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[dave c]

After being on this site for the last 7 - 8 years I FINALLY had the pleasure to meet the master himself.  Mr. Rodney Hsu (in Rod we Trust). 
My go to for Steelhead has always been jigs.  I have enjoyed a high hookup to landing ratio over the years.  The last 2 week however I have lost 2 steelhead to line breakage.  When the water was colored up a bit a few weeks back I changed my leader to 12lb maxima ultragreen.  I had my float drop near the end of my drift and after a couple headshakes I did another hookset to be on the safe side.  The fish showed itself and it was a brute in the upper teens.  My leader broke shortly thereafter.  Then yesterday I experience deja vu.  Shortly before meeting Rodney a carbon copy of a couple weeks ago happened again. This time my main line broke.  Another beast.  I'm curious what could be causing this.  I will do a second hookset if unsure of the first.  Been doing it for years on all salmon species. Never any issues like this before.  I am stumped.   HELP

[Rodney]

Nice to meet you yesterday Dave! So I came back to your area later on and you were already gone, and managed to hook possibly the same fish... I missed it on the first two float downs, then on the third drift it went for it again. I never saw it, it popped off after a few big head shakes.... I thought about going back first thing this morning but simply have too much to do.

I think the line breakage are just coincidences. If it happens a few more times then you should be concerned. If it is the main line, I'd check the guides on the rod to see if there are any cracks. That other day when you saw me from the other side, I also broke off my fish. It was only about 6 or 7lb and somehow the 12lb Seaguar fluoro leader snapped right at the knot. I even checked the knot just before I started fishing...

[clarki]

I liken Rodney to a sasquatch. Sure, there's video footage, eye witness accounts, and some physical evidence to support the existence of both, but I've never actually seen either of them.

Ironically, I just realized that I am typing this comment on the Fishing with Rod website while drinking my post-lunch coffee from my Sasquatch theme mug. Happenstance? I think not!

http://nativenorthwest.uberflip.com/i/1330216-2021-catalogue-digital/13?m4=

[dave c]

Nice to meet you yesterday Dave! So I came back to your area later on and you were already gone, and managed to hook possibly the same fish... I missed it on the first two float downs, then on the third drift it went for it again. I never saw it, it popped off after a few big head shakes.... I thought about going back first thing this morning but simply have too much to do.

I think the line breakage are just coincidences. If it happens a few more times then you should be concerned. If it is the main line, I'd check the guides on the rod to see if there are any cracks. That other day when you saw me from the other side, I also broke off my fish. It was only about 6 or 7lb and somehow the 12lb Seaguar fluoro leader snapped right at the knot. I even checked the knot just before I started fishing...

Do you think the second hookset has anything to do with it.  Both fish were at the end of my drift and wanted to make sure the hook was buried.  Ive done the same thing with springs and chum with no issues.

[RalphH]

Sharp edges on hook eyes can also cause this. Check the cut wire on the outside the turn that forms the eye. I have seldom seen this on good quality hooks but even the best quality control catches everything.

[GordJ]

What’s the age and provenance of your line? I’ve had bad batches of leader material and also lost fish because I had old line. Sometimes you can get “stale” line from stores or online sales too.

[clarki]

Well done Gord. You made me look up “provenance”

[GordJ]

My work is done now. If you get your line at a swap meet or out of the discount bin it’s probably old and prone to breakage in my experience.

[RalphH]

if it has a provenience (same as provenance) then it is an historical or archaeological artifact and belongs in a museum so don't toss it. But yeah line can go bad if it isn't stored properly.

[Snagly]

Fresh Maxima breaks about 10% above its rated strength. Then after 1 year (stored in the dark), it will regress to the label. Fresh 12lb UG will break at 13.5lbs or and then fall back to 12lbs. If it breaks at under 12lbs, retire the spool.

When I used mono mainline and I was on a destination week-long trip, I'd have 2500 yard/meter utility spools and change the entire line every-other-day if hooking bigger critters or the water was snaggy.

* * * * *

The separate topic of "Do I set the hook again if I don't like the first hookset?" is a different one, unless you are thumb locking the spool so there's zero give. (Even then, if it's a 100% mono setup you shouldn't ever break fresh <10lb line on the hookset: too much line stretch.) My advice on the 2nd hookset is to do it, but wait until you're at a 90-degree angle to the fish and then sweep the rod parallel to the surface. The shorter the line, the better. I don't break these fish off, but 20%-25% of the time the hook pulls out. I figure that the fish was a goner anyway so I saved us both some time. The other 75%-80%, I either land or lose to a different act of incompetence.

[bigblockfox]

step up your mainline and leader. 12 is not enough. for steelhead i run 20 main, 15 leader. i only use the maxima for the mainline and fluro for the leader. i wouldn't run maxima for the leader. if you finally hook that trophy you want at least a chance to land it. sometimes you need to be able to muscle them or lay the brakes on.

another thing i like to do is retie the whole setup after 2 or 3 outings including the swivel. also reline the reel every few years.

[bobby b]

Same here.... Steelhead 20lb main 15lb leader. I trust the 15lb leader especially if the fish gets into the faster current.
 
A few years back I lost the biggest steelhead I ever hooked when my Fluorocarbon leader broke....ever since I've used Mono. 

[essyoo]

is it a clean break or do you have curls at the end of the line? the latter indicates knot failure not line breakage.

I've also found several jig brands have some rough eyes (especially where the powder coat has chipped) which can abrade the line and has cost me more than a couple break-offs. I clean the eyes out habitually and smooth them with a small round diamond file when I see that.

[GordJ]

if it has a provenience (same as provenance) then it is an historical or archaeological artifact and belongs in a museum so don't toss it. But yeah line can go bad if it isn't stored properly.

I guess I got it wrong because I thought anything of value had provenance and provenience was the location that it came from. Thanks for straightening me out.

[RalphH]

not a big deal either way and I liked the idea of line gone bad being so old it has provenience!