There’s no doubt that daisy chains are effective, but which is the most effective? Guides trolling in Panama found that a chain of Mold Craft 9″ pink squid interspersed with a blue/pink Super Chugger outfished other options. Mold Craft then adapted this combination and developed the Tropic Star Daisy Chain. That’s all well and good if you fish south of the border, but will northern anglers experience the magic? I tried pulling a Tropic Star in my spread at Poor Man’s Canyon off Ocean City, Maryland.
This daisy chain comes prerigged, so all I had to do was crimp on a hook and lower it over the side. It was towed in a seven-line assortment of bullet heads, small chuggers, and a smaller triple-squid chain. It generated three strikes on test day, two of which were unidentified and one was a yellowfin tuna. Considering that equaled about a third of the strikes we had all day, that’s pretty good odds. The smaller daisy chain took two bailer dolphin, which didn’t go for the Tropic Star Daisy Chain at all. Our conclusion: This rig’s relatively large size may intimidate little fish, but if big pelagics are your target, no spread of lures will be complete without a Tropic Star. Price: $55.
