Tuna Switching – Not only off Croatia

[:en]“Bait and Switch“ – to lure a fish in order to catch it with suitable tackle – a method that not only works with marlin. This technique is used off Croatia to catch 30-60 kg bluefin tuna with a rod and reel. Heavy boat-rods and a fighting chair are used for significantly larger fish only. The work before play rule takes effect here, however: Baiting and laying scent trails with fish mash are the first order of business.

Fresh, oily sardines are first choice. In most cases, the task of snipping up the fish is delegated to the youngest on board. This poor fellow is showered with serious encouragement – in addition to the allusion that his work represents the basis for complete success!

They’re all good friends and take turns during baiting. Machinery makes it a lot easier: Such as electric mills that mash up the sardines, allowing the resulting mass to dribble into the water, or a so-called Sardomat that plops out fish pieces via a conveyer belt at various time intervals. The success of this activity, which requires patience and a solid stomach, can then (with luck) first be seen on the fish finder in the form of a big fat red dot: Tuna are now under the boat and can then be lured right up to the boat with pieces of sardine.

The ever so hungry fish become so tame and greedy through the feeding that they soon draw along the boat within petting distance. This leaves all the time in the world to choose the right tackle and to throw the last hook-reinforced sardine overboard. Just how much time this actually can be is shown in this amazing video clip with angler „Blue Eye“ that was taken off Jezera.

Rod and Reel

So the bluefin is hooked now, but on which tackle?

As a rule, the rod has to have sufficient backbone to be able to turn a fish during the fight. At the same time, the upper third of the rod must be able to absorb load peaks. The stationary reel must have stable supported gearing (cross-wind gear), and a drag system that will continually support a setting of 15-20 kg.

Skipper George Blänich represents the thesis that expensive is mostly good, and good must not always be expensive. Moreover, since SPRO / Gamakatsu sponsors him, he has more than enough material for testing and practice:

The rod he uses to switch tuna is a Gamakatsu „Jig one Z 5126S“. According to the advertisement, „designed for speed jigging in deep waters.“ However, the two-piece rod is deemed only conditionally suitable, due to its length of 1.96 m. It will work for switching tuna with sardines, however.

Perfectionists such as Jörg-Dieter Haselhorst first saw off the plastic cross recess, replacing it with an aluminum gimbal (can be purchased for 8 Euro in rod shops) that is secured to the end of the grip with a two-component adhesive. Such an exchange is reasonable, considering the forces that collect at the foot of the rod during a fight.

And now to the reel that George discovered in the SPRO arsenal: The „PowerDrive 880“, eking out as a sleeper in advertising, but that could soon change: George's customers caught five fat tuna with these reels up to the first part of June. The five CFRP disks of the drag system survived all of this with no problem at all. (George speaks of up to 20 kg; Jörg Dieter says, „The 040 line cannot be withdrawn by hand).

And the gearbox: Our reel doctor „Wolli“ having a look at the schematics and detailed photos. He discovered that the so-called cross-wind gear that absorbs the greatest loads during the fight is mounted within a solid bushing.

Overall, the reel leaves a solid impression on Wolli. And the reel doctor praises all the seals that prevent the ingress of seawater: Above and below the rotor nut, under the spool, across the backstop as well as a peripheral housing seal. („Shimano first implemented these seals in the 2013 models. That is most likely the reason why Shimano reels have gotten so expensive. Just my opinion“, he states.)

Wolli also points out that the reel, (which is referred to as an „Iron Hog“ within the company because of its solid components) at a weight of 914 grams, is about 100 grams heavier than a Stella 20,000. This merely plays a subordinate role in tuna switching, however. Much more important is its transmission ratio of only 4.1:1 that better supports the angler during the fight with powerhouses, rather than the „fast“ Daiwa Dogfight, for example. Its large capacity is also important: 520 meters of 0.35 line will fit on the PowerDrive 880.

We’ll see what the reel really has to offer in October. The season off Jezera will then end and Skipper Georg Blänich will allow the reel doctor to dissect the PowerDrive into its individual components.

Terminal Tackle

For the sight hunters in the clear Adriatic waters, high end is in trend for leader material: Fluorocarbon with a diameter of 0.9 mm (and on some days only 0.8 mm). The Seaguar Company (of the Japanese parent company) has been developing fluorocarbon since 1966 (!) and remains the measure of all things due to its softness and load capacity characteristics. But as the saying goes, „there are plenty of other fish in the sea“.

The reference hook for tuna fishing off Croatia is the Owner Offshore 5129 in sizes 6/0 or 7/0 (or the Super Mutu when using circle hooks). Thrifty Georg discovered a much more cost-effective hook: The Gamakatsu LS-4123.

As the comparison image above shows, the bend of the Owner hook (left) is slightly lower than that of the Gamakatsu. What’s more important is that both hooks are thickly stranded. As a result, the fluorocarbon does not tend to bend all too much and the so-called notch forces are minimal: The leader retains its load capacity. A small double crimping sleeve connects leader and hook. This is much more durable and is not as bulky as a knot.

The notch forces occur mainly at the other end of the leader at the eyelet when a thin wire swivel cuts into the fluorocarbon during a fight. So-called Loop Protectors help to prevent this: Spirals made of stainless steel wire that distribute the tensile load of the fish across a larger area. These penny goods need not be ordered from abroad.

By employing this equipment as well as skill and plenty of sweat, Johann Bauernhofer succeeded in catching a 40-kilogram tuna while on George’s new boat.