Budget Rig for 100 lb Tuna

[fishmeluck]

I'm going out on a 1.5 day on the Prowler (San Diego) on Aug. 12. I'm set for 20#, 30#, and 50# rigs. If I hook one of those 200 lb bluefin, forget it, I'll just break off my own line, make up a story, and save myself the pain.

But if I hook a 100 lb tuna (or less), I'd like to give catching it a try. I've got an Okuma Titus Gold TG50W, never used. Been scouring Craigslist and eBay for a good deal on a used Calstar or other good quality used tuna rod of the right size and can't find anything cheap enough for me (like 1/3 what it's really worth). I'm unlikely to use a setup like this very often. I don't even want to buy a lot of expensive braid for the reel. The reel box says the TG50W can hold 420 yd of 80 lb mono. An Internet source says the drag rating is 27 lb at strike for the TG30 and 35 lb for the TG55. (I don't even think a TG55 exists. Maybe they meant the TG50.)

So, this is what I've come up with:
Buy this line: Sufix Superior, High Vis Yellow, 80 lb mono, 500 yards, $43 on Amazon (my vision isn't what it used to be)
Buy this rod: Shakespeare One-Piece Heavy Action Ugly Stik Tiger Lite Jigging Rod, 6' 3", 50-100 lb, $70 on Amazon.
Put 420 yards of 80 lb mono on the reel. Set the drag somewhere between 20 and 27 lb.

Do you think a 58 y.o. fellow with a bad back can whip a 100 lb tuna with it? How about two 50 pounders a few hours apart?

[Dominick]

That outfit should work very well.  Set at 20lbs. there should be very little pressure on your back.  Dominick

[john2244]

I have several rods I used for fishing big tuna.  You are welcome to borrow one for your trip.
John
San Clemente

[fishmeluck]

I have several rods I used for fishing big tuna.  You are welcome to borrow one for your trip.
John
San Clemente

I've taken John up on his offer ...

Interestingly, I had just taken the Ugly Stik off my Amazon order and ordered just the line because I was planning to ask a teacher friend if he had a rod I could borrow, and by chance decided to take another look at this forum before making the call, when I noticed John's reply.

Thanks again, John.

[coastal_dan]

John saves the day!  Glad this worked out

[Dominick]

Is there a fish report Fishmeluck?  Dominick

[fishmeluck]

Is there a fish report Fishmeluck?  Dominick

I took a lot of razzing already from friends for no pics, but here goes. The day before the trip, I invited new neighbor Juan to come with me, and he took me up on it. We met up with John in San Clemente around 9:30 am on the way to San Diego. John was a wealth of information for me and Juan about which rigs to use. John lent me a Calstar Grafighter 40-100#, and he lent Juan a 40# rig as well! Juan also had a 30# rig I lent him. Juan and I moseyed on down to San Diego, stopped in at Squidco, put some line on John's 40# rig, visited some tackle shops, and got a parking spot at the landing 4 hours early ... and none too soon, as people started trolling the lot 3 hours early searching for the elusive parking spot. Meanwhile, we took an afternoon nap.

My wife says my stories contain too many details ... I don't know what she's talking about.

The Prowler left the dock about 20 minutes early, stranding one guest on the dock who went back to one of the landing restaurants to pick up some last minute dinner. Fortunately, the boat was still within earshot and Captain Buzz backed the boat to the dock again and picked him up as he cried "Hey Prowler!" with dinner and two beers in his hands.

Bait seemed good, large sardines, and Captain Buzz handled every scoop. Fishing was tough, though. The bluefin bite offshore of the east end of Catalina all but shut down the next morning. The captain moved several times, but all we could do was scratch up six bluefin from 20 to 40 lbs in about six hours. The captain tried looking for fish on the troll and at kelp paddies after that, but six was still the total at 7:30 pm. Some folks who might never have been skunked before on a tuna trip out of San Diego might have been skunked for the first time. Back in San Diego the next morning, we learned that our results were pretty typical for boats that fished  the day.

The surprise for me was the wind and swell when I woke up about 5:15. We were still enroute, but when we stopped about 10 minutes later, the wind was 15-20 knots and we wallowed in 6 - 8 ft short period swells in the near-dark. It was pretty disorienting. I tried threading line through my rod guides and tying on hooks but soon had to just sit and stare straight out at the barely visible grey light on the horizon. I was pretty queasy, and it was either sit and concentrate on not getting sick or risk getting very sick. Fortunately, the feeling passed as the sun came up and I could see better. A few others did not fare as well. But fairly soon, everyone was OK and fishing hard.

About 8:30 am, I was oh so lucky to get even one fish, and it was a 42 lb bluefin. Another fellow actually scratched up two fish, and I was sure the larger one was bigger than mine. Turned out his was longer but mine was fatter, and mine outweighed his by maybe a pound. So, I was also the lucky jackpot winner at the end of the day.

The fish were 50 - 150 ft deep, and it took a 2 - 4 oz torpedo sinker rubber-banded to the line to get down to them. Even then, you had to let out 100 - 150 yards of line due to the fast drift in the stiff breeze. Fly-lining just wasn't getting the bait deep enough.

I fished most of the morning with a 7 ft, 40-60 lb rod, a 4 ft 50 lb fluoro "camo" leader, and 2/0 ringed circle hook. That was my own rod, and it was also the rod that John recommended that I fish with all day. After talking to other anglers at the landing, I decided to leave my big Okuma reel and John's heavy tuna rod in the car. But, Juan used John's 40# rig all day.

After getting many fresh baits out there in good position without getting bit, I started fretting about my leader and hook. So, I switched to a 6 ft 40 lb clear fluoro leader and 3/0 hook. I didn't want to go any lighter than 40 lb leader, because what if I hooked a big fish? One or two baits later, I got bit.

Juan got skunked, but first thing in the morning, he was smart to suggest that we partner on the jackpot. If either of us won, we would split it. Back in San Diego, we split the cost of processing the fish and the fillets as well, so we both ended up going home happy with money in our wallets, fish in our cooler, and stories to tell.

[Tightlines667]

Great report!*not sure what your wife was talking about either?

Sounds like you had a good time.  Tuna are alot of fun to catch on live bait, and a properly matched rig.  How long did the battle last?  Also, pictures would be great.

[Keta]

Well, is Juan going back again?

[fishmeluck]

Wife talks 10 minutes; I talk 2. She says I talk too much. Doh!

Took me 20-25 minutes to boat my fish. Could barely lift my arms afterwards. Due to an old back injury, my back is really weak too. Used the rail a lot. It was a blast, though.

I'm having hardwood floors refinished in three rooms and a hall at my home this week, and then painting. Juan said he wanted to go again next week.

Sorry, no pics. Cell phone and camera were both in my backpack in my bunk. Fish went straight into the RSW fishhold. Later, they weighed it for the jackpot sooner than I expected and I wasn't ready again. Been kicking myself for no pics ever since. Even my two brothers have been razzing me.

[Shark Hunter]

Sounds like a successful trip to me.
Good job. Even with no pics. I don't think your making it up.

[Dr. Jekyll - AKA MeL B]

Wife talks 10 minutes; I talk 2. She says I talk too much. Doh!

after a minute and a half, i just say sorry have to run to the toilet and do number 1.

and she does this 

[David Hall]

Great tale, tough fishing but there's more days like that that not. 
Sounds like a great time. 

[fishmeluck]

Well, is Juan going back again?

Juan and I did go out again, on the Freedom overnight out of San Pedro, which departed September 12, and fished around Santa Barbara Island on Saturday the 13th. That time, the fishing was way better than the previous trip. The fish count was:  84 Bluefin Tuna, 7 Yellowfin Tuna, 66 California Yellowtail, which included boat limits of bluefin for 42 anglers, but 42 must have included five of the crew or crew's family because it was limited to 37 paying spots.