Thread: Longliners.......help

I aint no expert but longline is how i fish. i pull 8 poles out the back and 8 out the front. in the back length dont matter to me, mostly 6 footers back there. front i have 6,8,10,12. fan em out where they have some distance at the tips. rig with a single 1/16 or double 1/16 or 1/16 with #5 split shot. sometimes change up to 1/24 or 1/32 in the spring. i use only extra light wire hooks with 4lb or 6lb line. how much line to let out is the hardest part for me. usually start with a good pitch out to see what happens and watch the depth finder to see if i need more line out or take up some. tough to get right sometimes, just a feel thing ya get after awhile. i also count the line out, rod tip on water pick pole up vertical (x) amount of times usally 4 or 5 maybe more or less, flip the bail and use the 1 one thousand trick some of the time. the back has a lot more line out than the front. helps with the tangles between front and back too. i pull .7 to 1.5 mph but 1 mph works the best for me most of the time. make wide turns and speed up in the turns to help keep em up. get the fish up on top quick as ya can . when tangles happen i just cut em and retie. i think the extra light wire hooks help more than anything though, i dont break off near as much. i always put the big motor in gear too. i like the southern pro bodies the best but do use some awd tripple tails.

Thanks for your input DEX.

I like to use the same size poles out the back (9' Roger Gant). Side of the boat I like longer poles 10',12' and 14'. Tangles are a part of life when you L.L. I would suggest start out using the same style jig head, same body( Bobby Garland Stroll'R ) is the best. A good spinning reel helps alot. I believe line size, speed and jig size are the #1 way to determine trolling depth. It takes some TOW.
Get ready to retie a TON but I love it.

try it with 2 rods, 1 rod per side, 2 jigs per rod, much easier, more time fishing rather than dealing w/ 6/8/10 rods . Reel 'em in when you need to make a turn or want to run over the same track/structure as you just did. More time fishing, less tangles, less headaches, more fun. I have never had a tangle LL'g this way, I sit and watch the two rods on the bow and the FF, and control the boat. Well, now the Ipilot controls the boat for the most part, so I have even more fun.

How long does it take to clear out a tangle, that time could be spent fishing. jmo.

Dex pretty much described exactly how I do it too. Heavier jigs or doubles up front and lighter or singles out back. Also Brad is right about trying to run identical style heads and line size too. Pline 4Lbs is as strong as any 6 I have used, but I like the Viscious 6 hiviz in bulk spools.

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Why do ya'll run 6 pound test instead of 10? 6 seems to be asking for it as far as breaking off a good fish.

Wannabe...

Torch, I've been in Clearwater FL working all week, haven't had time to respond, headed home at the moment. Sitting in the Tampa Airport. Here's my take.

In order to get longlining down you have to FORGET about catching a bunch of fish at first. Don't use more poles than you can handle. Pick an area that's fairly stump and brushpile free. You can't let hangups and loosing jigs get the best of you or make you get disgusted with this technique. It works well at times and at times you may seem like you're wasting your time. Don't give up.

A few tips:
1. Speed determines depth
2. Jig weight determines depth
3. Amount of line determines depth
4. Start out with light weight jigs, 1/32nd and 1/16th.
5. Make slight turns as often as possible.

Ok. Gotta get on the plane more to come later.

Originally Posted by Minnerman

Spoons are fer nanner puddin. It's jus that simple.

Always gotta be one smartaz in the bunch. Can't disagree with ya there though. If you ever make it into a Charlie's Chicken be sure to try their nanner puddin...it's a deal maker!