ugly stick downrigger combo

[brohymn2]

well after telling my wife i wanted to pick up a rod for fishing for sturgeon with this summer i came home today and a ugly stick downrigger combo was sitting on my couch waiting for me, just wondering if this is a good rod/reel for sturgeon, the guy at the fishin hole told her it was but im just checkin cause he coulda been tellin her crap, only thing that worries me is that it says light action and i dont know if there is enough back bone for sturgeon fishing,

thanks for any help guys

[Geezle]

If it's a downrigger rod even if it's a light action it should still be fairly beefy...without the model of the actual rod I'd go out on a limb and say it should work just fine.

What did it come with for a reel?

[brohymn2]

shakespear arsenal, anyone got some advice for what line i should be throowing on it

[Geezle]

Where are you fishing? NSR or SSR?

I know they get bigger sturgeon down in the SSR but up here I use 50-80lb PowerPro on my sturgeon reels, and although it seems to be a little overkill, I fish in some pretty snaggy spots, and the heavy line helps me keep my gear, and I don't have to worry at all about break-offs.

I'm sure others will have different opinions on this

[brohymn2]

nsr

[EDMfishing]

I may be mistaken, but i know keeping a sturgeon from the nsr is prohibitted, i thought 'targetting' them was aswell...?

[brohymn2]

did i say sturgeon, what i really ment was mako shark, dont see any laws against fishing for mako shark in the nsr, and i cant physically stop a sturgeon from biting my tasty mako shark bait now can i

[brohymn2]

im just buggin ya, im pretty sure targeting them isnt a problem, there is plenty of threads on the site

[the local angler]

i also have an ugly stick rod set up for my sturgeon too, mines a med heavy action with a penn reel spooled with big game 35lb test, can't wait to test it out this year since last year was a bust.i also think it should be sufficient.

[browning375]

If i was running any line bigger than 30lb i would go with a Penn 330GT. Awsome reels, plus lots of room for larger diameter lines.

[seahawkfisher]

you can actually get a special sturgeon licsence that allows you to fish 2 rods in open water; just throwin it out there
cheers

[the local angler]

i currently have the 321gt with the left hand retreive.

[Walleyes]

30lb test line is not sufficient to bring in a large Sturgeon on decent time,, trust me I know.. Please,, if you go out and target these fish run nothing less than 80lb - 100lb line.. These fish are very and I mean very resilient and will not stop.. All you will succeed in with running lighter line is killing them. With 80lb line a 40lb fish will take 45 - 50 min to bring in I have seen it more than once.. Not saying all will die but why tier them out to total exhaustion if you don't have to..

To the O.P. the rigging you have will be sufficient providing you run the the right line. I run nothing less than 80lb braid on my rigging's.. The braid is best for river fishing do to its small diameter which gives it less friction in a river current which helps keep your bait and lure in one spot which helps it in gathering less debris,, river fishermen will know what i am talking about..

Good luck on your quest.. Here is a teaser a S.S.R. beauty caught last summer by my son.. 80lb braid, med action mooching rod and reel, 50min battle. When the fish was landed he was pulling so hard on the unit the .00 hook was just about straightened out.. Make no mistake these fish have power..

[brohymn2]

thanks for all the advice, walleyes thats a nice fish dude

[the local angler]

the only sturgeon i have been able to target is down at the forks and the average seems to be in the 40lb range for myself. my biggest was just a hair over 40lbs i have heard of a rare 80lb + being pulled but i figure for sturgeon only in the 30lb to 40lb range my rig/outfit should be enough (???)but if its like the ones in the columbia river and such then yes i would upgrade to a much bigger out fit.lol

[fishpro]

I've owned that exact rod in the past and in my opinion you should probably get something a bit heavier. With a reel loaded with 200-300 yards of strong line you could most likely land any sturgeon in the river. However, it will take an extremely long time to bring them in if they are of any size. The rod does not have a lot of backbone, but rather is a rod that you would have to play them out for a while.

I would recommend looking for something along the lines of an 8'6" heavy action rod rated for 15-30 lb test line and load it up with 30-50lb power pro. You could even step up to a slightly heavier rod than that, although it may not be necessary.

A heavier rod will lower the fight time and allow for a better release as the fish will not be quite as tired afterwards. A fish can be tired and slowly swim away after a fight, giving the impression that it's okay, but then die later due to exuastion and lactic acid build up.

[the local angler]

so bottom line is the ugly stick its to " flimsy" for lack of a better term being not much for back bone? hmm...interesting. when i bought it i figured being a med/heavy action that i thought it would have some back bone to it.

[fishpro]

Originally Posted by the local angler

so bottom line is the ugly stick its to " flimsy" for lack of a better term being not much for back bone? hmm...interesting. when i bought it i figured being a med/heavy action that i thought it would have some back bone to it.

Sorry, I was responding to the OP. He has the light action Ugly Stik Downrigger rod, which is the one that I think would be too flimsy. I think your rod should be fine, which model do you have specifically?

[the local angler]

oh no worrys, i have the ugly stick 10 foot med heavy/action bwdd1100. its like a fishing with a broom stick. lol

[Dust1n]

nce sturgeon