how do you stop xos king fish

[OPTI]

ive been chasing king fish lately ,ive been doing ok ,getting my bad limit etc ,but everytime i go out i get taken to the bottom and either rubbed off or the hook pulls ,it happened 3 times yesterday.
my outfits are ,shimano blue rose rod pe8 torsa 30 reel and 130lb pe jigger braid
and a saltiga pe10 rod with a stella 20000 reel and 130lb pe jigger braid,
im using 150lb wind on leaders to sampo swivels clips and 150lb tuff trace with owner 9/0 circle hooks[live bait rig]
now the reels are set a 25kg of drag ive upgraded all my gear to what i thought would stop anything ,and im still getting smoked.
yesterday the first fish i just let run thinking he would tire out ,when the trace rubbed through just under the swivel ,at least my gear was handling it ,the next two i applied hand pressure to the spool in an attempt to turn the fish only to pull the hook both times.
so im thinking is it the hooks ,do i use heavier trace,how do i stop these monsters

[Carry]

Hi Opti,

A reefking deckwinch might be your next step mate.

Cheers Luke

[murf]

haha your using twice the stopping power I am, I am not man enough to go any bigger

make or brake

anything in 25m or less is a big gamble with the mongrels but a lot of fun

mate snapped a 9/0 Gamma hook the other day and he had the fish off the bottom, never seen such a bend in a Texalium rod before

looking forward to replies

and around here the bigger fish are on the bottom with the rats on top

cheers Murf

[hooknpull]

do you hold the rod or keep it in the holders?

[Scalem]

Gee you would think you would stop them with good gear like that.... Sure you are not being sharked?

Scalem

[OPTI]

hold the rods ,these hoodlums bent my pe 10 rod that hard i thought it was going to explode,the week before my wife was nearly pulled out of the boat twice,no exageration,had to hold on to her waist till she couldnt hold the rod any longer.
thats why im asking what others are using ,my gear is holding the fight i just need a bit more drag or mabe a different hook will give me a better hook up.note sure why i pulled the hooks .

[OPTI]

Gee you would think you would stop them with good gear like that.... Sure you are not being sharked?

Scalem

i got sharked last week ,the king nearly pulled the wife over board so i took over the fight ,after about 5 mins ,seemed like 30 the fish went limp ,still had some weight ,just got the pectral fins up left ,he would of been around 20kg judging head size,a pb for me,and looking at the bite radius maybe a 10 ft shark ,they could be sharks i guess,might have to bring out the tiagras and 600 lb wire trace and see what happens,i would like to think they are kings or amberjacks though.

[hooknpull]

ok give me the marks and ill go and see if they are sharks lol.. but if your getting reefed changing the hooks isnt going to make a difference.

[Vitamin Sea]

Hey Opti

Maybe you should go back to mono? a lot more forgiving than braid.

A thought

Cheers

[Aussie123]

Handline the mongrels,lol

[OPTI]

my mate went out there today in his boat,got 8 jew,and 3 kings ,and 4 bust offs,on 80lb,he thinks they are kings,im not technically busting gear,just carnt slow them down and getting reefed.
i better dust off the 80w gear,and have another try.

[Midnight]

Gotta drive away from the structure Opti, keep the drag pressure on and pull them away from the reef with the boat after the hook up, that's my only advice when you are already using top quality stump pulling gear like that.

Good luck!

[Midnight]

Another thought re the hooks pulling, how are you bridling your live baits?

[OPTI]

im just putting the hook thru the mouth and up in front of the eyes,i actually thought being that deep that trying to drive off would be pointless,i guess worth a try ,but its all over within a minute at the most whith these guys,so not much time.

[Midnight]

I would definitely change to bridling your livies with either light dacron or at least #16 rubber bands to get your circle hook free from the bait so that it is free to rotate and get the proper hook up right in the corner of the jaw. Quite a few people around the world even use a bit of tube, like a Chuppachup stick to keep the hook held clear of the bait, so that the bait cannot foul the hook. I have had a few Marlin baits come back after a dropped run, with the hook point stuck into the bait when using rubber bands, so i have gone to dacron or waxed thread for live bait bridles. I like Eagle Claw circle hooks, and in the heavy wire model you will not straighten or break them.

I reckon with the braid and the drag pressure you are using that there will be next to no belly in the line and you may be able to pull them away enough to keep them clear of the reef so that you can pump them up. Even if you are still losing line as you drive away it will change the angle on them and it may just be the bit extra that you need. You will need to start driving off as soon as you have the weight though for it to work, so engines running and someone at the wheel to put it in gear and drive away from the structure.

Dunno, give it a go

Cheers,
Myles