halibut weights

[rcl187]

For the past few years I have spent my summer in Alaska. Most of the time is split between work (fishing) and fishing. This past summer we began to run into problems when we hook into large halibut on our sport rods, it seems our weights are snagging the bottom when the fish makes a large run over rocky terrain. The weight slides beneith the fish and is pushed to the ground by the beating tail. Any advice on how to fix it? Sometimes we lose the fish, othertimes we find ways to get the weight unsnagged but by then the fish is so tired that it can't fight anymore, and on real big fish it just breaks the wire leader. We thought about using lighter line to attach the weight but it cost to much to lose a weight on each fish and we don't have access to stores for much of the time.

[Grits]

Never Halibut fished before but wondered if a downrigger might work?

[Jellyhead]

I'm not trying to be a smart@$$ here, but how's bout' a giant halibut slinky. Take you're worn out neoprene waders cut the leg off of it below the knee, fill with rocks, lead, whatever, and then zip tie the open end up. Wa-la, a giant halibut slinky. I'm sure with a little refining and expiramenting with other materials, you could get a virtually snag free wieght, cheap.

Good Luck

Aaron

[Pilar]

RCL187, never fished for flattie except here in Oregon. We use 150# coated wire in two sections with a barrel swivel in between. One section ends in a 14/0 circle hook, the other has a regular cheap brass snap swivel sliding on it. The weight goes on the sliding swivel.

If it gets hung up bad, the clip on the swivel parts and you get your fish. If it's not that bad the weight comes off the bottom and you get your fish. The two sections are each about 2 feet long.

Hope this helps.

[Bait O' Eggs]

rcl - how deep are you fishing, and what size of weight are you using?

[rcl187]

Our fishing locations and deapths vary. Many of the fish we catch are in 60-100 feet of water. We don't really get to choose where we fish, the captain of the boat just picks a spot to anchore up for the night and we drop our rods. Many of the fish we catch are caught when were tied up to the dock at the canary. Most people give us funny looks when they see us with such big rods in 40' of water but when you hook five or six big fish in a day attitudes quickley change. When we are at sea and the currents are strong we use weights up to a pound or more. At the cannery we go as light as possible which can be as small as 3-5 ounces. Most problems arrise with the larger more expensive weights.

[Capt. Hook]

rc, I chartered Halibut in Cook Inlet for 4 years and never encountered the problem. We used ganglion cord for leader and sliding corcscrew swivels to hold our cannon ball weights. Occasionally a large fish would thrash off the weight but never had it get hung while fighting one. Maybe fishing near the docks there was more stuff on the bottom like cables? How heavy was your gear? It is extremely difficult to unsnag a heavy weight with a light rod. Thats about all I can add.

[rcl187]

Yeah, could just be all the crap on the bottom-we bring up all sorts of things. As for the gear I'm sure its plenty heavy. We use 60 pound mono, anything more and we wouldn't be able to break the line on a good snag (can't work the boat around it) even the 60 takes alot of work.

[Backlash2]

Are you guys fishing with spreader bars???

[212hjet]

rcl: I have a place in SE Alaska that we use a bout 6 weeks a summer. We catch halibut to 235# and don't seem to loose but one or so a summer. We use the sturgeon poly leader from a barrell swivel with a 14/0 or 16/0 cirlce hook on 30" leader. Above it we put a "slido" on the main line with a 16 oz. normally. The slido has a brass snap swivel to hook the weight onto....this keeps the weight from having a drop line to tangle with the leader or main line and from getting near the fish. If things get nasty on the bottom the snap swivel will eventually pull free. If you want to talk further, e mail me at macriver@aolc.om Have fun up there....we do!! Where abouts do you commerical fish? We are on POW Island.

[rcl187]

We work out of wards cove in Ketchikan, this will be my third year and I love it. We work on a 58' purse seiner built in 1953 so its pretty old compared to alot of whats up there. I haven't got any fish over 200 yet but came really close until one of the guys on gaff hit it in the gill and got the wire wrapped around the gaff-then the gaff pulled out of the fish and the wire snapped-dam