Tackle setup · Pro
Swordfish deep-drop outfit
Daytime swordfishing in 1,200–1,800 ft beyond the humps, and night drifts along the edge.
Charter a boatBring your own boat
The outfit
- Rod
- 5.5 ft 50–80 lb class stand-up or bent-butt rod
- Reel
- 50–80 lb class two-speed or electric reel
- Line
- 65–80 lb braid with a 100-yard top shot
- Leader
- 300 lb mono wind-on with a 10–15 ft leader
- Hooks
- 10/0–12/0 J-hooks or circle hooks in a rigged squid or bonito belly
- Weights
- 8–12 lb breakaway lead by day; 1–2 lb by night, with light sticks
- A specialist fishery: go with a captain who does it before you buy the gear.
- Federal HMS permit, size limits and the 24-hour NOAA landing report apply.
