# Kingfish Rig - starting out.



## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

Is this a decent setup to start with? I already have rods to use for an anchor rod. I'd like to start Kingfishing from a few piers, probably Mercer's , Kure & Oak Island piers. 

Shimano TLD Combo with River Marine Supply Custom Standard Rod

Or this one:


Penn Senator 113H Conventional Combo

I'm just looking to get a "capable" rig now to start, then I'll upgrade as needed.


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## ORF Pete (Sep 26, 2009)

I think either combo would serve you well starting out. Course you may get a lot more bang for your buck by getting a reel used and using any old 6ft 20-50 or 30-80lb. class boat rod that you have lying around. I'd personally go with the TLD-20 over the 15 though, as I'd want a line capacity of at least 400yards @ 30lb.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

ORF Pete said:


> I think either combo would serve you well starting out. Course you may get a lot more bang for your buck by getting a reel used and using any old 6ft 20-50 or 30-80lb. class boat rod that you have lying around. I'd personally go with the TLD-20 over the 15 though, as I'd want a line capacity of at least 400yards @ 30lb.


Yea, I was looking at the TLD20 on there, which I will probably get. I don't have any boat rods laying around to use and I figure 150 bucks or so isn't too bad. If I went with the Penn, I definitely think I'd need the wide version. I most likely will go with the TLD20 though. Thanks for your input.


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## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

brenth said:


> yea, i was looking at the tld20 on there, which i will probably get. I don't have any boat rods laying around to use and i figure 150 bucks or so isn't too bad. If i went with the penn, i definitely think i'd need the wide version. I most likely will go with the tld20 though. Thanks for your input.


x2....


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

Ok, so I will be ordering the Shimano TLD20 this week. A few questions I have on the anchor rod setup..

I will be using the clothes pin/rubber band type setup. Does anyone here use this? Once your line is hit and it detaches from the anchor line, does everyone reel in the anchor to get the clip back or does anyone attach another line to (not the fight line) to bring the clip back in without having to break the anchor from the sand?

I think I would attach a cheap pos light spinning rod to retrieve the clip after the fight line gets taken, and just open the bail when you send the bait back in the water.. I'm sure people already do this or it may be the standard method. I'm not sure.

As far as the actual rig goes, should I use a 2 hook type setup? 1 hook at the dorsal fin and a treble hook at the tail? Should I use 2 treble hooks? OR just 1 hook at the dorsal fin?

Wire leader on both of the hooks? Mono or braided? A few people mentioned I should use braided for a bit from the rig up to protect against the dock should my catch run towards the pier. 

I haven't ran into anyone out on the piers to actually look at their setups since I used to fish mainly at night or else I'd be asking them and not on here...

Any tips would be greatly appreciated, I'd like to try King fishing before the season is over.


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## Hudak (Sep 10, 2007)

Let the clip stay at the bottom and slip another one on. If you start to get a few down there, pull up and recast. Any more lines in the water the necessary will cause problems later when trying to fight the fish.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

thekingfeeder said:


> Let the clip stay at the bottom and slip another one on. If you start to get a few down there, pull up and recast. Any more lines in the water the necessary will cause problems later when trying to fight the fish.



Ok, sounds good. I guess I was over thinking it a little.


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## ReelKingin (Aug 3, 2009)

I will be using the clothes pin/rubber band type setup. Does anyone here use this? Once your line is hit and it detaches from the anchor line, does everyone reel in the anchor to get the clip back or does anyone attach another line to (not the fight line) to bring the clip back in without having to break the anchor from the sand?

*Like Feeder said, once you get 2-3 clips on the anchor upll up and rethrow due to all the weight down there maybe hard to retrieve your clips and anchor. I here and there will go old skool and use the rubber band method, alot of people use wire these days. Go with the method you mentioned and once your out there get a feel for everyones else rigs and make your own judgement*

I think I would attach a cheap pos light spinning rod to retrieve the clip after the fight line gets taken, and just open the bail when you send the bait back in the water.. I'm sure people already do this or it may be the standard method. I'm not sure.

*Your idea of a spinning rod, isnt a bad idea...Your off to the right start, BUT as was said when the battle is on rather its yours or someone elses fish the heat goe up quick so less the better *

As far as the actual rig goes, should I use a 2 hook type setup? 1 hook at the dorsal fin and a treble hook at the tail? Should I use 2 treble hooks? OR just 1 hook at the dorsal fin?

*I use two Trebles, #4 4X..People use basically everything  Good spot is between dorsal and the head/neck area, not too deep though but not to shallow so that the hook will pull..And then 2nd between dorsal & tail, same depth as the first one...*

Wire leader on both of the hooks? Mono or braided? A few people mentioned I should use braided for a bit from the rig up to protect against the dock should my catch run towards the pier. 

*Wire of some sort yes, Hard wide, soft wire, coated, once again its up to you but to start out? Hard and then start your arsenal from there. I use MONO some piers wont even let you use braid any where on your setup..But it up to you, a 1/2lb spool of mono is alot more cost effective. If the fish runs towards the pier prematurely then its up to you as the fighter to handle the situation given. The fish will go where you want him too, but 80-90% of the time he will run out & its up to you and the equipment to bring him in and have him laying out sun tanning for your gaffer to put his @$$ on the deck *

If you ever hit KURE pier or even Carolina Beach, maybe we'll run into each other and if you got any questions just ask...The names Timothy


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

Just ordered the Shimano TLD20 & 30-80lb River Marine 6' rod came with it. Should be here in a few days.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

ReelKingin said:


> I will be using the clothes pin/rubber band type setup. Does anyone here use this? Once your line is hit and it detaches from the anchor line, does everyone reel in the anchor to get the clip back or does anyone attach another line to (not the fight line) to bring the clip back in without having to break the anchor from the sand?
> 
> *Like Feeder said, once you get 2-3 clips on the anchor upll up and rethrow due to all the weight down there maybe hard to retrieve your clips and anchor. I here and there will go old skool and use the rubber band method, alot of people use wire these days. Go with the method you mentioned and once your out there get a feel for everyones else rigs and make your own judgement*
> 
> ...


Timothy, 

Thanks for the response. When you say some piers won't let you use mono, is this during an event? I'm not entirely sure how the King fishing world is yet. I didn't know if I could only Fish at certain times, obviously when Kings are running but I assume I could use the same setup for fishing for anything as long as there aren't a ton of guys fishing Kings or an event going on? When I was at Mercer's this past weekend, a guy came in at about 2 am and set up his anchor line, caught some pin fish to use to get a blue to put out for bait. Whether he was fishing King at that time I'm not sure... 

Are there rules as to when I can fish with this setup? I know I have to buy a King pass, which is fine, but say if I wanted to fish for Blues, can I just go out whenever I want and set my gear up?


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

ReelKingin said:


> If you ever hit KURE pier or even Carolina Beach, maybe we'll run into each other and if you got any questions just ask...The names Timothy


I may be doing most of my fishing from Mercer's now. It's about an hour closer than Oak Island where we usually go and it appears to be the only pier that I know of that you can bring your own alcohol or have alcohol on in general. We're not drunks, but beer and fishing goes pretty good together.


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## ReelKingin (Aug 3, 2009)

Braid is frawned upon at some piers, not Mono. 

Say Kure for instance, you cant go out to fish at all even for bait til 6am. Mercers and some others allow you to go out whenever you want to set up for kings. 

Alcohol is a option that weighs with alot and I dont think anything of it. Other than have a great time!!

Theres alot of good guys on Mercers, JD, Jacob, arnel, Doug, etc...great group of guys


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

Cool. Yea, Mercer's pretty much lets you setup whenever you want. We're not big drinkers, but knowing that I can bring my own is a lot better than getting it shoved in my face that I can't at all of have to buy higher priced beer from the pier house after I paid to get on the pier.


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## Hudak (Sep 10, 2007)

Before my oldest came along, I used to be a pier rat on Mercer's. I haven't king fished at all this year and only once or twice last year. I do miss it. But it is easier to keep the wifey and kids entertained in the sand = longer fishing trips for daddy. 

When you have your mess together to fish with, then you need to think about rod holders on Mercer's. Being concrete, it is different than most other piers. Get with me and I will help you come up with what you are going to need for Mercer's, when you are ready.

Robert


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

thekingfeeder said:


> Before my oldest came along, I used to be a pier rat on Mercer's. I haven't king fished at all this year and only once or twice last year. I do miss it. But it is easier to keep the wifey and kids entertained in the sand = longer fishing trips for daddy.
> 
> When you have your mess together to fish with, then you need to think about rod holders on Mercer's. Being concrete, it is different than most other piers. Get with me and I will help you come up with what you are going to need for Mercer's, when you are ready.
> 
> Robert


Cool. I have another post in the NC forum about Mercer's Pier. I actually forgot to take measurements when I was down this past weekend so I called and talked to Steve to get the measurements. I had some 1x6 in the garage that's 5 1/2 wide that I'm going to use. I'll be using one on top and one on the bottom, hole saw & pvc for my anchor rod, scotty mount for my fight rod and some 1/4" all thread w/ wing nuts to clamp it to the rail. As long as my rod is here by Friday, I'll be heading down early early Sat morning to catch the incoming tide.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

Ok so I picked up 30' of 44lb single wire leader and a roll of 60 lb braided leader & 2 spools of 450 yds 30lb mono. Dicks only had spider weights in 1oz but I did pick up 2 of them anyway, nothing bigger available so it looks like I'll be melting down some lead weights to make my own.


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## kingman23 (Feb 9, 2010)

If your looking for anchors, stop by texs tackle in wilmington and buy some 5 and 6 ounce anchors (they're called Lees Anchors). And for the braid vs mono for the pier, some guys on mercers use 80 to 100 lb braid as topshot for when the fish gets around the pier and they can really muscle it away from the concrete pilings. I used to use it but I switched to 50 lb mono and I havent had any problems with the mono. Plus, the stretch in the mono will help you to not pull the hooks when you have a nice king on especially since they have softer mouths and your using small #4 trebles. I do use braid as backing on my reel since its a little smaller than a TLD 20 (its an Avet LX) but only around 150 or 200 yards just as a little extra security but I havent seen it or even come close to seeing it since I first put it on there.

And yeah they let you set up whenever you want, when me and my family go down we usually get there either really late at night or early in the morning and the first place we go is the pier for the first night. You dont usually start catching much bait until 530 or later but last time I was down on the first night, i used a sabiki rig with shrimp from around 230 a.m. until 430 a.m. and caught a bunch of pinfish, spots and a small blue and just filled up the bait basket for the morning.

Feel free to let me or anyone else know if you have any other questions.

Good luck this weekend and let us know how it goes
:fishing:


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## ORF Pete (Sep 26, 2009)

Some heavy wire and 6-10 oz. trolling sinkers can make some pretty decent anchor weights imo, and very cost effective. Just some food for thought if you can't find them local or don't like what you find.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

kingman23 said:


> If your looking for anchors, stop by texs tackle in wilmington and buy some 5 and 6 ounce anchors (they're called Lees Anchors). And for the braid vs mono for the pier, some guys on mercers use 80 to 100 lb braid as topshot for when the fish gets around the pier and they can really muscle it away from the concrete pilings. I used to use it but I switched to 50 lb mono and I havent had any problems with the mono. Plus, the stretch in the mono will help you to not pull the hooks when you have a nice king on especially since they have softer mouths and your using small #4 trebles. I do use braid as backing on my reel since its a little smaller than a TLD 20 (its an Avet LX) but only around 150 or 200 yards just as a little extra security but I havent seen it or even come close to seeing it since I first put it on there.
> 
> And yeah they let you set up whenever you want, when me and my family go down we usually get there either really late at night or early in the morning and the first place we go is the pier for the first night. You dont usually start catching much bait until 530 or later but last time I was down on the first night, i used a sabiki rig with shrimp from around 230 a.m. until 430 a.m. and caught a bunch of pinfish, spots and a small blue and just filled up the bait basket for the morning.
> 
> ...


We will most likely leaving Raleigh around 2am or so to get down there before people start getting on the pier. We'll probably throw out some squid on little hooks and catch some pin fish. Last weekend we had to stop people from giving us pin fish & spot they were catching because we had too much bait after being there for an hour. 


It may rain though, as of right now it says 60% chance, but that may change towards the end of the week. Won't stop me from fishing anyway.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

ORF Pete said:


> Some heavy wire and 6-10 oz. trolling sinkers can make some pretty decent anchor weights imo, and very cost effective. Just some food for thought if you can't find them local or don't like what you find.


Like Kingman23 said about Texs Tackle, we won't be leaving Raleigh until 2am or so I guess. Everywhere will be closed so I'll probably just make a few at home. I guess 6oz would be enough to hold??


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## ReelKingin (Aug 3, 2009)

yes. I use 4 1/2oz on half of mine and 6 on my larger rods...


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## ORF Pete (Sep 26, 2009)

I never use less than 8 oz, but I have absolutely no idea what the currents are like where you're going. You may get away with 6, or you may need much more. Bring a variety if you can and see what the locals are throwing.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

ReelKingin said:


> yes. I use 4 1/2oz on half of mine and 6 on my larger rods...


Ok cool. I'll be using one of my cheap surf rods as my anchor rod. I think it's a 10' rod w/ 20lb line. Think I should up that to 30 or 40lb with throwing that weight out like that?


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## kingman23 (Feb 9, 2010)

The rod and line will both work. I use 20 on my anchor rods but i put a 40lb mono shock leader on so i dont break off during the cast. You dont have to use one but i just like to be safe when throwing anchors ive seen people almost get hit in the head by them when they break off and that would definitely not end very well. You only need enough shock leader for 3 or 4 wraps around your reel and enough for the drop length in your line when casting. Connect the two lines with an albright knot or no name knot and your good to go.

Everytime we go down theres at least a 50% chance of rain EVERYDAY  we are there so it may or may not. Rains not a big deal really but if it starts to thunder and lightning real bad, get off of the pier quick and go to the pierhouse. If lightning were to hit the pier like it did a few years ago you would get shocked real bad or possibly worse. Lots of people stay out during the storms but im not one of them. Ill stay out in the rain all day but first lightning bolt I see close to the pier Im gone. I just like to play it safe 

Hope this helps!
Jacob :fishing:


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

kingman23 said:


> The rod and line will both work. I use 20 on my anchor rods but i put a 40lb mono shock leader on so i dont break off during the cast. You dont have to use one but i just like to be safe when throwing anchors ive seen people almost get hit in the head by them when they break off and that would definitely not end very well. You only need enough shock leader for 3 or 4 wraps around your reel and enough for the drop length in your line when casting. Connect the two lines with an albright knot or no name knot and your good to go.
> 
> Everytime we go down theres at least a 50% chance of rain EVERYDAY  we are there so it may or may not. Rains not a big deal really but if it starts to thunder and lightning real bad, get off of the pier quick and go to the pierhouse. If lightning were to hit the pier like it did a few years ago you would get shocked real bad or possibly worse. Lots of people stay out during the storms but im not one of them. Ill stay out in the rain all day but first lightning bolt I see close to the pier Im gone. I just like to play it safe
> 
> ...


Cool. I will definitely do a shock leader on there. I've got 2 spools of 50lb, which my line on the surf rod I'll be using for my anchor is a few years old so I may just spool it with 50lb line. I don't mind the rain, but same as you with the lightning.


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## smacks fanatic (Oct 16, 2010)

m:


BrentH said:


> Just ordered the Shimano TLD20 & 30-80lb River Marine 6' rod came with it. Should be here in a few days.


Not to sound like a know it all, but that rod will not be the best choice for a fighting rod. I would get a 7 ft rod that is medium action and rated for approx. 10-40 pd line. The reason for doing that would be so that you have a forgiving rod. If a king takes your bait, that grouper stick you have now will tear the hook strat out of his mouth.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

smacks fanatic said:


> m:
> 
> Not to sound like a know it all, but that rod will not be the best choice for a fighting rod. I would get a 7 ft rod that is medium action and rated for approx. 10-40 pd line. The reason for doing that would be so that you have a forgiving rod. If a king takes your bait, that grouper stick you have now will tear the hook strat out of his mouth.


Ok, I'll keep that in mind. I'll try it out and see how it works and maybe step down to a lighter rod. It doesn't seem as stiff as I thought it was going to be..


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## sunburntspike (Oct 4, 2010)

i'll second smacks ,my king rod is a 7' power stick 15-30 med. great action ,good back bone.i have missed some cobia though because i didn't or wasn't able to get a good hook set',i have a custom silstar 30-50 medhvy that i normally use for cobes and blacktips that can really swing the hooks in them crabeaters,but if you've ever been offshore for billfish you'll understand how the fish don't follow the rules or get on the right rig,had plenty of blue marlin strip a 30 before you could set the drag and bust em off


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## smacks fanatic (Oct 16, 2010)

sunburntspike said:


> i'll second smacks ,my king rod is a 7' power stick 15-30 med. great action ,good back bone.i have missed some cobia though because i didn't or wasn't able to get a good hook set',i have a custom silstar 30-50 medhvy that i normally use for cobes and blacktips that can really swing the hooks in them crabeaters,but if you've ever been offshore for billfish you'll understand how the fish don't follow the rules or get on the right rig,had plenty of blue marlin strip a 30 before you could set the drag and bust em off


yes that is a problem with a lighter rod, having a cobe break off because the hook wasnt set.(cobes just swim up and swallow the bait...then start running)


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## Hudak (Sep 10, 2007)

It ended up being a pretty nice day for the most part.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

thekingfeeder said:


> It ended up being a pretty nice day for the most part.


Yes it did, with the exception of that monster in the surf I lost!


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## Garboman (Jul 22, 2010)

I would get two heavers, That is what was used at Rodanthe especially when there was a three rod limit.

A heaver is good for fighting rod especially on piers that have rods spiked up into the air, as you can go over the tips instead of waiting for someone to take it down, if your fish is out there and moving.
No pleading or moaning to get cooperation. A Heaver is also good for combat fishing when not all will be cooperating, I have one with DHDG reinforced guides for piers where no one will cooperate.

Plus a Heaver is good for casting, where as a six seven foot fighting rod is good for?......well ......I guess you can drop fish off the side of a boat with them.....

My King Rod is 11' with a 6/0

I also have one 11'6 with a 4/0

I also have one 12'6 with a 4/0

I have some 7-8 foot rods that could be fighting rods, but I grew up fishing with Heavers a heaver will also help out at the gaff as you can move the fish around better when standing on the rail with the rod pointed straight at the fish, rather than some punky boat rod...

I keep threatening to get them out on some OBX T

With the exception of the heavy duty DHDG equipped rod, these rods all have flexible tips...


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## Hudak (Sep 10, 2007)

BrentH said:


> Yes it did, with the exception of that monster in the surf I lost!


Monster!? I didn't see no stinkin monster. LMAO!  (Just yankn his chain, he did have a nice run.)


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

thekingfeeder said:


> Monster!? I didn't see no stinkin monster. LMAO!  (Just yankn his chain, he did have a nice run.)


Lol. It was probably one of the boys in grey. I'll make damn sure when i throw out again there's a solid leader and not that 7 strand crap.


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## smacks fanatic (Oct 16, 2010)

Garboman said:


> I would get two heavers, That is what was used at Rodanthe especially when there was a three rod limit.
> 
> A heaver is good for fighting rod especially on piers that have rods spiked up into the air, as you can go over the tips instead of waiting for someone to take it down, if your fish is out there and moving.
> No pleading or moaning to get cooperation. A Heaver is also good for combat fishing when not all will be cooperating, I have one with DHDG reinforced guides for piers where no one will cooperate.
> ...


i have seen alot heavers as fighting rods, when they looked they would be more apropriatly placed at the anchor postiton. So i guess i am asking, how do they work for you? do you lose any kings? I actually considered using a heaver, but i dont really want to use a rod rated for 30-50 line(kings mouths are very soft). But then again the piers i fish, people cooperate with each other.


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## Garboman (Jul 22, 2010)

I retired from King Fishing, could not get cooperation. I have lost kings for every reason applicable to the fishery, I reckon I got my share, I spent over 1000 summer days doing it on the OBX.

I always used a heaver for a fighting rod, I never lost a fish due to rod length, a long rod makes it easy to go over the top of all the rest when the fish is out there and a strong rod makes it easier to drag a fish out from under a pier or from around a piling. I never once said to myself........"If I only had used my boat rod, I would have caught that lost fish"....
We also had a three rod limit on Rodanthe, so you had one bait rod and two heavers. Up into November we would King Fish on clear water days and switch to Drum Fishing at Dusk, a boat rod type fighting rod was non existent among the regular crowd.

Just because a heaver has the potential to apply much more pressure on a fish does not mean you have to apply it. I fought Kings on a very light drag, due to their propensity to foul hook themselves. I did see one forty pound cobia swallow the bait deep on time and I put the pressure on that fish...he never got off the Shock line and was gaffed in under ten minutes. There were a lot of fish in those days and if the same thing happened today I would be more careful and let him get away from the pier and tire out, instead of tussling with him right at the pilings...

Most fellas cooperate, but it only takes one single minded individual to spoil the afternoon. When the numbers of OBX kings tailed off in the mid 1990's I decided I decided to hang up my rigs. OBX pretty much has currently what I would term Poor fishing and if you even see one fish it is a promising day.

I did want to add that the fellas who fished full time on the OBX in the 1960's -early 1970's really had superior fishing and those fellas felt the times of the 1980's when I fished were pretty substandard. In the 1980's one fisherman who put his time in would generally get at least a couple dozen Kings and half that number of Cobia, as well as a lot more large Sharks,Jacks in one season. I was partying in the 1970's and missed the Heyday.


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## Tadpole1 (Aug 13, 2007)

Garborman I enjoyed reading your post as well as the others on this topic. I totally agree with you about the lack of fish today verses the late 60's and early 70's when I used to fish at the piers more than now. They were simply so abundant you never thought of a day when they would thin out. Its so sad today to see fisherman spend a fortune on fishing gear and they usually catch few fish because the fish are just pain gone.


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## ReelKingin (Aug 3, 2009)

7strand junk? If you have the 60# class bare wire version, ill take that Junk off your hands


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

So, I've been to Mercer's 4 weekends in a row, and not one King has been pulled to my knowledge. I'm no expert, but many people have told me the water is too warm there - but Kings are being pulled from other piers further south of Wrightsville in warmer waters. Last weekend one of the guys said he saw a King surface when he started packing up... is Mercer's Pier not a good area to Kingfish? I heard something like only 4 Kings caught this year from someone. The water doesn't appear to be very deep out there either... At 35 bucks (3 rods + parking) each trip just to Kingfish, Mercer's pier wont be on my list very long. 

This past weekend, there were tons of Blues and saw some Tarpon (appeared to be) a little ways out.


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## sunburntspike (Oct 4, 2010)

BrentH said:


> So, I've been to Mercer's 4 weekends in a row, and not one King has been pulled to my knowledge. I'm no expert, but many people have told me the water is too warm there - but Kings are being pulled from other piers further south of Wrightsville in warmer waters. Last weekend one of the guys said he saw a King surface when he started packing up... is Mercer's Pier not a good area to Kingfish? I heard something like only 4 Kings caught this year from someone. The water doesn't appear to be very deep out there either... At 35 bucks (3 rods + parking) each trip just to Kingfish, Mercer's pier wont be on my list very long.
> 
> This past weekend, there were tons of Blues and saw some Tarpon (appeared to be) a little ways out.


 but tommorrow they'll be chewing the barnacles off the piles,who knows especialy(sp) this year,we didn't see a big fish til the middle of july on the northern beaches and even then i only know of a handful of kings actually planked much less maybe a dozen or so cobia.but they can't be caught sitting on the couch so you gotta keep trying,how much is a season pass to mercers?when i used to come down infrequently i would still buy a season pass if the math added up(15$ a day to live bait x 20 days was more than the season pass) just a suggestion


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## kingman23 (Feb 9, 2010)

It has been a pretty bad year at mercers this year but its not just mercers either. A lot of other piers havent caught that many kings this year and some havent even caught one. Your right though, the water on the end isnt very deep.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

kingman23 said:


> It has been a pretty bad year at mercers this year but its not just mercers either. A lot of other piers havent caught that many kings this year and some havent even caught one. Your right though, the water on the end isnt very deep.


I mean don't get me wrong, I like going to Mercer's because it's 45 minutes closer, but I think the fact that they charge full price for your anchor rod is crazy; yes it's in the water, but it isn't being used with hooks. I was debating on buying a season pass there, but I think I will wait it out through the fall and see how it goes. I may end up switching to Oak Island Pier of Ocean Crest Pier. I guess I'll have to get to know some people if I want to fish there more...


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

sunburntspike said:


> but tommorrow they'll be chewing the barnacles off the piles,who knows especialy(sp) this year,we didn't see a big fish til the middle of july on the northern beaches and even then i only know of a handful of kings actually planked much less maybe a dozen or so cobia.but they can't be caught sitting on the couch so you gotta keep trying,how much is a season pass to mercers?when i used to come down infrequently i would still buy a season pass if the math added up(15$ a day to live bait x 20 days was more than the season pass) just a suggestion


This is true. 15 bucks? I pay 24 bucks for rods - anchor, fight & bait/plugging rod. Although, most of the time I don't even catch bait with my own rod, someone else catches something and doesn't want it or can't take it off the hook so I guess most cases I could just leave my plugging rod in the truck. Now, I'm not sure if they charge the "regulars" for their anchor rods or not, so maybe once they start seeing I'm beginning to be a frequent, they may cut me a break. Usually I don't leave the pier all day so I still spend money there at the little restaurant too. I may talk to them about a season pass next time I go down there.


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## kingman23 (Feb 9, 2010)

Trust me I know what you mean about the price. They definitely shouldnt charge for the anchor rod since it just sits there all day.


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## smacks fanatic (Oct 16, 2010)

Hey BrentH, it is simple. Don't fish mercers pier. If you wantto catch fish, go with ocean crest pier. It is long( I guess) it has deep water at the end, and it ain't terribly expensive. I'm surprised people are still fishing it right now. I would havemmoved on for a while way back. Jmho


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

kingman23 said:


> Trust me I know what you mean about the price. They definitely shouldnt charge for the anchor rod since it just sits there all day.


Well, the most king guys that have been there since I've been going down, was about 6 including myself with king setups. They all seemed to be locals though. They were pretty cool though, helped get me setup and answered any questions I had the first time I kingfished. I ended up running into Thekingfeeder from the forum down there and he helped me out as well. I will probably end up just buying a pass in the beginning of the year and call it a day. I do plan to frequent Mercer's more since it's closer and the hotels are dirt cheap.


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## kingman23 (Feb 9, 2010)

Well Ill be fishing there this weekend for the king tournament so if your out there just look for me and ill help you out.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

kingman23 said:


> Well Ill be fishing there this weekend for the king tournament so if your out there just look for me and ill help you out.


Can't make it this weekend. I wanted to, but won't be able to make it. I've got some website work I have to catch up on. I will be back down the weekend after.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

smacks fanatic said:


> Hey BrentH, it is simple. Don't fish mercers pier. If you wantto catch fish, go with ocean crest pier. It is long( I guess) it has deep water at the end, and it ain't terribly expensive. I'm surprised people are still fishing it right now. I would havemmoved on for a while way back. Jmho


I may try down there. The hotels aren't as cheap though down there. I book through Wyndham Rewards so I usually either stay at one of the hotels in the group which I get 20% off and the reward points as well. In Wilmington, I pay roughly 45-50 bucks a night. In Southport, I pay a little over 100 a night at the Wyngate. The hotels definitely play into where I'll fish, and I won't be driving home in the middle of the night too much anymore since I hit a deer on my way home from Mercer's 2 weeks ago. Don't mean to sound like a cheap @ss, but it all adds up when I try to make it down every other weekend or ever few weeks throughout the year. Although, my rate is about 65-70 bucks a night at the Days Inn Shallotte, so I might try down there this fall.


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## ReelKingin (Aug 3, 2009)

kingman23 said:


> Well Ill be fishing there this weekend for the king tournament so if your out there just look for me and ill help you out.


+1 just at a different pier


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## sunburntspike (Oct 4, 2010)

just a silly question but do all the southern piers charge by the rod? on the no. shore the piers have limits (3 a day,e.g.) but this normally pertains to bottom bouncers not live baiters,usually have a steeper price to live bait so no ones feelings get hurt and the end is regulated by ourselves as to how many rigs and rods are used.


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

sunburntspike said:


> just a silly question but do all the southern piers charge by the rod? on the no. shore the piers have limits (3 a day,e.g.) but this normally pertains to bottom bouncers not live baiters,usually have a steeper price to live bait so no ones feelings get hurt and the end is regulated by ourselves as to how many rigs and rods are used.


King passes:

Ocean Crest Pier: $15 for 4 rods

Oak Island Pier: $16 for 5 rods

Kure Pier: $12 for 3 rods

Sunset Beach Pier: $14 per setup (website doesn't say how many rods)

Jolly Roger: $18 ($17 if you're staying at the motel) Up to 3 rods


Mercer's Pier: $8 per rod. Anchor rod, fight & bait rod: $24 + $12 parking.


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## sunburntspike (Oct 4, 2010)

thanks brent and i see now the delima you have in choosing where to fish,up here it's more or less where are the fish and do i like the people/pier thats hot,so many times i've been fishing one pier and another one is killing 'em and i chose to stay put not because of price but due to the crowd fishing.i guess my point is if it's worth the extra cash to be comfortable and feel safe vs. killing the fish every time i'll choose my comfy zone,too old to deal with a bunch of a-holes and i like the fact i can leave my rig for an hour and nothing is stolen or broken.


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## smacks fanatic (Oct 16, 2010)

BrentH said:


> King passes:
> 
> Ocean Crest Pier: $15 for 4 rods
> 
> ...


if you can, I would sugesst jolly roger pier(if your close enough). That place is an amzing pier. once i caught a king, chopper, and cobia in the same day. and prices arent terribly expensive


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

I paired a new rod with my TLD20 yesterday. I was in Dicks Sporting Goods picking up some new line and saw a med. action jigging rod up on the rack for 30 bucks so I picked it up.


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## sunburntspike (Oct 4, 2010)

that'll do ya!!!


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## smacks fanatic (Oct 16, 2010)

how long is the rod? And what pound test is it for?


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

The pic above shows the ratings.

6'6" 20-40lb line.


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## OBX_Rat (Jul 12, 2007)

Good looking setup, now just got to break it in


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## smacks fanatic (Oct 16, 2010)

BrentH said:


> The pic above shows the ratings.
> 
> 6'6" 20-40lb line.


yea i see it now. Before it was giving me "picture unavailable"


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## BrentH (Jul 25, 2011)

Thanks. We'll see how it holds up. It has a soft enough tip that I can cast it, so I'm gonna see what I can put into it when I get to the field next time.


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## crumbe (Jul 22, 2011)

Thats a pretty good find!! It'll work as good as any out there.


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