rigging for wire line

[depotdan]

got my rods got my reels now just need some advice on setting them up. Should i use daron or mono backing. 40 or 50# test backing, 30 or 40# monel wirefrom the wire what #leader to the swivel. i went to 2 different tackle shops and heard 4 different things from different employees. all probally work fine just want to get some more input. thanks Dan

[Saltshaker]

I use dacron as backing. It does not have the memory of mono. After several years of use, it is as good as new. My 2 cents.

Tight Lines & Safe Returns,
Saltshaker

[depotdan]

after talking to a couple friends and how they rig the way they go is 50# mono backing, 30# marked monel to 80# leader 15 feet.all done with the haystack or hayspin knot. most use 159 feet of wire and then put trolling weights if needed. all of my trolloing will be done around sandy hook so is 150 enough or go for 200 feet. thanks for the input.

[C-Fish]

Maybe I can help. I've fish wire up there, off the Highlands Bridge and around the Rocks for years and have some thoughts on the subject.

Rig your reels with 50-lb dacron backing and don't be stingy. Dacron holds up better, creates a non-conductive connection between the wire and the reel spool to reduce galvanic action when trolling and you can fish it for two or three seasons without changing it. Fill the reels about 2/3 to 3/4 of the way full with Dac. That way the wire lays on the reels in larger coils and it is also easier to retrieve since you get a little mechanical advantage and faster line pick up with a full spool.

Purchase 100 yard spools of 40 or 45-lb. monel or soft stainless. The Malin premarked comes with plastic bead-type markers on the line ever 50-feet so you can easily keep track of how much line is in the water and, therefore, how deep your lures are.

Tie a Bimini Twist in the Dacron creating a loop large enough to go over the spool or wire. Form a haywire twist in the starting end of the wire with a loop about two inches long. Pass the Dacron loop through the wire loop and around the spool. Then with pliers with flat jaws gently compress the wire loop so that it flat and will pass easily through the guides. Then wind on the wire with enough pressure so it is moderately tight on the spool.

Pick up some 150-lb. test SPRO "Heavy Duty Swivels" and attach one with a haywire to the end of the wire line. These do not look like standard barrel swivels. They look like a thin sleeve with holes in each end. They easily pass through any guides, even rollers, so you will end up with a wind-on leader when you connect the mono leader to the other end. It will make bringing fish close to the boat to be lipped or netted easier.

If you're trolling bunker spoons, use a leader 12 to 15 feet long of 50 or 60-lb. mono. Anything heavier is overkill. I like the camo leader material by HI-SEAS called Quattro. Tough, disappears in the water and is very strong, but not too stiff. Also much less expensive than fluoro. End it with a 150-lb. ball bearing swivel and you're ready to go.

I use a full 300 feet of wire because there are times when the bass up there will move off the flats into the deeper parts of the ships channel and 150 feet, even with a drail, won't get down to them. I have used all 300 plus a 12-ounce drail to get a spool or shad rig down 50 feet in Raritan Reach channel and caught fish while the local boats with only 150 on their reels just watched. Trolling off the beaches in deeper water or between the Channels up there frequently requires 200 to 300 feet of wire and if you can avoid using drails with bunker spoons to get them down 20 to 30 feet the action on the spoons is better. The proper place to put a drail with a spoon is between the end of the wire and the beginning of the mono leader, but even there it tends to dampen the spoons action.

That's how I do it...but what do I know.

[ 02-24-2004, 09:46 PM: Message edited by: C-Fish ]

[CaptG]

C-Fish

Thanks for the detailed description of how to rig you wire line reels. I also spool a full 300 yards as alotof the productive areas around CM are deep, such as the valley outside the rips.

[depotdan]

C-fish thanks for your advise i spent the extra 25.00 bucks and had 300 feet put on both reels what you said makes alot of sense. im sure one day ill be thanking you even more. Dan

[C-Fish]

Just catch a bunch of fish. Don't forget the superbraid and Stretch 25's and 30's up there, especially in the Spring. They have been killer and they troll on nice, light tackle. You can run one between a pair of wire line outfits if they are in outrodders without a problem. Just don't let it back more than 100 feet.

[WildeOne]

"all done with the haystack or hayspin knot."
depotdan, that's a haywire twist .