I current.y have penn reels I use for cobia. Couple level wind 220’s one 113h and an okuma 45. Nothing fancy and they work pretty good for cobia and bull reds. The one issue I run into is leaving the reel in free spool on the clicker. The current is usually so strong (broad) that every time the boat rocks I let out a little more line. So I usually have to leave the reel in gear with the drag turned way down or off. If I don’t I seem to get a lot of short strikes cause they can’t run with the bait. So i was thinking about picking up a few lever drag reels to eliminate this issue. I see quite a few tld’s that I could pick up at a decent price. Would the 15 be big enough for cobia and reds and maybe a tarpon this fall? Thanks!
I use the same set up your talking about. One thing to try would be a heavier sinker to keep the current from draggin it. I use some pretty heavy sinkers that will break off when a fish hits most of the time…
Thanks for the advise guys, I don’t know that I will be going any farther than white water in my boat but hopefully upgrade one day so that might be a good idea. Tough to upgrade my ride with a 2 year old and one due next month. Well if anyone has a few they are looking to unload shoot me a pm.
until you get the reels, try some rubber bands. It’s hard to get away from line creep with any reel. Just take a wrap around the line and bring it back to the reel handle, the rubber band streches with the boat rock and snaps quick when a fish hits.
Pm sent. I have 5 TLD 25’s that I will be listing this week. 3 have never been used, 2 have been used around 10 times. One of the used reels has 400yds of 80lb Power Pro braid and 100 yds of Ande mono lead, the other has 400 yds of 80lb Power Pro Braid. All will have a Shimano reel cover and will come with free shipping. $100 each. I intended to use them for Cobia on the Broad and offshore at the reefs, I will moving inland in Sept and I’m trying to get rid of them and a few heavier rods before I go. I have the original boxes, manuals and kit that comes with each reel.
Try to tighten down the spool tension a little. That might do the trick. As far as reels go I love my avets. Lever drag is great for that type of fishing. Avet sx with braid or mx if u like mono or want more line capacity. Tld 15 is a workhorse. Did I mention I love the avet!
Text sent to eightnic8. They are mounted on Pinnacle rods, 3 straight butt, 2 bent butt. I found the rods on the Hulltruth website. They are black and blue, with silver butts. The package cost me $735 with a gaff included. I will be selling the rods for $100 each.
I can email pics of the rods and reels, they wont load on here.
I love my Avets for tuna/wahoo type fishing. But the clicker function sucks. Penn 555 or Newell reels have a nice stiff loud clicker. The star drag is also better for cobia in my opinion
I set my drags tight so as soon as a cobia hits the bait they are hooked and it’s on solid. Since someone told me this method I have caught a lot more, cobia are much more aggressive when hitting a bait then people think.