Broken line on a pb!!!!

[Joedodge]

Went to a small pond this morning. Wacky rigging.  For one but I missed. Had one that was an absolute stud. Pulled drag probably be my pb. Had to be close to 4 pounds. Right when I grabbed the line in one hand and reached down to lip him the line snapped! I fish suffix elite 12 pound mono on a baitcaster. 2 week old line and a French Hamamatsu hook. And a palomar knot. I can’t figure out what happened unless he gutted the hook and his teeth rubbed the mono up to much? Ughhh

[AlabamaSpothunter]

Generally speaking, grabbing that line with one hand while trying to grab the fish is a big no no, and will often times lead to a broken line if the fish makes one last surge.

You take all stretch and forgiveness out of the equation the moment you grab that line.  Your rod and drag no longer have the ability to absorb the shock of the fish's run.

 

You'll get another opportunity in short order, don't sweat it pal.   

[Joedodge]

Ya know I’m not sure why o even did that lol. I usually always try and hold the rod. The bank was kinda odd and I think I just reacted. Oh yeah I’ll go back to that pond for sure. Not like there was any money on the line just a fish 

[Swamp Girl]

A four-pounder from the bank with no net is a heckuva challenge. Being your PB, your short-circuited thinking is understandable too. I've caught a lot of four-pounders and they still make me nervous! Sometimes I reach for the net too soon because I'm nervous and now I've got too much line out to net the bass.

 

No wonder we'll all hooked: Bass are exciting!

[Joedodge]

4 minutes ago, Swamp Girl said:

A four-pounder from the bank with no net is a heckuva challenge. Being your PB, your short-circuited thinking is understandable too. I've caught a lot of four-pounders and they still make me nervous! Sometimes I reach for the net too soon because I'm nervous and now I've got too much line out to net the bass.

 

No wonder we'll all hooked: Bass are exciting!

Right!!! I definitely just messed up lol. Next Tim I’ll just step in the water. I don’t care! lol. Always happens for a reason. Gives me a reason to go back and keep chasing. I honestly expected numbers this morning. Looking at this lil public pond I expected a lot of dinks. Not a couple bits and one really good fish lol. 

[Pat Brown]

Probably nothing you really could have done but I agree with everybody who says that when you grab the line you take your drag and the rod out of the equation. And those are your two primary lines of defense between you and braking fish off. 

 

Beyond that, checking your line regularly retying regularly and also making sure that you're fighting the fish the appropriate amount of time given the tackle that you're using is all very important. 

 

Here in North Carolina I'm very very likely to tangle with a fish over 6 lb so I very rarely fish anything under 15 lb line.  I catch a lot of big fish so I don't really think my line being bigger and more present is that big of a deal when it comes to catching bass - but I do know that when I don't use line that's up to the task of catching the fish that I'm fishing for in the types of cover that I'm catching them in - I lose a lot more of them!

 

Even the finessiest presentations that I'm likely to throw usually get bumped up hooks and bumped up line and bumped up rod power and bigger spools in general because I've been burned far too many times and so has my son and my wife.

 

Good luck! Get back out there and catch you another one! 

 

The main reason Bass get off in my experience is because they are the types of fish that actively want to get off and know how to get off and they basically don't stop trying to get off until they're completely convinced there's no hope for them to get off and for the big ones they don't lose hope.  When I'm on the bank I go into the water to land the fish a lot of the time.  I don't bother trying to fight them up to the bank because that's usually exactly when they make those types of runs and break off.  I go into the water a few inches up to my ankles and try to let them fight themselves to me - if I have time.

 

With something like a frog or a jig they're coming in and up on land if it breaks my rod - you don't really get much forgiveness playing fish with those baits at all.

 

With a wacky rig or Jerkbait or lipless - I'll definitely let the fish fight longer and try to lip it in the water because they stay pinned while fighting much better with those baits.

[WRB]

The bass in the water weighs close to nothing, out of the water it’s dead weight whatever the fish weighs plus it’s straggling to get free adding impact to the equation. 
You lift bass by the line if you let the line slip acting like your reel drag to get a hold on the bass.

Palomar knots, lie any knot, needs to be tied correctly. If you twist the loop when putting the hook or lure through the knot will fail.

Bank fishing just slide the bass onto the bank then get a hold on it.

Tom

PB bass over 4 lbs are more than likely females.

[Joedodge]

Thanks everyone and I agree with everything everyone has said. I had a brief moment of wanting to switch back to all braid like I used in Florida. But I really

dont wana do that. I’ll be back at that pond for sure. Unbelievable the size of the fish in some of these Midwest urban ponds. Since a lot of them used to be farm

ponds. And yes I will step down into the water for a fish like that next time lol. Live and learn. Always gotta have a the one that got away story. Maybe I ran the drag too tight? Did I not play the fish long enough? Who knows 

[WRB]

The one that got away is always the biggest bass you hooked! Welcome to the club.

Tom

[DinkDonkey30]

If you have more issues with line brakes get a different spool of line. I had a bad spool of suffix fluro last year. 

[Joedodge]

That is possible but I caught some 3 pounders on this spool a week ago lol 

[Mike L]

It’s not always a good idea grabbing the line. 

I agree with Tom. 
There’s a trick to using the line to bring a bass in. You have to be able to judge the weight and stress to your line and hook and using your fingers as the drag. 
 

 

Mike

[Joedodge]

22 minutes ago, Mike L said:

It’s not always a good idea grabbing the line. 

I agree with Tom. 
There’s a trick to using the line to bring a bass in. You have to be able to judge the weight and stress to your line and hook and using your fingers as the drag. 
 

 

Mike

Yep careless mistake on my part lol. Honestly first fish I’ve lost like that in probably 10 years 

[Mike L]

40 minutes ago, Joedodge said:

Yep careless mistake on my part lol. Honestly first fish I’ve lost like that in probably 10 years 

It happens 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike

[Joedodge]

4 minutes ago, Mike L said:

It happens 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike

Yes it does. Honestly I think part of it is I fished in Florida for years and years. Every pond and lake I could find. Move to the Midwest. I’m catching bigger fish than I ever have so the excitement is there. And it got the best of me for sure. 

[king fisher]

First of all you didn't loose the bass, you just opted to do a LDR ( Long Distance Release).

Second, are you sure the bass wasn't a touch over 5 pounds?

[Joedodge]

lol! We called it sportsman’s release in Florida. 
 

idk if we are blowing up a fishing story or not here lol. It was definitely a heck

of A fish. 

[king fisher]

5 hours ago, WRB said:

The bass in the water weighs close to nothing, out of the water it’s dead weight whatever the fish weighs plus it’s straggling to get free adding impact to the equation. 
You lift bass by the line if you let the line slip acting like your reel drag to get a hold on the bass.

Palomar knots, lie any knot, needs to be tied correctly. If you twist the loop when putting the hook or lure through the knot will fail.

Bank fishing just slide the bass onto the bank then get a hold on it.

Tom

PB bass over 4 lbs are more than likely females.

I made this mistake for over 20 years.  It wasn't until I tested all the knots that I new, that I found my Palamar knot was not as strong as I thought.   Now that I know the correct way to tie a Palamar, I use it more often.

[thediscochef]

I know this feeling way too well. There was a fish I snapped off three years ago and I'm still thinking about it. 

 

I was at a small pond in Conroe, TX. I had a bladed jig micro tied onto a spinning rod. Braid to leader. I'd just respooled the reel and forgot to loosen the drag. That is the hardest thump I have ever felt. It was either a giant catfish or a giant bass. I didn't get to see it. But it would have been a PB. My 7-10 pb didn't hold a candle to that thing, whatever it was. It will haunt me until I catch a double digit bass. 

 

Sorry for your loss there bud. It hurts. And usually there's nothing you can do but sit with the hurt. 

[woolleyfooley]

So without grabbing the line, how would you pull a fish in if you’re fishing from the bank but can’t get close to the water?

[WRB]

14 minutes ago, woolleyfooley said:

So without grabbing the line, how would you pull a fish in if you’re fishing from the bank but can’t get close to the water?

Just keep pulling the bass with your rod, don’t stop and slide it on the bank 

Tom

[Joedodge]

See it is two feet from the bank edge to the water and straight down no slope. It’s an odd bank. Oh well it happens. I’ve tied a palomar the same way forever lol. Wonder if I’m doing it wrong? 

[LCG]

A net can be a valuable tool 

[thediscochef]

1 minute ago, LCG said:

A net can be a valuable tool 

After reading the last couple posts I came here to say this. 

 

Bass Pro sells a very nice telescoping net that you can use to overcome dropoffs at the bank. Has saved my bacon in places where I can't just reach down and lip it

[Joedodge]

I tell ya what if I fond many more ponds like this a net may be in order lol. Usually I have no issue. First one I’ve fished like this