Spearer1 Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 I lost a good fish this morning after he took enough line to get back to the bottom where he bust me off on the reef. How do I determine how tight to set my drag? Had I played him harder he probably would have ended up on tonights menu. Same happened last week when fishing my lighter gear too. Advice appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yarraone Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 I always set my drag at about 30% to 50% of the breaking strain of your line...I am no expert though andnot sure, so I also would like to see what people think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim77 Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 What were you fishing for and what sort of gear were you using? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spearer1 Posted January 22, 2011 Author Share Posted January 22, 2011 What were you fishing for and what sort of gear were you using? I was running 30lb braid with 20lb leader on a 4500 Okuma Raw spinner. I was bouncing a 7 inch jerk shad for Jew or snapper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluefin Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 A few things to consider here. Your drag pressure increases as the line on your spool decreases. So if you set 2kg at full you will have 4 at half empty and 6 at empty. If you have a shallow spool you will only get to 4kg, half spool. Your knot strength is another problem, you may loose 20% of your breaking strain because you have tied a knot! If fishing for for Bream or Kingfish where if you don't stop them within a few meters then you will get busted off, set it at 75% of your breaking strain, allowing 25% for knot strength. If chasing fish which are likely to take a lot of line, set it at 33%. How good your drag is can also be a problem, inertia to initially get the spool turning will spike the drag pressure, so will a rough drag. Thankfully both these problems have been greatly reduced with the modern oiled and carbon washers used today. Howard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim77 Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 A few things to consider here. Your drag pressure increases as the line on your spool decreases. So if you set 2kg at full you will have 4 at half empty and 6 at empty. If you have a shallow spool you will only get to 4kg, half spool. Your knot strength is another problem, you may loose 20% of your breaking strain because you have tied a knot! If fishing for for Bream or Kingfish where if you don't stop them within a few meters then you will get busted off, set it at 75% of your breaking strain, allowing 25% for knot strength. If chasing fish which are likely to take a lot of line, set it at 33%. How good your drag is can also be a problem, inertia to initially get the spool turning will spike the drag pressure, so will a rough drag. Thankfully both these problems have been greatly reduced with the modern oiled and carbon washers used today. Howard. Good advice above. Depending on where you were fishing it is quite likely that a King has grabbed your lure as they are more than a bit partial to those plastics. If it was a good King and it has grabbed it near the bottom you need to get on top of them early. If you are running light drag they will get you in the bottom before you know it and 20lb leader would stand no chance against a hard pulling fish and a rough bottom. If it happens again and you are still using lightish leader, try palming the spool with your hand to slow/stop the initial run, or increase the drag pressure significantly. From my experience people don't fish nearly enough drag pressure and then they wonder why they get smashed up when a reasonable fish hits. I have a mate who gets busted off all the time - i have never known anyone to lose so many fish - and its because he uses too light a drag pressure. Good luck next time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spearer1 Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 Thanks guys, that makes sense. Should I also be running a heavier leader? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmaniac Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 Thanks guys, that makes sense. Should I also be running a heavier leader? For 30lb braid I would be running 40lb to 50lb leader mate. That gives the confidence to go in hard on a big fish. The heavier leader will also give you some more abrasion resistance if a fish does get you into the reef. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forner Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 Hi all, Excelent Replies regarding drag pressure, however im not sure if it is the best idea to apply massive amounts of drag to fish who are likely to go for reef or any type of structure (unless you have the gear to skull drag it). in my experiences with large Snapper, Jewfish and Kings is to put the reel into freespool when you believe they are aproaching the bottom/ pylon. the more pressure, the more pain for the fish, the more likely to bust you up. freespool until you get some angle on the line and slowly re-apply pressure, this way you tire the fish out rather than freak it out! good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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