How else do YFT bite

[walkerman]

So, I am a relative newbie to long range fishing. I know that when I am soaking a bait and line starts screaming off my reel, I am getting bit. Are there more subtle types of bites I am missing?

[RobW]

Tuna only go one speed - ballistic. Keep your line tight but in free spool for a few seconds after you think your bait was picked up by a missle and then throw it in gear and put a good bend in your rod. Try to keep your fish in front of you and focus on letting your drag work for you when he runs and pumping in line when he stalls. Tight lines!

[mooose29]

They will sometime pick up the bait swimming at the boat. You will feel the bite and then have a moment were you are not quite sure what has happened. But the reel in gear and wind like a maniac until you catch up to the fish and everything come tight. i have had tuna swim all the way to the boat before you could catch up to it.

[Chris Delany]

what I tell people is:
keep enough tension on your line by backspooling but not so much that your bait can't swim, if that steady tension becomes slack depending on how fast it becomes slack wind like hell and just continue to wind until you have a direct conection and the fish is pulling line off the reel. Always remeber conditions change, so adjust accordingly if your on a sport boat listen to the crew, they want you to catch fish. its somthing that comes with experence its very hard to explain, but Rob said it best they have one speed balistic, im assuming you are on a sport boat fishing bait or chunk, things can change if you are walking baits (skipjack/small yellowfin) and have them rubberbanded to riggers, you can get a feel for how the bait reacts by watching the rubberband and knowing when to take it out of the rigger. Make sure your drags are set before you even start fishing once your hooked up, get settled in dont immediately start adjusting ever bell and whistle you have. Good luck

p.s. when in doubt ask a crew member

[Bada Bing]

Originally Posted by mooose29

They will sometime pick up the bait swimming at the boat. You will feel the bite and then have a moment were you are not quite sure what has happened. But the reel in gear and wind like a maniac until you catch up to the fish and everything come tight. i have had tuna swim all the way to the boat before you could catch up to it.

yep, that's the other kind of bite.

[rusty_038]

I have been in a 3-way on one fish. The thing ate three baits before anybody knew what happened. It was funny when we were trying to get the lines "untangled", putting the tips together and none of the lines were twisted. Then we brought the fish to gaff and we found all three hooks in his mouth! It was about a 100 pounder.

Good fishing,
rusty_038

The Rail is my friend.

[mcrae]

I have had tuna suck down a bait and swim at a speed that matches the boat. On those bites it has taken me a while to figure out I was hooked up. In hindsight I have come to the understanding that the best way to find out if I am hooked up is to keep a bit mpre tension in the line while fly lining. Enough to feel the bait more often than not but not so much that I tire the bait out more than need be.
When you think you are getting bit give the fish a couple seconds of freespool, attempt to slow the spool by putting a finger on top the spool, put the reel in gear and then wait for the fish to bend the rod over. Do not jerk on the rod to set the hook. This way if you are not getting bit you can put the reel back in free spool and continue to fish the same bait. If you are getting bit the hook will probably lodge in the corner of the fishes mouth. This works with both J and circle hooks.
Hope this helps.

[FishSwami]

Originally Posted by mcrae

I have had tuna suck down a bait and swim at a speed that matches the boat. On those bites it has taken me a while to figure out I was hooked up. In hindsight I have come to the understanding that the best way to find out if I am hooked up is to keep a bit mpre tension in the line while fly lining. Enough to feel the bait more often than not but not so much that I tire the bait out more than need be.
When you think you are getting bit give the fish a couple seconds of freespool, attempt to slow the spool by putting a finger on top the spool, put the reel in gear and then wait for the fish to bend the rod over. Do not jerk on the rod to set the hook. This way if you are not getting bit you can put the reel back in free spool and continue to fish the same bait. If you are getting bit the hook will probably lodge in the corner of the fishes mouth. This works with both J and circle hooks.
Hope this helps.

I second this reply.

I have been fishing sporadically for a long time but have put significant time in over the last two seasons.

For the most part I fish tuna with circle hooks but have gone to J hooks for certain applications (usually it has to do with the way I am pinning the bait to the hook).

I had been taught by some pretty good fisherman to fish the J hook just like the circle hook. I do not set the hook at all but just wind tight until I feel tension and then gently lift the rod tip and fight the fish.

It works like a charm the vast majority of the time and it is how I've been teaching my seven year old with excellent success.

I see guys swinging wildly to set the hook and kind of giggle now. Certainly this has its place in J hook fishing but I have come to the conclusion that winding the line tight is much more important and often all that is necessary.

Just my opinion...

[backlashjack]

Originally Posted by rusty_038

I have been in a 3-way on one fish.

Kinky

[Bottom Line]

Quite a few years ago my bro & I were fishing out near the 181 - it was a flat calm day - I saw some minor disturbance on the water and motored over - stopped a ways off and let the boat slide within casting distance. What I saw was pretty amazing - there was a fairly large area (100' dia?) of tuna with their dorsals out of the water - they were moving ever so slowly - I tossed a sardine and felt a peck, peck sort of bite, much like a largemouth picking up a soft bait - I reeled down and set the hook with a 30 lb class Yellow Fin Tuna coming to gaff. I repeated this several times and lost quite a few on the hookset since they were just mouthing the baits. I ended up with 3 fish.
Not all tuna haul ass and set the hook for you.

[slydawg]

Also remember when chunking.... "Chunks don't swim"

[Rubberhook2]

Sometimes you get bit after you have got bit...