I surf while my 14 year old is obsessed with surf fishing. I don't have a clue. He loses like 4 rigs every 2 hours. Is this normal or is he doing something wrong? I've checked the knots, they seem pretty tight.
If using monofilament line switch to braid. More money but well worth it. If you go into a bait shop they should definitely be able to answer any questions if they have a tiny bit of knowledge. A chain store with a sporting goods department isn't really recommended imo. Ask about knots to use with braid as well as the line has a bit of slickness to it.
Palomar knot, Uni knot, and Uni-to-Uni knot. I fish spring, summer and fall, and those three are my go-to's. That's with braid and with mono, they all work for both. And yes, losing rigs is normal, especially in current in inlets or any water with a rocky bottom.
This week, Jupiter Florida. I know there's some cocina rock, but it's 90% beach break. Using squid, mullet bait, and fishing for anything. And he is snapping on the cast.
if hes snapping on the cast it might be the bail closing on him. i hate when that happens. at least with braid it is strong enough to withstand unless the knot is bad.
Work on the casting technique and consider switching to a stronger line. A lot of time with a spinning reel, you can get the line caught around the reel and it's definitely going to break the line. Try to get him to cast with a longer rod or just a smoother delivery, he's probably trying to chuck the bait out as far as physically possible. Is he catching much these days?
Good advice, but you need to watch out for a couple things: -If you switch to braid, make sure you put about 10' of mono wind-on leader on the tag end joined with a uni-to-uni. Braid is good for smaller weight setups, but will result in you almost losing a finger if you are trying to chuck a 3oz surf rig into the suds... ask me how I know... I roll with 25lb spider wire (braid) with a 30-40lb wind on mono leader. This way, you are handling the mono on the cast instead of the braid, plus mono is way easier to tie and will generally hold even if you tie it wrong--braid, not so much. The leader will also act as a shock absorber as braid is a little too static for most fish and will result in you ripping the hook out of their mouths if you are not careful. -Rigs: If you are around structure, don't use a "chicken rig"--the most common double-drop surf fishing combo that you generally put a pyramid or bank sinker on the bottom. Try going with a Carolina or Fish-Finder rig mated to a sliding egg weight--this is the least likely to snag. Heck, mess around with some floats too. But, as the saying goes down here for many of our inshore and surf fish that hang around structure: If you're not losing rigs, you're in the wrong spot. Here are some helpful links: http://fryingpantower.com/content-cat-6.html http://fryingpantower.com/content-cat-3.html
Perfect advice from Erock... 25 lb braided, I use 40 lb mono leader, but you could go lighter... fish-finder rig. Also.. check your guides, particularly the tip guide... if they're rusted at all or anything but perfect, switch it out... it's chafing your line. It melts right off and a new one right back on. Make sure he's pulling the bail back all the way and clicking it into place.
