Magnaflex pairing

[thorhammer]

Gotcha. I haven't sorted anything as of yet....what is in the realm of possibility is, I will end up with a smaller but longer-casting reel, hook an 8 foot sand tiger that lives on this bar, and get spooled or broken off.  Then go buy an RC deployment boat for the really big Senators, and spend all day getting my big bait picked by crabs with no big hits to be found....but people will talk about the 16/0 with Sal custom grip. Not a loss, either.

[cbar45]

Sounds like that 113-HL has some battle stories to it, that's nice.

Wish I had kept those first two Senators I ever bought.

How far do you typically need to cast there in order to get a bite?

[thorhammer]

Depends where you happen to be. We've had a six foot blacktip swimming back and forth in the first slough about 20 feet from us. I literally pitched a half mullet in front of him. We had him for a bit and he got off. There were some really surprised people that hadn't been paying attention to him swimming right by them  while they were waist deep in the slough. It was clear and he could see they were not fish I suppose, but he made a pretty good splash that got their attention. If you're on the corner you can hit deeper water about fifty yards out, but some of the club guys drop baits way out with drones and RC boats using 80 Wides. I'm a drum fisherman, not really LBS, but I thought this could be a fun exercise on crap tides. If I'm north of the shoal, I doubt I can cast into more than 6-8 feet with this set-up, but that may be enough after dark. There are also rays the size of a truck hood- my buddy cranked one in we measured just over 60" across and that one was over a foot thick. I really just want to bend the Magnaflex more than anything and hope I don't get a hernia from it. If you've never cast a pound with a large bait for distance, it's not all that easy. If I can get fifty yards I'd be pretty happy. I throw drum rod with 8oz about 130yards over ground. More when I was young.

[cbar45]

I once ran out of slide bait rigs and had to resort to casting the bait out. This was on a Fenwick 16810 and Senator 6/0 combo. Casting whole sections of eel on 80lb main, 200lb leader, and 12 oz lead. Thought I was a pretty good caster but that experience had me humbled; your stance, timing, and release all have to be spot-on to get any sort of distance.  I was younger and more in shape then. But as you say it all depends and sometimes distance doesn't factor in as much. Have gotten strikes on the "dump shot" cast just a few yards out; 40-50 yds may more than suffice.

[thorhammer]

Yeah. you've got a good bead on this. A ways back, someone here asked 'could a 9/0 be cast?' I bolted one on this rod, which was missing the seat (pics later) and put a 160z grouper lead to cast in the pond behind my house. I can palm a basketball, but thumbing this rig was something else. Can a 9/0 be cast? yes. Efficiently? Negative, Ghost Rider, the spool is full.

I have a topless 6/0 that I considered, but it's built out with CC plates and is mint, so I prefer not putting it in the dirt.