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suggested rod/reel minimum for chum?

1.9K views 24 replies 17 participants last post by  Fish Stick  
#1 ·
I am just a poor college kid that only has a 5/6 weight rod and reel, should I even dare catching chum? Before I started fly fishing I would use my heavier trout rod to catch them but still tooo inexperienced to make the judgement call.:dunno
 
#8 ·
I'd recommend using a 9 or 10 weight for Washington Rivers. In my experience, Chum salmon are generally larger in Washington than in some systems in Alaska. In the Susitna drainage for example, (Alaska), I've used a 7 or 8 weight but wouldn't think about it here. The Washington State Record is 27 lbs. and they are routinely large in many river systems, 15-20 lb. fish are very, very common.

Like other salmon, the males generally enter the sytems earlier than the females and are usually larger in size. Some people consider the Chum salmon the strongest of the salmon species, and I can vouch for some very tough fights.

While you may catch salmon on a 3 weight, it isn't appropriately matched for the strength of the fish and there are generally two outcomes, one being that the fish is over played and it dies, and two being that you break your rod. IMHO, a 7 weight is a bit light for them. Even an 8 weight will take some serious abuse and you'll have issues turning many of the fish. With a 9 or 10 weight, you have enough backbone to turn the fish and land it without wearing the fish out.

Chum salmon deserve our respect. I've observed some fisherman stand on the fish's side with their boots while they remove the hook, which shows lack of respect for the wildlife. Enjoy them on the end or your rod, but don't treat them like they'll be around forever, and don't wear them out unncessarily.

Skinny
 
#9 ·
Up until this season I have always used a 6 wt rod. I have used it since 1992. I've fished and landed reds, silvers, steelhead, and dogs. BUT I was always aware that the fish were worked real hard. That was Alaska where I killed 99.99999% of everything I caught.

Here in the Lower 48, this web site got me feeling guilty about working these fish so hard and then releasing them. So I broke the bank and bought a nice 8wt rod and a reel that is over sized but it still works and I can use it on a larger rod when I make it. I have thoroughly enjoyed this new rod and reel. The fish come in easier and I feel better about releasing them in a less stressed state.

Sisu, its what America needs
 
#12 ·
Yeah, I say 8wt all the way. Sometimes up to 9/10. Biggest I caught that I weighed was 24#'s. Had a few bigger when I was younger, but had no idea the state record back then was only like 23/24#'s. You can get by with a smaller weight rod. But, you will lose alot more flies and fish like mentioned above. Just make sure if you go smaller in wt, loosen your drag ALOT. Watched guys snap their rods having a heavy drag on the reel. But depends where you're fishing. Seems the smaller creeks the fish cool down faster. But on the bigger rivers, they really want to spool you fast.
 
#13 ·
I've incidentaly hooked chum on my 7wt and had a hard time landing them in the time I feel is fast enough. 9wt is perfect. But I fish larger rivers- small stream, maybe an 8 or so. I've landed a ton of fish- a chum on a 5, in big water- is either half dead or will break you off. The light tippet/big fish fad doesn't go with salmon fishing, they ain't leader shy. Fighting a big fish with the wrong gear won't earn you any points. Give them the respect they deserve and fish with appropriate gear. I can pick up and backcast plenty 16" rainbows with my 8wt, but I don't. Gear right.
 
#14 ·
This post was posted on another thread and it really belongs here. So I moved it.
Your original question, I believe, was what sort of a rod for chums? Sometimes we all stray from that question and get into our own expertise. (Actually that was not the original question as I look back on it. Pretend that it was and then read the following).

The question begs another question: how hard do you fight your fish? If you tend to baby things (not a good idea unless you are a kill and grill type) then most anything will work. You might piss off the others around you because they don't admire this, The fish will also be DOA.

If you are like me, then you pour the rod to them and force them to hand at every opportunity. There is no slacking. The rod is bent double all the time.
But you can blow up a light rod when fishing for a very powerful chum doing this.

Bottom line: at least an 8wt. unless you very skilled with light rods. My spey is a 9/10/11 and I consider it perfect for anything around here including chinooks.
Fight 'em hard; let 'em go quick. Smile slowly and for a long time.
Bob, the Stand Back! My Rod Might Blow Up!
Alert | IP
:professor
 
#16 ·
Salmon are on a suicide mission and need to survive long enough to spawn. You can potentially land them on a light rod, especially if you have a good reel, but doing so means fighting them excessively. An 8 wt. gives you much greater control of the situation, especially if there's a good current, and the shorter fight will be much kinder to the fish. Chums can get pretty big and burly, so this is a reasonable minimum.


A good reel and an inexpensive yet sturdy rod will land you fish. As I've said before, the fish don't give a hoot what kind of rod you're using. However, they will notice the reel when they can't break you off because the drag's too smooth. If the fly's presented well (and that's more a product of the right line/leader/fly combination), you'll hook just as many fish on an inexpensive rod as you will on premium gear. Later on, when you've got more dough, you can buy nicer gear to enhance your personal enjoyment.

If you don't have a lot of cash, you could perhaps buy a big Pflueger Medalist reel (my grandpa caught plenty of salmon on them and they'll still stop a truck). Also, Teton's Tioga is a very good, yet inexpensive reel - if you can find one. Don't, however, buy Okuma - they're ok in smaller sizes for trout, but I tried one of their big reels and blew the drag pawls out on Skagit Chums. :reallymad

Good luck and happy fishing. :thumb
 
#18 ·
I geuss I know what my next rod purchase will be! Thank you for everyones input and I am glad that I asked everyone before I qctually did it. So thank you for giving me a better understanding on how to choose my rods. I have only trout fished in the past which was much different, just looking in to salmon fishing with fly gear so I will definitely wait till next year
Thanx!!!!!!
 
#19 ·
Hey, Young and Eager, I didn't mean to put you off entirely. Don't wait until next year. It'd be an awful long year waiting for them to come back. Pinch your barbs, fish slower water where you might stand a chance, and use a lighter tippet that you can break off if they're winning the fight.

Also, if you do get spanked, you can still have a lot of fun (esp. on the Skagit) fishing egg 'n shucks or egg sucking leeches for Dollies hanging below the Chum redds.
 
#20 ·
Yeah, it's too bad about the Okuma's because the needle bearings make for such a smooth retrieve - nice to be able to fan the spool to pick up slack line in a hurry. They seemed well engineered, right up to the point when it went Zeeeeeeeeeezzzzzzz...CLICK! and then about broke my index finger suddenly free-spooling a huge chum. Arrgghhh!

However, as I mentioned, for trout they seem perfectly fine. My wife's got one spooled for 5wt. and we've had no problems with it.
 
#21 ·
Just because one guy has had a reel that didn't hold up for him, may not mean that ALL reels of the same brand would do same. Some cars turn out to be lemons, but that doesn't mean that all of them will be bad either.

I fish with a guy who has an Okuma on his eight weight, been on there a couple of years now, he has fought and landed a bunch of salmon with it, including big chum without any problems. He let me land several good sized chum on it last November in the Skagit and I thought it was pretty smooth.

I don't own an Okuma or have any stock in Okuma, so it really won't matter to me, but you might consider getting a little more input, and/or try things out for yourself before concluding that any rod, reel, line or whatever may not be "worth a damn".

LB:professor
 
#22 ·
I usually avoid chum like the plague but don't worry, there will be plenty of trout, char, and whitefish hanging around those chum to have plenty of fun with your trout rod. Go with the 8lb test Maxima rule and you can always break a big chum off if it decides to take your line and backing back to the salt with it. They are great for exploding graphite rods though, even big ones. Get yourself a used Fenwick glass rod in a 8 or 9 weight with an old Pflueger Medalist reel to balance and you'll have a rod and reel suitable for those bigboys and big bass as well. You can probably get the whole outfit including line used for about $100 to $125, sometimes less.

Randy
 
#24 ·
If your concerned about the cost of a rod and reel for Chums. Go down to Outdoor Emporium in Seattle and check out the W.W. Gregg rods(I hope I spelled the name right) and those Okuma reels. A few years ago when I got started out in fly fishing in the winter I got me a cheaper rod and reel and a cheap line and caught a few chums on that out fit. Cost under $100.00. But since then I kind of upgraded to a few things better. But it is still a 8wt.

Jim
 
#25 ·
Quite true. However, when I returned the dead reel to Outdoor Emporium in Seattle (the frugal fisher's friend), I was able to get the other reels' pawls in their inventory to slip as well, given sudden sharp reeling/backreeling. The one I'm talking about was their large arbor unit in (I think) a 9/10 wt. since I was using it for my 8 wt. Spey.

My suspicion is that it was a bad production lot, in which case everything in the store's inventory at that time was probably bad. I'm in manufacturing, and if you make one bad one, you've probably made 100 before you catch the problem, if at all.

Please note, I am not trashing Okuma, just that particular reel. As I said, my wife has a smaller one with a 5 wt. line on it and it's done just fine.

DP, the guy who calls them as he sees them. :smokin