Spinning popper rod for cow tuna

[stump42]

Ok I am going to Panama shortly were I have a decent shot at a 200lbs. tuna on a popper. A dream of mine. Anyway I have a Stella 10000 which boast 65lbs. of drag, but can not find a rod that would be suitable for casting poppers that can hold more then 17lbs.(that is the super seeker 30-50lb line rating which I can't seem to get anyway.) Does anyone have any suggestions? I am leaving within 3 weeks so I need something that is production made where as I don't have enough time at this point to go custom. Pleas help!!!!

[Another Grand]

You need a Calstar Graphite 700 or 800.....probably H. I would go with the 800H. Like you said, you are pressed for time, so I am not sure where you could get one already made......just saying that is what you need.

[arthurj]

I don't guess it is really made for casting, but I've got a trevala 80-200 with a stella 10000FA that I am going to use. I just got it and have only casted a plug on it a few times just to test it. Seems like I will be able to throw it a mile, and the rod certainly should handle a huge tuna.

[bulllred]

Call accurate directly. They have Calstar made them the 700 series with top of the line Fuji component. They will have some on hand or call some of their distributers to see if they have them in stock. You can either try Angler Proshop "http://www.anglers-proshop.com". They carry top of the line dedicated popping rods from Carpenter, Sevenseas, Smith, Zenaq, and many other.

[islandshark633]

I built one for a client recently with Calstar 700 blank. Awesome piece with Fuji SiC guides, if you can locate one with this blank you should be fine.

[justin ennis]

get a carpenter rod or a sevenseas popping rod they are supose to be really good rods you can look at them at anglers pro shop.com

[jshields52]

I finally feel like I can be of some use to you guys! I think as my first post here, maybe I should introduce myself and thank you for the knowledge you guys have dropped on me. My name is Jay and I'm a transplant from Boston now living in West Palm. I used to run a 6 pack light tackle charter there before transfering to FAU and am now trying to dial in the fishery down here. Our best fishery up north in my opinion is a run and gun bluefin game. We target 60-250 class fish with spin gear from June through October. The fish we target are strictly surface feeding fish and for the most part it is a popper game (provided we aren't throing the fly). That stella will whoop some serious ash. We fish 80 lb braid to a short bimini to a slim beauty 60 lb flouro, and I find that really comes in handy during the spiral. Having a sick reel is all fine and well, as these guys will dump some serious line as soon as you get them tight, but I feel touch and your rod is more important. Our game is to break the fish quickly, and put them into a spiral. Once the fish is in the spiral, you have essentially landed them. The idea is to palm the spool, putting max heat on the fish. Tuna are weighted like lawn darts and constantly beat their tails. In the spiral, they settle into a rhythm. Once you controll the fish in the spiral, the biggest tuna can be beat in short order. Simply palm the spool while bent over the gunwhale with your tip in the water and the seat parallel to the water. When the fish turns to you, gain a half-crank. Keep doing this unless the tailbeats become acclerated. In this case, clear your hand and let the fish dump. But in the last few dozen yards with the toads it really comes down to feeling the tailbeats. This is why I love braid. You can feel every move the fish makes and make an appropriate counter-move. They're such cool animals. In my experience I have found that the top six inches of the blank and the bottom six inches before the reel seat determine the blank for tuna purposes. On my charters, we used to fish the crowder bluewater 20-40 blanks and do put the hurt on the fish. Last year we were on a school of 200 lbers and were landing them in under 10 minutes for a tag and release on those rods. However, if you really want to rock out and get the ill nasty rods, go to first light anglers.com and check out their custom tuna blanks. These guys pioneered our game and have probably caught more bluefin on light tackle than anyone alive. They have a series of rods custom made for this application. All of the best, and if I can be of any help with questions about targeting tuna with spin or fly gear, please don't hesistate to let me know!