# What type of sinker (weight) to use?



## Danman (Dec 13, 2007)

What type of sinker should I use when distant casting in the surf?..Pyramid, round etc? 

When the surf is rough and I used a 5 oz Pyramid I got hung up and broke rigs 3 different times...this also happened with a spider weight.. 

Like I said the current was rough and one needed at least a 5oz to keep it stable.. 

Did the sand cover the weight?..I might add that dumb "me":redface: broke my eighty dollar rod trying to pull the rig in instead of cutting it! An expensive lesson to learn....I was using 50lb shock leader with 17lb test line.


----------



## Singletjeff (Mar 27, 2005)

Use a Frog tongue, from my experience they hold the best, well short of a sputnik sinker, but those things grab too much trash. And wow....worried about 5 oz not holding  Wish I had those conditions....I don't start worrying about current and waves until my 8 or 10oz won't hold.


----------



## Mark G (Nov 15, 2004)

Danman said:


> What type of sinker should I use when distant casting in the surf?..Pyramid, round etc?
> 
> When the surf is rough and I used a 5 oz Pyramid I got hung up and broke rigs 3 different times...this also happened with a spider weight..
> 
> ...


Sounds like you were fishing in an area with snags- sand covering the sinker wouldn't prevent you from pulling it in. In that case no sinker is snag proof, but some rig types may be better than others. I typically stick with storm or pyramid sinkers, any round sinker is going to have the most trouble holding bottom as it will "roll" in the surf much easier than others.


----------



## Mark G (Nov 15, 2004)

couple of more thougths-- the rig you use may need to be determined by the conditions.

Typically you want to hold the bait in place, but in a rough surf it may be better to have a controlled drift- not so fast that the sinker and rig is crossing other neraby lines, but moving along just enough to keep sand from burying over top of the sinker- and more importantly- not burying the bait. The way to control the dirft speed is thru proper sinker weight and type selection first, tho line size consideration also play a role. Of course some sinkers, like sputniks, aren't meant to be used in a drift fashion.


----------



## sprtsracer (Apr 27, 2005)

Just a note: a sputnick probably wouldn't have hung up because the wires would have broken free before your rod or line broke. Of course, if you wedge anything between the rocks, you have a problem.


----------



## Danman (Dec 13, 2007)

*learning from your comments*

Thanks for the comments so far...This forum is great!..Surfcat, I never thought of a controlled drift like you mentioned... 

Here in myrtle beach I don't have to worry about other anglers..surf fisherman are rare 

I do recall now that the seaweed was heavy at least two times.. 

I do fish in the same area and it is a flat beach with no rocks but junk from offshore has floated in and maybe settled in the bottom...or maybe the rod I lost last year to a fish that got stuck and is now pretty much buried..:fishing:


----------



## jcreamer (Mar 6, 2001)

i usually fish around rocks and use frog's tongue, pyramids, and storm sinkers. 
I do hang up but only lose the sinkers not the rigs.
I tie the sinkers on with a lower test line than my rig then if the sinker hangs up the low test line will break and save the rigs.


----------



## Lightload (Nov 30, 2007)

Singletjeff said:


> Use a Frog tongue, from my experience they hold the best, well short of a sputnik sinker, but those things grab too much trash. And wow....worried about 5 oz not holding  Wish I had those conditions....I don't start worrying about current and waves until my 8 or 10oz won't hold.


Yep.....what he said! Although I will use a sputnik on occasion if I want to REALLY hold bottom and not use a lot of weight.


----------



## FishinMortician (Jun 19, 2007)

Sometimes, I have the same issue. I use only grip type sinkers.

When the rig seems to be snagged, don't just start jerking the rod or trying to free yourself quickly. Instead apply a steady pressure, and then hold it. After about five seconds, you should feel the sinker start to move, then it will be free. I think sand is burying your sinker. But what do I know about burying things.:--|


----------



## scavengerj (Sep 10, 2007)

Not sure if it is sand that is causing your sinkers to break off. I would think you'd have to have a sinker on the bottom for a good period of time in order for it to become so buried that you couldn't pull it out. Debris sounds more like it. Or, maybe your line is weakened, frayed or damaged? Where did the line break at?? The knot joining the shocker to the running line? Where the rig attaches to the shocker? The shocker itself or the running line?

I know in sweet water I'll use a lighter pound test line for the sinker since I am not dealing with a lot of weight, but as some have suggested, I am not sure how to use a lighter line to attach the sinker for surf fishing. I mean if you hold to the thought that you should use 10# for every ounce of weight being cast, how can you throw say 5oz of weight if it is only attached to, say, 20# line? Doesn't this contradict the belief that for every ounce of weight you should use 10# line? From rocks and such I can see this since you aren't really trying to wing a bait out there.

I mean given this, it seems that this rule really only applies to power/distance casting and not real fishing. 

DMS #525
OBPA


----------



## Green Cart (May 14, 2002)

*Yes, but*



jcreamer said:


> I tie the sinkers on with a lower test line than my rig then if the sinker hangs up the low test line will break and save the rigs.


During a power cast, the sinker is going to break off, flying somewhere...


----------



## rocketman (Jun 6, 2008)

Try a rotton bottom rig like we use here in the UK, these are suitable for power casting

link to image and description:-
http://www.whitbyseaanglers.co.uk/rotten-bottom-rigs.php


----------



## Green Cart (May 14, 2002)

*Rocketman*

Very interesting . 

UK rigs are complicated compared with American, but the UK rigs are ingenious.


----------



## jcreamer (Mar 6, 2001)

rocketman said:


> Try a rotton bottom rig like we use here in the UK, these are suitable for power casting
> 
> link to image and description:-
> http://www.whitbyseaanglers.co.uk/rotten-bottom-rigs.php



Yup that is what I was talking about. I leave the sinker line about 4 inches long and so far it works for me.
When I cast I cannot whip it like the contest guys do but I can cast a football field which I am happy with.

JC


----------



## Danman (Dec 13, 2007)

*scavenjer*

I am distance surf casting so I use a 50lb shock leader uni knot to my 17 lb line....now remember no matter how light your line is the shock leader wraps around your spool at least 5 times so you don't have to worry about injurys etc.. 

now here in myrtle beach like today..the current is very strong and it will drift a 4oz weight left to right or right to left and then toward the beach in a matter of minutes.....so yes when i used the spider weight or 5 or 6 oz the weight held and I must have waited at least 15 minutes before I tried to reel it in... 

What I did today was....I put my rod in the sand spike and put my pyramid sinker on the ground while the tide was going out...and low and behold the pyramid was completly covered in minutes...so I imagined it being out in the current for 15+ minutes and it must have got really buried.. 

just adding another 2 cents to my story..thanks for all the input!:fishing:


----------



## Don B (Jul 28, 2001)

rocketman said:


> Try a rotton bottom rig like we use here in the UK, these are suitable for power casting
> 
> link to image and description:-
> http://www.whitbyseaanglers.co.uk/rotten-bottom-rigs.php


I wouldn't trust a rotton bottom for a power cast.
In 2006, Nick Meyer and I came up with a bait casting rig using Nicks IMP clip. I had tried pretzels and other things for the release mechanism without a lot of success. Toilet paper will work, but I wouldn't want to attemt casting in the rain. Nick suggested using the IMP.

Later, Roy's Fishing Supply in Hawaii modified the bait casting rig into a rig for slide bait fishing.

Here's the rig set up for slide bait fishing:

http://www.donstacklehawaii.com/information/imp.htm

If you use it for bait casting, it is important to NOT run the line through a swivel. It will bind and not function. If you are using 17# main line, you will probably want to use 15# break line to the sinker. During the cast the line will be tripled yielding about 45# breaking strain. After deployment, the length will be tripled at 15# breaking strain.

Since the IMP was designed for bait release and not for sinkers, I wouldn't feel safe casting sinkers weighing more than 5 or 6 ounces.

Hope this helps,
Don


----------



## Danman (Dec 13, 2007)

Thanks again members for all your input!:fishing:


----------

