Jigmaster 500, 506 ?Spools and Lines?

[otghoyt]

 My new question goes like this..... Now that I have these really versatile reels mounted on some really fine rods tell me your preferences for how you spool up your rigs.  I have 3 fully completely maxed out Jigmaster 500s on 7 foot 15/40 bait rods with 3 aluminum spools for each reel.  How would you load your spools? I am a SoCal angler.  I go out on 3/4 day boats and sometimes as long as 2.5 day tuna boats. 

[broschro]

65# braid with your choice of top shoot depending on what you are fishing with/for.

[Doug]

Where I fish we can't use braid too many tangles and hand injuries to the crew. I use jig masters and surf masters tricked out with whats available .I use extra spools with high quality mono in 20 and 30 lb test. I do maybe a tuna fish trip or two a year and for that I have a 9/0 or a beefed up 113h I think I would be under gunned trying to use a jig master on blue tuna fin hope this helps  Doug

[maxpowers]

My new question goes like this..... Now that I have these really versatile reels mounted on some really fine rods tell me your preferences for how you spool up your rigs.  I have 3 fully completely maxed out Jigmaster 500s on 7 foot 15/40 bait rods with 3 aluminum spools for each reel.  How would you load your spools? I am a SoCal angler.  I go out on 3/4 day boats and sometimes as long as 2.5 day tuna boats.  

I fished SoCal headboats also.  For me, if we are going offshore I would load 50 lbs braid on the 506 and fish 5 to 10 ft of topshot either in fluoro or mono.  For the rig dedicated to throwing irons, I would have at least 75 yards of mono topshot.  If I am fishing on a crowded 3/4 day boat, I would fish a much longer topshot.  Nothing worse than getting into tangles with your spectra.  

For those offshore trip I would bring at least one heavier rig of at least a 4/0 size.  If the sardine do show up again, we are likely to get into some bigger model bluefins this year.  If not your 506's will handle the albacore nicely.

[broschro]

Long top shoot 

[alantani]

for the 500/505, straight 30# mono and 9 pounds of drag.  for the 501/506, 50# braid and a 30# topshot with 9 pounds of drag. 

[thinket]

how much line @ 30# does 500 hold?

[alantani]

maybe 300 yards.

[Doug]

Penn lists the standard 500 size jig master as holding between 250 to 300 yards of  30 lb mono depending on brand and quality and how you spool it up

[otghoyt]

I have heavier rigs to do the job the job the Jigmaster's can't.  My only desire, in that respect, would be to catch a fish worthy of their design.  Rats!

What I was really wanting to do is exploit the value that the Jigmaster family offers by having a quick change spool.  Similar to ATs choice would be the
old 's cool mentality (mine) of half Dacron, half mono.  We used to worry about spool crush and other SNAFUs that we aren't bothered by with modern metals and design technology. 

Also I throw away my mono after a season so the AT method of an entire spool of mono easily has a couple hundred feet that never see water.  Another caveat is catching light weight line between the spool and side cover.  I think an ideal light/mid-size rig would have a 20#, 30#, 40# line capability just like the designed range of the rod.  That's kinda why I built up my Jiggers in the first place.

Recently, I have seen the younger fellas using a heavy line, like 40-50# with 6 foot of high dollah floro leader.  They had it set up so they didn't have to drag a splice through the guides. They got hooked up so I guess it works but casting a chovi is near impossible.   Are tuna and dodos really that stupid?  That is how fly rods are set up and I have landed good size Wahoo on a 15 weight fly rod. 

So are we talking about one spool of 40# and several leaders?  Do you just tie a loop on both ends and slide one through the other to make the splice?  Or is it more permanent like a blood knot?  This old dog needs some new tricks

[BMITCH]

Hoyt. I'm NOT an expert and I'm sure there are many here who could chime in, but it sounds like your going the loop to loop connection to your leader. This will make it possible to change out leaders quick. There's a lot of instructions on YouTube. I'm sure there is someone here that could point you in the right direction. I'm also starting to test the loop to loop waters.
Bob

[otghoyt]

Hi-ya Bob...I don't know what the score is on that Seaguar type flourocarbon leader that's why I went with the long dissertation to describe what I was seeing on the cattle boats.  I am pretty sure it was a loop of one through the loop of the other.  Wonder what the kind of weight it could take before that kind of cinch cut through itself? 

If it works well it sure would keep costs down.  In which case I have lots of spare spools to sell.  We'll see......

[maxpowers]

I have heavier rigs to do the job the job the Jigmaster's can't.  My only desire, in that respect, would be to catch a fish worthy of their design.  Rats!

What I was really wanting to do is exploit the value that the Jigmaster family offers by having a quick change spool.  Similar to ATs choice would be the
old 's cool mentality (mine) of half Dacron, half mono.  We used to worry about spool crush and other SNAFUs that we aren't bothered by with modern metals and design technology. 

Also I throw away my mono after a season so the AT method of an entire spool of mono easily has a couple hundred feet that never see water.  Another caveat is catching light weight line between the spool and side cover.  I think an ideal light/mid-size rig would have a 20#, 30#, 40# line capability just like the designed range of the rod.  That's kinda why I built up my Jiggers in the first place.

Recently, I have seen the younger fellas using a heavy line, like 40-50# with 6 foot of high dollah floro leader.  They had it set up so they didn't have to drag a splice through the guides. They got hooked up so I guess it works but casting a chovi is near impossible.   Are tuna and dodos really that stupid?  That is how fly rods are set up and I have landed good size Wahoo on a 15 weight fly rod. 

So are we talking about one spool of 40# and several leaders?  Do you just tie a loop on both ends and slide one through the other to make the splice?  Or is it more permanent like a blood knot?  This old dog needs some new tricks

Hoyt - You can use Dacron backing if you like but with the pricing of solid spectra now a day I would just use solid spectra.  65 lbs test is roughly about the size of 20 lbs mono.  Since a full size jigmaster can take about 300 yards of 30 mono, I could load up with 300 - 400 yards of 65 lbs test, have enough room to either splice on some hollow core to make loops or just tie a knot (FG, PR, Collins, Reverse Albight, Worm knot, Tony Pena, etc..).  If you are fishing a longer topshot (40 - 80 yards) the knot may be an issue as it go thru the guides quite a few time.  Here is where a hollow core splice make a lot of sense.  However if you are tying a short top shot (6 ft or less), the knot does not come into contact with the guides.  The short top shot style of fishing is nicer way to fish  as you can fish the same Jigmaster from 20 lbs test to 40 lbs test but there is not a lot of give.  You will need a softer rod or lower initial drag to avoid pulling the hook.  I never use the quick change feature while fishing as I have my jigmasters  set up so that I can fish short topshots on some of them and other are for throwing irons.  Hope this make sense.

[otghoyt]

Yepper, sure does make sense.  The line you called out "solid Spectra"  65# as thin as 20# mono.  Do you have any problems getting hung up between the plates and spool of a 500?  Also the SoCal boat captains kinda freak on lines like that.  They absolutely do not like co-filaments at all.  "Can cut a man's head clean off"  Sounds like the Dirty Harry .44 mag of fishing line.  Bla, bla, bla, probably has something to do with nuisance insurance.

I have my casting/yoyo rigs and I'll keep a full spool of mono on those. They're kinda small spools any way. I may incorporate a 6 foot floro leader.  Don't know what the hollow core splice program is???  Last year when I lined up my spools, I did my standard Dacron/mono and the guy used this harry eyeball, beast of a knot.  It was like two gigantic blood knots with a foot of each line (2 total) between them.  New one on me but I never saw it come off the reel so all's good.

For a bait rod, a rod length, flourocarbon leader sound like the s--t to have.  Low cost, high performance.  Win, win!

[maxpowers]

Hoyt -

I don't have any problem with the line slipping beneath the spool lip but I think that issue mostly arose from not leveling the line when fishing.  You can always step up to 80 lbs test which is the same thickness as the 30 lbs mono.  As for the hollow splice, I posted a pictorial tutorial of ho I splice the hollow onto the solid braid and how to make a loop at then end of the hollow.  It is in the fishing line, splice sub-forum.  As for the knot, I tried the Tony Pena and like it a lot.  I also tied a FG knot if I have time as that knot cast without issue but take a lot longer to tie.