light line or heavy line that is the question?

OBfishguy · Jun-19-2006, 02:03 PM

This should get a few different responces.
The purpose of this thread is to help all of us catch more fish I am not really looking to change the way you fish.

Okay so my opinion is fish the heaviest line possible always, especially offshore. This is based on the fact that hooking fish on light line will enevitably end up with the school getting scattered with 20 lb fish tearing off a chunk school of the with their first 200yd run, time wasted on single fish and a lower hook to land ratio.

Notice I said heaviest line possible, not the heaviest line you own. in all honesty based on the conditions light line is needed to get your bait away from the boat especially with sluggish bait. For the most part I belive that 25-30 lb should be considered the median. forty is getting heavy and 20 is getting light this is for so cal offshore fishing. when fishing the kelp or bay the game is much different and fish what is needed based on the size bait you are fishing.

Now days with spectra a bass reel can hold enough fifty pound with a short topshot that most school sized tuna can be landed. that does not make up for the fact that you can still only apply 10 or so pounds of pressure on the fish with a such a light rod.

The second issue with fish killed on light line is the overall fight time producing more acid in the flesh and slowly destroying your prized tuna
Light line is really a pussy way to fish when you think about it pulling on a 40 lb fish with 8lb of drag for an hour is like going to the gym and working with little dumbbells. the same fish on fifty or sixty will kick your ass and pull as hard as it can allowing you to really fight the fish, not just tire the fish out allowing it to take as much line as it wants. Keeping the fish on heavy string also helps the school build around the boat and helps ensure more fresh bait fish.

Now to head off the sportsman who just fishes for fun on light line, you know the C and R guy who thinks their is more sport in fishing the ultralight, and lets all his fish go, know that some fish, tuna especially, but even trout and spotfin will not ever recover from the amount of energy they use while you are playing them. For this guy I recomend fishing the absolute heaviest line, land your fish and release them quickly so you can increase the survivle rate. And kill the ones you know are gonna Die from deep hooks. a true sportsman uses more difficult techniques and conserves the resource.

The boats this weekend that had a few guys fishing the heavy caught more fish than the average, especially the bluefin. That stuff will eat heavy line and keep eating until the one guy gets bit on 10 lb and shuts it off. a Floro leader will do more for the line shy fish than just light mono. we had one passenger fish the forty to start every stop and ended up with 15 albacore and helped us hook many more bait fish than some of the other boats he also caught a nice Blue Fin Tuna on the straite 40 lb. I know that some of the long range boats will not let you start with less than forty until they put together a score.

My advice is to start heavy and then go light

But in the end you can fish what ever you want you are the paying customer, loosing fish on the light shit is better than not getting bit on the heavy for most people. For what it is worth this is my opinon what is yours?

Jig Strike · Jun-19-2006, 02:11 PM

OK

ZZZZZ · Jun-19-2006, 02:14 PM

On research trips the Gun fishes heavy string I think like 80-100lb on School size fish. Obviously they need the fish landed as quickly as possible without squirting out the school with fish taking line/yards.

Throw some light line in there good bye heavy line bites.

Fishing the Finger Bank once we had some nice fish around the boat a few times 80-300lb fish. Most would go in with 80-150lb mostly 100lb and a few would go in with 40#. There were a few aggressive fish in the schools and they bit the few 40# outfits they would have bit the 100lb + if they had no choice IMO. ALL lost on 40#.

Insomniac · Jun-19-2006, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OBfishguy

This should get a few different responces.
The purpose of this thread is to help all of us catch more fish I am not really looking to change the way you fish.

Okay so my opinion is fish the heaviest line possible always, especially offshore. This is based on the fact that hooking fish on light line will enevitably end up with the school getting scattered with 20 lb fish tearing off a chunk school of the with their first 200yd run, time wasted on single fish and a lower hook to land ratio.

Notice I said heaviest line possible, not the heaviest line you own. in all honesty based on the conditions light line is needed to get your bait away from the boat especially with sluggish bait. For the most part I belive that 25-30 lb should be considered the median. forty is getting heavy and 20 is getting light this is for so cal offshore fishing. when fishing the kelp or bay the game is much different and fish what is needed based on the size bait you are fishing.

Now days with spectra a bass reel can hold enough fifty pound with a short topshot that most school sized tuna can be landed. that does not make up for the fact that you can still only apply 10 or so pounds of pressure on the fish with a such a light rod.

The second issue with fish killed on light line is the overall fight time producing more acid in the flesh and slowly destroying your prized tuna
Light line is really a pussy way to fish when you think about it pulling on a 40 lb fish with 8lb of drag for an hour is like going to the gym and working with little dumbbells. the same fish on fifty or sixty will kick your ass and pull as hard as it can allowing you to really fight the fish, not just tire the fish out allowing it to take as much line as it wants. Keeping the fish on heavy string also helps the school build around the boat and helps ensure more fresh bait fish.

Now to head off the sportsman who just fishes for fun on light line, you know the C and R guy who thinks their is more sport in fishing the ultralight, and lets all his fish go, know that some fish, tuna especially, but even trout and spotfin will not ever recover from the amount of energy they use while you are playing them. For this guy I recomend fishing the absolute heaviest line, land your fish and release them quickly so you can increase the survivle rate. And kill the ones you know are gonna Die from deep hooks. a true sportsman uses more difficult techniques and conserves the resource.

The boats this weekend that had a few guys fishing the heavy caught more fish than the average, especially the bluefin. That stuff will eat heavy line and keep eating until the one guy gets bit on 10 lb and shuts it off. a Floro leader will do more for the line shy fish than just light mono. we had one passenger fish the forty to start every stop and ended up with 15 albacore and helped us hook many more bait fish than some of the other boats he also caught a nice Blue Fin Tuna on the straite 40 lb. I know that some of the long range boats will not let you start with less than forty until they put together a score.

My advice is to start heavy and then go light

But in the end you can fish what ever you want you are the paying customer, loosing fish on the light shit is better than not getting bit on the heavy for most people. For what it is worth this is my opinon what is yours?

Good read.

Fishslayer · Jun-19-2006, 09:39 PM

Whatever...

Fishslayer

popa_pescarul · Jun-20-2006, 01:59 PM

Lot of good points about heavier line, especially the importance of landing quickly for C&R, and if you want to really slug it out with a big fish, lighter line is not necessarily the way to go for more "sporting" challenge.

I came to saltwater fishing after a lot of fly-fishing and freshwater only experience, so I usually tended to think in terms of "how light a line can I get away with?".

You offered a lot of reasons to turn it around and look at it from the other way!

McKee · Jun-20-2006, 07:19 PM

If there bitting 20 they'll bite 30,
If there bitting 30 they'll bite 40,
If there bitting 40 they'll bite 50,
If there bitting 50 they'll bite 60,
If there bitting 60 they'll bite 80,
So just always fish with 80

**Jason** · Jun-20-2006, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OBfishguy

This should get a few different responces.
The purpose of this thread is to help all of us catch more fish I am not really looking to change the way you fish.

Okay so my opinion is fish the heaviest line possible always, especially offshore. This is based on the fact that hooking fish on light line will enevitably end up with the school getting scattered with 20 lb fish tearing off a chunk school of the with their first 200yd run, time wasted on single fish and a lower hook to land ratio.

Notice I said heaviest line possible, not the heaviest line you own. in all honesty based on the conditions light line is needed to get your bait away from the boat especially with sluggish bait. For the most part I belive that 25-30 lb should be considered the median. forty is getting heavy and 20 is getting light this is for so cal offshore fishing. when fishing the kelp or bay the game is much different and fish what is needed based on the size bait you are fishing.

Now days with spectra a bass reel can hold enough fifty pound with a short topshot that most school sized tuna can be landed. that does not make up for the fact that you can still only apply 10 or so pounds of pressure on the fish with a such a light rod.

The second issue with fish killed on light line is the overall fight time producing more acid in the flesh and slowly destroying your prized tuna
Light line is really a pussy way to fish when you think about it pulling on a 40 lb fish with 8lb of drag for an hour is like going to the gym and working with little dumbbells. the same fish on fifty or sixty will kick your ass and pull as hard as it can allowing you to really fight the fish, not just tire the fish out allowing it to take as much line as it wants. Keeping the fish on heavy string also helps the school build around the boat and helps ensure more fresh bait fish.

Now to head off the sportsman who just fishes for fun on light line, you know the C and R guy who thinks their is more sport in fishing the ultralight, and lets all his fish go, know that some fish, tuna especially, but even trout and spotfin will not ever recover from the amount of energy they use while you are playing them. For this guy I recomend fishing the absolute heaviest line, land your fish and release them quickly so you can increase the survivle rate. And kill the ones you know are gonna Die from deep hooks. a true sportsman uses more difficult techniques and conserves the resource.

The boats this weekend that had a few guys fishing the heavy caught more fish than the average, especially the bluefin. That stuff will eat heavy line and keep eating until the one guy gets bit on 10 lb and shuts it off. a Floro leader will do more for the line shy fish than just light mono. we had one passenger fish the forty to start every stop and ended up with 15 albacore and helped us hook many more bait fish than some of the other boats he also caught a nice Blue Fin Tuna on the straite 40 lb. I know that some of the long range boats will not let you start with less than forty until they put together a score.

My advice is to start heavy and then go light

But in the end you can fish what ever you want you are the paying customer, loosing fish on the light shit is better than not getting bit on the heavy for most people. For what it is worth this is my opinon what is yours?

.