any ideas on what type of fish this was - Floyd's Wall- Keys

[hof]

Last Saturday night during the second drift over the northeast corner of Floyd's wall the tip rod 50W rigged with the squid was nailed by something. This fish essentially spooled the reel ( we did tighten the drag shortly before it did). This all happened within a few minutes and the fish did not stop. Any ideas? Last summer we caught a 247 pound Blue Marlin on the same rod and it only took out a third of the line.

[Shark Tagger]

Big sword most definetely.. how much heat was on it during the run...

[Another Grand]

Originally Posted by Shark Tagger

Big sword most definetely.. how much heat was on it during the run...

There are 4 possibilities of fish that can do that:
1) Big Sword
2) Big Tuna
3) Big Mako Shark
4) Big Marlin

I would guess 1 or 3, either way it was a big fish

[Sword Donkey]

Read the tread about the 11hr sword fight.

[hof]

the drag was probably a 20 pounds when the line broke ( 60lb test )

[Flatsfish B]

Originally Posted by Another Grand

There are 4 possibilities of fish that can do that:
1) Big Sword
2) Big Tuna
3) Big Mako Shark
4) Big Marlin

I would guess 1 or 3, either way it was a big fish

Bingo! And I would rule out marlin myself!

[Boboe]

I wouldn't rule out the blue. A big blue would make short work of that tackle.

[RiskTaker]

What?

And you did not include Navy Submarines as an Option Number 5: that is Sacrilage, Sacre Bleu!

Certainly, there is no denying hooking up big Marlin at night. But the general trend is for catching swordfish at night, Mako madness persists too, a nice Tuna seems to be dreamland, but is it as common now as the heat of summer is just trending away from us?

If you read about many angler's swordfish tales, you may find that they behave differently. We reeled in about an 80 lb. swordfish one night: it seemed like it did not even resist, like it said "boat me, I'm yours". Others fight like a dickens, some big and some sub-legal fellas/wenches.

By the way, is this the time of the year when the swordfish migration commences from North to South again? Well September is rapidly closely out but I am not really sure.

Hof, by all means enjoy fishing with the equipment you have: 60 lb. test is fine to be very effective with many fish in the sea. However, there are a few out there with some shoulders or should I say powerful tails. I, personally, have not yet been convinced, by the road of hard knocks, or rogue waves, to trend to 80 class reels, let alone 130 Class. (But I would not mind having access to one for a big Bluefin.) But one thing that you can do, is to slightly over-rate your line test. Well I suppose if you are fishing 50 wides then 60 lb. test is technically over-rating it a bit. Maybe I am suggesting then, 80 lb. or better.

I do not know you, so I do not know your fishing style. Perhaps you measure your full spool drag settings, once a year or everytime you fish, perhaps never. Perhaps you know your drag profile, or you may believe that 20 lbs. drag remains constant throughout the spool. Just in case, you don't know it by now, a 20 lb. drag setting at full spool can translate to 60 lbs. of tension on the line at less than a 1/4 spool left. Plus there is line drag in the water, a single in-line knot in monofilament can reduce 60 lb. test nylon monofilament to 1/2. Nicks and abrasions or other miniscual flaws can also reduce line test from its factory fresh rating. Therefore an easy win could be to use a higher lb. test or a high quality nylon mono, or perhaps Spectra lines.

For example, I use Jerry Brown Hollow Core 130# on 50 class reels, well a Tiagra 50WLRS is kind of an 80 class in a 50 body. But either way, understand the drag profiles and use line that makes sense to you.

I am only making these comments for you because I am still awake, kind-of sort-of dreaming of fishing tomorrow night, but eyes still open and packed the equipment, togo.

Understand that 50 lb. class typically has 25 lbs. drag at Full drag with a full spool. (Conventional Lever drag, ie. Penn International etc. )

At full drag on a nearly empty spool, you may be opposing a line tension at nearly 100 lbs: Figure tighter drag coefficients due to heated meterials (ie. expansion.), mechanical leverage, 2.5x - 3.0x, greater than full spool value, plus lots of line dragging through water and seaweeds, etc. All of a sudden you may rationalize that you could go over 50 lb. test line, if your were bigger game fishing with modest equipment. The reels are probably not the weak link, likely the line will give way first.

Figure 80 class reel quick, Shimano perhaps, 40 lbs drag full setting, full spool. If you clamp down at 3/4 spool or less at Full drag setting even your 130# test line is likely going to break, or your rod, or your rod holder, or your gunnel, or you if you are standing up. I hope this was not a wasted post on something you already know: but I enjoy trying to figure it all out, and I don't mind sharing those thoughts.

Of course, the 130 class reels have REAL Cojones, but you would be silly to put 60 lb. line on those, that was a funny. If it were me, I would use over-test mono like Momoi Diamond or Suffix, or I would use JBHC 200#, just to kick it up a notch. But I haven't quite got there yet: I may need a bigger boat, first.

[Broadbill]

Nessie!

[dpdash]

Who knows, could have been a big thresher shark as well.

[quack quack]

When they get away you can make them any thing you want

[hof]

that's what we have been doing... and its been getting bigger

[fishensticker]

I've never caught a mako , but I have noticed that swords typically run towards the surface and sharks seem to stay deeper and run in surges. Since this one ran high and extremely fast, I wouldn't think it was a "typical" shark bite, but I also know Makos aren't typical.

I guess if anybody catches this leviathan fish with the disco hanging out its mouth in SouthFlorida in the next week or so and they post about it, we'll know what it was

[CAPTINMITCH]

Originally Posted by fishensticker

I've never caught a mako , but I have noticed that swords typically run towards the surface and sharks seem to stay deeper and run in surges. Since this one ran high and extremely fast, I wouldn't think it was a "typical" shark bite, but I also know Makos aren't typical.

Ask Flatsfish about our huge Longfin Mako. Didn't know until the last second it was a shark. Burned 400 yards on strike, paused for 5 seconds and immediately dumped another 400 in the blink of an eye.

[DORADOsteve]

Originally Posted by CAPTINMITCH

Ask Flatsfish about our huge Longfin Mako. Didn't know until the last second it was a shark. Burned 400 yards on strike, paused for 5 seconds and immediately dumped another 400 in the blink of an eye.

One word comes to mind:

HUGE

[Flatsfish B]

Originally Posted by CAPTINMITCH

Ask Flatsfish about our huge Longfin Mako. Didn't know until the last second it was a shark. Burned 400 yards on strike, paused for 5 seconds and immediately dumped another 400 in the blink of an eye.

Yes, and that long fin faught up top the first 5 min of the fight. I think a short fin Mako will come up top as well, but sometimes jump. (Haven't caught one yet)

The 200lb hammerhead the other night faught up high, and down below and up high.

One thing i have noticed with swords, they usually come up high once or twice MAX, then go deeeeep to there "comnfort zone"

[CaptKen]

[quote="CAPTINMITCH"]

Originally Posted by fishensticker

Ask Flatsfish about our huge Longfin Mako. Didn't know until the last second it was a shark. Burned 400 yards on strike, paused for 5 seconds and immediately dumped another 400 in the blink of an eye.

800 yards ! Mitch what are ya puttin on those TLD 25s ? like 15 or 20lb test ?? :razz: :razz: :razz:
Im sorry Mitch, I couldn't resist.