Gmans intro to Casting to Big Game Fish

[gman]

This Intro to Casting to big game fish was promised after the response from my previous how to article called Gmans Intro to Jigging. I feel that we should all share info that increases our odds at landing more slobs and this was created to become a reference to which can be found here

Gmans intro to Vertical jigging

Why you should read this ……..

You may think this doesn’t pertain to you may be a chunker, you may be a troller or a live bait person and the last thing you probably thought about was throwing top water poppers … but think again. Have you ever had the following happen?

You spot a school of tuna, you troll and troll and troll but they just won’t feed. You should always have one set up for casting in case this happens, you will increase you chances of hooking up dramatically. Last year on several trips this has saved the day for many people. Variety is the spice of life and knowledge is power, embrace and execute for success

Or …

Your marking tuna or fish 50’ down but they wont eat your chunks or jigs, break out a huge cup popper or a shiny swim bait and watch them fight over it and raise.



I have spent the last several years chasing large game fish such as Yelowfin Tuna & Marlin on topwater all over the world from PV, Cabo, Panama and off Cape Cod for large bluefins. This article will be based on casting to tuna however the same principles can be used when casting to almost any pelagic, these techniques work on everything from Amberjack – Marlin.

[gman]

You get the call, “We found them, boiling tuna, get you ass over here”. In an instant your heart is racing as the throttles of the boat are pushed to full and your off and racing 10 miles in 3-foot seas with pouring rain in your face. The small spec on the horizon gets bigger and bigger, which is your friends boat. On the way you frantically check and re check your hooks, your leader, your connections as you’re pounded by the waves, hoping & praying you’re not to late. You wipe the burning salt water out of your eyes to get a better look at the horizon.

The first thing you notice as you get closer is the black sky and the white water beneath it but as you near the area you realize that the black sky is birds diving frantically into the white water below. It’s hard to make at first what’s under the birds but as you slow down and approach with the wind at your back you can see the spinner dolphin feeding and there is rolling tuna everywhere. WIDE OPEN BITE … a once in a lifetime bite

A wide-open natural feed predators, baitfish skyrocketing everywhere desperately fleeing for their lives. You can sense the desperation as baitfish are frantically jumping anywhere and everywhere including the boat. Absolutely pure chaos all within a small area and as you arrive you see your friends on the other boat in obvious pain and bent over fighting the unknown.

You calm yourself down, steady yourself in the bow and with a strong powerful cast launch your popper into the violently frothing ocean … Flip the bail of your Stella ... long pull CHUG … Long pull CHUG … long pull CHUG a boil behind you!!! C’mon take it take it, take it Biatch zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzz you’re tight. The huge yellowfin races along the surface for a moment before plunging to the depths below peeling off massive amounts of line.

Your about to do battle with a beast in an un conventional way, I hope you brought you’re A-Game because he bought his. The battle goes vertical after an initial long run and after a battle the circles get smaller, and the goal is in reach one more turn, that’s all I need. Stick her, stick her!!!!!! The gaff reaches out and the shot is made in the head. All you see is blood red water; all you hear is your heartbeat and that tail whacking the water. Another gaff goes in and over the side she goes with a thud on the deck your dream has been realized. Now put away so I can cast again..

WELCOME TO HEAVEN ... isnt it frigging awesome !!!!!!!

[gman]

TIP – Make sure you buy a high-speed reel that can accommodate at least 300 yards of 65-80 pound braid and produce at least 25 pounds of drag. Chasing big tuna can get hairy on the first run and having enough capacity always helps you land that trophy



I also really suggest using a reel like the new Shimano Stella because of the new Casting lip, it makes the line flow off the reel at a much more efficient manner and helps your distance significantly

I will not be covering conventional reels, as 99 percent of anglers will be using spinning reels. The general rule of thumb for casting is to use the highest gear possible. This will allow you to work your artificial properly whether it’s keeping a swim bait moving during the whole retrieve or chugging a big popper.



You can use a lower gear reel if that all you have for poppers but not swim baits, and I don’t suggest it but sometimes financial situations may not allow you to have both models and will make life very easy on you.

TOP SHELF INVESTMENT Spinning Reels – My first choices from $600-$1,000

SHIMANO STELLA - JPD or Japanese Domestic Models
1. Stella 18000 HG at 5.7:1, 55 pounds of drag,
2. Stella 10000XG at 5.8:1 and 55 pounds of drag
3. Stella 8000HG at 5.6:1 and 55 pounds of drag

SHIMANO STELLA USA model
1. Stella 18000SW at 5.7-1 and 55 pounds of drag
2. 10000SW at 5.8 and 55 pounds of drag
3. 80000SW-PG, which is 5.6:1, and 55 pounds of drag

DIAWA
1.Diawa Satiga-Z 6500 Dogfight at 6.2:1 and 60 pounds of drag
2.Diawa Saltiga Z 6000GT at 6.2:1 and 60 pounds of drag

ACCURATE
1. Accurate Twin Spin SR 30 at 6:1 and 40 pounds of drag
2. Accurate Twin Spin SR 20 at 5:1 and 30 pounds of drag

MIDDLE OF THE ROAD $200-$650

1. Shimano Twin Power 12000HG at 5.6 and 40 pounds of drag
2. Quantum Cabo 80PT at 4.9:1 and 30 pounds of drag
3. Shimano Spheros 14000
4. Penn Sportfisher SS 850 at 4.6:1
5. Quantum Boca 80 at 4.9:1

[gman]

TIP – Pick a rod that suites your needs not the “IN” rod. Everyone’s bodies are different therefore each rod will fit you different. If you know you will cast 105g rods pick the best rod in that class that you love, not what everyone else buys because only one person will fight that trophy and its you not them.

The length debate continues the sooner you come to grips with using a longer rod the better you will be because in casting length is an important factor especially on those days when the fish don’t stay up on top for long. You may get 5 casts into the school before they dive so you need to make them count

FEATURES & BENEFITS …. WHAT TO LOOK FOR

For the most part the descriptions I used for jigging rods really hold true here as well with some minor differences

Lightweight – weight is very important, especially when you are throwing 100g (3.5 ounce) - 200g (7 ounce) poppers all day in the sun so you will need a light rod so you can cast all day without fatigue.

Balanced – Because of the amount of casting you will do you will need a well balanced rod so u can properly work the popper. Plus with a totally balanced rod you will have more control and leverage over your fish

Power – You want a rod that will have backbone but at the same time bend with the fish. Too much backbone and your back with kill you and the rod will be heavier, not enough and it will take hours to land your fish. Most casting rods power will be about 6” above the upper grip.

Action – Unlike jigging rods where you have the ability to chose a parabolic rod in casting you really don’t use parabolic rods because of the length. A good casting rod with proper backbone will deflect stress off you and into the fish.

Tip – Depending on your choice of weapons, stick bait or popper the tip sections will become more important but the tip must be flexible so you can properly load the rod when casting to maximize casting distance but still have enough stiffness to work the lure

Popping Tip – The tip should be the stiffer of the two so you can pull larger chuggers through the water in a violent fashion but also light enough to load properly

Swim bait & Stick Bait Tips – The tip can be softer and lighter to twitch your baits through the water. This is more of a finesse type technique so stiffness is not important

Length – Look for a two-piece rod, as it will make traveling much easier. Unlike jigging where shorter is better in casting long rods rule anything from 7’9”- 9’ is the norm with 8’ being around average

[gman]

Most casting rods are rated in several different ways rods are rated in two ways by the GRAM (jig weight) and the PE Rating (line Rating) & Style.

Gram rating: Casting rods will have a range of weighted lures to use

EXAMPLE: Rods with a 50-100g rating means the rod was made to throw a lure in the 50-100 gram range. This takes into consideration the ability to properly load the rod while casting. Under this example on a 50-100g rod you should not use a 160g lure, as it will not throw correctly.

PE rating: The PE rating is the same for both jigging and popping. Almost always a heavier gram rated rod will have a heavier PE line rating which translates into a higher drag capacity. You will be able to apply much more drag on a PE8 rod than a PE3 rod.

Drag Rating: Casting rods are longer therefore you have more of a chance of mis using rod therefore most manufactures will list a fighting drag and max drag rating to let you know the rods limits under load. It is advisable to stick within the ratings for successful use.

DO NOT HIGH STICK RODS or YOU WILL BREAK THEM

Personally I will only use PE6-8 rods because I know my popper size is 200-400g and my drag will always be high because of the fish I pursue

TOP SHELF CASTING RODS in no specific order prices range from $400 and up

POPPER ROD FIRST, SWIM BAIT ROD SECOND

Carpenter 78UHL, Carpenter TN-87
Ocean Revolution BLACK DEVIL 100, 200 & Stealth
HOTS Gipang 79XH, HOTS Gipang 83H
Smith WRC 80P/35, TOKARA 60
Zenaq Fooketo Trevally 83-5, Zenaq Fooketo Tuna 83-4
Ocean Tackle International Tuna Sniper 40/60, 60/80

Second Tier – great rods up to $300

OTI Ocean X-Treme Popping rods 40/60, 60/80
Lamiglass Tropic Pro 70/30

Black Devil 200 in action on large Tuna



Black Devil 100 in action on Tuna

[gman]

TIP Line – Never spool up your casting reel to the rim, this will create wind knots from excess line. On casting reels always back away from the brim enough so your leader is Braid is still beneath the spool lip

Example of spool being filled properly



You do not need PE lines but they are very nice if you want to spend the money if not normal braid will work fine. Basically in a nutshell you have two types of braids. Normal braids and PE braids.

REGULAR BRAID - I would strongly suggest the use of Braid, there are, as you know many good choices, personally I have used and been happy with several non colored braids such as Suffix, Tufline XP and JB solid & Hollowcore. I am not a fan of using windon leaders with Spinning reels but some swear by it. I have had issues with power pro so I have shied away from it, plus I do not like a coated braid. These braids are all cost effective and can used with confidence.

POPULAR BRAID COMPANIES
Suffix
Tufline XP
JB Solid or Hollowcore

PE LINES – Unlike the intro to jigging, colored braid is not needed unless you are using a reel as double duty. A softer braid is highly recommended because it will cast farther. I have used Tufline XP, Suffix, Jerry Brown Hollowcore, Varivas GT Max and my suggestion of Varivas GT Max SMP. This line is very expensive but is the single best casting line I have ever used. Soft but strong like bull.

POPULAR PE COMPANIES
Varivas
YGK

[gman]

They began with diameter, using a long-established numbering system that fits a small range of diameters into a number – for instance, a No. 4 Japanese line will be close to 0.35mm diameter, regardless of whether it’s braid, nylon, fluorocarbon or whatever. In gel-spun polyethylene braids, these Japanese numbers are commonly used from 0.6 (about 0.14mm) to 12 (about 0.7mm); and they’re usually prefixed with PE (for PolyEthylene), so now you’ll often see Japanese braids referred to as PE1, or PE4, or PE8 or whatever.

One of the most noticeable differences is the line is completely soft and limp and non coated therefore it is very easy to tie a knot into

AVERAGE PE RATINGS – FOR TUNA I WILL USE PE6 - 80# AND UP

PE3- 40
PE4-55
PE5 - 70
PE6 – 80
PE8 – 100
PE10 – 120
PE12 - 150


POPULAR PE LINES

Varian Casting Line
YGK Casting line

[gman]

TIP: You do not need Fluro Carbon Leader IMHO. When you are casting a popper your leader is being pulled through the water surface so the fish don’t really see it similar to trolling. If you are using a swim bait like a Smith Baby Runboh then maybe but 99% of the time I use regular shock leader.

Now the important factor here is to use SOFT leader so its casts correctly which is another reason I do not suggest Fluro as it tends to be stiff which affects the movement of your lure and your casting distance. Regular shock leader, which is a very soft subtle leader, which has very elastic properties and is extremely easy to tie knots with up to 240-pound test.



Proper Leader length is several wraps around spool and then back out of rod tip atleast 24-36" example below. Notice how popper ends up being between first and second guides.



I will start with length, I normally put about 4-6 wraps around my spool and then out of my rod tip by 2’ so maybe 15-20’ of leader. Just enough that if I get bit off several times I still wont have to re tie



POPULAR SHOCK LEADERS

Varivas Shock Leader
Fisherman Stealth Leader

POPULAR FLUROCARBON

Yozuri
Seagar
Varivas

[gman]

TIP – Whatever knot you decide to use make sure it is short and slim, you are casting therefore the knot must pass through 8’ of casting rod. Super short and slim. If you are doing a PR Knot you should make it half the size as your normal one so it does not get caught up in guides during casting 1.5 - 2” max

There is no perfect answer here but many choices as I tell everyone the best knot to tie is a knot you are comfortable tying. Period end of story. Some love the uni-uni, some love the Albright, some like the midknot, personally I use a PR knot because of it low profile and strength

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u99KSrXdpu4

But there are many knots that will work. Another connections would be wind on leader, which is gaining in popularity. This loop-to-loop connection is very easy to make and has no knot at all

http://www.bhptackle.com/index.php

[gman]

TIP: You should use extra large split rings to accommodate larger hooks and teh depth of popper cup if not you will not have clearance

Any knot will work like a uni, trilene etc. You have two major ways of connecting your leader to your jigs after your knot. As you know it can become very time consuming to re tie while the bite is hot so most incorporate a very simple connection.

WHEN YOU WANT TO CHANGE POPPERS

The benefit to these connections is you never need to re tie you just take the popper off the split ring to change out with the split ring pliers. Simple and easy and quick to do.


1. Swivel to split ring to popper - Personally this is the way I connect everything. As you are casting your line as a tendency to twist because of the motion and as you know line twist can leader to damaged or weekend line so I always use a swivel. It’s the safest way to prolong the life of your line.



TOOLS NEEDED

Owner 200-300 pound swivels and split rings from 400# and up.