TonyC
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Topshot on Spectra?
If given a choice I would prefer to go with a all mono. loaded reel. I just like the feel of mono., but the advantage of the thin, no stretch spectra
is hard to avoid. However I don't like the way spectra can cut into your fingers. Tuna, and YT pull harder then anything we have in the Bay Area,
except maybe a sturgeon using a fast moving tide.
I like all spectra for sturgeon to detect and react quickly to a sturgeon bite "pull down", the no stretch is a big plus. Everything else mono. is
king, in my opinion. I take that back except for deep water RF, only we can't fish RF anymore in my neck of the woods.
Now I discovered Baja California namely Baja Norte "San Quintin area". I like fishing as light as I can get away with, so for me spectra is ice cream.
I fish small reels with lots of line. I put about 100-150ft of mono. topshot, with the option of going all spectra if I need to. I also want a rod,
and reel that I can use for different types of fishing without bringing everything I have.How do you guys fish for hard pulling fish, with kelp
everywhere? Short topshots, at least shorter then I use, or all mono? What works for you guys? Just trying to shorten the learning curve.
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TonyC
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Thank you Diver for the suggestion on this topic.
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fishbuck
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I don't think that is going to work. Although you did catch a nice fish already.
I'll tell you why. If there is kelp it is going to be somewhat shallow. The only thing that can work is don't let the fish get to the bottom. Or into
the kelp.
I plan to drop straight 50lb mono new or very fresh. I have a Shimano TLD 30 2-Speed. With the drag cranked for max stopping power.
I learned my lesson at BOLA fishing 30lb. A hugh grouper or yellowtail picked me up and took me straight to the rocks. Brand new 30lb mono on a Diawa
Sealine SL30SH. Brand new drag too and I think I could have stopped it if I had the drag set right. Too loose like blue water fishing.
I will start with my big gun (50lb) and work my way down to brand new 30lb.
"A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for." J. A. Shedd.
A clever person solves a problem. A wise person avoids it. – Albert Einstein
"Life's a Beach... and then you Fly!" Fishbuck
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vgabndo
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Mood: Checking-off my bucket list.
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On topic...but...
What is the minimum length of shock leader on my 50 lb. Spectra. I've got some high quality 60 lb. small diameter mono. I'm taking about throwing
iron at Yellowtail boils, and for terminal tackle with a macerele on the bottom.
Undoubtedly, there are people who cannot afford to give the anchor of sanity even the slightest tug. Sam Harris
"The situation is far too dire for pessimism."
Bill Kauth
Carl Sagan said, "We are a way for the cosmos to know itself."
PEACE, LOVE AND FISH TACOS
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bill erhardt
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Here is a picture of a 30# yellowtail I caught Sunday with an Avet LX6/3 lined with 60# JB Spectra looped directly to a ringed circle hook, no leader
at all. The drag of 22# or so generated by the little Avet was enough to keep it out of the rocks in 125" water.
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bill erhardt
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And a 190# yellowfin caught on the same rig with the spectra looped directly to a slightly larger hook. The tuna was caught in water about 600' deep.
With 600 yds. on the Avet the fish was not able to spool me. We followed it just like it was a marlin and had it in the boat in about 40 minutes.
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TonyC
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| Quote: | Originally posted by bill erhardt
Here is a picture of a 30# yellowtail I caught Sunday with an Avet LX6/3 lined with 60# JB Spectra looped directly to a ringed circle hook, no leader
at all. The drag of 22# or so generated by the little Avet was enough to keep it out of the rocks in 125" water. |
Bill that's spectra on your reel? Looks like mono., I guess if I want to go with the smaller reels, go either short mono. fluorocarbon leader, or all
spectra. JB spectra right?
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Don Alley
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I use spectra in two different ways. For fishing on or near the surface, and for outfits I cast with, I use mono but may have spectra as backing to
increase line capacity. In these cases, I have more mono than I can possibly cast. For 30lb or less the connection is a uni to uni knot, for heavier
lines a nearly seamless splice and loop connection or seamless hollow spectra connection.
I also use spectra for deeper bottom fishing (yellowtail) for low stretch and high sensitivity. In those rigs I'm using 60lb spectra with short, 10-12
foot mono sections, sliding sinker, and 6ft mono or flourocarbon leader. I think that the mono,and especially the flouro, may be more abrasion
resistant on the rocks. Bill's straight spectra setup sounds good, I may try that with a Carolina Keeper to hold the sinker. I've read that mono can
stretch 20%, so figure tight drags in 200 feet of water your yellowtail could move 20 feet deeper without pulling drag with just 10% stretch, and
"ping!" he's free. But with a short graphite or composite rod you can really feel the head shakes!
I am also using spectra for a verticle jigging outfit, sometimes with a short <6 ft topshot of flouro, sometimes straight spectra. With hollow
straight spectra you don't need a knot if you splice a loop on the end.
Finally, I did use straight spectra for a 20lb jig tossing rig on my yak for a while. Worked pretty good, and somehow I got over the more abrasive
feel of the spectra. But get a little sloppy and backlash, and uh-oh. Been a long time since I had the kind of bird's nest I could get with spectra.
So for that I'm back to mono, with maybe a spectra backing.
Oh, and finally one more advantage to spectra. It lasts a long time. Mono doesn't. I don't like old mono and with spectra backing it's much cheaper to
change to fresh line.
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bill erhardt
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Tony...... I have 60# white solid JB Line One on my LX's. Hollow 80# on TLD 30's and hollow 130# on TLD 50's. When I first used the spectra I used a
mono top-shot, but now have abandoned it altogether. It provides more yards on a small spool and the flexible, small diameter spectra along with
ringed hooks allows more natural movement by a baitfish. When fishing for marlin I loop the spectra to 4' or 5' of 200# mono leader on the lure.
Since I got the Avets a year or so ago I seldom use the heavier TLD's. I have caught at least 25 marlin on the LX's, including a blue about 250#, as
well as many sailfish, wahoo, yellowfin and more dorado than I can count. With 600 yds. of line I have been down to only a few wraps around the spool
a few times, but have never been spooled. It is sure fun to catch big fish on those light little reels. I have them mounted on Calstar Graphiter
rods.
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Pescador
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First of all, kelp is only on the Pacific side not on the Sea of Cortez side. And even though this will not set well with most fishermen, the Pacific
side does not produce the hard pullers. You see a lot of fish up to 50 lbs on the Pacific side that are caught with 30 and 40 lb. string. That is
not going to happen on the Sea of Cortez side as these fish are much more related to the reef and pull like crazy to make the bottom and cut off. In
the Santa Rosalia area we find that 50 lb. is the minimum when the fish are relating to the bottom and only go down to 40 lb. when they move up on
top. Spectra will really help you cut through the kelp as it saws very well and will give you a chance at pulling the fish through the kelp. We
usually use anywhere from 10 ft to 150 ft of top shot depending on the depth we are fishing at. When the yellows are in 350 ft of water , sometimes
you need a small topshot or no topshot in order to get down to where they are.
Check out Sportfishing Mag to see the difference in knot strength. The strongest tested knots are a 12 turn Bimini with a 7 turn Bristol.
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