1) Hardware

Trolling hard bait is probably the most common way that recreational fishermen target these fish. A planer rigged with a Kingspoon or a Bomber Long A is the typical choice. Planers are used to bring the bait being trolled to the depth of choice.

Planers used for Kingfish start with a size one and go to size four. The number of the planer dictates a 10 foot increment, and so a number one would dive ten feet and a number two would dive twenty feet, etc. The leader of choice is 80lb monofilament leader.

Kingfish are caught every year with these baits. Bomber bwsj17jxmk and a glow 350 Kingspoon. Rods and reels used to troll hardware are different than those used for live bait trolling. A 6'6" to a 7' rod with a heavy action rating paired with a 4/0 sized reel with 40lb or 50lb line.

2) Live Bait

Slow trolling or anchoring up and chumming with live bait are very productive ways to get the job done. A 7' to 7'6" rod paired with a high speed conventional reel that can hold at least 400 yards of 25lb mono line is the standard. The terminal tackle to use is single strand hardwire or 7 strand cable with a 2/0 to 4/0 nose hook and number 6 to a number 1 treble for the stinger.

FISH TIP

Springs and higher relief wrecks are good places to start your search for your smoker.

As shown in the the diagram, wire size ranges from #3 to #7 in a solid wire and in 27lb to a 90lb cable. Bait choices will depend on where you are fishing. Inshore, you will want to use bigger baits because you will be fishing for bigger fish. This includes Mullet, Ladyfish, Menhaden, Spanish Mackerel, and Blue Runners. Offshore bait includes Scaled Sardines, Blue Runners, Spanish Mackerel, Spanish Sardines, and Cigar Minnows. If you have any further questions feel free to call our store and talk to one of our expert team members.

3) Rod and Reel Suggestions

For hardware trolling, we suggest our Dogfish Stik #38. This is a 6'6" 30-50lb rod paired with a Shimano TLD 25 reel. For Live Bait fishing, we suggest our Dogfish Stik 10-25 or 12-40 in a 7'6" model paired with a Shimano Torium 30 reel.