CASTING SURFACE IRON 2.0

The way people fish surface iron has changed more in the last 10 years than the previous 40 years combined. Much of that has to do with the advancements in the rods and reels we use to fish iron. The days of casting with a big, bulky reel spooled up with monofilament and clamped onto a 10-foot fiberglass jig stick are quickly becoming a thing of the past.

Despite the tackle changes and improvements, many anglers still cling to the notion that if you're not throwing the plug on a long rod with a Newell reel and a spool full of 40-pound mono you're not a “true” surface-iron aficionado. After all, they've spent their entire lives watching hotshots, deckhands and other random fishing gurus use that very same tackle to out-cast and out-fish them trip after trip. What these dyed-in-the-wool dudes might have missed is that many of the top iron fishermen in Southern California have already made the move to a new style of jig fishing spurred on by braided line and smaller reels.

Fishing Surface Iron

Improvements in fishing reel technology coupled with the use of small-diameter Spectra and braided fishing line has allowed fishermen to cast farther, present lures more effectively, increase their hook-up percentage and pull harder on fish. And, the best part is that all of this is being accomplished while using smaller and lighter tackle than ever before. This is the new standard.

My preferred setup, for example, includes a Shimano Trinidad 16 narrow-spool reel filled with 65-pound Spiderwire Stealth Braid and mounted to a Rainshadow graphite composite rod. Quite a few manufacturers offer high-end reels with the proper tolerances to effectively fish the surface iron with Spectra, but I've been happy with the Trinidad 16. This little powerhouse holds more than 250 yards of 65-pound braid and since it's capable of almost 20 pounds of drag, you'd be hard pressed to hook a fish that you couldn't stop. More importantly, the reel's high-efficiency gearing allows you to turn the handle when fighting a big fish with a heavy drag setting. When matched with a fast-taper, graphite-composite blank, such as the Rainshadow JB106MH, you can effectively cast anything from a Tady AA Light to a Salas 7X.

The ability to cast a variety of jig sizes is one of the biggest advantages that this rig offers. Everyone knows that an experienced fisherman can cast a 7X a country mile with a Harnell and a Newell 338, but have them tie on an AA light (or anything smaller than a Tady 45 for that matter) and watch what happens to their casting distance.

Do you think the “gurus” constantly throw the 7X because it's always the best jig to use? No, they throw it because the rod-and-reel combos they are using won't throw smaller jigs effectively. So guess what happens when the yellows are keyed in on small anchovies? These guys throw the 7X at them and if the yellows don't eat it, they assume the fish aren't biting the surface iron. Would those same fish have hit a Tady A1 or a P5 Killer Jig? I guess they'll never know. The point is, it's nice to have the ability to put a smaller jig in front of them and find out.