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Posts: 283
| Do you free spool on the figure 8? |
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Posts: 2088
| nope - I disengage the reel after the fish is stuck if necessary |
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Posts: 2686
Location: Hayward, WI | I don't, and it has never been a problem for me. However, my figure8 mechanics have finally gotten decent enough that I catch a fish on it now and then. I haven't hooked up with anything over about 40 inches in the 8. Hooking up with a 50 at the boat might change my perspective, but for now, I don't disengage the reel for the 8.
curleytail |
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Posts: 283
| I do it before I go into my 8 every time. Not only do I like it for the 8 itself but I like the fact that I can cast right away once I pull the bait from the water. It may not seem like much at first, but if you think about it I could have 5-10 more casts at a spot compared to someone who disengages their reel once the bait is out of the water. |
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Posts: 32958
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | The button or bar is pressed automatically every cast just before entering the 8. Habit. |
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Posts: 315
| i free spool in the 8 - i just like the fact that i can instantly give the fish line if needed. i keep my drag extremely tight and id rather not be fumbling around trying to loosen my drag or open the bail while i have a fish going nuts at boat side. last year i probably caught 75% of my fish boat side and its just natural now for me and its how i like it
-ba- |
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Posts: 4342
Location: Smith Creek | I free spool with lighter pulling baits but my thumbs aren't strong enough for the heavier pulling baits. So my answer is sometimes. Using a rod longer than 8' I don't think it's crucial. |
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Posts: 395
Location: NW WI | sworrall - 4/16/2010 1:23 PM
The button or bar is pressed automatically every cast just before entering the 8. Habit.
ditto...and I'm ready to fire the next cast as another poster indicated. |
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Posts: 39
| I don't, haven't gotten into the habit of it, may try it this year but we'll see. I cast left handed so I don't have to switch hands like I know some people do, so as I'm bringing the bait out of the water I press the button and fire so I'm not losing any time having to switch hands. I've got it all down to one motion. Like brewcrew said "but if you think about it I could have 5-10 more casts at a spot compared to someone who disengages their reel once the bait is out of the water." I know I get more casts in than some of my buddies who I fish with but usually that doesn't mean much because they still catch the fish. |
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Posts: 541
| maybe it's just me but while I'm reeling in I try too freespool but when their is tension on the line it so hard to push the buttons always! |
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Posts: 1169
Location: New Hope MN | I cannot understand why you would NOT want to free spool during the 8... It just makes sense. |
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Posts: 906
Location: Warroad, Mn | Usually! What I try to do is concentrate on getting the fish to bite. I worry about what to do with the reel after that happens. I see many folks who are too worried about what to do with their reel, and not worried enough about catching the fish. Both ways work. Doug Johnson
Edited by dougj 4/16/2010 4:45 PM
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| because i dont need to free spool,drag just have to be in the right position
imho thumb bar,push button feature is for casting not to be used as a drag........
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Posts: 32958
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | The button/bar is used to release the spool so I can thumb it. I have done this for 35 years, probably because the drags on the reels back then were not as good as those today. Breaking myself of that habit ain't likely, and I have no reason to do so, it works great for me. I can 'slip' line to the fish to adjust the 8, too, a trick I find sometimes puts a fish in the net for me.
Doesn't mean anyone else has to, quite the contrary. |
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Posts: 1308
Location: WI | Had the anti reverse go last summer when I got a 39" on the 8. Usually I thumb the spool but didn't that time. |
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Posts: 1220
| OK, I'll go just a tad against the grain here as well as the good seminars where free spooling the eight is taught as a smooth transition to the next cast. My experience is that the smallish fish (low to mid 30's) are totally managable with the reel locked up, and that any fish approaching 40 inches can take all sorts of line on a drag that was only locked as tight as you can do with fingers only. It is always a big surprise how they get the line out of there but, all of a sudden they are 10 feet away. For me, the bad outcome would to let a big fish get slack on you as the spool slips away from what could be really cold (or nervous) fingers. I generally like to go with not getting fancier than my skill is likely to back up. Marty Forman |
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Posts: 2361
| I think free spooling is actually a misnomer. When you are using your thumb as the drag, that is not really freespooling.
I actually did freespool one a couple weeks back, that hit on the 8.
It didn't work out to well...but you CAN fit two thumbs on a thumbar. |
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Location: Latitude 41.3016 Longitude 88.6160 | I set my drag at about 75% tight from lock down so on a F/8 when a fish hits he will take drag until I stop him with my thumb on the spool. If you open your spool up and use your thumb only for your drag and if you make one mistake that fish will be gone. When you use your drag you have even pressure on the fish, when you use your thumb on the spool for your drag and if you release your hold on the spool to fast you unload all the pressure and now that fish has a way of throwing the hooks. I upgrade all my reel drags with CARBONTEX drag washers from SMOOTH DRAGS so my my reel drags are very smooth.
Edited by PIKEMASTER 4/17/2010 9:39 AM
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Location: Contrarian Island | "I cannot understand why you would NOT want to free spool during the 8... It just makes sense."
what makes no sense to me is buying 200-400 dollar reels and not using the drag.... I have never free spooled on the figure 8, and I never will...seems to work for me...that's what makes sense. to each their own.
Edited by BNelson 4/17/2010 9:49 AM
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| Ditto to BN |
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Posts: 315
| "to each there own" BNelson
exactly if it works why fix it. so if free spooling is your way so be it and if you dont freespool so be it 
i wanna go fishing
-b- |
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Posts: 774
Location: South East Wisconsin | Im free spooling! |
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Posts: 967
| I agree with BN. I have seen too many clients loose fish from their thumb slipping on the spool. I would rather rely on my drag, and encourage clients to do the same. I also try to discourage people from free spooling when the fish makes a run at boatside. I had a guy get a 48" to the boat on a B.S willy creeper, when the fish made a last power run he freespooled thumb sliped and he backlashed the reel and the fish ripped off.
If you've had good luck doing what your doing keep doing it, but I will never freespool
Good Luck
Jeff Hanson
madisonmuskyguide.com |
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Posts: 264
| I lost a 50 last year when free spooling so i wont be any more. |
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Posts: 1106
Location: Muskegon Michigan | Nope, I hit free spool after I set the hook. I have never had a problem with that myself but if you like to free spool before the 8 that works too. I burnt my thumb pretty good once on a 45 inch fish at boatside back when I did freespool. So I keep my drag tight and free spool after hook set. Mike |
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| message to the freespooler
wondering the logic behind that?
fear of what?a broken line,rod,reel,jaw?
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Posts: 32958
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | None of the above. It's total control for me, and I've had no issues at all. My drag is as tight as I can get it, and I engage the reel and disengage the reel several times over the course of landing a fish. I've developed the habit over 36 years, and just do it without thinking about it. I know I lose very few lightly hooked muskies, but that might sometimes just be good fortune.
It isn't 'logic', it's a technique, and it works for me and will continue to.
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Posts: 2332
Location: SE, WI. | I agree with Grampa Worrall. My long lost teacher...kind of!  |
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Posts: 50
| This might come back to haunt me but. We use 100 pound test super braid 130 pound test leaders and rods you can drag a 620vs ranger around with. Last year I lost a 50 plus in fish when it hit boat side and I was worried about it breaking stuff so I slammed the hooks home and gave it the rod to run only to have the fish look up and throw hooks right back at me. Since then I slamm them home and dip the fish let them fight the net. You pay top dollar for high end gear have faith in it |
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | learned to be a free-spooler when a 7'6" rod was considered long. developed new habits with the right hand on the end of the rod and left hand on the foregrip just in front of the reel so i can get going faster and deeper down the straightaway and wider on the turns. works for me ... but, then the longer rods and better reels make it possible as stated by BN above. if you can pay more attention to the fish than what your fingers have to do it just makes sense.
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Location: 31 | I learned to put my thumb on the spool before going into the 8, this relieves the pressure and it is no problem to disengage the reel. Heck, I was hitting the free-spool back back when everyone was using 5-6 foot rods, so I am not changing either Like Steve, I think it's benefits outweigh its negatives, actually I've never had a problem... it's the stone cold nuts for me to use a poker analogy.
Most of you guys will not be able to relate to this but I use 20+ year-old 6500C reels with converted direct drive components from the early 1970's 5000 DA. Basically, I do not have a drag in the conventional sense and the only way the fish can take line is when I allow the real handle to spin backwards. |
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Posts: 19
| No freespooling on my figure 8. I just make sure my drag is set correctly before I make that first cast. This way I can concentrate on getting that slob to bite with a hard set before I worry about trying to land it. A good point was brought up with newer reels having better drag. I will freespool when fighting a fish that is close to the boat while using an older reel... but still not on the figure 8. |
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Posts: 42
| Free Spool !
Regardless of my drag setting, I feel the big advantage of the "free spool" is me getting a better hook set because of positioning.
In free spool I'm able to feed line letting the fish "turn away". When she turns, I set. Once the hook set is complete, I engage the reel and let the drag take over.
Edited by BassMiesterNJ 4/19/2010 8:34 AM
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Posts: 2088
| you "feed line" to a fish that eats in the 8 and as she swims away set the hook? Are you talking about a figure 8 with your sucker rig? |
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Location: 31 | That didn't make sense to me either. They eat it at the boat with me and they're swimming away with their eyes crossed. |
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Location: 31 | That didn't make sense to me either... they take a bite at the drive up window with me and they're paddling away with their eyes crossed. |
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Posts: 63
| Nope, I never have. But Jim Saric was saying if you get a monster at boatside, and it locks up your reel, all you have to do to release the tension is to bend your knees. |
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Posts: 1169
Location: New Hope MN | Inhaler - 4/21/2010 2:46 AM
Nope, I never have. But Jim Saric was saying if you get a monster at boatside, and it locks up your reel, all you have to do to release the tension is to bend your knees.
Not when she swims directly away from you. Otherwise, that's a pretty good idea. I'll use that this year. thanks |
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Posts: 899
| The fish I've lost boatside after hooking up have not been because I didn't free spool, they were due to a couple common mistakes. 1) Setting the hook in an upwards direction and pulling the fish's head out of the water, or 2) the fish biting when I'm in a position that makes setting the hook nearly impossible. Usually, after hooking up boatside I bury the rod tip to keep the fish from jumping (doesn't always work) or if they are just sitting there shaking their head I drag them around the boat until the net man is ready.
One other thing I've talked about with other folks that may be worth considering is how the rating of your rod affects how you should set your drag. Lots of people are using XH or XXH rods these days. With that heavy of a rod, there isn't as much flex and in my opinion it is a lot easier for a big fish to rip the hooks out if your drag is locked down. Especially boatside. I lock down the drag on reels that are on rods rated H or less, back it off just a touch when I'm using an XH rod. Something to consider if you're not a free-spooler anyway. |
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Posts: 63
| whynot - 4/21/2010 9:49 AM
One other thing I've talked about with other folks that may be worth considering is how the rating of your rod affects how you should set your drag. Lots of people are using XH or XXH rods these days. With that heavy of a rod, there isn't as much flex and in my opinion it is a lot easier for a big fish to rip the hooks out if your drag is locked down. Especially boatside. I lock down the drag on reels that are on rods rated H or less, back it off just a touch when I'm using an XH rod. Something to consider if you're not a free-spooler anyway.
Thats a good idea, but don't you have to worry about not getting a good hookset if your drag is backed off a bit. I would think that if your drag slips it would impede the hook set. |
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| If you have sharp hooks you shouldn't have any problem getting hooks into a fish with the drag backed off a tad. I'm not talking a lot, just not a locked down drag. Maybe a quarter turn depending on the reel. |
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I've never understood why so many muskie fishermen think they need to fish with a drag locked down tight.
Especially when you nail one at boatside. 90% of the fish I've witnessed getting off at the boat were because of a "superman" hook-set and a tight drag.
They either pull the bait out or they pull the fish up out of the water and they shake it off.
My boat-side hook-ups that actually made it into the net went way up when I started to just put tension on the fish and let it take drag after it's pinned up.
But that's just me.
JS |
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Location: Latitude 41.3016 Longitude 88.6160 | Guest - 4/22/2010 9:41 AM
I've never understood why so many muskie fishermen think they need to fish with a drag locked down tight.
Especially when you nail one at boatside. 90% of the fish I've witnessed getting off at the boat were because of a "superman" hook-set and a tight drag.
They either pull the bait out or they pull the fish up out of the water and they shake it off.
My boat-side hook-ups that actually made it into the net went way up when I started to just put tension on the fish and let it take drag after it's pinned up.
But that's just me.
JS
Because if you are part of M/F and you musky fish, you only fish with a Okuma 9'3" rod and a Okuma reel, with the drag locked down, and you open your reel, free spool every musky, why because that's how my Dad did it 35 years ago.LOL
Guess you are so right how to fight a musky in 2010 !!!!!!!!!!! |
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Free spooling on the figure 8