venice tuna

[TMONEY]

this winter i am thinking of going to venice to fish for some big tuna i have some tackle that i think will work but i am considering purchasing a shimano stand up rod tlts60m and putting a tiagra 50w on it and running 50lb mono does anybody have any comments on this rod and reel combo

[TMONEY]

i know that there are hundred of people that tuna fish in venice how come nobody will tell me what kind of tackle they are using

[recdog]

I use 50 to 100 class stand up rods with Tiagra 50 LRSA with either 50 or 80 pound momoi mono. You can also use 30's it will just hurt a little more. In the winter you will most likely be chunking on the midnight lump. You will need about 800 or 900 feet of anchor line. Your set up will be a sturdy swivel with anywhere from 60 t0 100 pound flourocarbon leader and a 7 or 8' hook. You may also want to bring a big spinning reel like a Shimano Stella to throw big poppers at busting tuna, best poppers in my opinion are the ones made by Frenzy tackle. The tuna will be big, lots of hoos, and lots of boats. good luck

[Lex2006]

I started out some years ago using nothing but the Graphite Penn 340 & 345's spoole with about 700 yds of 80Lb Spider wire Braid. I caught a couple of dozen tuna on those reels. I also had either the Boaters World brand or Shakespear Standup rods. I still have those very combos today, and use them primaryily for bottom fishing but would not hesitate to catch a tuna in a heart beat. The biggest YFT I go on one of these was a 170 lb class tuna. The biggest fish i ever caught was about a 450to 500 lb hammerhead. i use 80 or 100 lb mone leaders tied to Spro swivels. Now my most recent rigs were Avet ProEXW 50 spooled with 130 lb Jerry Brown braid on penn International rods. Man these things would just winch the fish in. I sold those reels. I originally bought them to BFT fish with in NC. The PROEXW 30 AVETS would be a great reel for the YFT in Venice. Smaller reel and easier to handle & still all the guts you need.
Ditto on Recdogs comment about a big spinner. I have 2 rigged with 100 lb powerPro braid. They work good for dropping diamond jigs, popping tuna, or cating to a mako. Good luck. iI plan on being down there the first week of January myself. Going out of Grand Isle. I can't stand that HWY 23 to venice, when you can ride down a nice 4 lane & not beat your boat to pieces. the distance to the lump is the same. Just all ocean running from Grand Isle, but some nice rigs to fish on the way there or back. Good Luck. PM me if you want some more specifics. Danny