Matching rod to line weight, drag setting and fish
Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: Saltwater Fishing
Forum Name: The Briny Bar
Forum Description: The place for general chat on saltwater fishing!
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=36361
Printed Date: 10 Jun 2026 at 9:44pm
Topic: Matching rod to line weight, drag setting and fish
Posted By: Colin 30279
Subject: Matching rod to line weight, drag setting and fish
Date Posted: 07 Jan 2009 at 9:29am
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Been reading Tony Bishop's "Fishing even Smarter" and found the section on rods reels and drag.
tested my set up out and it goes something like this...
if I set my drag up to 25% - 30% of my 9kg line on my 10 - 15kg fast action rod, I reach what Tony says is optimum rod bend. (Roughly an arc through 90 degrees) Which I understand is how he says it should be. Everything in balance.
But, that means the maximum weight/drag of everything including a fish, south of the last rod guide, is 2.5kg before gear damage occurs.
Is this correct, or have I misunderstood something in this simplified picture?
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Replies:
Posted By: green guy
Date Posted: 07 Jan 2009 at 2:26pm
huh just give it death pulll wind pull wind------------- http://www.facebook.com/hauraki.hillbillys |
Posted By: snapper mad
Date Posted: 07 Jan 2009 at 3:40pm
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Lock an load thats whats my dads says thats probably y i havent landed the big one yet ------------- If i fished like i lied i`d be good |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 07 Jan 2009 at 10:58pm
| When a rod is manufactured to a particular rating, the manufacturers would be assuming you are using it correctly. If your rod is rated at 10kg line weight you would use 10kg rated line. Your drag should be set around 3kg at the most. It's a bit simplistic to say that means your rod will lift a 3kg deadweight as that doesn't take into account the problem of point loading etc. If you dont know what that is ask and I or someone else will have a crack at explaining that one. |
Posted By: Fishb8
Date Posted: 08 Jan 2009 at 6:21am
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I get some known weight, such as a bag of sugar and put them in a supermarket bag, then attach them to your line. I f you have a 10 kg rated rod, then about 3 kg deadweight. When you lift, observe the bend in the rod, when you get the 90 degree bend, that's the rod fully loaded and that's what you should set your drag to. The line should come off the reel slowly, when you've set the drag correctly. At that setting, you still have loads of strength left in the line and you rod will be working properly. ------------- Be yourself; everyone else is already taken |
Posted By: Fish Dish
Date Posted: 08 Jan 2009 at 10:08am
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But this is all useless when you hook a big fish and he takes off over the horizon. The only chance you had was to tighten the drag and try to slow him down.
Or you could try putting a note on your hook saying fish up to 10kg only. Get used to pulling on the line against the drag so you know where to set it, but dont be frightened to tighten it up. Even putting your hand against the spool when a fish is running can help, especially on the light sp gear.
Better to risk busting your rod than lose a 20lb snapper. Sports shops have plenty of rods, 20lb snapper not so common. ------------- One more Kingie |