They are both good...but
Every couple of weeks somebody emails me asking which downrigger they should buy — Cannon or Scotty. They want a one-word answer. They never get one.
Both companies make excellent gear. I run both on my boat. Picking between them isn't about which is 'better' — it's about which fits the way you fish, the boat you have, and the kind of trips you take. Anyone telling you different is either trying to sell you something or hasn't run both for very long.
Here's the honest comparison, after twenty-plus years of running both.
Where Cannon shines
Cannon's reputation comes from one thing above all else: the brake. The way a Cannon holds a heavy cannonball at depth without creep is unmatched in the industry. If you're running 18 to 25 pound balls at 200+ feet — like you do for kings on the Strait or chinook offshore — that brake is not a small thing. It's the difference between knowing exactly where your gear is and constantly checking your counter.
The Optimum series in particular has a Positive-Ion Control feature that sets up a small electrical current at your cannonball to attract fish. Whether you believe in it depends on who you ask. I'll say this: the days I run it, I catch fish. The days I forget to turn it on, I also catch fish. Make of that what you will.
Cannon's app integration is also genuinely useful. You can program automatic depth cycling, raise/lower from the helm, and the unit talks to your sonar in some setups. For a tech-forward fisherman, that matters.
Where Scotty shines
Scotty's reputation comes from a different place: bombproof simplicity. The HP series will outlive your boat. I have a Scotty 1106 on my back deck that's been running since the early 2000s. It's been dropped, soaked, jammed, frozen, and I've replaced exactly one part — the line counter cable. That's it.
If you're running a smaller boat, fishing closer to home, and you want something you can fix yourself with a screwdriver and a bottle of WD-40, Scotty is hard to beat. The mechanical action is honest. There are fewer electronics to fail. Parts are cheap and Scotty's customer service will send them to you fast.
Scotty's manual riggers also can't be touched. If you're on a small boat without enough amps to run electrics, or you're running multiple kicker setups where weight matters, the Scotty Depthmaster manuals are the lightest reliable option on the market.
Where each one falls short
Honest weaknesses, since you're going to run into them eventually:
Cannon's electronics. When they work, they're great. When they fail, you're shipping the unit back to the factory. The motors and circuit boards are not field-serviceable in any meaningful way. I've had two Cannons need warranty work in twenty years; both times, the company was excellent about it. But you're without your rigger for two to three weeks.
Scotty's depth counters. They're mechanical, which means they're fixable, but they're also less accurate than Cannon's digital counters. If you fish very specific depth zones (say, 47 feet for late-summer coho), the Scotty's plus-or-minus-3-feet tolerance can matter. For most general trolling, it doesn't.
My setup, for what it's worth
My main two riggers on the back deck: Cannon Optimum 10 BT/TS, port and starboard. Use them most days for deep trolling, kings, halibut, anything in 100-300 feet.
My backup, mounted on the swim step: Scotty 1106 Depthking. Use it when I'm fishing a third line, when I've got a guest who wants to crank, or when the Cannons need to come off for service.
Both have pulled hundreds of fish. Both will keep pulling for years. I wouldn't swap either out for the other brand.
Picking between Cannon and Scotty isn't about which is better. It's about which fits the way you fish.
How to decide
If you're running deep, big balls, multiple species, and you want top-tier electronics → start with Cannon.
If you want bombproof reliability, simple field repair, smaller boat, or budget-conscious setup → start with Scotty.
If you fish year-round and put in 50+ trips a year → buy one of each and run them side by side for a season. That's what I did, and it's how I ended up with the setup I run today. Not cheap. But not subtle either: you'll figure out fast which one fits the way you fish.
Either way, you're not making a mistake. There aren't bad choices between these two. Just different right answers for different fishermen.
— Joel
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About Capt. Joel Elliott
Joel Elliott is a Port Angeles native and 40+ year Pacific Northwest fisherman, hunter, and outdoorsman. After careers in appliance and auto sales and a decade as a home builder and remodeling contractor, Joel founded Elliott's Tackle & Rigging to bring his hard-earned expertise — and an outdoorsman's eye for what holds up — to fellow saltwater anglers. He fishes the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the San Juans, the Washington Coast, and Alaska, with regular trips to remote fly-in float camps in Canada. Off-season, he hunts elk, deer, and bear in the Olympics with rifle and bow.
Have a question about gear, rigging, or PNW fishing? Drop a note through the contact page — Joel reads them all.
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