tld 20's with braid?

[ransomvt5]

i would appreciate opinions on using tld 20's with 30 lb power pro for pulling mojos, spoons, etc. for striper fishing in the bay. i have 3 tlds and plenty of 30 lb power pro, but i dont know if i should use wire or a stronger braid. i figure on the 3rd tld i would just use mono for swim shad or something. thanks for all of your opinions!

[jrocket567]

Ive got a pair of 20's that are spooled up w/ 20lb mono, and it does just fine with just about anything that i can throw out-- i dont fish those super duper huge 100 shad umbrella rigs, but it easily handles the mojos and smaller umbrealls- ive never wished for anything heavier, and it makes those rockfish a lot more fun to pull in[excited]
JP
"KwikRelease"

[capt. dave]

If you want big fish in you cooler, go bigger. For a 48 inch Rock, I'd use nothing less than 50# test and 80# would be better. Put at least 10 feet of heavy mono leader on the terminal end as a shock absorber.

[captaingeorge]

Agree with Dave, 20# doesn't cut it. Getting a look at a 4 footer then watching your line snap can ruin your whole day.[smile]

[jrocket567]

Light line= more fun.. ive caught an 80+ pound cobia on one of my 20lb outfits- different strokes for different folks
happy thanksgiving
JP
"KwikRelease"

[Boomerang]

I agree with JRocket. The medium-light stuff is fine.
I fish Penn Senators & Penn 309's spooled with wire for the heavy Mojo rigs,Penn 320 GTI's spooled with 25# mono for lighter Mojo's or umbrellas on Slammer Rods,Penn 209's spooled with 20# mono for the naked or light in-line weight baits & a couple of 5500 spinning outfits w/ 15# mono for the Hail-Mary baits.
Some of the biggest stripers I've ever caught was on the 209 with 20# line (42lb). IYou can really feel whats happening with the light rigs. I just keep a check on the drag & the big ones are no problem (when I'm lucky enough to fine 'em)!

[capt. dave]

Everyone has an opinion and a preference. I use the heavier tackle for my charter customers because most of them are not skilled anglers. They more often than not don't have a clue about how to play a fish except to turn the crank. Now when it comes to my own fishing, which isn't real often, I like to use lighter and sportier tackle too unless there is tournament money at stake. But use what turns you on and enjoy knowing that when you play a big striper to exhaustion using whimpy tackle you might as well kill it because it probably will die anyway.

[frogboat]

i agree to some extent wwith all the above post. its fun to catch big fish on light tackle. i try to target bigger fish and use heavier tackle (penn 330 and 340 on med heavy rods). this is needed to handle the big baits i pull.(big mojos and umbrellas). wiith all the boat traffic in the bay, if you are lucky enough to get a big fish on, you need to get it to the boat fast to avoid other boats, faster releases are benificial to the fish also. you can get by with lighter stuff, but when the water is snoty and the boats are crowded,with light stuff you ain't rockfishin

frog

[captaingeorge]

Great points, Frog. Also, when you've got 6 or 8 trolling lines in the water, it's best to get the fish in the boat ASAP.
Anyone that has hooked up 3 or 4 fish at the same time knows that "fighting" them is the LAST thing on your mind.[smile]

[pete330]

if you cant catch a 48inch rock on 20lb u r not a very good fisherman, ive caught a 60lb sailfish on 12lb test

[pete330]

if you cant catch a 48inch rock on 20lb u r not a very good fisherman, ive caught a 60lb sailfish on 12lb test

[frogboat]

if you have time, an experienced boat handler and want to kill the fish, it should be no problem to land a 50 lb striper on 20 lb line

frog

[pete330]

true except for the kill part, if you put 10lbs of drag on that 50lber thats plenty to catch em and release em healthy

[capt. dave]

Pete, I caught two white marlin in one day on 12 pound line so I know where you are comming from. The problem I have as a charter boater is the inexperience of the anglers. I just don't want to risk them loosing a big fish because the line was too light to make up for their lack of experience.

Also as Captaingeorge pointed out, multiple hookups can be a mess with light line. I've had 10 lines out with 9 fish on at the same time. If you don't think that is a fire drill you don't know what one is.

[Boomerang]

I know that the cold water during striper fishing helps assure a heathy release;I can't remember having to keep a striper (unless I wanted toi) because of it being played out,even with my 20lb line & 5 lbs of drag.
Capt Dave,were those white marlin killed or released with the 12lb tackle? The warm water & light tackle has to be hard on a 75-100 lb billfish. I have done right much billfishing ,never with anything less than 25lb line for sails in Palm Beach & 30lb for whites in VA Beach. We have had to revive some of those guys with the water being so warm it takes a toll in a hurry.

[capt. dave]

Both whites were tagged and released. I got a notification that one of them was recaptured off of Ocean City, MD. about a month or so after I released it. The other tag was not reported so I can't say what happened to the fish except it had a better chance of living than it would have hanging on my wall.

[rlcharters]

One of the benefits of the braided line is that you have the best of both worlds. Thinner diameter allows for more line on lighter reels. If you want the feel of smaller tackle, loosen your drag. If you need the strength of the line to get out of the way of others or to get the fish in more quickly, you have it. I personally believe that light tackle is designed to make smaller fish feel big. To tackle big fish with light tackle might make an angler feel like he has accomplished something, but, through my experience, it is the boat handler that manages to catch the fish and allow for its release, not the angler.