This summer I will be going down to Emerald Isle NC for a week and will be able to fish Bogue Inlet pier for the duration of that trip. This may be a stupid question but is a a Jigmaster 500 a viable fighting reel for pier kingfishing? Thanks in response to any replies.
It will get the job done most of the time, but if you hook a true smoker he could spool you in no time. From a boat you can chase them down, but from a pier I would use a reel with more line capacity. Good luck buddy!
I pin rig Jennettes Pier in Nags Head regularly. The Jigmaster is low on line capacity and probably drag too. as Darin said. Will it work, maybe. Will you see anyone else using one, no. Ive seen guys use 4/0 Senators. I dont think i would go smaller than that. I use a TLD-25 loaded with 30lb mono and 50 feet of 80lb mono leader. Some of the guys use a TLD-20
Remember you are stationary, you cant chase the fish so you need line and you need that heavy mono leader to muscle him when he gets in the pilings. That leader will take up alot of room on a Jigmaster spool. You might get away with a 60lb leader but i wouldnt go lower.
Ive seen fish stay right at the pier and Ive seen fish completely spool a TLD-20. You just never know.
Try the North Carolina section over at www.pierandsurf.com Ive been a member there since 2006
Alright thanks for all the help. I suspected it was too small but just wanted to confirm.
I've seen guys use Smaller Avet's, MX and such, with braid backing. This might get you thrown over the rail at Bogue tho. I used to pin mostly at Sea View, which is the next pier south of Bogue (near New River Inlet). I used a 113HL with 25lb Suffix and a 40-50 lb mono leader. Will this work for kings, sure. However, early in season (May-June) cobia are always a possibility, and later in July-August, tarpon. Never mind spinners and blacktips all over. Chris's 80 leader is in play especially with cobes, who love a piling. My cousin has a 139 lb tarpon off Bogue, and I think I recall a 200 pounder of Jolly Roger, the next pier down from Sea View, a couple years back. PM me if you need terminal tackle. I have pinned exactly twice in the last dozen years and have a bunch of hooks, wire, etc. I'll send you N/C.
John
John do yall use pier rail clamps down there? We use the Down East Salty S-10 clamp for our fighting rods and set the anchor rods vertical in the rod holders
Like this
SE coast guys, what's a "pin rig"?
Yes ! What he said..
Its a way of fishing a live bait on the surface out away from the pier. Sometimes called a trolley rig. It uses two rods , an anchor rod and a fighting rod.
Anchor rod is as it sounds. You attach a weighted wire "anchor" as far as possible.
You create a sliding release "pin" that slides down your anchor line
Your fighting rod rig and live bait attach to this pin and slide down away from the pier.
When a fish grabs your live bait, the pin releases and you fight your fish
Chris, absolutely, where the pier rail will allow. They are the way to go.
Greg: Note in Chris's pic, there is a conventional outfit nesting horizontally in the clamp he's referencing. This is the fighting rod. The vertical surf rods you see are "anchor rods" actually serving as a vertical "outrigger", like a Green Stick on a tuna boat. The anchor rod only has a grapnel type sinker, made out of all kinds of things- welding rod, 16 penny nails, heavy wire, etc. molded into a lead weight like a sputnik sinker, just heavier. This weight is chunked as far as possible and pulled until stuck well in sand. Then a "pin rig" is attached to anchor line. Its essentially an outrigger release, made with a snap or shower ring, a short length of leader (appx. a foot) egg sinker, and a clothespin. The fighting rod will have a 5-10ft wire leader at the business end, attached to said mono leader with a swivel. This swivel goes into jaws of clothespin (hence pin rig), and is jockeyed out by putting fighting reel in free spool and bouncing the fighting rod to lower the bait (live spot , menhaden, bluefish or whatever) so that it sits about a foot deep in water...splashing around and causing an attraction. There are diagrams around but i cant grab one at the moment. Somewhat similar to a slip rig used for ulua, i think, just using two rods. Usually we put a hi vis cork or float on the mono between the snap and the egg sinker on the pin rig so you can see where your rig is easily. When fish hits, the swivel pops out of pin and the pin rig slides down to the anchor so you are fighting the fish directly, just like from and out- or - downrigger. Hope this is not too confusing.
I figured you would find a diagram faster than I can type :)
The rig Chris shows is a newer variation with less hardware: the two wire "legs" are put through the swivel eye of your leader and adjusted as to angle so bait cant pull it out, but a strike will.
I couple years ago I started making pins out of Aftco Roller Troller flat line clips. They roll a bait out so nicely. They ar $25 a piece though so I rig them so they come back with my fish instead of sliding down to the end of the anchor line.
Sometimes you dont get your anchor back at the end of the day LOL
How do you pull the rod off of those S-10 clamps?
Btw, we get some big Kings off Florida piers, never seen one that could spool a properly rigged Jigmaster. Then again, there's other critters... sharks, rays that will do so in a heartbeat!
Chris- you are correct, the anchor might well be one way trip!
The c-clamp doesn't actually hold the rod; there are two of them on the rail and they bracket a pop-up cradle that holds the rod and allows you to pick the rod straight up. It is a commercial one piece assembly. People weld pipe to big c-clamps and all sorts of things but what Chris shows is the Cadillac.
Squid: No idea how much you fish or want to spend if you want a larger reel, but a big capacity for the buck is a Penn 68 Long Beach. 600 / yds of 30 lb mono, same as 113HLW, but you can find them for about 40 bucks. Caveat: they are a third slower than an HL Senator. They are pretty strong and have caught plenty of grouper (along with 66 and 67, all various widths of the same reel). You will be working double time if king runs back to pier.
Should you find one or a Senator you like, send it to me and I will service it for you with new drags if needed at N/C.
John
OK same as a trolley rig. Just a different name... Jeff
Thanks for all the help guys, I'll definitely look into the Penn 68 Long Beach.
Wondering how it keeps the baitfish close to the surface? Is there a stop on the anchor line somewhere? I use a slider rig here. We're only allowed 2 rods but I guess since the anchor rod doesn't have hooks so maybe it wouldn't count
No stop needed. On your fighting rod you just let out an appropriate amount of line and put your reel in gear with a very light drag setting.
You can raise and lower your bait in the water column by tightening or loosening your anchor line.
That makes sense. Step up from slide baiting in that respect
Quote from: Squidh90 on March 29, 2019, 06:33:13 PM
Thanks for all the help guys, I'll definitely look into the Penn 68 Long Beach.
A nice one on the bay now for 35 shipped. My offer stands, I have plenty of carbontex drags for those. Where are you from?
John
John- I think I know about the reel on eBay. If I get it I'll take a look at what drags are in it and then reach out to you about the carbontex ones. I live in Virginia.
whereabout? I have a place on Buggs Island a mile from the Va line.
I live right near Richmond. Do you know if the 68s came factory with ht-100s or anything similar?
possibly the last manufacturing did, and I'm pretty sure the 268 did (graphite half frame). However their lifespan was probably 40 years or more and the early versions would have had leather or maybe asbestos. occasionally I luck into a fossil that someone has already serviced with new carbon. LB started pre-war; I have two pre WWII 66's; one beauty gifted by the Sharkhunter himself. These guys have 7 posts so pretty strong for a wide reel; spooled with 600 yds of 30 and a few yards of 60-80 for the pilings and you'll be in good shape. note: if you happen to get an older one with a three piece spool, load 40-50 yards of dacron or braid first on the reel. That much 30 lb mono will have a lot of compressive force and may pop the arbor otherwise.
Alright, I'll aim to purchase a Long Beach in the next few days,and will pm you if I decide I need the carbontex washers.
Quote from: nelz on March 29, 2019, 04:40:18 PM
How do you pull the rod off of those S-10 clamps?
Btw, we get some big Kings off Florida piers, never seen one that could spool a properly rigged Jigmaster. Then again, there's other critters... sharks, rays that will do so in a heartbeat!
The part that clamps to the rod is hinged and closed when at rest. To pop it out you just lift up on the rod and it lets go.
Naw man...you guys get little kings LOL. We get them up and over 60lbs.
Since I don't think I'll be able to cast a reel the size of a Senator or Long Beach, what would be a good reel for casting baits for cobia and drum at the piers in Virginia. This reel would also be my anchor setup for pin rigging.
your Jiggy.
I would suggest a reel with a good brake system like a Penn Squall 15 or Daiwa SL30SH.
Chris names the two reels I actually use for anchors, or variant: I use Penn 525 mag (forerunner of Squall) or SHXV 20 (upgraded SLSH). My last trip i used a full custom 501 Jiggy but it has spool control. An ABU 7000 would be my pick if I wanted levelwind, and there are many good heavy spinners if you go that route.
All are outstanding, and he's right about brake / mag. However you CAN toss the jiggy, with heavier weights- you might want to take off 100 yds of line or so where it will ne more manageable to thumb. If you are throwing lures, it's a bit big but you can chunk lead out.
I always thought this i what should happen in Hawaii. I'll never understand expecting to leave a pound of lead in the reef or trying to fight a fish with all that gear.
Ron Jones
True that, Ron. Got me thinkin 'bout changin-up. The reefs here 'er havin problems enough as it is.
Quote from: Rusty hook on April 02, 2019, 02:04:34 AM
I recently acquired a 501 with all the stainless goodies inside. I plan on the stock drag s because I don't see the need to increase the drag. My intention is to use this reel for bass and bluefish vertical jigging.i reel too fast with the new stuff.
Alright so I thought a little bit more about getting a Long Beach or a Senator and decided to see if a good deal on a special senator turns up since it has a slightly faster gear ratio, and can pull double duty as a lbsf reel since I hope to do that in NC as well.
what's an lbsf? 4/0 or 6/0?
Quote from: thorhammer on April 03, 2019, 04:00:18 AM
what's an lbsf? 4/0 or 6/0?
Land Based Shark Fishing.
ah hah.....four hour flight...i wasn't real sharp by then :)
hm, that's a crossover...i wouldn't really want to LBSF with a 6/0, though could with braid i suppose, and I def am not kingfishing with a 9/0.
Squid, if this is your route, don't rule Daiwa Sealine 400-600-900. Great reels, not as many upgrades as for Penn but there are carbon fiber drags and handle upgardes available. They already have aluminum plates and frames stock at about same price as a Senator, frequently cheaper.
very interesting fishing method, learnt something new now. Just a question though, why do you need two rods, why don't you just slide the live bait out on the rod that you have casted? That's what we do using a slide as seen in the picture? To make sure you have enough line on your reel, spool a couple 100m braid of say 50lb backing and 150-200m 30pb mono as topshot, you should easily get 400 to 600m of line on a jigmaster like that?
Quote from: CapeFish on April 03, 2019, 12:12:20 PM
very interesting fishing method, learnt something new now. Just a question though, why do you need two rods, why don't you just slide the live bait out on the rod that you have casted? That's what we do using a slide as seen in the picture? To make sure you have enough line on your reel, spool a couple 100m braid of say 50lb backing and 150-200m 30pb mono as topshot, you should easily get 400 to 600m of line on a jigmaster like that?
How do you keep the bait up on the surface with one rod?
We use two because to use one requires the anchor and everything be reeled in with the fish. Thats a lot of gear that adds to the risk of losing the fish one way or another.
I don't know about there but here in Cali for sharks we use a stryofoam ball. Remember those 76 antenna balls? Those, it keeps the bait on the surface and easy to see.
Quote from: Swami805 on April 03, 2019, 01:02:33 PM
I don't know about there but here in Cali for sharks we use a stryofoam ball. Remember those 76 antenna balls? Those, it keeps the bait on the surface and easy to see.
A float is yet another thing to reel in with your fish.
I know guys who try to run a one rod float rig on the pier. Due to the angle, the bait inevitably swims over the mainline and gets tangled. If you happen to be using a live eel, forget it LOL.
On a pin rig, once your fish pops the pin and you are free from the anchor line, its just you and the fish doing battle.
Keep in mind too, there are other people fishing beside you so there is alot of over/under happening during a fight. If you have extra gear coming in with your fish, there is a good likelihood of it getting tangled up on another guy's stuff
The sharks are fairly large so you don't notice all the junk really. For game fish we're using a simple setup with no wire or anything. Most there reel in their gear if you have a good one going but there's some massive tangles at times.
Using an anchor rod like that looks like a good plan, I'll have to give it a try
Quote from: 1badf350 on April 03, 2019, 12:45:51 PM
Quote from: CapeFish on April 03, 2019, 12:12:20 PM
very interesting fishing method, learnt something new now. Just a question though, why do you need two rods, why don't you just slide the live bait out on the rod that you have casted? That's what we do using a slide as seen in the picture? To make sure you have enough line on your reel, spool a couple 100m braid of say 50lb backing and 150-200m 30pb mono as topshot, you should easily get 400 to 600m of line on a jigmaster like that?
How do you keep the bait up on the surface with one rod?
We use two because to use one requires the anchor and everything be reeled in with the fish. Thats a lot of gear that adds to the risk of losing the fish one way or another.
From a pier it will be easy, just use a long trace tied to the one way slide and a big piece of foam. You can shake the bait all the way to the sinker and it will still float up. You attach the breakaway sinker with a thinner piece of line to the stopper ring and if it snags it just breaks off. There is also a different type of sliding clip you can use that allows the live bait to swim up and down the line, it looks a bit like a safety pin on steroids. Or attach a balloon or inflated prophylactic to your line and simply float it out from the pier? It snaps off when a fish takes it although this is not really the way to go with all the garbage we add to the ocean.
One huge reason is that the anchor simply is pretty well stuck in sand, and sometimes hung on a rock, old line, whatever which is a one way trip. Remember we might be using a 15" bluefish for bait so you need to be stuck well, and as Chris says it's not good having your anchor drug through through ten other stationary rigs, much less with braid on that will slice through taut mono or hopelessly tangle. As previously stated, we might have small 4X hooks stuck only in face meat, so you're not necessarily winching a king. On any fish, the anchor is likely to be stuck well enough to give the fish purchase to pull off, just as wrapping around a piling. This is a specialized technique honed by thousands of anglers...yes, other things might work, and we will float out one or two baits way out on balloons on a west quarter wind with a large reel (with mono, because it sinks where the Gomers in boats who troll for Spanish right off the end of the pier wont cut it), but you can go on any king pier in the Carolina's, knowing the locals on that pier are usually a clique-ish lot, and not get abused for going out of the box and tangling folks up as the foreigner trying some new stuff :) They are usually not shy about calibrating you lol. Just as you might check out a boat, captain and crew, I walk the pier and talk to guys to see how they are fishing....same principles but every pier has it's nuances, such as whether braid is frowned upon, who has pier gaffs / nets / bait tanks / allows cast nets, etc. so I bring the right gear set out. This goes a long way...as Chris said there is a lot of under over when a fish changes direction, and someone has to gaff your fish, so better to be on good terms :)
That goes over about as well as parking your truck at Hatteras so the lights shine on the water during drum season... punches get thrown.
Chris, am I off base here? Weigh in as you see fit; I don't fish the OBX nearly as much as I'd like, but this is the drill from Atlantic Beach to Cherry Grove.
Buddy you said it as well as could be.
If anyone would like very specific details or to learn more just shoot me a PM. I love teaching people who have never done it because it really is an exciting way to fish. There is an open invite for anyone wanting to learn.
It is the same reason I'm not thrilled with flashers, hochies and everythin else wen salmon fishing. I catch salmo with swimbaits, or a bait fish. That way you are fighting the fish with the lighest gear ossible and not dragging a bunch of stuff through the water.
Ron Jones