Surf casting equipment

[phild]

Hello to all who read this. I live in western Massachusetts and 2-3 times a year I fish plum Island with my son. We fish for stripers. I will be there Sunday. i am the guy with the ice fishing basket. I fish with an open faced reel and a 12 ft. rod. I find casting far out to be difficult. I am not good at gripping the line with my index finger so I use my index finger and my middle finger to grip the line while casting. O ccasionally I get a good cast but mostly the line slips and my bait goes ker-plunk in front of me. Does anyone know of a reel that does the holding for you.? Like-you push a button on the windup and then release it on the cast. I have searched in magazines but none of the advertised reels talk about casting in this manner.

[ckphelps]

PHIL YOU DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE TO CAST A MILE TO GET TO THE FISH,TRY A LITTLE LESS FORCE AND LET THE WHIP OF THE 12' ROD DO THE WORK. GOOD LUCK.

[Reed422]

thats a BIG rod. Might have a easier time with a 10 or 9 and get further

[Ed White]

Do a search for a device called a Breakaway, mounts near the reel to hold the line till your ready to fire, and let 'er rip.....never tried one, but they look like they would work.

Ed

[Roccus]

Phild,

A 12' meat stick is hard for anyone to handle without alot of practice, a 10'er would be lighter and eaiser, you also may consider learning how to use conventional tackle, htat requires only an educated thumb, and most of the new mag reels allow even a novice to cast like a pro in short order...

Now the fishing, Plum Island is my home, long cast are rarely needed there especialy at night, the reservation beach is giving up the best fish at this time,the main beach may even be closed again this weekend due to debris and polluted water from the last set of rains,...

Most of my bass are in 3-5' of water somethoing attainable with even a lob cast, when I fish the beach by boat , I ride the last curl of the wave, often times casting onto the sand, the majority of my strikes come as the bait enters the water...

[Jimmy Z]

practice my friend, that's all it takes. No one on this site casted a mile on the first couple of casts, well maybe not everyone

Listen dude just keep trying

[wallyevs012]

PHILD,
I am from West Brookfield, MA and if you go to digitaldagger.com and look under casting brake, I think you'll find what your looking for......A great company to do business with......they are in New Jersey.....I get my stuff in two days and have bought rod rack for front of my truck and just received a new Penn 525mag reel.... Good Luck, Wally

[jimi4290]

get a smaller rod, go at night, short casts are all you need. when i go at night i find the further the cast the smaller the fish, during the day its the opposite. i use a 9' spinning for chunks usually, i sometimes use a 8' with a conventional reel for chunks too. i practiced a lot learning how to cast a conventional/baitcaster in an open field using various weight sizes, 1-5 oz.

[CaptainMorgan!]

Phil

Click on the breakaway cannon
http://breakawayusa.com/shop/acc.htm

[ragfly]

1) get a smaller rod like a 10' Tsunami or Tica, they are light weight and not to expensive.
2) If you are sand spiking make a tall one so you can go with a shorter rod. Remember rod length is to keep the line out of the waves crashing in. you can make a sand spike out of PVC pipe!
3) use braided line instead of mono, that will increase your distance.
4) When casting make sure you are not dropping the rod tip to far back. You need to load the rod, just like fly fishing. Only go back to about 2o'clock. When the rod is loaded properly you will feel and see the difference.....

Good luck

[Sudsy]

I have 4 Breakaway Cannons (I like em that much) mostly use them for throwing heavy weight n bait but I have one that I use for uber heavy plugging. If you fish braided lines, all it takes is one slip of the drag while you're casting and you're cut to the bone.

[jpmass]

The cannon is the only way to go with a spinning outfit when lobbing 5oz +...that is if you want to get any distance... You could also tape your line holding finger for a firmer grip.

Try a convench and you'll never look back

[Striperjim]

Phil
What Jp says. The tape will work.


Welcome to the board jpmass

[jpmass]

Thanks bud

[cinchknot]

Phild, when you cast, tighten the drag as tight as you can, that will keep your reel from moving during the cast and the loading of the rod. That should help your distance. If you cannot get a cannon before you go fishing there are other alternatives. The Bait and Tackle shops sell leather finger protection that can be put on and taken off after the cast. Also, go to a bike shop, most of them will give you old bike tubes and cut them to fit. Usually about two to three inches and put them over your finger, this will also take away the "sting" of the cast... good luck and keep em coming...