Thread: DB - Fishing Tip

Originally Posted by Ditch Basser

Many fellow anglers are surprised when they fish with me, I use primarily 4- or 6-pound test line and usually out distance them casting even with 1/32 or 1/64oz jigs. Two things that are important, first keeping a light drag and using a light or even ultralight rod. Second, lures will cause line twist as well as line stripped by a fish with a light drag. I change my line often and every trip or two I cut my lure off and strip the line off my reel in the yard and reel it back in holding the line a couple times to remove twist in the line. A better way for the boat anglers is to do it on the water at the end of the day. This will insure everything is at its best on the next trip. Often if you let twisted line "sit" on the reel the line will be rough and kinked requiring replacement. Often complaints of a "bad" reel not letting someone cast a lure is actually line twist.

Back in the fall a couple years ago I brought an 18-pound Flathead to the kayak in a 10-foot jig rod on 4-pound test line. Light drag, take care of your line and you'll put more fish in the boat!

DB

I like you, take care of line and rod and reels perform flawlessly if setup right.
I also fish three,four and six pound test.
I’ve also caught some nice flat heads. But I have also caught some monster gar and we call them grentals but their real name is bowfish eight and ten pounds.
Average crappie size one and a half pounds to two and a half pounds.
But average catching three plus pound crappie about every fourth trip. Can’t tell you how many that size I have lost because couldn’t get net underneath them correctly or in heavy brush situation I will change to lite wire hooks which has bent. At times if I don’t take my time tying hooks/jigs on and wet the line properly the line has snapped while landing big fish at the knot with the smaller diameter line.
Still trying to get better at not letting the big one get away. My personal best after I started weighing them is three pounds seventeen ounces.


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silverroach,

A four-pound Crappie is a hog! I've promised myself if I ever get an 18-inch Crappie I'll get it mounted. I seem to catch at least one that's a half inch short of that mark every year but still no 18-inch fish, LOL. You can probably drag 20-pound test around without any issues in muddy water, but North Alabama get very clear between rains and downsizing bait, and line is the difference between catching fish and not. Most folks seem fearful of losing too many fish, but you've got to get them on the hook first to catch them.

The area where I caught all the short Crappie a couple days ago had a single old log laying on the bottom. One side was about a foot deeper (downstream) and rock with sand on the upstream side and a foot shallower. I keep bring the jig across the log with the Crappie laying in the current break created by the log. I didn't know any of that until I went to leave and paddled over on top of the spot. I could clearly see the bottom in three to four feet of water. Long cast on 4-pound line was the only way to get the fish to bite. Even in a kayak if I'd gotten any closer than 40 or 50 feet away, I would have spooked the fish. The beautiful thing is I now know where that log is for the next trip and expect it to hold fish for the next decade unless a flood changes the bottom contours.

Taking care of your equipment and slowing down are some of the most important lessons my father taught me about fishing. He always said if you think you're fishing slow enough, then SLOW down, LOL!

One other about Crappie, you don't have to net all your Crappie, just the ones you want to get in the boat!

Do y’all think hi viz line hurts the bite?


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When jig fishing and shooting docks, I prefer 2 and 4 lbs test. I like to long line with 6. Anything heavier than that gets a leader with smaller line. It does matter where I fish here in N AL. Thanks for your post DB, agree 100% with your analysis on line and line care. If you're not getting bit, it doesn't matter on how you land the fish because you have no fish to try to land!