Im going to the keys next week and it seems like we need alot of different poles since we want to catch all different fish. I have a alot of poles but they only handle up to 25lb line. How much money will I need to spend if I need to buy reels more suited to land some sharks. I also want to catch snappers and reef fish. What size poles and what pound test will I need for that. Thanks
Well...it depends on how big your looking.
If your gonna throw out a 5lbs bait, get a 12/0 or bigger on a rod rated for at least 80lbs, spool the reel with 80lbs power pro, and use 400lbs leader about 8ft.
if your gonna use small baits for small sharks, a 6/0 or a 9/0 will work on a 30-60lbs rod spooled with 60lbs power pro and 150 or so wire leader about 6-8ft.
For snapper, I tend to like the baitrunners of the bridges in the keys, I have a bait runner 3500 with 200 yards of 10lbs power pro and 200 yards of 10lbs mono, with a 25lbs leader attached to it.
For grouper, ... hehe ... it all depends on what KIND of grouper. If your going for jewfish, expect to spend $1000 or more on a rod and reel, if your going for blacks and gags, get a Shimano Trinidad 50 spool it with 400 yards of 50lbs test, use a 3ft 80lbs mono leader with a 6/0 circle hook.
If you have any questions or want to know of any spots, PM me, I live in Fort Lauderdale, and go down to the keys all the time.
SnapperHunter
