bust offs any idea

[bulldogs195461]

while fishing landbased in coomera river today,my 6lb leader seem to scream on the drag then bang a bust off on my sp,happened a few times.at one stage we thought we seen a fish burst from the water,then bust.and no i hadnt started on the vb yet ,just wondering if any ideas,

cheers john

[Milan]

Could've been a Tarpon...

[richard7785]

big eye trevs

[mattybb]

tailor

[Bluevien]

Jack

[Binder]

Loosen your drag ?

[bulldogs195461]

i did,its when i tightened it,bang.though im not real skilled in adjusting it in these situations.but ill learn, i hope

[samsteele115]

i did,its when i tightened it,bang.though im not real skilled in adjusting it in these situations.but ill learn, i hope

Haven't really caught a fish big enough to comment lol, but maybe you could just let the fish run a bit more next time and keep the same drag setting? Sounds like the increase in pressure on the line caused it to snap when you tightened the drag.

Having the right drag setting is a pretty touchy thing as I'm discovering for myself. Anyway just my thoughts, I could be completely wrong.

Cheers

[Binder]

If your running a tight drag to stop something hitting the snags, soft hands is the secret, let the rod follow the fish at the start of a run, ie absorb the initial shocks by letting the rod drop a little.

If your not used to the drag on a reel, best bet is set it when you start fishing and try to leave it alone whilst playing a fish. Its so easy to overtighten when excited.

[Surfingant]

My money is on tarpon, unless it is hooked in the jaw and you are very lucky the fight won't last long on 6lb leader no matter how loose or tight your drag is, same deal if it is tailor.

[Fishars]

You might like to try the following to set yr drag....loosen it off, pull the line down towards the butt of yr rod, tightening the drag until you can keep a bend in the rod that very slowly starts to straighten up. I'm assuming yr using a spinning reel, next time you get a big hit, don't strike just keep yr rod tip up and angled AWAY from the fish so the rod is doing all the work. If you've set yr drag correctly, any additional pressure can be applied by "palming" the spool which is an easy fix to slowing a big hit and run fish.

Good luck and tight lines.