to leader or not to leader

[stars'nstripers]

OK... so I was fishing off a jetti I caught about 14 schoolies (biggest 24)
when I find a school of blues on the top and keepers on the bottem. the blues kept on stealing my lures. I got 2 keepers to the rocks but my winpy 8 lbs test always breaks. I would have gone to my stronger rod but the blues had taken a 9 of the only lures that the stripers were only taking. So me question is should I have put a leader on?

[cardnial77]

when blues aree around. use a wire leader

[EarnedStripes44]

dump that 8lb test bro.....Go with 40lb mono leader, if you are strictly after bass when blues around. If they are big blues and you wanna keep those lures, then you have no choice but to go w/ wire.

[GonnaCatchABig1]

thats seems like kind of a silly question. you lost 9 lures, when you would have lost none with wire.

i have had a few blues, but i haven't lost anything yet. the second i lose one thing, i will switch over. losing 9 lures, and not switching to a wire leader..? after the first 2 or 3 you should have had that wire on. no point in losing 6 more..

[Mike P]

8 lb test line from a jetty?

Leader or no leader, you're WAAAYY undergunned.

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by Mike P

8 lb test line from a jetty?

Leader or no leader, you're WAAAYY undergunned.

when i was younger i used to fish off a small jetty, with keepers lurking around. using 6lb test. never lost a fish. never caught a keeper either. but my buddy landed one on 12lb. it makes for some really really fun fishing. besides if a couple 13 yr olds can land stripers with 6-12lb test i'm sure older guys can.

[The Dad Fisherman]

When you hook into that 40 lb'er on that 8 lb test and it goes DOINK! and swims away......you'll upgrade.

you should be using 15lb. Minimum around a jetty....I would use 20 myself.

[Mike P]

12 pounders are glorified schoolies. You have very bad odds of landing a cow from rocks using line that light.

I will say this with 40+ years of experience---you would be lucky to land two out of every ten 25 pounders you hook up with on 6 lb test from a jetty--unless, of course, you're talking about one of Patrick's "jetties"

[Saltheart]

8 lb is for april when the fish are 12 inches and the lure is 1/2 OZ and there are no blues yet. Even at that i might use a 12 pound leader.

In the canal which is a little like jetty fishing , i use 50 LB running line and i use a 50 or 60 Lb leader depending on the material type. If blues are around , i switch to 18 to 36 inches of steelon leaders. A blue can easily bite through my 60 pound mono leader .

For the beach I use 35 lb running line and a 30 Lb to 50 LB leader , sometimes even 60 if its IGFA line I'm, using for the leader. .

BTW , my running line is spectron braid in both cases. there are other braids available now too which look promising. Mike p had some at the TFCTFN.

[The Iceman 6]

8lb test, is not good for the type of fishing you are doing. Upgrade line and leader.

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by Mike P

12 pounders are glorified schoolies. You have very bad odds of landing a cow from rocks using line that light.

I will say this with 40+ years of experience---you would be lucky to land two out of every ten 25 pounders you hook up with on 6 lb test from a jetty--unless, of course, you're talking about one of Patrick's "jetties"

this keeper was back when the limit was 36" it was.. if i recall 38" it can be done. i'm using 50lb braid now. i kinda don't like it. takes half fun out of it knowing it's nearly indestructible. i'm more concerned about my rod now than the line. i wouldn't use it if was more sure i wasn't gonna hook into an 8 ft sand shark.

i see no reason to upgrade his line when lure fishing for 25" and smaller. sure there is an off chance he lands a massive fish. but thats one out of every 30 fish probably. if that. that means 30+ fish of just "reel it in no problem"

if he was targeting larger fish.. upgrade. by his own accord he isn't targeting big fish. you forget not every one is crazy like us and has to catch bigger and bigger every time. (give him a season, lol)

i miss being able to enjoy a day of schoolies. i still do, but it leaves me shaking my head knowing i missed a big one again. but i am on a quest to finally get my first keeper. a real keeper 36"+ not this new 28" crap. (which i still have yet to even come close too)

[EarnedStripes44]

8lb test is best for largemouth Bass north of Maryland. I would'nt be caught fishing 8lb test in freshwater in Georgia or some other place with a long growing season. So why the hell would you use 8 lb on a jetty for stripers. Maybe for seatrout or weakfish, MAYBE!!!

[GonnaCatchABig1]

it's kinda disappointing seeing so many power guys here. when i was younger i spent 90% of my time large mouth fishing with one rod using 4lb test and my bigger using 6lb. caught a 6plb pickeral on the small one. it almost pulled me in the water. the lose sand under my feet was giving way. no line snap. berkley trilene.. i swore by it. only lost to fish to snap offs. and one might have been a snapping turtle anyway. but i caught some damn decent bass on that 4lb stuff. and it cast like a fine wine. or something.

it's kind of disheartening to see so many guys go with the "over power the fish" style. as opposed to finessing it. stick with that 8lb bro. jsut put a leader on next time.

[flyben24]

what i do sometimes when the blues r in the area is put on 2 snap swivels

[stars'nstripers]

Ok I am gonna buy 15lbs test line and I think i am do for a new rod, I will be fishing of a jetty, should I buy a spin casting rod or a conventional??? sorry bout that

[jkjnp]

Originally Posted by GonnaCatchABig1

it's kind of disheartening to see so many guys go with the "over power the fish" style. as opposed to finessing it. stick with that 8lb bro. jsut put a leader on next time.

20 lb mono is not overpowering... in my opinion if you play a fish to long you exhaust it and great decrease its chances of survival upon release. Every line-break also leaves a hook in the mouth of a fish and decreases its chance of survival. 8lb test is for fresh water. I agree that playing a fish on light tackle is tons of fun, but....

All that being said, I know that Capt. Mike Neto who's out of RI loves to land trophy bass on light tackle (6-8lb test). Watching it done is nuts.

[snake slinger]

leave the 8lb test at home and get some 20

[EarnedStripes44]

when i was younger i spent 90% of my time large mouth fishing with one rod using 4lb test and my bigger using 6lb. caught a 6plb pickeral on the small one. it almost pulled me in the water. the lose sand under my feet was giving way. no line snap. berkley trilene.. i swore by it. only lost to fish to snap offs

it's kind of disheartening to see so many guys go with the "over power the fish" style. as opposed to finessing it. stick with that 8lb bro. jsut put a leader on next time. [/QUOTE]

When I was younger, I spent 90% of my time largemouth Bass fishing with 10lb line, especially if I was using live minnows. I spent a great deal of time fishing slow flowing rivers in Georgia, where the chances of hooking into a 20 or 30 llb catfish, drum or freshwater striper are just a great as landing that 5 or 6 lb bucketmouth. You may call it "over power the fish style", but I call it sensible preparation. I would use 4lb or 6lb line for Bluegills and Crappie in Farm pond, but not off a jetty or in a rolling surf, or for that matter any body of water larger than an acre. Oh, and buy the way, when I deadbait or liveline for Pike or pickeral, I use wire leaders...

[Vogt]

At the very least I would be using 20 lb braid. 90% of the time I use 30 lb fireline. For leaders I generally use 40-50 lb mono. Save the 8lb test for the bass pond. These are big fish, and jetties can be very punishing on your tackle. You can find 20-30lb braid with the same diameter as 8 lb mono, if distance is the issue. Go heavier or you will be heart broken.

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by EarnedStripes44

You may call it "over power the fish style", but I call it sensible preparation.

eh. i'm using 50lb braid right now. only because i am targeting larger fish. it was 25lb and i thought that was a bit excessive. but with me chunking more this year and seeing some big (4ft) smooth dogs brought in, in my spot. i feel more comfortable with the bigger line.

too me it depends.. chunking or live lining anything, i go heavier. 12lb in fresh for shiners. just because it's not really targeting anything specific. anything will latch on to live or dead bait. but with plugs you can specifically target a couple types of fish much better. if he is targeting little stripers i wouldnt go much higher than 16lbs. but if he starts targeting anything bigger.. no less than 20lbs. even with out a fight they could snap it. the one i literall dragged in yesterday felt like it was gonna break my rod, it was about 38inches. so if i hooked into anything over 40inches i'm in for a good battle even with my 50lb crap.

also take into account the size of the jetty. the one i used to fish was only about 20ft long. not all of them are massive like the ones on harbors. back water ones can be very small with almost no surf to speak of. my old spot was like fishing a lake.


all and all this guy just needs to match his tackle to the fish he is targeting and the water conditions. as well what ever else maybe in the area. (like you said).

[Saltheart]

Finesse my butt! You are needlessly killing fish so that you can play with them longer after a hookup. Light tackle fishing for stripers you are not going to keep means higher mortality for the ones you catch and release. You may think its cool to play a fish a long time so that you consider yourself "finessing" the fish with ultra light line but in fact you are wearing the fish down to where he can't even break 8 lb line. In that weakened state , its unlikely he will survive after the release.

You are also leaving behind lots of gear in the fishes mouths for the ones you do not successfully "finesse" in . These fish have a higher mortality rate too.

Anyway , fishing for stripers with freshwater bass gear is not finesse , its ignorance of the fishery and the consequences of such missapllied gear.

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by Saltheart

Finesse my butt! You are needlessly killing fish so that you can play with them longer after a hookup. Light tackle fishing for stripers you are not going to keep means higher mortality for the ones you catch and release. You may think its cool to play a fish a long time so that you consider yourself "finessing" the fish with ultra light line but in fact you are wearing the fish down to where he can't even break 8 lb line. In that weakened state , its unlikely he will survive after the release.

You are also leaving behind lots of gear in the fishes mouths for the ones you do not successfully "finesse" in . These fish have a higher mortality rate too.

Anyway , fishing for stripers with freshwater bass gear is not finesse , its ignorance of the fishery and the consequences of such missapllied gear.

pfft.. rarely took me more than 5 mins to get a fish in.never over 10. never had a line snap. never had a fish slow to swim away.

[bart]

thats because you've never caught a good fish. listen to what people are telling you.....

[GonnaCatchABig1]

listen to what im telling you.. i was never targeting "good fish".
i was targeting schoolies upto 20 inches.
let me add though, he does have a point. if you aren't comfortable with that style. don't do it. i had been fishing extremely light tackle (nothin over 8lbs, usualy 4lb and 6lb test and a 4ft light and a 5 ft medium rod) since i was i three. giving me 12 yrs experience with very light tackle before i switched over to striper fishing. bringing in fish the size of a decent large mouth was no problem for me.

and if you must know, that 1 keeper was brought in by my buddy in under 10 mins. on 10lb test. it was also when the limit was 36"

that said. no light tackle in waters with currents and/or rough surf. or when fishing for keepers. i know some people here may find incredibly hard to believe that people can go fishing for small schoolies. but they do. it's a fun day. no need to have 20lb test to bring in a 4 or 5 lb fish. unless of course you have never caught anything larger than a bluegill on anything less than 6lb test. also i wouldn't suggest casting any further than 30 or 40 yards.

[GonnaCatchABig1]

oh yeah.. and when i was fishing back then for the little guys.. i always clipped the barbs off my hooks. just incase of a break off, there was a better chance they could eventualy shake the hooks. not mention making it far easier to remove the hooks from the fish. and no stainless steel hooks.

[Mike P]

I'm a little confused here--didn't you post this recently in another thread?

06-30-2007, 10:53 PM
GonnaCatchABig1
must find the fish Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 72

i don't think throwing the eel would be the problem.. i think getting the cow that takes the eel might. though i am a fan of light tackle, throwing an eel on 12lb is asking for a break off (eventually). i would say go with some power pro, 25lb line. maybe even 30 if you plan of tossing eels around. the 25 is just as thin if not thinner than 12lb mono. in fact.. i think the 50lb stuff is only 15lb diameter. so 25 should be around 8 or 10. not too mention the stuff casts a mile.

after today.. i can't imagine pulling in anything over 15lbs on a 12lb line.. if you do it on a regular basis.. i salute you.

So what side of your mouth are you talking out of today?

[RIROCKHOUND]

Was it his mouth he was actually talking out of

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by Mike P

I'm a little confused here--didn't you post this recently in another thread?

06-30-2007, 10:53 PM
GonnaCatchABig1
must find the fish Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 72

i don't think throwing the eel would be the problem.. i think getting the cow that takes the eel might. though i am a fan of light tackle, throwing an eel on 12lb is asking for a break off (eventually). i would say go with some power pro, 25lb line. maybe even 30 if you plan of tossing eels around. the 25 is just as thin if not thinner than 12lb mono. in fact.. i think the 50lb stuff is only 15lb diameter. so 25 should be around 8 or 10. not too mention the stuff casts a mile.

after today.. i can't imagine pulling in anything over 15lbs on a 12lb line.. if you do it on a regular basis.. i salute you.

So what side of your mouth are you talking out of today?

i'm not a fan of light tackle anymore. i used to be. if you read this you'd see i moved up to 50. i still think its over kill. but i like it. cause i switched over to chunking for the time being. and i cant imagine doing it. since i never have. for fish under 10lbs.. i'm all about it. if i had 8-12lb test on, catching schoolies would be fun again. now it's lame. it's like .. hook up, barely feel a fish on, reel in and repeat. i loved fishing for schoolies in the river by my house on light tackle. their was some fear it MIGHT break off. and a feeling of slightly workin it. plugs+light tackle=catching small schoolies is fun. but it now doesnt matter, cause now i'm chunkin in a spot where there is close to nothing under 20", and there is a good fight on the other end.

if i could i would much rather use lighter crap. i just can't. throwin 8 and bait on 12lb would be a nightmare. aka losing 80% of the bait on casts. and god forbid hooking into another on of those 30"plus fish and pulling them in threw rough water and currents. helllll no.

if this guy is catching smaller fish with success on his 8lb stuff. i love that. thats like the guys tuna fishing with 25-50lb crap.

[gone fishin]

???? what a thread!

[stars'nstripers]

hey ok this is not what this thread is sposed to be about. I am using such light test because the fish are small OK???? I have not killed one fish..... PLZ LOCK THIS THREAD UP