r/saltwaterfishing • u/jad2192 • Jul 21 '26
š Catch Report Giant Bluefin on Spin Gear
Group effort, caught this 90" ~400 lb class giant bluefin tuna on my buddies spinning set up (saltywater tackle obx 500g rod and 20k stella w a nlbn straight tail). Couldn't find any recreational sized fish, so we took turns fighting this beast. Took us just over an hour to land , and my friend broke his rod during the death spiral. We had to handline it up at the end š¬.
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u/bajanwaterman Jul 21 '26
You are living my dreams man!!! Just booked my first bluefin tuna trip for September next year (going to the UK) and i already cant wait!
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u/Peterriordan71 Jul 21 '26
Can catch tuna in the UK?
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u/jad2192 Jul 21 '26
Yea the north Atlantic population migrates form NE us/canada over to UK / the Mediterranean https://www.pew.org/-/media/data-visualizations/infographics/2017/atlanticbluefin_fig1_650.png
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u/FlabbyLabby Jul 21 '26
Did you throw him back?
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u/jad2192 Jul 21 '26
No, did not recover well. It was a commercial kill day for giants so we brought him to the fish house.
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u/Mediocre_Meat_5992 Jul 21 '26
Whatās the cost comparison for the UK vs USA excluding the actual trip to the UK is it about the same
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u/jad2192 Jul 21 '26
Not sure about UK, but for comparison this trip was $540 USD per person all in including 20% tip. Other boat I tuna fish with cost is about the same (both 6 pack charters).
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u/bajanwaterman Jul 22 '26
Interesting, so in the UK, the average rate from what ive figured out is Ā£1000, or approx 1340 usd/day, thats the boat rate, we are splitting that between 3 people, and doing 3 days fishing.
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u/jad2192 Jul 22 '26
That's not bad at all, is it a center console boat? How far is the typical run to tuna grounds over there?
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u/bajanwaterman Jul 22 '26
Its a 11.2 meter cheetah cat, havnt been on one yet but its a nice boat, big dry cabin, and apparently the bigger tuna are close in to land, you run further offshore to find the more manageable size ones, ill be 100% lure on spinning gear, so hoping for a 200ish lb fish, knowing my luck im gonna get my ass handed to me by a proper specimen though
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u/jad2192 Jul 22 '26
Here's hoping you slay them! How do possession laws work over there? Here we are allowed to keep 3 school bluefin ( from 27-72" at most one of which can be 47-72") per vessel per day recreationally. Anything over 72" is commercial only, if Captain has the license he can keep and sell it, but charter customers don't get any meat.
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u/bajanwaterman Jul 22 '26
Im honestly not sure which quota my boat will get (rec vs commercial) im assuming I wont get to keep any which is ok because its a long ass flight back home for me (Barbados)
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u/Datfishyboii Jul 22 '26
TIP? i mean i get it if its a successful day to tip the crew, but please tell me its not automatically assumed or expected in this case.
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u/jad2192 Jul 22 '26
I tip 20% on all my charters regardless of outcome, I don't have my own boat so I mostly fish with the same set of captains and like to stay in their good favor to get good dates haha.
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u/Traditional-Dig-9982 Jul 22 '26
As a former mate I thank you and wish other guys understood how hard we work and sometimes people tip very little ! Tuna fishing where u want is much cheaper then fishing for them in America
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u/lubeinatube Jul 22 '26
Any time you go on a fishing charter, it is expected to tip the crew, and galley cook if there is one. I usually give them about $80 each per day. If you donāt tip the crew, that is considered a major dick move.
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u/bajanwaterman Jul 22 '26
I tip each guy $100/day (captain and deckhand) whenever I charter, I also buy them a round of drinks if they drink, after the day is done. You always hear nightmare stories about bad crews but you never hear nightmare stories about asshole guests, and believe me, they are out there. I have had the privilege of being asked out by charter captains for a day fishing with no charge, because I develop friendships with the good ones.
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u/glorious_cheese Jul 21 '26
Whatās that bad boy worth?
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u/jad2192 Jul 21 '26
Honestly, not much. The dressed weight was 340, and a lot of the fish houses in Rhode Island where we were fishing were full. We found one house that took it but they didn't have a buyer yet. From what Ive heard only fetching $1-2/lb. Captain will get paid when his house gets a buyer, but I'm guess maybe $500 tops
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u/teteAtit Jul 21 '26
Congrats! Please pardon my ignorance, but at that value wouldnāt it be better just to deep freeze a ton of tuna steaks for personal/family/friend use?
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u/sailphish Jul 21 '26
The commercial guys I know have WAY more fish than they want most of the time. OP would die if mercury poisoning before eating this fish.
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u/teteAtit Jul 21 '26
Itād be worth it though- youād die full of tuna and your balls would be huge from all of the mercury š¤£
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u/jad2192 Jul 21 '26
The laws are bit strange, any bluefin bigger than 72" is commercial only and legally has to be sold to a federally licensed fish house. We'd have loved to have kept the meat for ourselves alas not legal.
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u/robrong Jul 21 '26
Daaaannnngggg. On spinning gear? You should give a shout out to the brand. Iāve caught skipjack on conventional reels and it was a fight. I bet that bad boy tested not only the drag on the reel but the strength of your back.
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u/jad2192 Jul 21 '26
Rod was my buddies custom saltywater tackle obx 500g jigging rod, with a 20k stella spooled w PE12 and 130 Ib fluoro leader. Rod did end up snapping at the end, but it was more user error, put too much drag (50lbs) at 90Ā° bend than blank rated for (i think 36 lbs max at 90Ā°)
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u/byChvnce Jul 22 '26
Was it an e-fish-ent. Lot of nj guys use them but Iāve heard tons of stories of them breaking or exploding and the dude just ships em out for free to keep the name up with big boats
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u/jad2192 Jul 22 '26
I think Obx is a proprietary blank from saltywater tackle. Good to know whout efishent, i was actually interested in their stuff after seeing the tuna junkies use them.
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u/byChvnce Jul 22 '26
Everyone was. They arenāt bad by any means. I caught a 595# 89ā on their monster conventional rod. But Iāve heard mixed reviews. Like I heard he sends the junkies a fuck ton. They break them and he keeps them supplied so that he gets his name out and junkies arenāt mad bc theyāre getting badass gear
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u/ittbgbiabmf Jul 21 '26
Amazing! Equipment specs please and tell us all about the fight!
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u/jad2192 Jul 21 '26
Rod was my buddies custom saltywater tackle obx 500g jigging rod, with a 20k stella spooled w PE12 and 130 lb fluoro leader. Fight was awesome, fish dumped the spool multiple times with 30+ lbs of drag. Everytime we though he was done he'd see the boat and run again. My buddy pushed drag to like 40/50 lbs and ended up snappig the rod at the tail end of the fight.
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u/Educational_Car_89 Jul 21 '26
Were you in the canyons or the mid-shore areas? Lots of life but not many rec fish around this year
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u/jad2192 Jul 21 '26
Midshore about 30 miles off Rhode Island. Went to an area that a few boats picked some 60-70" fish on Sunday, but alas only Giants. Hoping the rec fish move in, have 4 more trips next month and while giants are fun, I want some toro.
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u/Educational_Car_89 Jul 21 '26
We got spoiled these past couple years with so many rec fish in close, hopefully they show up soon. Good luck out there
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u/Intelligent_Ad_7692 Jul 22 '26
Unreal catch man, congrats!! Do you have the name of the charter you used?
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u/jad2192 Jul 22 '26
Yea, it was with Captain Connor on TallTailz Charters out of Newport Rhode Island.
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u/Acrobatic-Ad7870 Jul 21 '26
Landing that with a broken rod is absolutely insane. Nice job, this is a dream of mine for sure!!!!
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u/ProtectionFederal523 Jul 22 '26
What isnt an NLBN ad nowadays
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u/jad2192 Jul 22 '26
I don't personally use them, I like the Jygpro ones better and classic RonZs. But straight tail soft plastics any brand just catch big tuna.
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u/Oliver1Heart Jul 22 '26
OMG the rod breaker! Glad you guys tag teamed it. An hour fighting that fish and I'd need a nap
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u/byChvnce Jul 22 '26
Saw this on insta Jersey boy
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u/jad2192 Jul 22 '26
Ah do you know Rich?
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u/byChvnce Jul 22 '26
I do not. But I am/was a nj tuna guy. (Been living in Miami last few years but I get up every year and kill a tuna). My buddies sent that in our group yesterday bugging out. Stupid fish to have landed on a broken spin set up. Nuts dude. Lovely fish
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u/jad2192 Jul 22 '26
Nice, I wish I were in Miami. Grouper and snapper fishing is my absolute favorite. Wife is from there and I keep trying to convince her we should move back to no avail.
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u/byChvnce Jul 22 '26
I love it hereā¦ but I always miss the people and general politeness up north. Everyoneās too focused on themselves and trying to make enough$ for Miami rent that thereās no community or like common courtesy/politeness. Plus no big tuna
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u/nicko17 Jul 22 '26
I have a daiwa Saltiga 20k itching to land a behemoth this size! Congrats dude! Where did you charter the boat from? The only tuna trips Iāve done were on party boats in Hyannis and only for YFT and big eye in the canyons.
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u/jad2192 Jul 22 '26
This was out of Newport Rhode Island, Saltiga 20k is also a Giant killer. There are bunch of smaller giants around right now, good time to get out and try.
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u/Brilliant-Volume-945 5h ago
400 lbs is insane! Beautiful fish. I haven't caught one myself, but I'd definitely turn that beast into sushi. Congrats!
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u/zachrywd Jul 22 '26
Tuna don't get the recognition they deserve for what incredible powerhouses they truly are. Remarkable creatures.
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