The new ProChip 8 and ProChip 11 flashers may represent the most significant flasher development in decades. The spin and kick design combined with the EChip is outfishing everything on the market. They have several rigging advantages. (1) They can be fished very effectively with a variety of setups including downriggers, 2 or 3 lb. drop sinkers, dipsey divers or other planers. (2) The front leader length can be as short as 4 feet and still get an effective tail kick which attracts salmon and gives lots of action to the bait, hootchie or fly at the back. (3) It can be trolled as slow as 1 MPH and still provide a strong tail kick. This is a big advantage when fishing for mature salmon that will not hit a fast moving bait or lure. Conventional flashers must be trolled at 2 MPH or more to get a good tail kick.
The ProChip 8 (eight inch) flasher is currently the more popular than the 11 inch model. The diagram shows a ProChip 8 rigged to a downrigger. The same type setup can be used with a drop sinker, a dipsey diver or a planer. This flasher has been endorsed by nearly every Charter Captain or Professional fisherman that has tried it. It is also a consistent derby winner.
To illustrate different rigging methods, we have selected several of the top salmon fishermen in North America to discuss how they rig and use the flasher.
Captain Pete Lahosky runs the Prime Time Fishing Team on Lake Ontario. He has won almost every major salmon derby on the Lake including the prestigious Challange Cup. He has fished the ProChip 8 as his primary flasher for the last two seasons. One of his favorite setups is running the ProChip 8 eight feet behind a wire line dipsey diver. He runs a white and pearl fly 22 inches behind the flasher. His comments were, "The ProChip 8 just seemed to call kings to it. This rig outfished similar set-ups with everything else the same but the flasher by a 2:1 margin."
Captain Barry Canevaro Charters for salmon on the Pacific Ocean outside the San Francisco Golden Gate. He is recognized as one of the top salmon producers in Northern California. He runs the ProChip 8 in two different setups. Early in the season when the salmon are actively feeding he will run the flasher on a downrigger. He runs it 25 feet behind the downrigger cable with either a Pro-Troll Roto Chip bait holder rigged with an anchovy or a hootchie. He uses a tail leader length of 36 inches. Late in the season when the large spawners congregate outside the Golden Gate, he changes to a 1 1/2 lb. drop sinker 30 inches in front of the flasher. He uses a 30 inch tail leader with an anchovy in the Roto Chip. With this setup he will troll as slow as 1 MPH. His comments are, "I have never seen any flasher catch fish like the ProChip 8. My preferred color is the glow in the dark white. For the last two months of the season it caught more fish everyday than any other setup on my boat. One of the reasons I feel it is so effective is that I can drop my trolling speed to as slow and 1 MPH and still get good flasher action. This gets the 30 to 40 lb. spawners that will not hit a fast trolled bait late in the season".