fighting tuna videos

[Pennsy Guy]

With nothing to do, I just watched 3+ hrs. of West Coast long range tuna/yellowtail fishing. The one common thing for every angler fighting a fish was that no matter how long the foregrip--even what looked like 18"--their left hand was just ahead of the reel. I figured out years ago that the further up the foregrip, the more leverage you could put on the fish & still level the line while cranking on the handle. Try it just sitting there in your chair; pumping with your hand just forward of the reel-now move your hand further up the foregrip and repeat the motion. Now you're using both forearm and upper arm(bicep). Hell of a lot easier pumping & the bigger the fish, the easier it is. I even got a Fishing Bud to extend the foregrip on a rod I use for daytime chunking with 30# test Made a world of difference going from a 7" to 14" foregrip. Of course the rail is still your friend. Curious, how many feel the same? More importantly, how many use the entire foregrip?

[Slip It In]

My only theory is that they do not need the extra leverage at the moment. The extra long foregrip is to protect the blank when used on the rail of the boat. When they need to put more leverage on the fish, they place the foregrip on the rail and apply pressure on butt under armpit and lower their body.

[Capt. Debbie]

Not all that simple. Arm length. Gimbal in use or not. Slotted rod butt. Bent butt rods.

I used my left forearm on foregrip to keep the reel from rotating. Right hand on handle and my left forearm near or against the left side of reel to keep it orients eyes up.

Some people even use straps from belt to reel. Problem with that is you cant dip the rod down which is common on a party boat while doing rail gymnastics with others fishing. AKA the fish running parallel to the boat left or right.

Many people use the rail for leverage. Some reel with the rod still in the rodholder on private boats.

Do it once or twice and you develop your own technique. Copying others is rarely a good idea. Sometimes yes and sometimes no.

Your physics statement is true. Where you place your left hand decides the fulcrum location. The less the fish has the more you have. But tuna rods bend wildly. A foregrip may actually bend in the fight making it further away from you.

Anyway. The rod technique strategy is not a one size fits all deal in my opinion.

With nothing to do, I just watched 3+ hrs. of West Coast long range tuna/yellowtail fishing. The one common thing for every angler fighting a fish was that no matter how long the foregrip--even what looked like 18"--their left hand was just ahead of the reel. I figured out years ago that the further up the foregrip, the more leverage you could put on the fish & still level the line while cranking on the handle. Try it just sitting there in your chair; pumping with your hand just forward of the reel-now move your hand further up the foregrip and repeat the motion. Now you're using both forearm and upper arm(bicep). Hell of a lot easier pumping & the bigger the fish, the easier it is. I even got a Fishing Bud to extend the foregrip on a rod I use for daytime chunking with 30# test Made a world of difference going from a 7" to 14" foregrip. Of course the rail is still your friend. Curious, how many feel the same? More importantly, how many use the entire foregrip?

[Pennsy Guy]

I agree Capt. All my rods are acid wrapped except for that 30# rod. As I aged I really got tired of fighting the torque, ergo the spirals.
The rail isn't the only reason for a long fore grip, but that's just my opinion, which I've found to be true and works for me.

[Capt. Lou]

That’s correct , the longer foregrip is the way to go on stand up rods . If in stand up harnesses your grip is longer so both hands can now be used . You can avoid cramping by rotating or shaking out arms to refresh if need be .
Mine have been 18” or better since the 70’s ! In conjunction my rod butts are just long enough to clear holders out 11”’s . Those original Aftco short butts were in part my idea since I used to cut mine to above be specs then Aftco produced !

[Pennsy Guy]

^^^^^100%. I fish PP's exclusively now and that longer for grip is a life saver. Don't use a harness(you shouldn't on a PB) nor a belt aanymore. Got hollered at by a Capt. for hooking into one years ago and stopped with the belt later that year. Still get a tuna kiss once in a while from the humble but that's a good thing!!!!

[Duffman]

“Tuna Kiss”. Lmao. NICE!! Those bruises are a badge of honor after a good trip!

[Ol Pedro]

Chuck, I also like the long forgrips and agree with the leverage aspect. The Westies rail a lot more than we do and use shorter topshots than we do. Braid buries easier than mono so a lot of them keep closer to the reel thinking that they will get a better level wind. Some also put their hands over the top of their reels when they use the rail with the butt under their armpits. This will help with the torque issue. Being a little taller than you I like my butt section at least standard. I also get tuna kisses around my armpit.

[Pennsy Guy]

Hi Pete, yea, a lot did as you said, which I saw on the vids I watched. I mostly watched the trips featuring Bluefins---they were bigger than our "unders" and I know now I'd be using my friend a lot with that size fish. When we did our Excel trip back in the 90's, 90% of the tuna caught were on our bluefish rods(30# test) but our catch were small--30-36" bluefin and the Longfin were all about 25#. Except for Muldune's Big eye the troll fish were the same as the other BF. I can remember only one guy using the rail, his first fishing trip & he had another eye ball on--which he ultimately brought to gaff.
I have tried putting the rod in my pit but found it extremely awkward & uncomfortable-to each his own I guess. I get my kisses from the gimble butt to the left of the groin. Guess I could put the rubber cap end on it---if I could find one of them!!! & remember to bring it...
Just waiting for the tuna schedule to come out, getting antsy-shouldn't have watched those vids...

[Ol Pedro]

Chuck, hope we fish together this year. The Bluefin were small schoolies back in the 70's and 80's when I was coming up in San Diego. A 30lber was a nice fish. With global warming the fish have gotten steadily larger. They seem to fill slot that the Long in had when The water was cooler. The last Bluefin I caught out there was on the Q 105 and we had to fish 20-25 lb. test to get bit. The rail doesn't come into play much with lighter line/lower drag settings. Try watching some 10 or 12 day trips or Hurricane Bank videos. Those Yellowfin are tackle breakers.

[Pennsy Guy]

I know, had a 20 day trip video of the Excel down at the Revillagigedo area with those 250# yellows being caught for 24 hrs straight on the old computer but lost it when it crashed...Those alisons are awesome. Hope we get to fish together this year, also. Since Mexico closed that area, any vids would be fairly old and probably no longer available but I'll check.