Gear upgrade

[Cowpokey]

A tuna may fight harder, but a striper still fights hard. It doesn't just roll over and let you reel it in.

A dogfish the same length as a striper fights twice as hard, weighs half as much. I like striper too, but lets keep things in perspective, they really aren't great fighters.

[Slobber Bob]

I agree with the others that a 3000 sized spinning reel is probably optimum for most of the bay fishing that goes on throughout the year. I have a 4500 reel I mostly bought for targeting bigger fish on the kayak and to double as my reel for plugging in the surf. It works great for those applications but can be a little to big when it comes to catching schoolie bass and specks. I only have one conventional reel, daiwa seagate sgt20h, and it's been the perfect size for tog, sheep, big stripers, bull reds, and the rays/sharks. I have 6'6" - 7' MH rods for bigger fish and 6'6" M for schoolie bass/specks.

I don't perch fish, but I imagine my gear would be well overrated to make catching them much fun.

A dogfish the same length as a striper fights twice as hard, weighs half as much. I like striper too, but lets keep things in perspective, they really aren't great fighters.

I'm sorry man, you've said this before, but I hate to tell you that dogfish are not good fighters. I've caught millions of dogfish as bycatch surf fishing and I can tell instantly if it's a dogfish or a real fish. the dogfish comes in with hardly any resistance unless it's the 4ft variety. And even then a 4ft striper whoops it's butt it the quality of fight.

[J.A. Veil]

I am pretty much in agreement with the others on this post. I own only spinning reels with nothing larger than a 3000 series. I use 20-lb braid on my 2500 and 3000 series reels. Over the past year, I caught 24" pickerel (1000 series reel with 10-lb braid), 30" striper, 36" bluefish, 38" redfish on my own tackle, and a 39" blacktip shark on similar equipment provided by a guide.


Yak Fish (Alan) has been successful at finding and catching extremely large stripers (>40"). Very few others on this board are able to do that consistently. If you are intentionally targeting very large fish, a 3000 size spinning reel or comparable baitcaster may not be the best choice for you. But for the size of fish that most of us are hoping to catch, those reels are fine. Use your reel's drag, the bend of the rod, and the drag provided by the kayak itself. The lighter weight of those reels results in less arm fatigue too.

If you are using reels designed for freshwater, you do need to pay more attention to rinsing them off after using them in saltwater.

[Cowpokey]

I'm sorry man, you've said this before, but I hate to tell you that dogfish are not good fighters. I've caught millions of dogfish as bycatch surf fishing and I can tell instantly if it's a dogfish or a real fish. the dogfish comes in with hardly any resistance unless it's the 4ft variety. And even then a 4ft striper whoops it's butt it the quality of fight.

Y'all take it as a personal insult when an outsider posts anything negative about your beloved striper. God forbid giving credit to a non gamefish.



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[spangler15]

Uh-ohh dissention in my very first post.

[Shady]

It really comes down to the fish habitat... Many bass anglers will use 40-50# line because they're pulling fish out of logs, grass, etc and do not really have to worry much about the line cutting through the water. In contrast, when fishing in the bay, you do not generally have to pull fish out of thick structure, but you do have to deal with strong currents. When catching fish in relatively open water, much lighter line can be used. Additionally, that 40-50" braid that works great for largemouth in thick structure, will not cut through the water very well and will make it very difficult to keep your lure in the strike zone as long as possible.

[Slobber Bob]

Y'all take it as a personal insult when an outsider posts anything negative about your beloved striper. God forbid giving credit to a non gamefish.

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No, I don't take it personally. I hope I didn't come across that way. And what makes you an outsider, or me an insider? I'm not from MD and I'm not defending how good stripers fight. I agree with those that say there are far better fighting fish size for size. Just locally I think an equal sized red or blue is a better fight.

I just don't get you're dogfish being a good fight comparison. In my experience they are anything but. But fishing is supposed to be fun, so if a dogfish battle gets you excited, then have at them and enjoy!


And sorry to the original poster for derailing your thread slightly.

[spangler15]

That's ok Bob, we kinda wore out the original topic anyway. A fishes power and fighting ability are relevant to the type of gear you choose.