How do you reel them in?

[206]

Sitting here watching some fishing shows try'n to ignore the snow falling again!

 

Got to thinking, most of the guys on these shows reel the fish in like maniacs!!

 

I tend to go slow and steady

 

Should i be going fast as i can and flinging the fish into the boat?

 

How do you guys reel in your bass?

[BFSC Kevin]

I think it's because they don't want the fish to run into the weeds or whatever and potentially let it get away. These guys are probably running pretty high test lb braids so they have the power and ability to just horse them in.

[BillM]

My oldman loves to 'play' fish which I guess is the entire point of fishing. Myself I get them in, don't mess around and get them back... He loses a lot more fish then I do simply because he's not 'putting the boots' to them as I keep telling him to do over and over, lol!

[BucktownAngler]

for bass i tend to just reel normally. the reel is fast enough i don't have to go crazy fast to maintain tension.

 

for musky fishing with slower reels sometimes i have to go reel my off to keep tension on the line

[mike rousseau]

Depends on the gear...

 

You don't wanna be horsing a pig with a finess hook....

Edited February 7, 2014 by Mike Rousseau

[bare foot wader]

I firmly believe the faster you can retrieve and release a fish, the less stress you put on it and better chance at reviving after it swims off...so I tend to horse them in...as mentioned, that is relative to the tackle you are using

 

playing a fish too much leads to lost fish IMO, the longer the fight time the more opportunity it has to throw the hook, fray the line, get wrapped up on something, run out in the main currents, etc, etc

[mike rousseau]

Also depends on location...

 

If you hook a smally on a sand flat in 20 feet of water you can take your time... You hook the same fish in timber you'll wanna get him out quick to avoid snags...

 

In open water I baby big fish.... If they feel big I assume they are barely hooked...

[fishing n autograph]

I fly fish so you can't really horse them in unless you're casting for pan fish

[bigugli]

Are you using lighter or heavier rigs. I fish lighter setups, thinner lines, finesse hooks. Horsing don't work

[NAW]

This topic has been beat up a few times on OFC..

 

I can not stand seeing the bass guys reefing on bucket mouths with 60lbs braid. Skipping the fish across the top of the water to the boat.

 

I understand why they do it... They're trying to win tournaments. But it's just not something I would ever do.

 

A little fight is fun. Not so much to wear them out, and kill them. But a little fight.

[OhioFisherman]

If I want to play with them I do it when they are in the livewell.

[fish_fishburn]

Depends what I am fishing for. Bass I crankem in fast. Big BQ walleye slow easy steady pressure does the job, Good luck landing a 5+ lb largie from the slop by taking it easy on em.

[Moosebunk]

Largies in the weeds... reef 'em in sure. Why not..?

 

Thing I noticed with smallies in the past was, the harder I'd pull the more nuts and aerial they get. Gearing down to light gear and loosening up a little with them, they'd stay in the water more. Fight time would be longer but a little safer.. ya dig!?!

[manitoubass2]

My fish come to boat or shore as fast as possible more often then not.

[Grimace]

My oldman loves to 'play' fish which I guess is the entire point of fishing. Myself I get them in, don't mess around and get them back... He loses a lot more fish then I do simply because he's not 'putting the boots' to them as I keep telling him to do over and over, lol!

My old man is the same way. I say "stop pissing around would ya? It's a walleye man!"

 

I like to play out fun fish like a smallmouth or whatever. Or a steelie on the niagara river, but sometimes you just have to get the fish to the boat.

 

Some fish you hunt for the fight, others you hunt for the bite.

[BillM]

My oldman also has the reaction time of a turtle. Topwater fishing, lure is under, big swirl, he's just keeps 'walking the dog' like nothing happened. I'm in the front of boat yelling SET THE HOOK!!!!!! I tell ya, I wish some of this was recorded, anytime I bring buddies fishing they end up pissing themselves laughing because of the banter back and forth.

[Grimace]

Same here. My father and I torture each other on the water. I wouldn't trade it for the world.

[danc]

I use pretty light gear most of the time simply because 99% of my fishing is for Brook Trout. The size of the fish will dictate how long I take to get it to the boat. A 12 inch fish I will skip across the waters surface and get him back in asap. A 24 inch fish? Not a chance. Occasionally we'll hook into a mid 40 inch Pike or Lake Trout. Not coming in too quick with 6 lb. test. Longest battle that I've witnessed was about 45 minutes. It was a 34 lb. Laker on 6 lb. test. No stress on the fish at all. In fact it didn't even know it was hooked for the first 44 minutes. It would have smashed the c&r world record by about 7 lbs. last time I checked.

[BillM]

Either would I man, there's no one I'd rather fish with