Black Box ?

[saltybeaver]

For anybody that has one on there boat how did you discover you needed this. I went to use my grampa's volt reader but says it would not show mila vots or what ever he reffered the amount too .
I have a black box but do not want to install if i dont need.

The reason this came up is that I have a new boat now and have not pulled in a salmon yet this year(halibut and lingcod no problem) and I only went home empty handed once in the other boat .

Any help would be great.
Chris

 

[knucklebuster]

Buddy of mine(great fisherman),bought a new boat.Couldn't buy a fish while in it.Thought he was gonna lose it.He bought ,and installed ,a black box.Hes back in the fish again.He swears by it.
My new (new to me) boat came with one.I've not really had a chance to use it.Those with them seem to love them.If you already own it,why not put it in.Don't have to turn it on if you don't want.

 

[Brokenrod]

check this out http://www.protroll.com/blkbox3.html

 

[Slabby20]

I first discovered the Black Box several years ago in Tofino. The Weigh West boats all had them and swore by them. I went back and bought one and haven't been without since. I've played around a little with having if off or on. Seems to be no question that I put more fish in the boat with it on. Suggestion, don't just set it at one voltage and forget it. If nothing is happening, try playing around with it and adjusting it a little until you start getting strikes. You'll find it works.

I'd be interested in hearing from others that have the back box on what setting you find works best on WCVI.

Slabby

 

[saltybeaver]

Thanks all for the info.

 

[explorer]

haha I don't know about this black box... we catch equally as many or more fish on average than anyone else where we fish and have never owned a black box. Our trick is putting the bait twice as far or more than almost anyone else, always have and we seem to get lots of strikes.
Perhaps that when you dont get bites for a while then play around with it the bite just turns on.
wouldn't putting your line farther back just negate any bad signals ur boat is giving off?? Also, wouldn;t unplugging your electric downriggers give the same result? We have tried that in the past as well and not noticed any difference.

 

[wolf]

I dont use one and you all know the results I get try and lower it naturally your better off!!!!where using sport boats not commercial with 50 lines out!!!!!! but whatever makes you feel confident just like the special lures out there fisherman like shiney and fancy stuff WE are all guilty of it, if we THINK it catches more fish then what the hell go for it,I personally dont believe in them!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Good luck Wolf

 

[Slabby20]

It was a $200 investment. With all the thousands of dollars guys spend on boats, gear, trips ..... seemed like a small amount to spend. No question it works. The commercial guys are the ones who first invented it many years ago. I don't think they would use it if it didn't work. I would also say most of the guides/charters are using them as well. Your boat is probably well "tuned". Not everyone is so lucky. Also, things change on boats, zinc disappears, etc. I'm glad you catch fish. I'm sure a lot of people out there catch fish without the Black Box. I just think it's gives that extra edge to the fisherman.

 

[Bows Up]

Given the amount of money that goes into fishing the chuck and how scarce fish can be, I figured $100 for a black box was no big deal.

I run between 600 to 650 in Van harbour and seem to get my share.

 

[Brokenrod]

The remmedy for electrical leaks is to fix the leaks not buy a black box.

 

[yammy5]

Commercial trollers run 6 lines (not 50 lol) and most use a black-box system to adjust their hull voltage and line voltage. It can make a huge difference. Years ago we left the steel gill-net guard around the prop during the commercial troll season and couldn't catch a sockeye if our lives depended on it. All the boats around us were hauling them in and we couldn't get even one. We did some testing in port and the hull voltage was way too high. We had a black box the following year and it worked well but our big mistake was leaving the metal guard on the hull. Big boats can generate significant hull and line voltage but I would guess that small sport-type fishing boats don't need to worry about voltage as much, but if you have some funny wiring on your boat you could create just enough voltage ruin your odds of catching salmon. A lot of guys run a small section of rubber snubber or green marine twine off the cannon ball to help reduce current flow. Keep everything grounded. Every little bit helps!

 

[saltspringer]

are the black boxes work for fibreglass boats or are they used more for metal boats. Do fibreglass boats throw off as much electricity as metal boats?

 

[Tanglefoot]

Hmmmmm......I have this cute little bridge for sale...........hmmmmm[)]

 

[scottyboy]

fiber boats can be very hard 2 fix electrical leaks , i have this killer scotty black box booklet it tells you everything and how 2 make your boat work . just putting in a black box without testing everything will help a bit but won`t make your boat atract fish without a little work on your behafe. tight lines

 

[Kisinana]

All boats give off a voltage as long as they have anything metal touching the water. This means the leg of the motor or wire of the downrigger or swim grids or even the metal fitting for your drain. The voltage is caused by electrolysis which is the reaction of the metals with salts and minerals in the water.
I have fished in boats that have naturally caught fish with no need of a box and their voltage when checked falls between 0.6 and 0.7 volts.
Where you fish can also be affected by the voltage ie at a river mouth the fresh and salt waters mix and your voltage can be lower.
The black box allows you to adjust for water conditions such as west coast V.I. and Georgia Straitor Fraser Estuaries.
A cheap easy way to bring the voltage down into this range is to check your boat voltage and if it is too high which is what normally scares the fish off, add more zincs, clean or replace the ones you have and bring your voltage to this range. If you are lower then you just wont attract as many and without altering it you just have to find the right bait.
I am an avid saltwater fisherman and electrician,I swear by black boxes so much that I built my own that would pulse the voltage, years before Scotty offered it.

 

[tomictime]

I have a comm black box on alu boat. I check the bonding and voltage w three riggers out, box does help. I run .62 to .70 V. The box I have also has a "pulse" mode, which seems to work better for Winter Springs.
A multimeter is a good tool to have on the boat also.
Jim

 

[Eagle Quest]

brokenrod is right I have been an electrician for twenty years and animals including fish are sensitive to voltage ie. if there is any substantial voltage or potential difference on farm land with cows the cows will not produce any milk. The key is to watch when you do catch a fish, when the fish gets close to the boat, if he reacts more irratically than regular. I realize thats relative but base it on other peoples boat/fishing expieriences.

 

[blueorca]

Put me in the "cure the problem first" camp.
I have an unusual boat in that I can switch motors to alter my current.
When I fish for Chum or Sockeye I use my 9.9 which registers .81.
On the big motor it comes down to .61 (Springs and Coho).
Which works out great because I troll between 2.2 and 3.5 for the bigger fish and slow down to almost nothing for Sock's and Chum.
Different charging outputs in the motors is the cause.
If you can't bring your readings down to a neutral current (.6-.7) then Pro-trols or Scotty's units will do it for you,
IMHO I would still get those readings down if at all possible because if the fish can feel it, think of what electrolisis problems you could be having. (and I know about electrolisis, trust me!)

 

[die_hard]

How do you test the voltage of your boat with a meter. Do you take a read of the water beside your boat when trolling, or do you take it off a downrigger wire?

Sheldon M

 

[saltybeaver]

http://www.protroll.com/blkbox3.html