# King Makerel 101



## AquaSport175 (Oct 15, 2007)

Since I haven't found a lot of information about our areas kingfish I wanted to get members opinions on gearing up to target this species.



For example what are some basic recommendations that I would need to actually catch one of these king macs?



Thanks,

AA


----------



## lobsterman (Sep 30, 2007)

A fishing rod some live or dead bait, wire leaders and fish over good live bottom. Just cast out without a weight and a king will be by shortly.


----------



## Telum Pisces (Sep 27, 2007)

Or troll the pass in about a month and they will come. June -October of last year, I caught the most kings that I had ever caught simply trolling the pass.


----------



## P-cola_Native (Feb 5, 2008)

Penn 8500 with 25-30# mono,and ashort wire leader (I prefer single strand). I only use one large treble hook, but a lot of people go with a stinger hook. Dead cigs work fine, but live bait is even better. Free line the bait with no weight over structure, live bottom or a wreck. 

You can usually just set out a flatline while you're bottom fishing and catch all you want.


----------



## reelfinatical (Sep 30, 2007)

This could get long, but I will try to keep it as short and simple as possible. 

Gear - light action tip rod, reels such as a tld15 or penn 545/555gs ((you can use spinners too for more fun  )) with at least 20-30lb test, set at least 5lbs of drag 

Rigs - 3 to 4' leader, live bait rigs (http://www.fishdancer.net/rigs.htm), dead bait rigs youshould useaspecial head like a pirate plug's to prevent bait spin + stingers of course. Dusterscan begood additions to rigs too.

Bait / Lures- around here, I choose live or dead cigar minnows, live threadfins & bluerunners, imitation ribbonfish, and even Yozuri deep divers in pink & drone spoons

Locations- structure that's holding bait (because where there's bait, there's bigger fish!  )

Troll - at speeds between 3-5.

Downriggers are good to use during the summer when the surface is hot.. 

Drifting live baits on a balloonis another idea - you can do this while drifting or anchored. (Our biggest Kings have beencaught this way).


----------



## reelhappy (Oct 31, 2007)

you all ready got a lot of good info. the kings are easy to catch you will find them everywhere. any tackle can be used. all depends on you. i enjoy light tackle it is more fun but all ways use wire leader. a lot of my friends use 7 strand but i use solid ss wire. one kink and it will break but i like it. you will find them on top water in the am and down deep after the sun gets up high. anytime you anchor on a reef for snapper fishing throw out a live bait on a fly line behin the boat and you will catch something. king, dolphin, cobia, etc. i make my fly line with 3 feet ss wire to a j hook through the nose and then a small wire to a treble hook in the side of the bait about 3/4 way back (stinger hook) cause kings will bite the back half of a bait in two. good rule is the larger the reef and deeper the bigger the king.i love trolling out in 150 feet water nice size to them lots of fun but only eat the smaller ones 26 to 32 inches because of mecury in the flesh enjoy.


----------



## AquaSport175 (Oct 15, 2007)

great info so far. Thanks keep it coming. I'm going to search some other places for myself and will post my findings for others to use this post as a reference.


----------



## reelfinatical (Sep 30, 2007)

Somethingcool to look at (i think it's cool anyway lol)<P align=center>Growth Chart for Female Kings <P align=center>Years down the left, length at the bottom.<P align=center>


----------



## J.Sharit (Oct 3, 2007)

Lots of good advice on terminal tackle in this thread. It's easy to pick up the mid - sized and schoolies around the bouys Just check for bait in the area. Don't take long if thier there. The bigger boys are a little tougher to find but my bigger fish come on those free line baitsover structure in deeper water. Lots of fun on light tackle. Trollin for them with duster and dead cigs usally produces some good action later on this season.


----------



## AquaSport175 (Oct 15, 2007)

Ok here is my attempt to put together some basic information about this species. I pulled this information from a Jacksonville source so maybe some of our local kingfisherman can help make it custom to our area. Please feel free to add on any king mack info you have. I think this will be a helpful thread for people in the coming month.



Kingfish facts



Species: King mackerel Scomberomorus cavalla.

Characteristics: Sleek, silvery pelagic fish. Schools often congregate around wrecks, pods of baitfish. Largest fish are usually loners.

World record kingfish: 90 pounds, caught in 1976 off Key West.

Tournament record: 53.30 pounds, caught in 2000 by Ross Vilardo. 



How to catch one



Where caught: During the summer in Northeast Florida, fish under 20 pounds are commonly caught on the numerous artificial reefs off the coast. Larger fish to 50-plus pounds are often found within a mile of the beach, with some caught from fishing piers. The mouths of inlets, where baitfish congregate, are popular spots to fish for heavyweight kings.



Tackle: Relatively light, 15- to 20-pound test line and small treble hooks are preferred by most tournament anglers because of the stealth factor. Reels generally have a high retrieve ratio to enable the angler to quickly regain line stripped off by a running king.



Baits: Live menhaden -pogies- are the most popular choice, with ribbonfish or silver eels a close second among tournament types. Other effective live baits include croakers, mullet, whiting, pinfish, cigar minnows, small Spanish mackerel. Dead baits such as cigar minnows also will catch fish, especially on the reefs. Artificial lures were once popular but are used sparingly today.



Fishing methods: Slow-trolling with live baits on as many as six lines is common practice, with a couple of baits pulled deep on downriggers and the others fished at varying distances from the boat. Chum-fishing - dispensing bits of chum to "sweeten" the water - from an anchored or drifting boat is another method. 



Talking the talk



Snake: a small king

Teenager: a kingfish weighing in the teens

Smoker: a big mama king that smokes your reel

Yellow submarine: a hated jack crevalle, sometimes mistaken for a big king, that fights forever and, more importantly, wastes valuable tournament fishing time

Skyrocket: when a king leaps out of the water, often to pounce on a bait. 



Pensacola Bud Light King Mackerel-Cobia Tournament

June 21 - 22, 2008


----------



## reelfinatical (Sep 30, 2007)

I'll post this for anyone who may be interested.



We have Live Bait King Mackerel Fishing in our Audio Fishing School. It's 50 minutes of education and information from Capt Steve Brantely of Liquid Addiction Fishing Team. Now, it's not "local" -> they are a NC fishing team, but as you all have probably seen this year, NC teams are coming to FL, fishing the tournaments here, and winning them. So they must know a little something something - . Anyway, there is a ton of info in that audio session - my opinion. Feel free to check it out.


----------



## Drew Mixon (Oct 4, 2007)

> *reelfinatical (5/18/2008)*I'll post this for anyone who may be interested.
> 
> We have Live Bait King Mackerel Fishing in our Audio Fishing School. It's 50 minutes of education and information from Capt Steve Brantely of Liquid Addiction Fishing Team. Now, it's not "local" -> they are a NC fishing team, but as you all have probably seen this year, NC teams are coming to FL, fishing the tournaments here, and winning them. So they must know a little something something - . Anyway, there is a ton of info in that audio session - my opinion. Feel free to check it out.


NC teams have been doing well in Florida tournaments since the advent of the SKA :doh , mainly due to the ratio of NC teams in general. For the most part, if you fish in NC, you fish for kingfish. And if you want to fish in a tournament, it's absolutely going to be a kingfish event.

all the rigging and baits and techniques listed above are just fine for catching kingfish--especially snakes. but 3-5 mph or knots, is about 3 to 5 times too fast. keep it under 2, and just over one and watch the spread for the sky rocket show.

the best kingfishing we have in our area--barring traveling west for 2 hours, is in the 130 to 220 foot range over live bottom. and using downriggers is nearly a must. 

but as i said, those techniques around the inshore structure and even the buoys is perfect for snakes. just slow it down with the live baits.

cheers.

drew


----------



## LATERALINE (Oct 2, 2007)

come fish the miller lite and find out!


----------



## reelfinatical (Sep 30, 2007)

> *Drew Mixon (5/22/2008)*all the rigging and baits and techniques listed above are just fine for catching kingfish--especially snakes. but 3-5 mph or knots, is about 3 to 5 times too fast. keep it under 2, and just over one and watch the spread for the sky rocket show. cheers. drew


Good input.  Our 23 or 26won't goless than 3 (& we don't use anything to slow it down like a bucket, &1 engine in drive still doesn't help). Most days we go out it's so windy that even 3-4 is nearabout impossible. :S


----------



## brnbser (Oct 1, 2007)

we shoot for around 1.5 most of the time like Drew said, shutting down one motor will normally get us there unless there are current issues


----------



## Speckulator (Oct 3, 2007)

Dang Andrew...........only 30 lines????? WOW!!!! Used to the 4-5 page monologs that usually go nowhere. In this post, you actually talk like you know how to kingfish.

Amanda---It's not very hard to make a 23 ft or 26 ft boat slow troll @1-2 mph. Ya don't need a bucket!!!!ROTFLMAO!!!!You can bump the engine(s if ya got twins)in and out of gear. If you have twins... kill 1 engine and leave it in gear. The resistance will slow ya down.Fish with theother engine,even if ya hafta bump it in and outta gear. You may hafta put the one engine in reverse for a second or 2 if you're still going too fast. Lots a ways to skin a cat!!!!!!!

YMMV!!!!

George


----------



## user285 (Oct 2, 2007)

How you been George? Are you fishing the tourney this weekend?


----------



## Speckulator (Oct 3, 2007)

No...Wanted to but have a charter Sat nite. Tonite's o'rniter was cancelled. Kinda bumpy....BTW---Nice new ride!!!!!!

George


----------



## atlantacapt (Oct 2, 2007)

If one engine has you over 3 knots, id bump troll pulling it in and out of gear periodically...


----------



## reelfinatical (Sep 30, 2007)

> *Speckulator (5/22/2008)*Amanda---It's not very hard to make a 23 ft or 26 ft boat slow troll @1-2 mph. Ya don't need a bucket!!!!ROTFLMAO!!!!You can bump the engine(s if ya got twins)in and out of gear. If you have twins... kill 1 engine and leave it in gear. The resistance will slow ya down.Fish with theother engine,even if ya hafta bump it in and outta gear. You may hafta put the one engine in reverse for a second or 2 if you're still going too fast. Lots a ways to skin a cat!!!!!!! YMMV!!!! George


Ya never heard of people using buckets? lol... We've tried bump trolling but some days the wind is just a b*tch. (( Will the fan ever stop blowing?!  )) Thanks for the info - will keep trying.


----------



## user285 (Oct 2, 2007)

> *reelfinatical (5/22/2008)*
> 
> 
> > *Speckulator (5/22/2008)*Amanda---It's not very hard to make a 23 ft or 26 ft boat slow troll @1-2 mph. Ya don't need a bucket!!!!ROTFLMAO!!!!You can bump the engine(s if ya got twins)in and out of gear. If you have twins... kill 1 engine and leave it in gear. The resistance will slow ya down.Fish with theother engine,even if ya hafta bump it in and outta gear. You may hafta put the one engine in reverse for a second or 2 if you're still going too fast. Lots a ways to skin a cat!!!!!!! YMMV!!!! George
> ...




Try barrying your trim tabs also


----------



## reelfinatical (Sep 30, 2007)

> *Bow Down (5/22/2008)*Try barrying your trim tabs also


Now THAT I haven't tried... Thanks - maybe that is what I'm missing...?!

This sounds likethe trolling we do -  -http://www.fishska.com/archive/reference/tips/2007/0507High-Speed.asp


----------



## Speckulator (Oct 3, 2007)

Doug---Wasn't gonna give'm all the secrets......they gotta figger some out on their own!!!!! Yep---Puttin yer trim tabs all the way down'll slow ya down even more.

George


----------



## JoeZ (Sep 30, 2007)

You people.:dohoke

You forgot to mention the easiest way to learn.

Ready for shameless plug?

The Hook, Line & sinker Seminar Series will focus on king mackerel fishing specific to Pensacola on June 2 (That;s a Monday) at Flounder's on Pensacola Beach. I think Matt McLeod will be the guest speaker that night nad his years of SKA fishing will be spread out in front of you.

6:30 p.m. free buffet, 7 p.m. seminar starts.


----------



## user285 (Oct 2, 2007)

> *Speckulator (5/22/2008)*Doug---Wasn't gonna give'm all the secrets......they gotta figger some out on their own!!!!! Yep---Puttin yer trim tabs all the way down'll slow ya down even more.
> 
> George




:doh Sorry George:doh


----------



## AquaSport175 (Oct 15, 2007)

Thanks Joe for the 411!


----------



## Drew Mixon (Oct 4, 2007)

all the other bases were pretty much covered, george,--other than s l o w down, so yea, only a few lines in my response. (out of character for me, i know)

ahhh, tournament kingfishing...thats pretty much a thing of the past for me. being a single dad will take up too much time and expense to play with the big boys anymore. i'm going to leave that to the pros and cheer from the sidelines, or from the trout flats. 

cheers.

drew

oh, and amanda, we (jamielu and i) ran a 23 footer for 3 years in the SKA and qualified for nationals all 3 years. we used different techniques in different divisions (we fished at least 3 different divisions each year), and jamie never had much trouble keeping our rig at 1.5'ish mph in most any sea condition. Jamie she has moved on with her new fishing partner--George,and i have NO doubt you'll see her name on the leaderboards in Div 7 this year.


----------



## SandyKeys (Oct 10, 2007)

:clap Well done Drew!!!:clap

Yep! Keep that GREAT advice coming, I'll sure put my money on you!!


----------



## reelfinatical (Sep 30, 2007)

> *Drew Mixon (5/23/2008)*we (jamielu and i) ran a 23 footer for 3 years in the SKA and qualified for nationals all 3 years. we used different techniques in different divisions (we fished at least 3 different divisions each year), and jamie never had much trouble keeping our rig at 1.5'ish mph in most any sea condition. Jamie she has moved on with her new fishing partner--George,and i have NO doubt you'll see her name on the leaderboards in Div 7 this year.


The only boat I've been able togo that slow inis my dad's 20'er. lol.We don't catch anymore or bigger Kings on his boatcompared to how fast/slow we go on ours.That's mostlywhyI haven't been that concerend with slowing our boat down.Gonna try the trim tab technique though - See if we can add "s-l-o-w trolling" to our techniques.  We've been catching quality fish with our "high speed trolling" -that's what matters most.  I was googleing stuff last night about how to slow the boat down & best speeds, etc...Looks like there'spros & cons of both.You read one thing & then read something completely different somewhere else. "This is good" "This is bad" "Don't do that" "That isperfect"....Maybe slowing it down around here will indeed get us even more, biggerfish -we shall see. I appreciate the input & I will def. try it.

PS -We were planning onjoining Div 7until we saw thetravelinvolved.:S I miss ourDiv. 9back in S NC - all the tournaments were pretty much in our backyard!!Of course our biggest smokers seem to always come when we're NOT in tournament mode. lol.


----------



## SandyKeys (Oct 10, 2007)

Btw... AquaSport - great pic on the boat! But the dog is AWESOME!!!! :angel


----------



## Drew Mixon (Oct 4, 2007)

yea, i think you're going to find that slow trolling is really the ticket on the upper gulf. no need to cover any water--you are trying more to keep the bait in one spot, and keep a bait more lively (rather than towing it at 3kts and drowning it). an of course, if one is looking for quality kingfish--anything over 35 pounds, i guess, you arent going to be tugging a pogie! lol. 3 pound blue runners catch 99% of the tournament quality kingfish from PC to Port A. you mentioned Stan in a previous post. i consider him a dear friend. we communicate a couple of times a month. he's fishing a new hull this year--one we had entertained. i'm going for a 'fishing trip' with stanand the new hull in about 6 weeks. a little misunderstood, but he's a stand-up guy. 

we've got some great SKA and FLW teams on this forum--each of whom have qualified and fished nationals multiple times. i think brad sauers finished 5th in 2006? lots of good knowledge on here. but thats tournament kingfishing. fast trolling lures or dead baits is another ball game.

cheers

drew


----------



## reelfinatical (Sep 30, 2007)

thanks Drew. 

It's not the easiest thing in the world - lol.. I havebeen reading about ground speed vs true trolling speed today. (Never too old tohave a refresher course..lol..)Our gauge reads 3 at idle. That's our ground speed..? So, if we are trolling & the current is running opposite direction say 1.2, our true trolling speed is actually1.8..? If we are going witha 1.0current with ground speed 3 at idle, then our true trolling speed is 4...?


----------



## Drew Mixon (Oct 4, 2007)

> *reelfinatical (5/23/2008)*thanks Drew.
> 
> It's not the easiest thing in the world - lol.. I havebeen reading about ground speed vs true trolling speed today. (Never too old tohave a refresher course..lol..)Our gauge reads 3 at idle. That's our ground speed..? So, if we are trolling & the current is running opposite direction say 1.2, our true trolling speed is actually1.8..? If we are going witha 1.0current with ground speed 3 at idle, then our true trolling speed is 4...?




are we using a pitot or GPS? if its the pitot, then its off, so just compensate.

the GPS should read SOG, or speed over ground. at idle, it should be pretty much zero. if not, the unit is not reading accurately. 

but in any case, i expect the common answer is 'you want your baits with 1.5 miles an hour of water moving over their face'. --be it current or forward movement. if there is a current, you might actually be 'moving' backwards. yeah, backwards. if you are on the downhill side, well you are facing the wrong way! lol. if doing 'laps', you gotta do some with-current movement, but dollars to donuts, once you make the turn and begin headinb back into the current, you'll not only be able to control the boat better, but the speed as well, and the bites will follow. 

keeping in mind that you are fishing a piece of structure for fish that you KNOW are there--not zipping around to find fish from place to place. keeping runners swimming foward just enough so that they CAN wiggle and zip from side to side once in a while is really key. putting too much strain on them will tire them out and you'll get fewer bites. most successful teams change baits every 10 or 15 minutes anyway, and the freshest baits get the bites. couldnt begin to count how many times we had a big big bite on a bait AS we dropped it back in the spread. the friskiest worm gets the bite. so, keeping it slow so the baits will be friskier works more often.keeping only a mile or maybe two of current in their face does just that.

and here's an answer to the question i know some are pondering now...if i am not moving forward in the current, then how do i know i've got my baits on the 'right' side of the rig or structure? well first off, kingfish dont 'hover' like snapper or grouper, they are always moving. but, (here's the secret tip) bait--and therefore the fish, orient more to the upstream side of the structure. review the fishin' the trail videos and your own experiences (the SC passes have a lot of current right?), and you'll see more successful teams, and more succesful bites come from the upcurrent side of the structure. if i 'could', i would just do big lazy 's' curves on the upcurrent side. but, wind and waves will eventually push you around, and more times than not, we'd get back to the 'uphill' side, and zzzzzZZZZZZZZzzzzzzz.

and ALL of this works just as well fishing the buoys and the mass and other nearshore wrecks. even if i was pulling cigar minnows on 10lb tackle around #3, i'd still slow troll and keep my eyes in the spread for the teenage jumpers.



cheers.

drew


----------



## Jamielu (Jan 16, 2008)

Amanda.....like Drew said, I never had too much trouble keeping ours down to those slower speeds. Shutting one motor down (and sometimes even putting that one in reverse while shut down), bumping in and out of gear,and burying those trim tabs has always worked.Attimes, withbad wind and current where you have to run both motors, sometimes bumping into reverse helps a lot, too (all those techniques have helped me in a larger boat with triples as well). Not saying that fast trolling isn't good, just that slow trolling is the typical way up here in the northern gulf.

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Drew, I'm looking forward to the upcoming season. Ya'll keep your eyes on the boards, and be watching for little Drew, he'll be back from CA soon and plans on fishing with us. Hope to see our team's name up there for a few tournaments, andsome of those lady angler bonusessure would be nice(with the gas prices, need to get 'um way up there and pay some of those expenses!!). I'll miss seeing everyone at Fourchon (I'll be out in CA for Drew's high school graduation), but I'll look forward to seeing everyone at the next tournament!


----------



## reelfinatical (Sep 30, 2007)

T-Y- for the info! I have a hard enoughtimekeeping up wth 2 motors& trim tabs sometimes(never had tabs before this boat)..I couldn't imagine triples! lol... Good luck this year!


----------

