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blackhawk78418

Saw a post saying its all in the drag setting as to being able to land a larger fish than you line # or something like that. set the drag light to land heavy fish. Always thought it was the rod that does the work, keep enough pressure on the fish and let the line come off very slow when the fish makes its run. I've landed some fish this way and if I loose a fish it's not the line that fails its the tackle quick clip, swivel, or a knot. Never had a line jus snap or pop between my tackle and rod.Landed a 33" red a couple weeks ago with a 2500 Shimano, a 7' med act rod 15# braid-6#mono dia. Only took 2-3mins. Also landed a 43" Kingfish same rig with a 50# wire leader. Got spooled by a Jack on same rig with my drag cranked all the way down. IDK maybe I jus said the same thing. How does everyone have their drag set?

hickroots07 · Posted: Sun Sep 30, 2012 4:59 pm Post subject:

Drag and line capacity are probably bigger factors than the rod you pair up with the reel. Sure you can land huge fish on light line, but do you have enough line so that when it makes its runs that it can without spooling you. Its a give and take thing. Of course it goes the other way too. Load up a small reel with too heavy line and you sacrifice the amount of line you can put on, but you could horse in some fish without a fight. I think the rod does play a big role, but takes a back seat to line size and capacity.

AcousTennis · Full Grown Flour Bluffian Joined: 13 Sep 2010 Posts: 1319

Its all about the drag ...

at least i think so..

get your hook set and if its making strong runs then let it run under pressure

even in 10lb test if your going to be broken off its going to be

10% found something sharp
10% fray in the line
10% weak knot
70% applying to much drag and getting anxious

Dont be afraid of getting spooled...

dont lock your drag to early....if you do then your basically hoping your knot wont bust..

leave the pressure on em for the last few wraps around the reel, if you lock down then your robbing your own chance of landing a good fish
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THE_BLUFF_RAT · Posted: Sun Sep 30, 2012 9:28 pm Post subject:

I also believe drag is the key. I caught this beautiful girl down PINS with 10 pound test line and those tiny bait hooks with a piece of shrimp no bigger than a fingernail. Its all about the drag...

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ironmanstan · Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 3:13 am Post subject:

A good drag comes along with a good reel. The bend of your rod is a big factor . I use 8lb test always have unless i'm in a reef area with lots of shell. I set my drag and control it by feel with my hand on the spool sometimes I find it works really good.
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landlocked beachbum · Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 3:34 am Post subject:

You can't use light drag settings and/or light line when targeting big fish around cover/stricture and hope to get many out of there, strong rod or no. Fighting a big fish that was hooked in the rocks and one that's hooked in the surf are two totally different worlds and take two totally different mindsets.

As always, one has to compromise somewhere as far as line and/or leader strength and type (mono, fluoro, etc.) and rod/reel are concerned. You can use the heaviest gear around with the drag basically locked down and not loose much, but at the same time you may not hook much to lose because of some species being smart and/or line shy..... mangrove snapper are the perfect example, especially if the water is on the clear side.
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"The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has it's limits". Albert Einstein

THE_BLUFF_RAT · Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 6:07 am Post subject:

landlocked beachbum · Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 7:26 am Post subject:

BR, I never said that catching fish in or close to the rocks with a lighter setup was impossible, I've done plenty of it! I specifically said "big fish" and was referring to those who like to live among rocks, like snapper and the like, and fish which also head for the rocks when hooked. Some fish don't, and again, I'm talking big fish. Many species simply head for Louisiana, Cuba or whatever when hooked. This of course means that lighter line and drag settings can successfully be used in dealing with them.

I might also add that I'm not speaking of fishing close to or near the rocks, wrecks, reefs, piling, etc. I'm talking about fishing IN them as I did for 12 days down in Florida recently. I broke off many fish using 30 lb braid and 40 lb leaders because the fish that I was hooking were "rock hounds", but then again, I'd never have hooked them to begin with if I had not been fishing "in" the rocks! Wink

This was also with the drag set as tight as I dared for the line and a fairly stiff Shimano rod, yet I still got rocked or wrecked at least a half dozen times or more. Using light line/light drag settings in these situations would have been similar to showing up at a gunfight with a knife! Cool

I always use the lightest gear possible with a reasonable chance at taking home supper for any fishing situation. "Reasonable" to me means a darn good chance of not just hooking, but landing my sought quarry.
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Dave

"The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has it's limits". Albert Einstein

FishLady · Posted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 4:45 pm Post subject:

Yup, drag!!
+2
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