Fish-Hawk.Net

This is always an interesting subject.

The experts say set your drag to 25 - 30% of line test.

So how many of us are able to do this? Not too many I guess.

So what do we all do? We put on a lure and pull on the line, come on I know you do it too.

Is this the best way? Is this how you do it too? Why are we constantly checking or adjusting our drag? Shouldn't we just set it and leave it?

You may laugh but this year I am no longer going to set my drag this way. I just hook up my line to a stationary object and pull until I get the feel I want with the rod and reel that I have and then I plan to leave it there. For my trolling rods I do the same and then back off the star drag 180 deg, loose while trolling then rotate it back 180 deg to land the fish.

So lets hear, how do you set your drag? Why do you set it this way?

Sometimes when I am trolling I free spool my trolling reels so light bites take line when they strike the crank-bait. I also may do this sometimes with in-line boards...add a clicker and the drag set just right for the trolling speed and you have a strike indicator. The most important part of drag when trolling is to prevent pulling the hooks out of the fish's mouth while the boat is still moving forward. So I am always adjusting the drag on my trolling reels depending on the condition.

With my casting and jigging sticks I let the rod and line do the work and the drag prevents line breakage.

-Sheldon

Gotta admit, Mr. J. There's no science to it with me. I simply test it by "feel". In defense of my caveman ways, however, I do (very) frequently check and readjust it accordingly, particularly when I change lures or the kind of fish I'm targeting.

W.

Because I use braided line, and I am always concerned about ripping hooks out of the fish's mouth, I always set the drag just tight enough that it will not come out at trolling speed. If I hear a click from the drag every 30 seconds, then I know that it's loose enough.

After a fish hits, I tighten it just enough so that I can actually pick up line when cranking, and when the fish gets near the boat I will again loosen it a bit to ensure that last minute head shakes/runs won't pop the hooks.

Yeah, I guess I'm a little particular, but I'm SURE that I've lost fish in the past due to overtightened drag, and have never lost one due to an overly loose drag.

Bluefin

I check my drag everytime I pick up the rod and reel. I pull on the line and adjust the drag until it feels right for what I am trying to catch. For jigging walleye, I don't want to rip their lips off on a hook-set, but I do want to set the hook. If the fish is a good one, I may have to tighten the drag or else crank all day.

When fishing the slop for bass, there is no mercy with the drag.

eye-tracker wrote:Sometimes when I am trolling I free spool my trolling reels so light bites take line when they strike the crank-bait. I also may do this sometimes with in-line boards...add a clicker and the drag set just right for the trolling speed and you have a strike indicator. The most important part of drag when trolling is to prevent pulling the hooks out of the fish's mouth while the boat is still moving forward. So I am always adjusting the drag on my trolling reels depending on the condition.

-Sheldon

After my lesson with ET I have begun to set my drag very light and turning on the clicker when trolling for walleye and this has increased my hook-ups big time When a fish is hooked, I then tighten the drag and reel 'er in!.

For casting and jigging I set them instinctivly and adjust as needed

I just turn the little round thingy on the front, back, or side until I get it so that when I set the hook......it sounds really cool.

If anyone's interested, I can walk you all through the technical aspects of the methodology.

hee hee

Bobber wrote:I just turn the little round thingy on the front, back, or side until I get it so that when I set the hook......it sounds really cool.

If anyone's interested, I can walk you all through the technical aspects of the methodology.

hee hee

... and on Saturday in the Baitcasters Pike/Pickerel Tournament there was no cooler sound than Bobber's drag when we finally found the spot the pickerel were hanging out on.

So Bobber, are you suggesting that people should consider the drag-clicking-coolness factor of a reel before buying? Are some clicks cooler than others?

I think a great gag reel would be one with a drag that farts instead of clicks on the hook set.



I hope I didn't open up a can of worms with that comment!

Scum Frog wrote:

eye-tracker wrote:Sometimes when I am trolling I free spool my trolling reels so light bites take line when they strike the crank-bait. I also may do this sometimes with in-line boards...add a clicker and the drag set just right for the trolling speed and you have a strike indicator. The most important part of drag when trolling is to prevent pulling the hooks out of the fish's mouth while the boat is still moving forward. So I am always adjusting the drag on my trolling reels depending on the condition.

-Sheldon

After my lesson with ET I have begun to set my drag very light and turning on the clicker when trolling for walleye and this has increased my hook-ups big time When a fish is hooked, I then tighten the drag and reel 'er in!.

For casting and jigging I set them instinctivly and adjust as needed

I do the same thing trolling for rainbows!

click click click....ziiiiing!

eye-tracker wrote:click click click....ziiiiing!

Ohhh, I love that sound. Now if it's set too tight, it can often be followed by the illustrious words......crap....poop....shucks....fiddle diddle....oh sugar....darn it.....son of a female dog.....


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Somehow this thread hasn't worked out like I thought, all I have learned is that Bobber swears like a church girl and Fish-Hawk takes way too many pictures of Bobber.

Mr.J. wrote:Somehow this thread hasn't worked out like I thought, all I have learned is that Bobber swears like a church girl and Fish-Hawk takes way too many pictures of Bobber.

That's it - I've had enough of show-casing that church-girl swearing Bobber.

How bout we showcase Crystal Brown behind the wheel of a Skeeter pushed by a 300 hp Yamaha? (in Baitcasters parking lot after the pike/pickerel derby).

Now this is interesting. I used to set my drag pretty heavy when trolling...but it looks like most set it light and catch more fish. Now do you even bother with a hookset or do you just tighten the drag?