Swimbait combo for offshore jigging??

[Arcs&sparks]

Any offshore guys here?

 

Got the invite to do some offshore jigging for pollock, cod, etc. with my buddy and his stepfather. Northern New England, Jeffereys ledge. I’ve been out once  before on a charter boat using the 6’ poolcue rods and big Penn Senators with 40# mono.  Had a great time, but besides the unintentional sharks that ate our jigs and enevetably snapped off(got to hand line them though )  those rods hardly flexed with an 8lb fish on em, and you could hardly tell he difference between a fish and your jig.  I know the target fish can potentially be 50lb+, but seem to average in the 1-10lb range with 20lb being a substantial catch. 

 

I would like to use my own gear (and left hand reels), and feel alittle bit of fight instead of just winching.

 

The boat owner has some extra, typical offshore combos, but assuming id be catching fish under 20lb,  does anyone see any reason I can’t just use  swimbait rods and/or a flipping stick with Calcutta Conquest 301&401?

 

Avg 250’ of water with 2 other guys jigging

 

40lb braid backing with 20lb cxx Mono.  I would say there’s over 350 ft of line per reel?

 

Rods I was considering;

Loomis 955c 7’11” 3-6oz

all star flippin stick 7’6 -2oz

Quantum BLU 7’ -1.5oz (saltwater rod,  very stiff with mod fast taper)

 

Am I out of my mind to think any of these combos would be good for bottom fishing?   

 

@WRB I have read a post or two of you using Calcutta’s for bigger saltwater game.  Any advice? 

 

[Janderson45]

I was using a 7'4 HF st. Croix freshwater bass rod last year for bottom fishing nearshore, caught tautog, black seabass, sea robin and a few small dogfish on it no problem.  It was a tad "light" compared to traditional gear, but it ended up working to my advantage.  The rod (a legend elite model) was MUCH more sensitive than the traditional saltwater gear we had on board, I could feel the taugs grab my jig long before the other guys could, I wound up catching about twice as many as both of my friends and they both wanted to use my rod!  Think I was using 40lb braid to 30lb mono and caught fish up to 7lbs.  The set up could have handled fish to 15-20lbs I think, but the nature of tautog fishing is around lots of rocks, they immediately try to take you back down into the rocks and break you off, so I wouldn't have wanted to hook into one much larger than the 7lber I got.  

 

Cod and pollack fight less, but are caught deeper, usually on sandy bottom I believe?  One thing to keep in mind is you don't need a rod with lure ratings as heavy as your jig or sinker, since you are not going to be casting but vertically dropping and retrieving the lure.  I have a couple bottom fishing dedicated setups (shimano trevala) rods, usually fish diamond jigs for striped bass on them, one has a Calcutta 400B, one has a tranx.  They would both work perfect for cod, but are probably a bit over powered

[everythingthatswims]

Only thing will be line retrieve with those reels from that depth. Your hands will get sore! Lotta cranking!

 

I fish a ton of bass tackle for saltwater fish, if you know how to fight a fish it's pretty reasonable to land most fish on them, and if you're in a boat, you can always chase them if running out of line becomes a concern!

 

I caught mahis on a ML spinning rod a few years ago, many big false albacore on my swimbait rod with a 400 Cardiff, an amberjack on a flipping stick (ACCIDENT!), and I sheepshead fish with a MH and 50lb braid.

 

Lighter stuff makes it way more fun, and it shows you how pitiful of a fight a bass really is!

[Janderson45]

1 hour ago, everythingthatswims said:

 

 

Lighter stuff makes it way more fun, and it shows you how pitiful of a fight a bass really is!

 

Now you sound like my buddies who give me crap for spending so much time and money targeting "dinky freshwater bass" - I just smile and nod.  They don't get it, but that's ok... 

 

I get my saltwater fix 5-10 times a year and that's plenty for me, it is nice to do battle with some saltwater giants, but the "sport" aspect of it doesn't even come close to bass fishing for me.  I caught a 500+ lb Tuna last year, after we finally landed it and were heading back to the dock I told my buddy "that was fun but it ain't no 5lb smallmouth".  Haha!

 

[Arcs&sparks]

11 hours ago, Janderson45 said:

I was using a 7'4 HF st. Croix 

Is that one like a jig/worm rod or...? Im curious which rod/s I should use(actionwise). I was thinking my  swimbait rods (7’11” mod/fast) because of the super long handles,  and once it’s loaded up with a fish would be more like a 6’10” or something, as far as leverage is concerned.. What depths were you fishing?

 

“The rod (a legend elite model) was MUCH more sensitive than the traditional saltwater gear we had on board,”

 

Another reason I’d like to use heavy bass gear :)

 

“but the nature of tautog fishing is around lots of rocks, 

Cod and pollack fight less, but are caught deeper, usually on sandy bottom I believe?”

 

My understanding is that this spot is a HUGE offshore gravel plateau, washed in from the ice age melt.  So I think you’re right, and large rocks shouldn’t be a factor. 

 

“One thing to keep in mind is you don't need a rod with lure ratings as heavy as your jig or sinker”

 

? I hear ya. I listed the specs just for detail.

 

“Calcutta 400B, one has a tranx.  They would both work perfect for cod, but are probably a bit over powered”

 

Over powered by the fish?  Or visa versa? I don’t wanna beat on these reels too bad.

 

9 hours ago, everythingthatswims said:

Only thing will be line retrieve with those reels from that depth. Your hands will get sore! Lotta cranking!

I was curious about that,  but those Penn Senators are super slow,  I did a quick search,  most are about 3:1 with ~28 IPT,  (and 48oz in weight lol)  with the Conquest 400 at 5.6:1 ~30 IPT.  Torque is definitely a factor though.  

 

Thats a sweet list of catches dude.  I’ve seen a few posts from you,  is there anything you haven’t caught??

 

6 hours ago, Janderson45 said:

 

Now you sound like my buddies who give me crap for spending so much time and money targeting "dinky freshwater bass" - I just smile and nod.  They don't get it

 

500+ lb Tuna last year, after we finally landed it and were heading back to the dock I told my buddy "that was fun but it ain't no 5lb smallmouth".

 

 

Hahah.  That’s a sick tuna! 

 

Those d**n saltwater guys...

Also goes for some of the bass guys I know when I talk about trout fishing lol

 

Thanks for the replies!  I guess worst case if it isn’t working well, I’ll just have to use those big, cumbersome offshore combos...  where the jig feels like half a brick, and with a fish on, feels like a full brick. 

[redmexican5081]

Length of the rods would be my concern.  The bottom fishing I do with my family on Jefferys/Scantum/Stellwagon is usually done with a rod around 6' to 6'-6".  We use Shimano trevala rods.  I took a 7'-4" rod out one day and it just seemed too long and awkward for jigging.