Tuna Gear

[Chuck]

Looking for input from the SFBC experienced Tuna addicts.
What gear is needed to get set up properly and what is working consistently ?
ie. Rods, reels, main line, leader, Lures-divers/colors, etc. Or for that matter any other relevant info that will be useful.

PM me if needed.

Appreciate the input.

 

[cohobankie]

http://www.saltwatersportsman.com/t...d-bar-albacore-tuna-fishing-pacific-northwest

Don't forget the cedar plugs. Zuker Zucchini Broomtail and Purple/black & Blue/black mackerel X-wraps are all I have seen used on the tuna boat I go with. 20/30 sizes. Live baits the best.

Butt rods to troll with.

 

[capt hook]

POPCORN.......yes , no BS
when i was a kid i worked on uncles Super Seiner out of Panama , and Ecudor...
to keep the tuna on surface some boats chumed with small live fish or a type of pellet ,
we made garbage bags of popcorn , and when into the fish we sprinkled area with scoops of popcorn and that really kept them from diving.

 

[cj6530]

I use this on my boat.

For trolling.
Zuker Broomtail purple/black with amber head. Rigged with 80lb Fluoro and a single Mustad 7691S size 7 hook. Hang these out the sides.
Size 20 Xraps, Purple and black. Rigged with size 6 inline VCM single hooks. hang these straight back in the wash

For Jigging
Shimano flat sided and flat fall jigs. Size 112g-135G

For casting
Big hammer swimbaits in pacific chovie color. I use the triangle 1.5 ounce jig heads in white with red eyes
Shimano coltsniper surface jigs. 100g in pink/blue

 

[Aces]

POPCORN.......yes , no BS
when i was a kid i worked on uncles Super Seiner out of Panama , and Ecudor...
to keep the tuna on surface some boats chumed with small live fish or a type of pellet ,
we made garbage bags of popcorn , and when into the fish we sprinkled area with scoops of popcorn and that really kept them from diving.

I've heard that popcorn trick before, may have to try it before i eat it all

 

[capt hook]

Gold Mines....are any kinda flotsam , debris floating around with growth on it.
we would collect it and keep it in wet , when we found a fishy area let it go ..
we took several 40-50 ton sets off of a log once...
once we fished it we would pull it up the ramp and set off looking for fish again... run couple hundred mile and find the signs of birds and dolpins and drop off our logs and junk and run a mile or two away and sit and wait...a few hours later the BREEZE around the logs would start happening and then a full speed set and BINGO...
never pass up garbage with growth on it... Gold Mines...
if i was sporty fishing them , that would be perfect for drifting and casting lures or fly,s onto...
Oh , the good old days

 

[Chuck]

What is a decent level wind and how much braid does it need to hold? Looked at Avets but very expensive.

 

[tykkyt e blue]

300 yds of 80lb is enuf - some use heavier...and it can be done with 30lb salmon gear if the Tuners arent too big ( say under 17-18lbs ) - Just make sure you match your intial drag setting to the size of line you are using.

I started out with TLD 15s and catch fish. 2 spds are a luxury - single speeds are fine once you get a feel for 'pumping' the tuna up once its gone down ( no stalemates! line going out or line coming in!

6" green /yellow or purple black clones are staple lures - I often run 2.5-3 oz swimbaits at back of spread - sometimes waaaaaaay back
and a couple x-raps ( color dinna seem to matter much w them ) or some other diving lip lure run close to transom 35-50' - that will do you 85% of the time.

Biggest issue is not what to use - its WHERE TO GO
SST contour lines are important, so are the canyon contour lines - and mostly reading the 'signs'. The pelagic birds out there can literally smell the oils and amino acids coming off the baitfish ( think flying bloodhounds )
Buuut the whales working the 100-150 fathom lines can make the birds beeline for their scraps so I dont get too excited until I see the birds working or hovering a patch of deeper blue water.
I may still have som well cared for TLD 15s - PM me if interested

 

[eriks]

For Jigging
Shimano flat sided and flat fall jigs. Size 112g-135G

What colors are best for these jigs?

 

[Chuck]

300 yds of 80lb is enuf - some use heavier...and it can be done with 30lb salmon gear if the Tuners arent too big ( say under 17-18lbs ) - Just make sure you match your intial drag setting to the size of line you are using.

I started out with TLD 15s and catch fish. 2 spds are a luxury - single speeds are fine once you get a feel for 'pumping' the tuna up once its gone down ( no stalemates! line going out or line coming in!

6" green /yellow or purple black clones are staple lures - I often run 2.5-3 oz swimbaits at back of spread - sometimes waaaaaaay back
and a couple x-raps ( color dinna seem to matter much w them ) or some other diving lip lure run close to transom 35-50' - that will do you 85% of the time.

Biggest issue is not what to use - its WHERE TO GO
SST contour lines are important, so are the canyon contour lines - and mostly reading the 'signs'. The pelagic birds out there can literally smell the oils and amino acids coming off the baitfish ( think flying bloodhounds )
Buuut the whales working the 100-150 fathom lines can make the birds beeline for their scraps so I dont get too excited until I see the birds working or hovering a patch of deeper blue water.
I may still have som well cared for TLD 15s - PM me if interested

I have 2) TLD20's loaded with 100# braid that I use for Sturgeon so I am going to try those. Would like to pick up a couple of higher end 2 speed reels for a second set of rods.

 

[Dogbreath]

I have 2) TLD20's loaded with 100# braid that I use for Sturgeon so I am going to try those.

It'll be easier to troll with a 100' topshot of 50# mono.

Would like to pick up a couple of more higher end 2 speed reels for a second set of rods.

Not really necessary for Albacore.

 

[cj6530]

I have 2) TLD20's loaded with 100# braid that I use for Sturgeon so I am going to try those. Would like to pick up a couple of higher end 2 speed reels for a second set of rods.

You really don't need 2 speed reels for albacore. I use TLD 20 2 speeds in my trolling spread simply because they double duty as my deep water halibut reels. I am not sure I have ever dropped it into second gear for Albacore. My other trolling reels are Penn Baja specials that are single speed star drags. I do use a 50-100ft 50lb mono top shot on my troll reels as they are spooled with braid. 300 yards of braid is all you need. I would upgrade to Carbontex drag washers (with Cal's grease). I would also upgrade with larger Alan Tani grips.

 

[cj6530]

What colors are best for these jigs?

Purple/black and blue/pink are the only colors I use. Its all about contrast vs watercolor and sunlight. Since our water color is a little darker and our sun is a little lower in the horizon darker colors offer better contrast/visibility. Down south near the equator……lighter patterns like mexican flag seem to work better.

 

[cj6530]

What colors are best for these jigs?

 

[eriks]

Thx for the picture of the jigs CJ. Yes, those amber head zukers are all you need. One revelation for me last year was using the large mustad barbless double hooks. We never lost one tuna on them, and I can't recommend them enough.
Last night I bought some black/silver and white/silver and blue sardine shimano flat-sided jigs, all 112grms. I'll be trying them out this summer.

 

[Chuck]

Thx for the picture of the jigs CJ. Yes, those amber head zukers are all you need. One revelation for me last year was using the large mustad barbless double hooks. We never lost one tuna on them, and I can't recommend them enough.
Last night I bought some black/silver and white/silver and blue sardine shimano flat-sided jigs, all 112grms. I'll be trying them out this summer.

eriks, where do you get this type of tackle from?

 

[cj6530]

Thx for the picture of the jigs CJ. Yes, those amber head zukers are all you need. One revelation for me last year was using the large mustad barbless double hooks. We never lost one tuna on them, and I can't recommend them enough.
Last night I bought some black/silver and white/silver and blue sardine shimano flat-sided jigs, all 112grms. I'll be trying them out this summer.

I debated the single vs double Mustad hooks for my Zuker rigging as well. Better hook up ratio on smaller fish like Albacore is the pro for double hook rigging. The con is that larger tuna can twist and rip the double hooks easier than single. As well, the hook set on hard mouth bill fish like striped marlin is harder with a double hook setup. In short…..I choose the single hook rigging for the 1 and a million chance I get a strike from a large bluefin or striped marlin (theoretically possible). My revelation last year was that rigging my Zukers with lighter 80lb Fluoro resulted in more fish than the heavier 150lb + mono. It wasn't noticeable on the troll…..but it was on the hang down on and after the slide as we stopped the boat to land fish on another rod. I use Hi-Seas Quattro camo fluoro.

 

[eriks]

eriks, where do you get this type of tackle from?

I like to buy larger ticket items on eBay, but find that it can be a waste of time with smaller purchases like jigs and the like, as the shipping charges can be more than the product. I bought these items from Melton Tackle. I also needed some chafe springs and smaller items, so I think it's just easier to buy from an online shop like that in this case.

 

[Dogbreath]

Deadly looking hooks on that purple Rapala.

 

[Olde School]

A decent catch of albacore will tire you. We find that 2 speed reels are so nice that we now consider them to be a requirement.
The cheapest durable and effective 2 speeds are Shimano TLD20s. Ours have been hot rodded with power handles and ergo knobs.
80# braid is more than sufficient. We use a long top shot of 30# mono as well.
During Octuna 2 of us caught 30 albies. Talk about tired! My go to move was to lock the gimbal butt into a suitable gunwale mount and use low gear. Saved my back!