  How much weight might it take to get the fish back down?

Is there a rule of thumb formula for weight of fish = weight on descender?

I use a 1 lb ball sinker.  I carry a 2 lb weight in case I need it.  The 2 lb weight is a beer can filled with quikrete with a twist of wire set in to the top.  A lot cheaper than lead. 

You could conceivably need ~5 lbs to send a huge yelloweye back down over 25-30fm but you aren't really likely to be fishing that deep and the main place where that would even be possible is stonewall and it's protected.

The most important bit of information that's not in the instructions!

I fish in 30-50 feet of water, the fish weigh maybe 4 pounds.  How much weight might it take to get the fish back down?

I doubt you need to use a descender on fish caught in less than 50FOW. I haven't seen any signs of decompression with black rockfish until I get to ~90ft.

I would venture to guess that by kayak you won't be fishing in much deeper than 120 feet of water, and in most cases closer to 20-70.  I haven't seen any kind of barotrauma on any fish in less than 60 feet of water. 

16oz to 24oz would be my choice.

The most important bit of information that's not in the instructions!

I fish in 30-50 feet of water, the fish weigh maybe 4 pounds.  How much weight might it take to get the fish back down?

I doubt you need to use a descender on fish caught in less than 50FOW. I haven't seen any signs of decompression with black rockfish until I get to ~90ft.

This might vary by species and size of the fish to some degree.  I've seen plenty of small canaries floating in 50fow and I've seen yelloweye get off the hook and disappear back to the depths in 100fow.

But you're right, I don't use a descender in less than 60fow unless the fish is clearly suffering from barotrauma.  Or floating.  Sometimes those little floaters caught shallow are tough to get unpinned from a shelton descender.  Try just barely lipping it without piercing the lip and dropping it back down.  It's like 50/50 going to be a lingcod snack anyway.  I'd personally rather feed the lingcod than the gulls.

This is great info, as we all need to know.  I ordered 3 of the Shelton Descenders and have rigged them up with 1/8th inch bungee cord between the descender and a duo lock for the weight.  1-2 lbs is way more than I would have thought, but I'm glad to know it now.

Unless my math is wrong, and unless the species is protected, Tinker, why are you sending back down a 4lb rockfish?  What kind of monsters are you reeling in up there?  I need to get up and fish where you are fishing! 

This is great info, as we all need to know.  I ordered 3 of the Shelton Descenders and have rigged them up with 1/8th inch bungee cord between the descender and a duo lock for the weight.  1-2 lbs is way more than I would have thought, but I'm glad to know it now.

Unless my math is wrong, and unless the species is protected, Tinker, why are you sending back down a 4lb rockfish?  What kind of monsters are you reeling in up there?  I need to get up and fish where you are fishing! 

That would be down there for tinker 

Tinker really high grades those rockfish.

Tinker really high grades those rockfish.

At the risk of giving up our best south coast secrets...

Unless my math is wrong, and unless the species is protected, Tinker, why are you sending back down a 4lb rockfish?  What kind of monsters are you reeling in up there?  I need to get up and fish where you are fishing! 

It could happen.  I swear that the last one that shook off my hook was 6 pounds - maybe 6 and a half.   

Tinker really high grades those rockfish.

You, sir, assume that I think about these questions before I ask them.

I haven't fished in water deeper that 32 feet, and don't think this year will be different.  But should I run into a fish-checker who wants to see my descender, I'd like it to look like it could work.  I'd have gone out with 6 - 8 ounces if it weren't for everyone's good advice.

Thank you.

At the risk of giving up our best south coast secrets...

           

I didn't read where it said it had to be in functional condition if you weren't in deeper water just had to be on board

I didn't read where it said it had to be in functional condition if you weren't in deeper water just had to be on board

You'll let us know how that works out, won't you?

I didn't read where it said it had to be in functional condition if you weren't in deeper water just had to be on board

You'll let us know how that works out, won't you?

I gots a lancer jig I can use to send it back down then no need to reel up just keep fishing it 

I've had a large yelloweye float 3 pounds before, so carry more than that!

-Allen