Makaira 16 v 20

[Capefox]

I'd like to buy a Makaira 16 or 20 for trips on open/party/cattle charter boats in Calif. I'll be using this rig for fly lining sardines, drops, and nighttime vertical jigging at the rail all day/night. Is the Mak 20 too heavy for my purpose. Would the 16 be a better bet? If anyone has a pic of the 16 and 20 together that would be awesome.

[EricL]

They're both heavy for hand jigging.. 40-45oz odd.. 3lbs..  

Then if you match it with a heavy rail rod.  

It gets really heavy. Really fast.

 

Look for something in or under the 30oz range.

 

I personally don't use any reel over 30oz to jig with. Like a Marfix N4/S5, Blue Heaven L120/120N, Accurate 600N/NN. All of these are tall narrow/very narrow, and hold upwards to 500m PE5. 400 PE6. And easy to reel in.

 

Anything above this is pretty much a dedicated bait reel I wouldn't want to hold at the rail.

[Capefox]

Is the Okuma Solterra any good quality and performance wise? 

[WindAndWater]

Is this the only reel you’ll bring with you? It’s hard to fish bait and drop heavy jigs on the same reel/rod. You really want a much lighter reel for bait fishing. One that you can fish #40-50 on ideally. Something like a Talica 12ii or 16ii or a comparable reel and then a heavy reel like that Mak 16 or 20 for jigs or sinker rigs. A third set up for #30 would be nice because on some days that’s all they will eat. 

[Capefox]

I have a couple of rigs I can take on Calif. party boats:

1. 40-60# rod, Avet MXL G2 MC  (not raptor), 450 yards 65 lb braid (excellent YT outfit)

2. 80-130# jigging rod, Slammer IV spinner, 400 yards 80 lb braid 

3. 100-150# rod, Daiwa Seagate 50H*, 400 yards 80 lb braid  

 

I want to replace the Seagate (drag/frame not up to 80#-100# class tackle) with something that can handle bigger tuna that seem to be showing up on boats, and that's where the Mak 16/20 or even VISX16 are entering my thoughts. 

 

 

 

Edited February 8 by Capefox

[WindAndWater]

I fished a VISX 16 for sinker rigs and jigs for a couple of years. Awesome reel for that. Terrible reel for flyline baits. Had a really hard time casting bait far away enough from the boat so that it didn’t swim right back under the boat. Tried it several times with really healthy and big sardines. Just couldn’t do it.
 

Hard to beat a Talica 20 or 25 for that if you had to go with only one reel. Straight #80 braid on the 20 or straight #100 on the 25. That’s what I would go with instead of going with a VISX or Mak.

 

It really depends on what you want to do the most. If you really want to stay awake all night fishing jigs then go with the VISX or Mak. But it will be really frustrating trying to fish the flyline with those reels.  

[Capefox]

10 hours ago, WindAndWater said:

I fished a VISX 16 for sinker rigs and jigs for a couple of years. Awesome reel for that. Terrible reel for flyline baits. Had a really hard time casting bait far away enough from the boat so that it didn’t swim right back under the boat. Tried it several times with really healthy and big sardines. Just couldn’t do it.
 

Hard to beat a Talica 20 or 25 for that if you had to go with only one reel. Straight #80 braid on the 20 or straight #100 on the 25. That’s what I would go with instead of going with a VISX or Mak.

 

It really depends on what you want to do the most. If you really want to stay awake all night fishing jigs then go with the VISX or Mak. But it will be really frustrating trying to fish the flyline with those reels.  

Great thoughts there. Great info. Except for using small conventionals such as the Squall 15 for calico and bonitos, I've never been any good at casting live bait. A clear bubble float helps. However, I started hooking live bait near the a. fin instead of the nose, and those little fish will happily swim away from the boat for me. 

[WindAndWater]

Don’t get me wrong. It’s already going to be hard enough to cast bait with a Talica 20 or 25. If you don’t have the right rod for the reel, it’s gonna be pretty difficult. I like a 7’6 to 8’ rod on the “softer” side.  
 

Try to not use a bubble. That will really affect how your bait swims. Just got to practice a little bit. Go to a dock or pier and practice casting something like a 7” or 8” senko with the set up until you get the hang of it.