The PCS Blogosphere
The Eternal Optimist!
I spent a little time this evening checking out the local weather reports and the sea surface temperatures. Right now, it's blowing 28 kts with a 12 foot swell and a 6 foot wind wave. That's what the "point and click" forecast says for the area 60 miles offshore from Monterey. By the middle of the week, it's supposed to lay down a little. The reports say winds to 15 kts and seas to 5 feet. The problem is that the "push" of warm water that held all of those albacore last week has been "pushed" back quite a ways. It's now 60 nm from the nearest harbor (Monterey) and these northwest winds are not going to help matters. Still, Thursday is 4 days away. A lot can happen in 4 days. And with this El Nino, there is no telling how long the albacore might stay within range.
I spent a little time this evening checking out the local weather reports and the sea surface temperatures. Right now, it's blowing 28 kts with a 12 foot swell and a 6 foot wind wave. That's what the "point and click" forecast says for the area 60 miles offshore from Monterey. By the middle of the week, it's supposed to lay down a little. The reports say winds to 15 kts and seas to 5 feet. The problem is that the "push" of warm water that held all of those albacore last week has been "pushed" back quite a ways. It's now 60 nm from the nearest harbor (Monterey) and these northwest winds are not going to help matters. Still, Thursday is 4 days away. A lot can happen in 4 days. And with this El Nino, there is no telling how long the albacore might stay within range.
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Northern California Albacore, 9/19/09
It was about time! Guys have been catching albacore here in Northern California since July and I've been tied to the dock! You know, wife, kids, in-laws, work! All of the usual excuses that keep you off the water. Well, my brother wanted to go so I made some phone calls, rounded up a last-minute crew and had everyone ready to hit the road at 3 AM.
It was about time! Guys have been catching albacore here in Northern California since July and I've been tied to the dock! You know, wife, kids, in-laws, work! All of the usual excuses that keep you off the water. Well, my brother wanted to go so I made some phone calls, rounded up a last-minute crew and had everyone ready to hit the road at 3 AM.
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In Northern California, we have several fatalities among fishermen every year. Each time a report comes out in the newpaper, I take a look at it and ask myself, "How could they have come out of this alive?" In nearly every situation that I've read about, I believe that these guys would have survived if they were wearing a handheld VHF radio and a life jacket. A local US Coast Guard officer that I know recommends an EPIRB as your first piece of electronic safety equipment, but one crew several years ago perished with a properly functioning GPIRB in the water. So, as a boat owner, what are you going to do?
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I get this question quite a bit. The "maximum drag at strike..." specifically applies to lever drag reels, but all reels have a functional "maximum drag." A maximum is the highest number of pounds, but what is functional? Going back to some previous discussions, let's just say that I am looking for a maximum drag with 10% start up or less. If the drags are too sticky or if they are locked down, I am just going to call them "non-functional." Let's look at the different reel designs.
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Question: "I have one of my Penn 330 GTI's apart on the kitchen table right now....
Jun. 29 2009, 10:03 AM - 2 Comments
Jun. 29 2009, 10:03 AM - 2 Comments
Question: "I have one of my Penn 330 GTI's apart on the kitchen table right now. The drag was sticking and upon dissassembly per your post http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=10.0, I found some badly corroded metal and deteriorating fiber washers. I wanted to know what advantage replacing the drag washer under the stack with a fiber washer serves? I will be ordering a new drag stack and some grease. Thanks again for the posts!"
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The fish's interface with the reel is the drag system. Once you upgrade your drag washers to greased carbon fiber, the fish will probably not be able to tell the difference between your $90 Ambassaduer and your $350 Calcutta. Your interface with the reel is the handle grip. In between the handle grip and the drags is a reel with single or two speeds, leverdrag or star drag, graphite or aluminum frame, level wind or no. Once you're on a fish, your reel may as well be a black box. It's you on the handle grip and the fish against the drag.
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...But fishing season is finally here! I just love the ocean and I pretty much limit myself to ocean fishing only. I fish inshore during most of the May to November season. Right now that means only rock cod and ling cod. In Northern California, our salmon fishery has collapsed, halibut has always been spotty, and white sea bass are like ghosts (you don’t find them, they find you). In late summer months, we may or may not get a shot at albacore. Last year they hop scotched right over us and landed in Oregon.
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Most of you are familiar with this process by the name "Blue Printing" from Cal Sheets. Since last summer, I've been cutting bearing sleeves on a small scale for a few lever drag reels. The purpose of the bearing sleeve is to prevent pressure from building up on the inside races of the spool bearings. An axial load on these bearings will decrease the freespool time in a lever drag reel and decrease your casting distance. Using thin walled brass tubing from your local hobby shop, you can cut a bearing sleeve yourself. The results can be dramatic!
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Bushings! That’s right, not bearings. Bushings.
There is a small group of fishermen here in Northern California that fish the inshore waters for rockcod, halibut and lingcod. They tend to be young, physically fit, well educated and fanatically dedicated to their sport. When I am looking to fill an open spot or two on my boat, I will often go to their website with an invitation. I have always had good success in finding hardworking deckhands. There is not a whiner in the bunch. After all, these guys normally fish from a 14-foot-long piece of Tupperware. They have to launch through the breakers, paddle one to five miles and sit in a cold wetsuit for hours.
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You’re serious about fishing. You’re serious about your gear. You can strip down and rebuild your reels in your sleep. Sometimes you do. The drags in your reels have all been upgraded to greased carbon fiber, the internal surfaces have a light coat of grease, and you even have some custom handle grips. Bearings, however, have been that last little item that have continued to plague you. You would like more free-spool to improve your casting distance. Adding different lubes have increased your free-spool times, but you can’t seem to break the 60-second barrier. You would like to pack other of these bearings with grease to protect them a little better. Well, it's time to open them up.
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