Shape, Size & Color: Planning Your Tuna Tracker Selection - The Fisherman

Shape, Size & Color: Planning Your Tuna Tracker Selection

sterling
Sterling Tracker Bars catch all three species of tuna in the Northeast, bluefin, bigeye and yellowfin. Gear up!

Knowing what bars to put in the water can make a tuna outing one to remember.

As you read Capt. John Raguso’s trolling spread article in the glossy section, you’ll pick up some valuable advice on working the wake on the midrange and offshore grounds this month.  But before it’s time to deploy your spread, your new season on the edge in search of big game starts in the shop, gearing up with the right equipment.

Sterling Tackle’s Wide Trackers, also known as Tracker Bars, have been revolutionary in sending spreader bars outside the wake and in clean water, thus allowing for captains to pull some of the most effective spreads tuna history. With tracker bars both inside and out of the wake, more presentations can be displayed so tuna think numerous forage schools are on the move.

But what Tracker Bars should be sent out and why? Mother Nature and the Man on the Moon might help with the light conditions, but expert tuna captains are often the ticket for deciding which lures to place in the tunas’ vision.

bluefin
Purple and black have exploded in popularity in the last decade on the bluefin grounds.

Color Choice

Capt. Mark DeBlasio of Bluerunner Sportfishing is one of the top offshore captains in the country. His consistent results on the tournament trail have led to variety of accolades, hefty purses and the need for multiple charter vessels to fulfill the demand. When it comes to tuna fishing with Tracker Bars, there might not be a better source for tips according to Steve Bruenig, owner of Sterling Tackle.

I asked Capt. DeBlasio how he makes the critical decisions on what colors to send out. “Early season, we fish a bar ‘heavy’ spread as the fish are typically aggressive and eat plastic very well. In our 12 to 14 rod spread, we may fish up to 9 bars at a time,” he said. “Colors usually start with the ‘go to’ standards: zucchini, green and a purple/black mix. In the spread, we may add pink, rainbow or glow colors and evaluate their performance. If we see a trend develop on color, we will add more of that color to the spread.”  DeBlasio said he and his crew tend to fish darker colors such as purple/black during low light conditions and brighter colors during bright conditions.

All the Tracker Bars and chains have multiple lures and birds that create havoc and splash by the numbers. The idea is to duplicate the effect of a fleeing bait ball. DeBlasio’s rationale regarding stingers, considering how pelagic predators attack, makes perfect sense. “I often put an opposing color or style stinger on the bar to create the illusion that the trailing bait (the stinger) is weak or wounded, making it generally stand out from the rest of pack,” he explained, noting this one also has the hook in it.

“The stinger may be a machine style or a squid bar or simply a different color stinger from the rest of the baits on the bar,” said DeBlasio.  We’ve all watched enough National Geographic and Discovery Channel episodes that display remarkable footage of tuna and billfish eating the injured or separated baits first; the trolling objective is to get the tuna to hit the stinger that’s differentiated by color and separation.

keel
Sterling’s innovative keel design places Tracker Bars, also known as Wide Trackers, outside the vessel’s wake.

Shape Of Things

“I will add that I prefer Tracker Bars over straight running bars 50 to 1, as I feel the swimming motion of the Tracker Bar combined with the splash of the birds will outperform a straight running ‘spreader bar,” DeBlasio said, explaining how the unique side-to-side motion created when the keel jumps in and out of the water makes the bar swim in an erratic manner and draws more bites than a standard bar that runs straight through the water.  “In my opinion squid bars have more side-to-side motion due to their lighter weight and lesser drag as they are being pulled. We adjust outrigger halyard height to maximize the erratic swimming affect,” he said.

DeBlasio said the first exception to the rule is when there are heavy concentrations of mackerel around, in which case he will troll more 42-inch Wide Tracker bars and with 12-inch machines on them. “Green is the color choice,” DeBlasio professed. “Another scenario that might cause us to troll machine bars in the canyon (versus squid) is when the seas are rough. The rough water can create too much movement on the lighter squid bars, causing them to flip over and dig in from time to time. The heavier machine bars will track better in rough sea conditions,” the captain advised.  Knowing when to use each type of Wide Tracker for optimal performance can be the difference in obtaining more looks from the tuna.

The Sterling Wide Trackers, Dial Trackers, Chaos bars and daisy chains have exploded in popularity with the inshore tuna anglers as well as canyon crowd. Wide trackers have a set keel, so skippers can simply deploy and set according to where the rod is placed. Dial Trackers allow for keel adjustments that give captains the ability to put the Tracker exactly where they want based on the keel angle. And Chaos Bars are designed and proven to create enhanced splash on the surface. Small to mid-size boat skippers can change from fluke fishing to tuna in the blink of eye with less preparation in terms of buying and rigging ballyhoo when using this product line.

“When fishing the inshore grounds, the main forage is typically sand eels or squid,” DeBlasio said, adding “If there is a heavy presence of mammals such as whales, we typically start with a good amount of 6-inch machine bars in our spread. If whales and porpoises are present, we will troll a mix of 6-inch machines and 6-inch squid bars until we see a preference. If we see only porpoises, we will switch back to mostly squid bars.”

Like all successful captains, DeBlasio pays careful attention to the particulars to understand what kind of forage is fed upon by what kind of predators. That attention to detail is important so the spread can be altered accordingly. Captains that put out a spread and turn off their brains will catch less than those that are analytical students. “If we run across a school of feeding two-tone porpoises with no whales present, these feeds are usually associated with squid forage and we’ll match the hatch accordingly,” he said.

While the phrase “match the hatch” was originally associated with freshwater trout fishermen attempting to present flies that are replicas of those that the trout are rising and feeding on, saltwater anglers use the vocabulary when they are trying to match the forage that predators are eating.

stinger
It’s important to change the stinger color from that of the main bar in order to mimic the look of a separated or injured bait.

Size Matters

Capt. DeBlasio, a Sterling Tackle Pro-staffer, told me size can be tricky. “The lifespan of most squid is less than one year so they grow very quickly. In the early part of the season, May to June, we see small sizes of squid both inshore and offshore so our starting spread often utilizes small baits on our bars,” he divulged.

“As the season progresses and the squid rapidly grow, we mix more 9-inch or even 12-inch baits in the spread,” the skipper said, adding that if mackerel or skipjack are present, 12-inch machines are almost always in his spread. “We lean toward zucchini or green machines when we are seeing mackerel and purple/silver machines when skipjack are around,” added DeBlasio, saying “As always, keep mixing up sizes, styles and colors until you see a clear preference by the tuna.”

With so much time and coin invested in offshore trips, it’s essential that fishermen use a network of intelligence to their advantage. Developing a trusted chain of captains takes time usually, but it’s well worth it. “Communicate with other boats in your network and compare notes, as so often fish will key in on one particular thing during a trip,” he said. “I remember fishing alongside another boat that got consistent bites when we would only get a bite here or there. After speaking to the other boat and hearing they were pulling pink machine bars on the inshore grounds, we made the switch and saw much improved fishing,” DeBlasio lamented.

“It may have to do with the size of the forage and particular light conditions on a given day. The next day or even later in the same outing, the preferences may change, so keep making switches in your spread when things slow down, to see if a new pattern develops,” he advised.

So much observation and critical thinking; it’s often what goes into superior catching. Anyone can catch when the bite is ravenous, but the top professionals learn through deep thought processes, experiencing the moves to make in order to turn a slow outing round. I asked Steve Bruenig and DeBlasio what the biggest changes in color preference they’ve seen over the decades.

“About 30 years ago, green dominated; about 15 years ago, rainbow started to move to the forefront right along with green,” Bruenig commented. “Then about 10 years ago, purple/black and zucchini rose to be equal with green, while rainbow faded a little bit. Green still holds its own in actual fishing and catching, but guys love to move on and try new things,” the lure innovator said.

Capt. DeBlasio’s observations pretty much mirror Bruenig’s in terms of shifting color choice. “Back in the day, it was green…today we see a lot more purple being pulled and pink has really come on strong in the past few years for us. We find ourselves fishing more pink bars than ever before,” he said, adding “The biggest change is the bars, the Wide Tracker bars. That design has really changed the offshore game since they draw more bites than straight running bars.”

In case you are wondering, captains do drop back ballyhoo within their Tracker Bars.  On larger vessels running outriggers, some ‘hoos can be interspersed within the spread, and on smaller boats – and even those without outriggers – one or two can be sent down the center. Tracker Bars obviously receive a ton of the hits, but if tuna seeking a natural, dead bait, the bars are part of the formula in getting them into the spread.

In addition, using a weighted Joe Shute can send ballyhoo to subsurface levels in the water so the tuna see a different presentation. If Tracker Bars are receiving all of the attention, and the ballyhoo aren’t catching, captains can remove the dead baits and run more Tracker Bars or Crazy 8’s. It’s common for skippers to run all plastics, but it’s equally as common for spreads to include ballyhoo within the spread. It’s essential to follow Captain DeBlasio’s advice in observing what’s catching in order to make the appropriate changes.

Bluefin tuna of all sizes can be found from inshore to offshore waters in the Northeast. They make showings at predictable and unpredictable times thus anglers need to keep their gear and bars ready for when they pop up. Yellowfin like warmer water than bluefin and are a favorite on the canyon scene, although they do follow eddies onto the mid-shore grounds where smaller boats have a chance to get in on the action. Bigeye are a prize for our tuna grounds and will readily hit Tracker Bars and spreads run in the dawn or pre-dawn hours.

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