Hindsight is always 20/20...

[GrantH]

I went out to Lady Anne to fish off the shore after work, you know...relax a bit, and caught a couple small bream. I was using a black/chart at first and doing decent until I snagged a rog or log or something. I came inside and got a blue/white tube jig, no real luck so I came in for about 30 minutes and drank a beer. I went back out with the blue/white tube jig and started talking to a guy who fishes as well and out of nowhere my jig gets smashed! I had my drag real loose and it started taking line out so I tightened up a bit and reeled a couple times. It kept taking line so I turned another half turn.

I shouldn't have.

I reeled in another 4-6 rotations and the fish snapped my line! It must have been a decent sized bass or crappie or striper...all I could see was silver when it jumped and splashed about. Lesson learned...leave your drag a little loose on these ultra lights. I caught a tiny 1/4 lbs LM right after this...so I think a LM was really hungry.

Is my lesson a common rule with these smaller setups?

[Spawn]

Very cool, mabey it was a goodun.
I always set mine where it takes about
3 pounds of force to pull drag on my
crappie poles and about 6 on my normal ones.
Setting it kinda light is fun and you wont jack
yourself up by having it to tight or very loose.

[BULLFROG-1]

Too,tight of drag has cost me more than one trophy fish.One of my bass reels seem to tighten on its on since i sent it off to be super modified...................cost me a huge bass last year,,it broke new 14 Berkley big game after i got it up to the boat and was reach for the net.Fish decided to make a run and pop.....

[CrappiePappy]

Grant ... I don't usually depend on my drag, on any of my UL or lite outfits. Once I make the determination that a fish is big enough to strip line, I flip the drag system off & backwind to control the line coming off the reel. But, sometimes you just get that one fish that's too big for the equipment in hand ... they win that battle, more often than not.

My instincts tell me that, going by the descriptions of "my jig gets smashed" & "silver when it jumped and splashed about", it was most likely a Striper.

... cp