need help fightin the biguns!!! 2024

FatBoy reply :

I need some advice BAD!!! I catch a lot of 1-2 lb bass around here, but when I do hook into a 2+ lb fish my percentage of getting the fish in is bad. I lost a 4+ lber this morning. Here's the story...

I was fishing from the bank in a small pond. Senko, 4/0 Gammy EWG, yozuri hybrid ultrasoft #6, St. Croix MF 6'6" rod, shimano stradic reel. Made a cast to an isolated clump of weeds about 20 yd to my left and 8 ft off the bank. Saw the line move and set the hook. Fish on! It immediately dove into the weeds I cast to, but I kept steady pressure and she came free pretty quick. The fish made a run for deeper water and I just kept steady pressure. Turned around and made a jump and I got my first look...this fish was long and fat! That's when the adrenaline started pumping and I started praying.

After that she made a run toward me. I steered her around some weeds and she kept running down the bank toward me and into the shore. So I HAVE to take in line to keep some pressure on her. Well, the result is that she's now at my feet in 1 fow and I only have about 8 ft of line out. But she wasn't done fighting by a long shot. She ran right and left in front of me three or four times trying to turn for the deeper water. I knew I couldn't just haul her onto the bank at this point, so I just tried to keep the line tight without horsing her. Then she turns away from me and gives a big head shake and....nothing. Broke the line just above the knot. I was so mad and shaking so bad I just paced up and down the bank muttering to myself for the next five minutes.

What could/should I have done? Maybe my drag was set too tight? In this kind of situation and given the line I was using, should this fish have taken drag?

Gimme some advice, please!!!

Low_Budget_Hooker reply :

float tube, jon boat, canoe, ....get one!! that's my advice

Get off the bank to fish that deeper structure and you'll have a better shot at hooking and keeping, bigger fish.

=Matt 5.0= reply :

I'm suprised that the Yo Zuri line snapped. I was out with LBH one morning, and I got hung up on a submerged tree. I ended up pulling part of the tree out of the water and the line/knot never failed....strange.

Taliesin reply :

With the information presented, I am inclined to say the drag was too tight. With that line (11.9# test right?) I would have the drag set at 3-4# of pressure. When the reel finally feels 3-4# of pressure, the line out there is getting a lot more than that.

The other possibility is that a previous fish or hang-up put a nick in the line.

Always re-tie after every fish and hang-up.

EDIT: With Matt 5.0's input, the other possibility became the most likely prospect.

FatBoy reply :

Quote
float tube, jon boat, canoe, ....get one!! that's my advice
Get off the bank to fish that deeper structure and you'll have a better shot at hooking and keeping, bigger fish.

Yeah, I've got the little bass hunter. But sometimes when I've only got an hour or two to fish, beating the bank is the only way to go.

Quote
The other possibility is that a previous fish or hang-up put a nick in the line.
Always re-tie after every fish and hang-up.

That could have been the problem. I'm pretty sure I tied a good knot. But I was fishing around a lot of these weeds and lilies.

roadwarrior reply :

Set your drag with a scale or put 2 1/2 lbs of weight in a plastic grocery bag. Tie the bag to the end of your line. GENTLY lift the bag with your rod and set your drag at the point where it begins to release. (This is a little light, about 21% of line strength, but it will work just fine).

Once you are hooked-up, maintain your rod position between 10:00 and 12:00 so that the rod fights the fish. Reel when you can, maitaining CONSTANT pressure. IPC for a Stradic 2500 is 33", you should be able to keep up with a fish running straight at you, reel faster!

When you have the fish in shallow water, walk backwards and pull the fish on to the bank, but DO NOT lift the fish with your rod.

David P reply :

FatBoy, I have the same problems as you when fishing from shore or docks. Just yesterday I hooked a 4-5lb bass from a dock. The railing was above my waist, so right there I had a problem.. Not to mention, my new stradic I wasn't used to the drag, and had it way too tight, none the less, fish snapped the 8lb Pline CX right when I got it to the dock.

I think it's one of the biggest disadvantages of not fishing from a boat.

Last saturday, I caught 2 4lbers and several more 2-3lb bass, didn't lose ONE, and my partner lost only ONE which was 6-7lbs, but the line broke at his knot!

Boats make getting a fish in your hands 100 times easier.

roadwarrior reply :

Same advice:

Set your drag at no more 25% of the breaking strength of your line, as long as it is within the specifications of your rod. (This does NOT apply to high test braid).

Taliesin reply :

Quote
Same advice:
Set your drag at no more 25% of the breaking strength of your line, as long as it is within the specifications of your rod. (This does NOT apply to high test braid).

Good point about the braid. With braid I usually set my drag at about 50% of the breaking strength of similar diameter mono.

IE: 40# test braid is the diameter of 10# test mono, so I will set my drag at about 5#. This may seem really low, but it prevents damage to reels, rods, and lures.

This is usually about 33% of the breaking strength of the biggest line the reel reccomends.

IE: That 40# test braid will go on a reel designed for 10 to 16# test mono. 5/16 = 31.25%

Valascus reply :

I fish from the bank a lot. I use 8Lb Gamma Copolymer line. The line has a breaking strength of between 12-14 lbs (I think...). I have my drag set to almost precisely 33% of 12lb breaking strength, so about 4lbs. The place I fish the most has very very steep banks. To make matters worse, the whole bank I fish has about a foot and a half of weeds from the bank in the water as well as a lot of trees and stumps. Since the bank is so steep and the weeds are so thick, I cannot walk backwards and get the fish to the bank, so my only chance is to wear the fish out a bit and keep it out of the weeds and away from stumps. The way I have always fought fish here is as follows:

1) I make darn sure I get a quick, strong hookset on the fish. This makes me worry less about the fish coming unbuttoned due to the hookset.

2) I keep tension on the line at all times and keep my rod at anywhere between the 10 to 2 'o' clock position depending on the direction the fish is trying to go. I allow the fish to peel a little drag to get it to a little deeper and more open water away from the weedy and stumpy bank. This allows me to fight the fish without having to worry about losing it to the weeds or stumps. If the fish goes straight for the weeds or stumps, I will try to guide it to a more open spot in the weeds by either walking further up or down the bank to a more open position. Once I get the fish to the more open area I'll let the fish have peel a bit of drag and fight it in the more open water.

3) Once the fish is tired enough to take a short break from fighting and thrashing about, I use this window to get the fish to the bank as quickly as possible, before it gets it's second wind. If the fish decides the fight is back on midway through trying to get the fish in, I'll let it have it's line and repat the fighting process until it gets tired again.

4) Here is the crucial part! Once I get the fish to the bank, I will run my hand a little bit up the pole until I can reach the line itself. Instead of hoisting the fish out of the water with the pole, I grab the line itself and support as much of it as possible. KEEP THE LINE FROM SWINGING A LOT IF POSSIBLE. Most of the time when I lose a fish, it is because the line snaps while swinging back and forth. Once I have the line, I gently lift the fish up to lip it.

Most of the time, this works. Two weeks ago I got a fiesty 3 lber on (that is a good quality fish for Busch Wildlife). I fought him just like that and was able to land him successfuly. However, once I got him out of the water and over dry land, the fish jerked pretty hard and broke the line about a foot above the knot. But the method still got him in before he broke the line. I also caught two catfish that were in the 3 to 4 lb range that day that were both landed that way without the line breaking. So, I must be doing something right.

cajun1977. reply :

sounds like drag and line issues sometimes you get em sometimes you dont ,just cause your in a boat it wont help if your drag and line are not working properly

RoLo reply :

Losing a fish is one thing, but line-breakage is quite another thing.

I would reiterate what Roadwarrior has written.

After that, there is really no way a fish can break the line,

unless it was frayed or nicked (typically "before" the battle).

A good habit is to periodically run your fingers over the last few feet of line.

Frays and nicks are usually easy to feel (time to cut and retie).

Roger

FatBoy reply :

Thanks for all the tips everybody. I am definitely going to use RW's method to set my drag. And I'll be paying more attention to nicks. It was an expensive lesson (emotionally at least). But hopefully it's a lesson I only have to learn once.

islandbass reply :

Great advice given so far, but sometimes we get impatient. From what you described, she still had a lot of spunk. I would have played her longer. If the drag were not set too tightly, another possibility is when she was in the shallow water, still full of energy, she could have gotten your line beaten up, abraided at some point in time during the fight.

I am shorebound myself and I have fished from docks and caught bass in the 3-5 lb range on my medium light rig and even my ul rig. Every time, it was patience and letting the rod and line do the work for me (as much as I didn't want to be, fearing the loss of the fish) has been my key to landing them.

Sorry you lost her.

George Welcome reply :

4-pound fish - 6-pound line: around the weeds and snap.

T-rig reply :

Quote
4-pound fish - 6-pound line: around the weeds and snap.

Exactly! Braid is the answer!

dodgeguy reply :

use 10 pound at least.6 pound is for open water fishing.

guest reply :

Quote
4-pound fish - 6-pound line: around the weeds and snap.

Exactly. And even if the line doesn't break a big bass can wrap any line around a thick weed stem and get the slack he needs to shake the hook.

I have lost several VERY large bass this way.

George, for typical weedy, shallow Florida conditions. Assuming stout takle and strong line, when a big one (8 lbs or better) is hooked, how do you GENERALLY advise they should be brought in.

thanks

avid

Gorgebassman reply :

I have lost many a fish due to the drag on my spinning reels so I started back reeling instead of trusting the drag. I would say my catch rate has gone way up since than matter of fact I cant remember the last time I lost a fish (knock on wood). You might give it a try.

mattm reply :

RW,

If I understand you correctly I need to set my drag at 3.75lbs since I fish mostly 15lb P-line CXX?

Thanks,

Matt

roadwarrior reply :

Matt,

That is correct: 15 X .25 = 3.75. That is about the maximum "safe" setting for your LINE.

HOWEVER, you must also consider the strength of your rod. The power rating, taper and

bend are major considerations. The weight at the end of your line must not cause the rod to

bend past it's maximum capacity or it will break! I suggest no more than 75% of that maximum so that you leave some margin for an exceptionally strong hook-set, fish surge or hang-up.

I think you will find that 3 lbs is about the maximum drag you will want even for a Heavy Power rod.

Let's say your rod is rated for line strength of 17 lbs.

17 lbs X .75 = 12.75 lbs (75% of maximum rod strength)

12.75 X .25 = 3.1875 (recommended maximum drag setting)

mattm reply :

Quote
[Matt,
That is correct: 15 X .25 = 3.75. That is about the maximum "safe" setting for your LINE.

HOWEVER, you must also consider the strength of your rod. The power rating, taper and

bend are major considerations. The weight at the end of your line must not cause the rod to

bend past it's maximum capacity or it will break! I suggest no more than 75% of that maximum so that you leave some margin for an exceptionally strong hook-set, fish surge or hang-up.

I think you will find that 3 lbs is about the maximum drag you will want even for a Heavy Power rod.

Let's say your rod is rated for line strength of 17 lbs.

17 lbs X .75 = 12.75 lbs (75% of maximum rod strength)

12.75 X .25 = 3.1875 (recommended maximum drag setting)

/quote]

Wow....that is some good information right there. I just got confused b/c you told Fat Boy to set it at 2.5 even though 25% of 6 is 1.5. I often wondered if I was setting my drag right. I've never lost a fish to line breakage unless soemthing crazy happened(buried deep in the weeds, me grabbing the line etc.). However it is great to have something to check it by. I've always thought i might have it too tight though b/c i've never had a bass rip drag. I could of just been lucky this whole time. Stuff like this is why I love this site.

FatBoy reply :

Well, actually mattm, RW recommended the 2.5 lb on the drag because the yozuri hybrid ultrasoft #6 test to about 11 lb.

wismallie reply :

First I'd suggest some heavier line then I would forget the advice about the drag. Tighten the drag down and learn how to back reel.

roadwarrior reply :

I think lighter lines (thinner diameter) produces more bites. There are certainly situations where heavy line or braid may be the best choice, but regardless of the line you choose, setting a proper drag will reduce break-offs.

Backreeling is an option that works very well for a number of fishermen when fighting big fish. I don't think setting a proper drag and choosing to backreel are mutually exclusive. I is very simple to adjust the drag to a correct setting which comes in handy in a lot of situations. This has no impact on fighting the fish and incorporating the backreel technique in the fight.

George Welcome reply :

Setting the drag requirements will vary based on enviornmental conditions. There is no set answer or formula to this problem via drag set.

Low_Budget_Hooker reply :

Quote
Setting the drag requirements will vary based on enviornmental conditions. There is no set answer or formula to this problem via drag set.

Good thing, this post is reminding me how terrible I am at math,lol

RoLo reply :

Welcome to the forum

"Wismallie", Hmmmm.....Wisconsin Smallmouth?

Quote
First I'd suggest some heavier line then I would forget the advice about the drag. Tighten the drag down and learn how to back reel.

Your suggestion takes me back to the late 1960s and to Al & Ron Lindner.

I agree that "backreeling" is an open option, but after backreeling for a few months,

I began to wonder why I paid top dollar for my rod and reel,

and then decommission my equipment by being a human drag.

There is an alternative that I use, and one that works very well when fighting a really good fish (e.g. PB).

As the brute nears the boat (or bank), back-off some on the drag, because most fish break-off on a short line.

The obvious downside is that you've got to remember to retighten the drag each time you chicken back.

On the upside, you can use a heavy drag setting to quickly yank the slob from heavy cover,

but then back-off on the drag as the big girl nears the boat. If she makes a boat-side lunge,

even if she's lightly hooked or there's a nick in the line, you've seriously limited her ability to tear off.

Roger

Fish Chris reply :

I didn't even think I was going to reply to this, figuring enough had been said already..... but then I started seeing posts I couldn't pass up !

First off, Rolo said a mouthful when he said > Losing a fish is one thing, but line-breakage is quite another thing. < !!! Amen to that brother ! I certainly lose a few fish here and there, but basically NEVER break them off.

T-Rig, YES ! Braid ! Absolutely ! I have caught a 14 lb bass in a field of water plants. It was an amazing sight to see the fish, on a dead run, then make a hard left, and the line cutting all of those weeds off, like an industrial mower :-) Left a 40 foot triangle mowed off flat like a crew cut !

Hello wismallie. Welcome to the forum. And please don't mind me too much.... but there are a few things which I am really opinionated about. And one of them is BACKREELING !!! AHHHHH !!! Just hearing that word makes me want to Laugh ! Cry ! Scream ! Or just generally freak out !

I have just never seen any logic in this ! Nobody.... and I mean NOBODY can exactly predict what a fish is going to do next ! The best "back reeler" on the planet, cannot possibly react as fast as a properly set, smooth functioning drag system, which reacts "litterally" in the same instant !

And speaking of smooth drags (and subjects with which I am rediculously opinionated about ;-)) one thing which is rarely talked about, when discussing braided line, is that braid will make any drag system, even a lame one, work WAY better than the same reel loaded with monofilament. Why ? Because mono will stretch, and stretch, and stretch.... then finally, the drag will "break loose" and release all of that pressure. Then the line will stretch, and stretch, until the drag lets loose again, and on and on. This is known as drag surge, and it is almost completely eliminated with the use of virtually zero-stretch braided line.

BTW, I use my swimbait rods for both "little ol' 15 lb bass", and rediculously strong 100 lb Bat Rays...... yet, I set my drag close to the same, and fight the fish close to the same also. The only difference is, I land the Largemouth in 1 to 3 minutes, while I have to fight the Bat Rays for 45 to 90 minutes.

So anyway,

1) A smooth functioning, properly set drag.

2) Non-stretch braided line, to prevent drag surge (among many other positive assets).

3) Experience, in playing fish, or more specifically, not trying to reel when they are ripping drag, but not waiting even 1/10th of a second, to rip on them when they let up, or turn towards you.

Of course fishing is fishing.... and anybody can have one simply come unbuttoned. Those are excusable though :-)

Peace,

Fish

wismallie reply :

We all have methods that work for us. Back reeling works very good for me I prefer to have all the control over the fish. With the drag being pulled out the fish has some control.If a fish pulls hard I can backreel in time because once I hook a big fish I flip the switch right away if I need it or not even on hard diving smallies which are faster and stronger than equal bigmouths I can backreel in time. It just takes practice. Like I said everybody has methods that works. I'm just sharing mine.RoLo my name does mean wisconsin smallie.

RoLo reply :

Fish Chris, I'm real glad you brought up braided line.

I wanted to mention braid in my post, but figured the guys are tired of me sounding like a broken record,

so I left it out against my better judgment. Anyway, I'm glad that you provided that sound advice.

I can't imagine anyone trying braided polyethylene and then going back to monofilament line.

I've got more monofilament and copolymer line in my den then most Ma-and-Pa Sport Shops,

all brands, all line-tests just sitting there growing old.

Roger

Fish Chris reply :

Hey wismallie, that's cool. I typed my response this morning, then was concerned that I might have come off sounding arrogant. But like I said, "Don't mind me" :-) Their are just a handful of things with which I feel so opinionated about; backreeling, and braided line are two of them :-)

BTW, even with a properly set drag, in those rare situations when I just cannot let a fish have line.... like its headed for a dock piling, or sunken tree, etc. I can, and sometimes do, reach up and feather some additional pressure on my spool. Of course, along with my drag, I can put so much pressure, as to flat stop it from running...... but this is where you risk breaking off.

Hey Rolo, yea' I hear you.... But talking to me about braided line, is like preaching to the choir :-)

Mono = stretchy, kinky, coily, something or other....

Braid = fishing line ;-)

Peace,

Fish

guest reply :

Hey FC. Do you ever catch 8 lb plus bass or other species floridia like conditions, meaning shallow and with enough weeds, so if you let the bass take drag she's gonna find a clump to wrap up in and maybe shake loose.

My dilemna continues to be whether to use tight drag and back off at opportune moments, (if one arrives) I can't help but wonder if a strong bass pulling against no stretch, no slip tightly drag set braided line isn't digging a huge hole in his jaw.

But when they get into the weeds, unless it happens to be hooked in one of thre really boney spots, they are a gonna fer sure.

What's a basser to do

Fish Chris reply :

Hey Avid, one of my old favorite trophy lakes is slam full of weeds. Typically when the fish run through them, my braid saws most of it like a knife ! Only once, I had a fish bury in so deep, that I pulled, and pulled, and pulled some more, but it was just not coming......

So, I threw out a claw anchor beside my line, and pulled up a huge clump of weeds, but no fish. It was still buried deep. So I rotated around about 120 degrees, and threw the anchor out again.... another huge clump, but still no bass. Finally, I moved around about another 120 degrees (in other words, I had drug a complete triangle shape around the fish) and I pulled up the final huge clump of weeds.... but this clump had a 12.2 lb bass in it :-) ..... and my Huddleston :-)

Pretty cool, huh ?

Peace,

Fish

cajun1977. reply :

chris i almost didnt recognize you without that little ol lifevest ;D

Sam reply :

And something else to consider.

If you have a backlash, you can damage the line when repairing the backlash.

In addtion, I agree with the suggetion to run your fingers over the line after every fish or about 20 casts. You can feel the knicks and tears easliy.

I have seen my spinnerbait continue out into space when the line snaps on a cast. I was using YoZuri linewhen this occurred, and even though it was probably my fault, I have never used YoZuri again.

I have also kept the rod tip down towards the water or in the water to keep the bass from jumping. It seems to work for me if I hook a "jumper."

Thanks for the method to set the drag. I have lost some nice fish by forgetting to reset the drag and having it too tight. I will try that 2.5 pound bag trick (20% of line poundage) from now on.

If my wife sees me weighing the line with a paper bag she will know I am totally out of my mind.

Fish Chris reply :

Hey Cajun, good eye you got there :-) That was taken about 3 years ago "right before" I started using an auto-inflatable PFD. Even then, I always wore one of the big, bulky, uncomfortable life vests when I was running.... but this place allows no gas motors, so I used to just keep it on the boat.

It only took me about 1 trip with an auto-inflatable PFD to start hounding everyone about "why doesnt EVERYONE wear an auto-inflatable PFD from start to finish of every trip" ???

Peace,

Fish

guest reply :

Quote
Hey Avid, one of my old favorite trophy lakes is slam full of weeds. Typically when the fish run through them, my braid saws most of it like a knife ! Only once, I had a fish bury in so deep, that I pulled, and pulled, and pulled some more, but it was just not coming......
So, I threw out a claw anchor beside my line, and pulled up a huge clump of weeds, but no fish. It was still buried deep. So I rotated around about 120 degrees, and threw the anchor out again.... another huge clump, but still no bass. Finally, I moved around about another 120 degrees (in other words, I had drug a complete triangle shape around the fish) and I pulled up the final huge clump of weeds.... but this clump had a 12.2 lb bass in it :-) ..... and my Huddleston :-)

Pretty cool, huh ?

Peace,

Fish

Beautiful fish and clever retrieve.

When you fish this lake what kind of drag setting do you use?

Also I'm guessing you don't use a leader on this lake?

Thanks, Avid,

PS > I fell like throwing a tantrum.

I wanna break my 7.8 pb and I wanna do it NOW -

Fish Chris reply :

Hey Avid, actually, even at that lake, I still use a leader.

As for my drag setting.... That's always hard to explain in type print. I'd call it medium light. As for pounds, it's definately less than the "1/4 of the rated lb test" rule for mono. I'd guess 6 lbs or so.

Fish

guest reply :

Quote
Hey Avid, actually, even at that lake, I still use a leader.
As for my drag setting.... That's always hard to explain in type print. I'd call it medium light. As for pounds, it's definately less than the "1/4 of the rated lb test" rule for mono. I'd guess 6 lbs or so.

Fish

Cool, so your double digits will be able to strip off drag and head for the weeds.

I'm guessing you have some sort of svengali approach to choosing the best drag setting for the conditions, but it appears clear that you will let the bigguns take line, you just use your experience to determine how much pressure to apply at any given moment.

You da man dude.

Fish Chris reply :

BTW (and sorry to 'drag' this out :-)) but one more thing I wanted to mention;

And I'm not being fecetious here either; I swear if I make 300 casts in a day, I probably reach up and pull a foot of drag from my reel litterally 200 times in a trip ! And I probably do a slight readjust, 20 times in a trip.... every trip !

The other "overboard fanatical" thing I do, is to check my hookpoints 20 plus times a day ! "Pretty sharp" just won't cut it ! Those hooks had better be surgical 'sticky' sharp, or I just can't make another cast, and keep my mind straight too.

Now are these some serious personal issues, or what ? :-)

Peace,

Fish

11118

need help fightin the biguns!!! 2024

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