Big bluefin are being seen off Oregon coast mostly by guys going for albacore. Some learn the hard way that albacore gear is not suited for 200+ pound bluefin.
I'm no good at adding links, but some good reading about these bluefin on ifish.com which is a very friendly Oregon fishing forum. So far nobody has landed one of the jumbo bluefin, but multiple boats have had encounters with them while albacore fishing. Some getting spooled in seconds. Sounds like some of you SoCal boys need to go show them how it's done.
That would be quite the adrenal rush.
THE EVER SO ELUSIVE BIG BLUEFIN. Most of the big bluefin 200lb and over are caught on the kite rig. For those big bait fish alot of the guys get smoked down here in So. Cal also. There are some exceptions where smart fisherman have hooked them on the cow gear and flatfalls and got them in after a good battle. Watching them in awe foam, jump, boil is like going on a whale watch trip. As a fisherman who has been in pursuit of them for the last several years I have gained a new respect for their inteligence. Go Bluefin!!!
Ted you know you got to tank up a 9/0 and get one :)
I heard reports of some guys getting spooled fishing for albacore off of central Vancouver island. There must be some bigger ones this far North also as some schoolie BFT have been caught along with a few yellow tail . There have also been reports of bill fish sightings; the very odd striped marlin has been caught over the years.
Cheers:
Todd
Blue fin hunting is a costly "disease" once infected it becomes extremely difficult to overcome. side effects include expensive boat and gear upgrades. not to mention the mental stress that comes from simply hearing reports of sightings of them along our coast line.
I do not think I will ever recover, I actually caught one in my local waters back in October 2015 and its only gotten worse. ;D
I'll be up tomorrow...Dominick
I started buying BFT gear a dozen years ago and caught...zero...used the gear, zero....but my buddy has, so I'm looking forward to it hopefully before I'm too old to crank on 400lbs worth.
Quote from: Dominick on September 22, 2020, 09:46:19 PM
I'll be up tomorrow...Dominick
Dominick, a Reel test for the Tank! Rudy
Since the subject came up about BFT gear it is only appropriate that I share my most recent gear upgrade.
My wife and I have an agreement, when it comes to buying gear. It goes like this. I pick it out, I buy it and she gets to say she bought it for my Birthday or Christmas or just because. So this year when the BFZt were being caught out of Monterey Bay I got a recommendation on reels and line class for fishing these giants and since I had a birthday coming up I decided that this year she was really going to outdo herself and get me a first class BFT rod and reel. Well a little internet searching and I located the reel of my dreams at Charkbait, a beautiful Mak 20IIsea, I took it over to show the Chief and asked him to give it a quick once through inspection and spool it up with 600yds of 100# JB hollow? Added a loop for using wind on leaders. After that I decided a reel that nice deserves an equally nice rod, so I paid a visit to our own Jon Vadney and commissioned him for the task, after much discussion and trying out different rod blanks We settled on a seeker OSP 2X4 with a special fore guard for heavy rail punishment, it's some kind of High pressure steel mesh reinforced rubber hose, reamed out to match the rods taper. John went to work and before I knew it he let me know it was done. Man is it a beautiful piece of work. This is a setup any wife would be proud to give to her man who deserves the best. Which we all do right?
Anyway without further delay. Here it is.
Double dog dangit! Some reason my pics won't upload?
I take really lousy pictures and doesn't do this rod and reel justice, especially the rod. I'll get some better ones.
David that is an awesome combo, a true bluefin slayer! Hopefully you get an opportunity soon to put the wood to them.
That is a beautiful combo! Did you hydro the reel or did it come with that pattern on it, they both look awesome and together really set each other off nicely! - john
Nice rod, I can't believe you twisted it. ;D
No one does better work than John. That tuna looks like it was woven into the graphite.
Very impressive, I hope you enjoy it. Tell her she done good!
The Man
Quote from: Brewcrafter on September 23, 2020, 03:02:23 AM
That is a beautiful combo! Did you hydro the reel or did it come with that pattern on it, they both look awesome and together really set each other off nicely! - john
it came with that finish on it. its a 10th anniversary SEA model, Charkbait has a limited supply of their entire lineup like this 15IIT, 20II,30 and 50.
Quote from: Keta on September 23, 2020, 03:02:43 AM
Nice rod, I can't believe you twisted it. ;D
I know Lee it was perfectly straight but then I am a bit twisted myself, or so Ive been told.
"No one does better work than John. That tuna looks like it was woven into the graphite.
Very impressive, I hope you enjoy it. Tell her she done good!
The Man"
Ron I share the same opinion of Jons rod work, I have been building a nice little collection of them for a few years. I told him I wanted to match the colors of the reel and also I wanted a BFT kinda theme. he took it from there and actually made a colorized transfer from an image he found, does something to color and stabilize it then transfers it to the blank, it really does look like thread work, I really have no idea how he did it. must be a JV secret.
All I know is he once again exceeded my expectations
Quote from: sabaman1 on September 23, 2020, 02:48:03 AM
David that is an awesome combo, a true bluefin slayer! Hopefully you get an opportunity soon to put the wood to them.
That is all I think about anymore, if I don't get the chance to try it soon for BFT Ill take it to Mexico on my next trip and try it on Yellowfin.
We have GOOD YELLOW FIN fishing here on Long Island N.Y. going on now. Boats are catching their legal limits.
Mike
Mike! where have you been hiding? Good to hear out of you.
I check 2-3 times a day. If I have nothing to say then I'm quiet. I used to work with the Captain that owns the Hunter. He is 3rd. Gen. at the job & i knew his Grand Father who owned the Amberjack back in the 60's.
Mike
Hey Mike good to hear from you. You do go way back. What was Lincoln like? :D Dominick
Dominick
We used the same color Beard Dye. Really COOL GUY till that night.
MIKE
still can't post pictures
Quote from: bluefish69 on September 24, 2020, 11:26:19 PM
Dominick
We used the same color Beard Dye. Really COOL GUY till that night.
MIKE
I will be laughing about that for the rest of the night!
Thanks
The Man
still can't post pictures