Light tackle reel drag question

[john from md]

I was wondering if any of you guys using 20-30 class spinning reels have ever been spooled by a large Rockfish.

A few years ago, I switched to all light tackle as it is easier on my arthritis. (this is the same reason I switched to an all carbon paddle) I have never caught a Striper over 20 inches on light tackle and that got me wondering.

Most of my reels are around 10 to 12 pounds of drag and, since I am thinking of getting a new model Pflueger Supreme, I was wondering if I should go with the 40 size reel for the extra 2 pounds of drag. I realize this is nothing like the 24 pounds on a salt water reel or the super drag on my Penn 320's but, since I don't want the extra weight, I'm not using them.

Also, for you guys who have caught 30" and larger Rocks, do they take you for a ride in the yak?

Regards,

[Yak Fish]

I was catching 20-30" fish last weekend on a medium action rod with 12# test. Certainly some line stripping but the setup was plenty adequate. I got a 40" last year but on a large rod and yes, it will drag you pretty far I was anchored and it still dragged me 30 yards.

[MDFishin]

I caught two stripers early this year, a 30" and a 26". Both were on my Penn Battle 4000, this is a pretty small real!! I have 20lb Power Pro spooled up, after putting on backing I have around 275 yds. An extra 2 lbs of drag IS HUGE!!! The Battle 4000 has around 12-13 lbs of drag, adding 2lbs of drag to that would be over a 16% increase. I had my drag tight but not all the way down when I fought the fish, looking back I probably could have loosened it some because the fish never took more than 40 yds.

All that being said, a 40" class fish would probably be a different story.....20" Tog probably put up a harder fight than both Rockfish I caught.

Pound for Pound I believe Tog might be my newest "Hardest pulling fish"

[RavensDfense]

From the beach, Ive caught a 48 inch rock on a 3000 series flueger paired with a 7 ft mh rod rated for 10-20 lb. It help up fine and was a blast. With that said, IDK how a smaller reel would have held up on his initial run. Might have came close to spooling me.

This spring, from the yak I landed several large stipers (35-42 in. range). They were caught on a small calcutta baitcaster. One of the 39's was fought off anchor from the time she was hooked. Honesltly, I felt it wasnt as fun. I went for a small ride, but the yak acted as drag in itself. She didnt take off much line at all and she tired quickly after towing me a few hundered feet. I simply reeled up to her and legged her in. The on anchor fights were a lot more fun with more runs. Now, if you did have light tackle and could fight the fish off anchor, you should be OK.

[bignose]

I have found that I can set the drag fairly light and then "palm" the spool to give me additional drag. Rockfish seldom make long reel burning runs. And enjoy the Nantuckett sleigh ride!
I'm using 2500 class Shimano Stradics

[Memory Maker]

You're in a yak ............ your Yak is your drag ......... if they pull too much you have a sleigh ride ............ don't need a heavy drag unless you have to get a biggun out of cover and then you better be anchored and stabilized ...... too much drag sideways and down could turtle you ....... I tried to pull up a stuck anchor at Flechers on the Potomac and almost turtled a PA ........... left the anchor and line .......

[john from md]

Wow! Great information. I never considered the yak as drag but I agree 100%. Something about not seeing the forest for the trees.

Your responses have made me more at ease with using the lighter tackle in a yak.

Thanks,

[Southerly]

i think a rule of thum is to set drag to about 1/3 the line's rating and do not exceed that. use good quality knots and retie after heavy stress, and after excess use. match rod rating to line test and keep the bend in the rod as steady as possible while fighting, never slack or yanking, and let the rod (matched to line rating) cushion the fight. i guess if you're getting spooled or fish is heading around pier pilings etc, holding line from going out is option.

i find rock bigger than 20" pull the kayak from side to side, and 30+ actually pull it around some but 15# line with fresh knot and about 5# drag wears them down in short order. *this may not apply to other species. but when it's happening, it seems like it's longer than it is.

consider towing a kayak by hand, applying about 5# tension in the tow line and you can imagine the effect when a fish pulls 5# drag.

if you have a larger rock and it's pulling drag w/o problem, especially in current; you will question whether it's ever going to stop, whether the line, and your knots are going to hold, and whether you made a good choice in line selection and will ever get the line back on spool and see that fish. but maintain your composure and the biggest chance in losing him will probly be boatside, not in spooling.

bass fishermen are regularly using 80# braid to fish in the still, weedy, woody structure where their fish are because it's the winning technique and winning is fun. they rip big fish out of cover and swing them up onto deck w/o fear. IMO, the main advantage of the smaller diameter line for me is in letting it cut through current better, which reduces 'bagged-out' curve in the line that messes up sensitivity and/or successful hook set. i don't get any fun in breaking lures off in fish and don't feel like that's more sportsmanlike. i don't need 80# but i'm leaning towards a shift from 15# mainline to 20 for rockfish, to reduce risk of losing a big fish.


ps - if a kayaker had 80# braid and a good knot, i'd like to see them break off a snag. i'd suggest scissors,...

[tufnik]

I caught a 24 1/2 " tog and it's a way better fighter than larger rocks. Reel drag was not set at the high setting and it was not an issue. Key part was a stout rod that helped me control the fish, especially when fishing around structure. So, I think your Supreme would do fine. In fact, Shawn Kimbro, author of "Cheasapeake Light Tackle," does not go into detail about reel drag. Apparently, max drag on light tackle reels appear to be adequate. As pictured in the book, his son caught an 80-lb black drum on 10# mono with "light tackle." I don't know the drag setting on his son's reel, but it tells me skill is a large part of the equation. The yak is another part of our equation too.

[john from md]

I agree that Tautog are good fighters. I lost many a rig to them in Margate N.J. before I was taught to use old spark plugs and $1 a can fresh water hooks.

I too don't like leaving hooks in fish and to that effect, I have bent the barbs back on all the lures I use. The downside is that you have to keep positive pressure on the fish and have to be extra careful when boating them. Since I only keep what me and the wife and in-laws can eat in a day, I would rather the throw backs grow up and provide food for another day.

I've watched some interesting videos of guys in yaks boating large fish. One thing most of them have in common. They are all less than half my age.

Unless those woppers jump in my yak on their own, I ain't heaving anything in the yak that's big enough to throw me out.

[J.A. Veil]

The stripers I caught yesterday were on light and medium light rods with a Stradic 2500 on one rod and a Stradic 3000 on the other. I had 20-lb braid on the reels. I set the drag fairly light (can easily pull line off the spool with my hand) for kayak trolling (I don't want the fish to pull the rod overboard). The two largest fish (24" and 22") took a bit of line against drag, but I was never worried about getting spooled.

The strongest fish I caught in a while from a kayak was the 20" jack crevalle I caught in Florida on April 20. That fish pulled a bunch of 20-lb braid from a Stradic 2500 and swam 360 deg around the boat. The fight lasted about 5 minutes. But once again, I never came close to running out of line. As someone else pointed out, your kayak offers a great deal of water resistance if the fish tries to pull you.

For Chesapeake fishing, the fish most likely to spool you is a large cownose ray. You could probably tell after a few minutes what the fish is -- and you could cut the line if necessary.

[Southerly]

i would also add that unecesarily extending the fight with incorrect tackle increases the chance of breakoff from chafing the leader on the fish's mouth. i've had my 30# flouro leader snap because of this.

in the instance i'm thinking of, it wasn't the extended fight or the size of the fish online but more likely the fact that i didn't check the leader after catching the previous fish, which had itself been pretty solid. sloppy, and preventable.