by Questor » Wed Nov 03, 2010 1:23 pm
When fishing current, like in surf and rivers, I experiment with the distance between the weight and the bait. If I'm getting line twisting, I shorten the leader between the bait and the weight. I'm really meticulous about this because I find it to be important. The reason is that if I'm getting line twisting, I'm probably also getting a defective presentation for the bait because the bait is twisting too. Sometimes a 3 foot leader is way too long and I use one as short as one foot. Ironically, if I'm getting too much twist at the bait, the line is often tangled around the swivel, and I get a clue from that tangling.
Sometimes I like a fishfinder rig (i.e., line with egg sinker + swivel + leader + bait). Most often, though, I use a 3-way rig (i.e. line + 3-way swivel. One of the two remaining eyes on the swivel is used for the leader+bait. The other one is used for the sinker on a relatively short dropper, like six inches, or at most 9 inches.) Over the years I just have caught more fish with the 3-way rig, especially in rivers, so I developed it as a preference when fishing live or dead bait (as opposed to artificials). For artificials, I prefer variants of the fish finder rig. An example would be a fish finder rig using a soft plastic as the bait, like with a Carolina rig and plastic salamander. The same rules for line twist apply. I shorten the leader if there's too much twist.
I prefer to use a swivel if I'm bottom fishing with a fish finder rig. It provides a defite stop between my weight and bait. When retrieving some baits after long casts, line twisting can be a problem, so having a swivel reduces the twist. The swivel allows me to pre-rig at home so all I have to do is tie the swivel onto my line.
Overall, I find a lot of good uses for swivels and they benefit my fishing.