# Tackle preparation for 16 days trip on the Excel.



## ksong

I have tried to fish Hurricane Bank for jigging and popping cow for years and finally I have an opportunity to fish there on 16 days trip on the Excel starting Nov 26.
I had 5 teams from overseas during Sept and Oct. Finally the last group leaves on Sunday.
It is time to prepare for 16 days trip.
The main targets are 100 - 250 lbs yellowfin as well as wahoo on jigs and surface lures.
When I fished cow on the Qualifier105 in 2005, I didn't had much info that time and made many mistakes.
This time is different. I have pretty good ideas what to bring.
This discussion can be helpful for those who want to fish cow on long range boats using jigs and surface lures in the future


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## slowrey

so what does the list to bring look like so far kil? That trip has potential to be absolutely epic!!
Shawn


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## ksong

slowrey said:


> so what does the list to bring look like so far kil? That trip has potential to be absolutely epic!!
> Shawn


I am leaving tonight for Cape Cod for bluefin jigging and popping.
All boats did great today and I can't wait. 
I am going to post my tackle list after the trip.


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## ksong

For tuna jigging and popping fishermen, it is a blessing to fish with bait fishermen as bait fishermen usually fish on Stern area or facing wind while popping and jigging fishermen jig on bow areas and pop with wind behind them. 
The Excel is a big boat (124'X32') and only 20 fishermen will fish on the trip.


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## REELING 65

Dan Hernandez shot video aboard the Excel. A real nice vessel with a knowledgeable Skipper and crew. The Excel is a fishing paradise,with all the amenities. Have a great trip aboard the Excel Kil.
David


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## surfcowboy

i don't know why you need 16 days to catch 3 YF


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## Day0ne

surfcowboy said:


> i don't know why you need 16 days to catch 3 YF


You travel 15 days?


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## ksong

surfcowboy said:


> i don't know why you need 16 days to catch 3 YF


It is not 3 yft, but zero yft as I don't keep them.


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## ksong

The 16 days Excel trip is only three weeks away.








As I am going to spend most time for jigging and popping, most tackle I bring is for jigging and popping.

I am going to bring one 7' Black Hole Cow Special rod to test for the railing as well as 6' prototype Black Hole rod which landed a 900 lbs giant in Prince Edward Island. The 6' rod is pretty soft and light,but has tremendous strength. 
The choice of reels for bait fishing is Accurate B2 30 and Penn 50S filled with 130 lbs Jerry Brown Hollow.

For popping rods, 
- 7' custom rod from Black Hole Cow Special (light version) 
- 7' custom rod from Black Hole Cow Special 
- 7'6 and 8' Black Hole 'graphite' Cape Cod Special 
- 7'6, 8' and 8'6 Black Hole 'Nano' Cape Cod Special 
- Carpenter 83 MH 
- Ripple Fisher FS GT79H 
- Hots Gipang 77XXXH 
- JM GT Monster 76

For jigging rods,

-250g, 350g and 450g Black Hole Cape Cod Special 
-Hots One Pitch Slider 56XH 
-Ripple Fisher 5620 
-Carpenter OH 55XH-S 
-JM Three King Special 53S-H


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## surfcowboy

ok so zero yft 

how are you going to get your tackle back with out putting a gaff in them. Is this a commercial trip were people catch yft, and the boat sells them when yall get back?

If so I would have them pay me for making them money!


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## ksong

surfcowboy said:


> ok so zero yft
> 
> how are you going to get your tackle back with out putting a gaff in them. Is this a commercial trip were people catch yft, and the boat sells them when yall get back?
> 
> If so I would have them pay me for making them money!


I don't think fish sale is allowed in the US whereever you fish in the US unless you have a proper licence.
We have been releasing bluefin tuna in Cape Cod.
If you use assist hooks, it is pretty easy to release by cutting assist cord by knife. I might kill a few tuna for pictures and donate the fish to other fishermen who need them.


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## ksong

*REELS

*bait:
-Accurate B2 30
-Penn 50S

Jigging and popping:
JM PE4, PE5, PE6 , 2 PE7 and 2 PE8 ( PE10 if I can get it before the trip)
-2 Stella 20000SW
-2 Stella 18000SW
-1 Stella 20000FA
-1 Stella 10000SW
-1 Accurate SR20
-1 Accurate SR50

*LINES*

Greg landed 800 lbs giant using 130 lbs Jerry Brown Hollow in Prince Edwad Island uisng 45 - 52 lbs drag. 
So, the logical choice for cow is 130#.
It is no problem for bait fishing reels to spool 130#, but the line is simply heavy for smaller jigging and popping reels which don't have enough line capacity like bait fishing reels.
So I choose 100# Jerry Brown for most jigging and popping reels.
Jerry Brown 80#'s breaking point is about 120# - 130# similar to JB #100, but you actually gain more lines from 100# than 80#.
I can spool about 450 yards of JB #100 on my PE8 reel and about 400 yards on Stella 20000SW. The line capacity is maginal for cow, but there is not many alternative as I want to give at least 30 lbs initial drag to fight a cow. 
One PE8 and Stella 20000SW will be spooled with JB 60# when 100 - 160 lbs yft are dominent. I probably get over 550 yards of JB 60# on JM8 and over 500 yards on 20000SW. I still can use close to 30 lbs drag on those reels as JB 60#'s breaking point is about 90#.

I gave up using Japanese PE lines as I feel Jerry Brown Hollow is softer, more durable and strong with consistancy.


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## ifish42na

_how are you going to get your tackle back with out putting a gaff in them. Is this a commercial trip were people catch yft, and the boat sells them when yall get back?_

Selling sport-caught fish in California is illegal. If you keep fish, it can be donated at the dock, traded for canned tuna, or processed and shipped home. Release is encouraged; there will be a release prize. Circle hooks are encouraged as it's fairly easy to use the 4-foot release stick to pop the hook free once a fish is at the boat, pull the leader up and cut off the hook without ever touching the fish.


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## ksong

As I am going to spend most time for jigging and popping, most tackle I bring is for jigging and popping.

I am going to bring one 7' Black Hole Cow Special rod to test for the railing as well as 6' prototype Black Hole rod which landed a 900 lbs giant in Prince Edward Island. The 6' rod is pretty soft and light,but has tremendous strength. 
The choice of reels for bait fishing is Accurate B2 30 and Penn 50S filled with 130 lbs Jerry Brown Hollow.

*For popping rods,* 
- 7' custom rod from Black Hole Cow Special (light version) 
- 7' custom rod from Black Hole Cow Special 
- 7'6 and 8' Black Hole 'graphite' Cape Cod Special 
- 7'6, 8' and 8'6 Black Hole 'Nano' Cape Cod Special 
- Carpenter 83 MH 
- Ripple Fisher FS GT79H 
- Hots Gipang 77XXXH 
- JM GT Monster 76

For jigging rods,

-250g, 350g and 450g Black Hole Cape Cod Special 
-Hots One Pitch Slider 56XH 
-Ripple Fisher 5620 
-Carpenter OH 55XH-S 
-JM Three King Special 53S-H

I hope they go to Hurricane Bank first and stay there at least a few days. The one of the main reasons I joined the trip is they are scheduled to go to the Hurricane Bank. After spending a few days on the bank, I don't care whether they go to Clarion Island or go to lower Baja.









I just picked up lures and jigs from my shop and dumped in a box. This is an advantage to own a tackle shop.









Here is a list of my lures/jigs:

*topwater lures* 
Soul's Brabus 
Mangrove Studio's Volador 
Smith Baby Runboh 
FCL Labo's HRTM200S, Squid Pencil and CSP150S 
Daiwa Dorado Slider 
Carpenter's VC-R , GT-R , Pandora & Kattobi 
Heru's Ulua, Skipjack, Wahoo, Tuna, Bobara and GT Mania 
Robert Ranger lures 
RonZ lures 
prototype lures

*Jigs*

FCL Labo jigs 
Hots Drift Tune and Keitan 
Nature Boys Swim Rider and Swim Bird 
JM Alien jigs 
Sevenseas Hooker jigs 
hammered diamond jigs 
prototype jigs similar to Metallic Sardine jigs


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## ksong

Thanks Ryan and Ralph to deliver prototype lures and my custom 7' BH Cow Special rail rod to my shop on Tuesday night driving from NY. 
I know I'll catch big cow with the lures and the rod on the trip.
I lost Ryan's custom pencil popper without hooks to a giant in P.E.I. as the giant swallowed it and didn't want to give it back. 

I had to stay at my shop on Tuesday to finish urgent works. I went to home by 1:00 pm on Wed and went to Newark Airport only one hour before the departure time. 
As I was in such a hurry, I left one bag of reels and cameras in my car. I have spinning reels,but I have only PE8 and PE6 conventional reels for cow and one small reel for making baits. @(
We are heading for the Excel today to participate in Thanksgiving party on the boat this evening.


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## stryper

surfcowboy said:


> ok so zero yft
> 
> how are you going to get your tackle back with out putting a gaff in them. Is this a commercial trip were people catch yft, and the boat sells them when yall get back?
> 
> If so I would have them pay me for making them money!


 Its fairly easy to hook the leader (with the gaffhook) , and then with a quick downward push just pop the hook out. No need to even lose the hook/jig/popper.
Deckhands know how to do it, just doesn't add to their catch rates.


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## ksong

I just came back from the trip.
It was a great trip with great fishermen.
I am going to post detailed report with lots of pictures soon.


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## Roger

Can't wait to read the story and see the pic's. I know they're gonna be awesome.......


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## ksong

*Leaving San Diego for Hurricane Bank*


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## ksong




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## ksong




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## ksong

*Hurricane Bank*

We arrived at Hurricane Bank at 4:00 - 5:00 am after cruising almost 4 days from San Diego.
I got the first tuna on the trip on a jig at dawn.
I probably had about 5 - 6 yft along with many skipjack on jigs around dawn, but bites on jigs were shut down when sun came up.
Fishing was petty good on live sardines, but most tuna were smaller except James' 256 lbs cow.








































skipjack for bait


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## ksong

I lost a nice tuna on a jig when it got dark. But tuna didn't bite at at all on jigs or baits at night.
I started jigging before dawn next day. I caught skipjack on every drop of my black color Sevenseas Hooker jig with occasional small yft. I must caught half dozen small yft around dawn, but bites on jigs were shut down again when sun came up.








Bites were slow in the morning. I lost a nice yft within gaffing range when tuna pulled my circle hook. 
Shin didn't bring any heavy gear and Ken let Shin use his rod/reel.
Shin got a 258 lbs cow on live skipjack which turned out to be a jackpot fish, but fishing was pretty slow in the morning.

























I tried to cast Carpenter 125g BY-y lure and had a big boil behind the lure.
Capt Justin didn't like the action in Hurricane Bank and announced the boat would leave for Clarion Island by noon.


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## Cody C

DANG!!!!:cheers:


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## Iyaman

Is that a PE8 reel? Congrats and can't wait for more pics. Looks like you are the only one without a harness and even a fighting belt.


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## ksong

*clarion Island : hot tuna bites*

I was a little bit disappointed because I have been waiting for the opportunity to fish Hurricane Bank for years, but we fished only one and half days in Hurricane Bank. But hot tuna bites around Clarion Island let me forget my disappointment easily. 
As soon as we arrived Clarion Island Buffer Zone, we were greeted by hungry tuna around in 100 - 150 lbs range.
Hot bites continued in the afternoon.
Next day, Capt Justin decided to search for big tuna offshore and finally found a big school of bigger yft.
It was a spectacular scene to watch everybody without exception fighting big tuna around the boat.


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## ksong




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## ksong




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## ksong




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## ksong




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## ksong




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## Cody C

I love that guys moooostache in the 4th to last pic!


This is some pretty epic tuna fishing pics! You hear stories of some good fishing, but they are just stories. It is really cool to see the pics!

Im assuming that it is ussually a bunch of seasoned fishermen on those trips, so the tangles are kept to a minimum? or does it get crazy with a dozen+ big tuna hooked up?

Seems like yall are catching a ton of fish, do yall catch and release some or do yall bring home 20 fish a piece?


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## ksong

Cody C said:


> I love that guys moooostache in the 4th to last pic!
> 
> This is some pretty epic tuna fishing pics! You hear stories of some good fishing, but they are just stories. It is really cool to see the pics!
> 
> Im assuming that it is ussually a bunch of seasoned fishermen on those trips, so the tangles are kept to a minimum? or does it get crazy with a dozen+ big tuna hooked up?
> 
> Seems like yall are catching a ton of fish, do yall catch and release some or do yall bring home 20 fish a piece?


The gentleman is Ralph Mikkelsen who caught 5 cow over 300 lbs.
Even he is 79 years old, he still goes 15 days long range trip 3 - 4 times a year. He said he has been enjoying long range trips for 40 years. He is truely old timers as well as true gentleman.

Yes, all on the boat are seasoned veterans and they take care of themselves. Tangles are minimal and they know how to untangle. I don't think any single tuna was lost due to tangles on this trip.
You got to see how the mates on the boat are experienced and work efficiently. One fisherman drop his rod/reels to the water by accident and one mate jumped into the water without any hesitation and got the rod/reel back.

From third day, many fishermen on the boat started to release tuna.


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## ksong

*popping tuna*

Here are pictures of fighting a decent tuna with 7' custom Black Hole Cow Special (2X4) with the first generation blank.



































I felt it would be a little soft for cow while fighting. The reinforced second generation Black Hole Cow Special might be right choice for cow popping. However the original light rod cast great and I was very comfortable while fighing. I don't worry about the strength of rod even for cow as I landed a 900 lbs giant with a similar BH rod in Prince Edward Island last fall.

Dennis Braid showed me his 7' custom Black Hole second generation Cow Special which he built himself. He used rattle snake skin which he caught in backyard of his house. It looks cool.


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## Roger

More pic's..................................


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## ksong




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## ksong

I must thank Dennis Braid for arranging the fabulous trip and inviting me. It was an honor and pleasure to fish with top rated long range veterans. They are one of the most experienced and dedicated fishermen as well as fine gentleman and woman I've fished.

















































Crew of the boat were just great. They are always there when needed with courtesy and dilligency.


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## ksong

I'll discuss about tackle used later.


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## hog

MY GOD, WHAT A TRIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Look out Bucket list, there is a new #1


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## ksong

*Slide Show*


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## Hotrod

Wow! Amazing trip. What does it take to get on a trip like that?


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## ksong

*popping video*


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## Roger

Reeeeeaaaaaalll Nice.......


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