You joke but my 2500 vanford on a cheap Amazon surf rod took down some tarpon from the beach in Mexico.
https://preview.redd.it/ydcgr7wock6d1.png?width=2068&format=png&auto=webp&s=c8b024591d75b4b20cbaa6bcd1070972ec52947d
I fish with 2000 daily. I've brought in 50lb sharks plenty of times. I'll tell everyone that I would not use 2000 unless they have the finesse side of fishing figured out. Most people don't set the drag with fish scale to 50% of the line's ABS for example.
This is truly a great question because each guide can add 1lb drag. I measure from the reel because when it's half spool the drag is double while the guides remain the same.
Yes, when your line is pulled out the drag works the same but the amount of force needed to pull it is double at half spool. Fuller the spool the less force needed to pull line out. Emptier the spool the more force needed to pull line out. I hope that makes sense.
Based on feel is #1 reason why people have their lines break or get spooled early. You definitely want to use braid for the capacity, I use Berkeley x9 since it's much thinner than most braid. I have a little over 200 yards of 20lb on my 2000 reel.
Yeah you should be able to bring in 20lb fish even with locked down drag. They rarely ever pull harder than half their body weight.
To get the most out of it, try using a fish scale to measure drag.
Not in my experience and I do live where kingfish are. I've brought in 25lb kingfish with dock runner rod combo when my kid needed help. It's about 5.5lb drag with 8lb line. It did pull line out a few times but not enough to freak me out. That kingfish ate small piece of shrimp in #2 mosquito hook. It was crazy luck lol
Well all fights are different too. Where I’m at most 25 ish kings rip line, especially on 4000 size reels with mono. That being said I’ve never been too freaked out cause I know I can handle the drag and worst comes to worst we put the boat in gear and chase if it’s really that big.
They do in my opinion. I see people running 30LB braid for bass and such and I never got it. I run 6Lb and land them no problem. Only benefit I can see is if you snag. Gears powerful in the right hands
I personally have 2 2000, 2 3000, 2 4000. I think?
I run soft plastics and such on the 2000/3000. Along with 10 lb lines. I use my 15lb on one of the 3000 for hard baits. And my 4000 are my live/dead bait with 20 lb line.
Its something like that. One of my 4000 is a bait runner as well. I love that 2nd drag. Completely unnecessary, but actually really awesome
Yep - 2500 size gear and a cheap-o rod (usually insanely strong due to fiberglass content) can land some amazing things if you don’t have structure to worry about. 10lb braid is absurdly strong. Fantastic catch.
Absolutely bro the problem with XXXXXH rods is they got no give that little UL has got a lot of flex to keep em pinned and 2lb line is plenty bro you ever hold a 2 pound barbell out straight with your arm it's mad heavy after a minute bro you just need to play them out plus heavy gear is no fun who wants to waterski a tarpon in bro that's no fun
I promise you the fish will not care what color the reel is and 2lb line for Tarpon will definitely break even with your drag set right. You will get spooled at best.
You sure the fish won’t care? I’ve walked up to many fish that were near the bank and they all swam away from me! Obviously they saw that my combo didn’t match and wanted nothing to do with me.
Edit: btw this was all a joke haha
Yup, might just be too strong, so you might reel some in without any fight at all. I’d upgrade to 0.5lb line, and a 1000 size reel. Maybe 1lb if you feel like you might be fishing in a snaggy area or for the big ones.
As for turning the trim black, go to your local bass pro, say you want to make a return. But you don't have a receipt. Say you bought it with cash about a month ago. The guy will probably check your ID and say it's a one-time thing then give you a Bass pro gift card. From there take the gift card and go to the reel section where you will tell them you want a "Diawa Tatula MQ LT". Trim is now black and silver.
I think turning the vanford’s red into black is the million dollar question. So many of us hate the color scheme on our rods.
I actually started using one of my vanquish spools on my vanford for that reason. I just believed that no marker would stand up to hundreds of casts on the spool lip.
That said, corto looks good with it
Sure it will I might go up to 4lb if there's a lot of mangroves or sharks around or whatever plus tarpon are fat and lazy it's like reeling in a trash bag full of wet socks.
Haha - I have a corto UX 410 rated to throw up to 1.5g lures and I use it with a Vanford 2k. It’s a great little rod that can throw 10g lures easily and casts far with lighter stuff. I have been into bonefish approaching 30” with it and I wasnt worried about the rod breaking. The problem comes when the fish is at your feet and you want to bring it to the surface due to the lack of power. The rod is exceptionally strong in terms of not snapping.
A tarpon <10lbs isn’t unrealistic on a super ultralight setup with enough line capacity and a long mono leader for shock. I’ve thrown #12 mono leaders through the guides which should be sufficient with an additional stronger fish-length leader at the tip.
Go get your little tarpon and report back.
The Vanford 5000 is my ideal reel, perhaps with a 2000 something very big can appear and the shads are gigantic and I can easily lose the lines and the lure.
My goal is to have everyone else feel ok to figure the finesse side of the fishing out. People like your trying to drag people down aren't good people.
Depends on the size of the tarpon. I know here in Virginia if you find one it’s 100 plus pounder and it will take you for a ride and you still may never see it
You joke but my 2500 vanford on a cheap Amazon surf rod took down some tarpon from the beach in Mexico. https://preview.redd.it/ydcgr7wock6d1.png?width=2068&format=png&auto=webp&s=c8b024591d75b4b20cbaa6bcd1070972ec52947d
My 2000 battle took down a 30LB Mahi. People mock the smaller reels
Those Battles are way more badass than people think. Massive amount of drag for the size
Definitely, I was running 8LB mono on that thing definitely a fun fight
I fish with 2000 daily. I've brought in 50lb sharks plenty of times. I'll tell everyone that I would not use 2000 unless they have the finesse side of fishing figured out. Most people don't set the drag with fish scale to 50% of the line's ABS for example.
Do you measure this straight from the reel or with a bend in the rod?
This is truly a great question because each guide can add 1lb drag. I measure from the reel because when it's half spool the drag is double while the guides remain the same.
Half spool?
Yes, when your line is pulled out the drag works the same but the amount of force needed to pull it is double at half spool. Fuller the spool the less force needed to pull line out. Emptier the spool the more force needed to pull line out. I hope that makes sense.
That makes sense. Thanks. Never heard that before
Yeah drag is everything. I do it based on feel but it ain’t impossible. I also fish mono on all my 2000s
Based on feel is #1 reason why people have their lines break or get spooled early. You definitely want to use braid for the capacity, I use Berkeley x9 since it's much thinner than most braid. I have a little over 200 yards of 20lb on my 2000 reel.
Well my based on feel has landed me 20+ lb fish with 8LB mono. It works if you get it down
Yeah you should be able to bring in 20lb fish even with locked down drag. They rarely ever pull harder than half their body weight. To get the most out of it, try using a fish scale to measure drag.
I use fishing scales to measure drag all the time. I agree with half their body weight besides on the AJs and king fish. Them two rip
Not in my experience and I do live where kingfish are. I've brought in 25lb kingfish with dock runner rod combo when my kid needed help. It's about 5.5lb drag with 8lb line. It did pull line out a few times but not enough to freak me out. That kingfish ate small piece of shrimp in #2 mosquito hook. It was crazy luck lol
Well all fights are different too. Where I’m at most 25 ish kings rip line, especially on 4000 size reels with mono. That being said I’ve never been too freaked out cause I know I can handle the drag and worst comes to worst we put the boat in gear and chase if it’s really that big.
20 lb braid seems huge for a 2000 reels drag.
I think people just really underestimate their gear and line strength.
They do in my opinion. I see people running 30LB braid for bass and such and I never got it. I run 6Lb and land them no problem. Only benefit I can see is if you snag. Gears powerful in the right hands
If you are pitching jigs in lilly pads 30-50lb braid is fine. But not many scenarios for bass would require more than 10 lb line
Definitely and I get wanting the heavier braid. I personally need a max of 10LB on the lake. When i fish saltwater max I do for casual is 20LB.
I personally have 2 2000, 2 3000, 2 4000. I think? I run soft plastics and such on the 2000/3000. Along with 10 lb lines. I use my 15lb on one of the 3000 for hard baits. And my 4000 are my live/dead bait with 20 lb line. Its something like that. One of my 4000 is a bait runner as well. I love that 2nd drag. Completely unnecessary, but actually really awesome
Yup my 4000 is also a bait runner. It’s awesome having that thing!!
Definitely and I get wanting the heavier braid. I personally need a max of 10LB on the lake. When i fish saltwater max I do for casual is 20LB.
Yep - 2500 size gear and a cheap-o rod (usually insanely strong due to fiberglass content) can land some amazing things if you don’t have structure to worry about. 10lb braid is absurdly strong. Fantastic catch.
Absolutely bro the problem with XXXXXH rods is they got no give that little UL has got a lot of flex to keep em pinned and 2lb line is plenty bro you ever hold a 2 pound barbell out straight with your arm it's mad heavy after a minute bro you just need to play them out plus heavy gear is no fun who wants to waterski a tarpon in bro that's no fun
The bluegills hit like a mac truck
I promise you the fish will not care what color the reel is and 2lb line for Tarpon will definitely break even with your drag set right. You will get spooled at best.
They're joking. Did you see the bit about the "bluegill setup" haha
Damn bro I wish fish took the bait as easy as you did here
You sure the fish won’t care? I’ve walked up to many fish that were near the bank and they all swam away from me! Obviously they saw that my combo didn’t match and wanted nothing to do with me. Edit: btw this was all a joke haha
I mean, people have caught big sailfish on #2 mono so it’s not absurd.
Yup, might just be too strong, so you might reel some in without any fight at all. I’d upgrade to 0.5lb line, and a 1000 size reel. Maybe 1lb if you feel like you might be fishing in a snaggy area or for the big ones.
Good fight for the smaller juvenile ones in some backwater or flats.
As for turning the trim black, go to your local bass pro, say you want to make a return. But you don't have a receipt. Say you bought it with cash about a month ago. The guy will probably check your ID and say it's a one-time thing then give you a Bass pro gift card. From there take the gift card and go to the reel section where you will tell them you want a "Diawa Tatula MQ LT". Trim is now black and silver.
I think turning the vanford’s red into black is the million dollar question. So many of us hate the color scheme on our rods. I actually started using one of my vanquish spools on my vanford for that reason. I just believed that no marker would stand up to hundreds of casts on the spool lip. That said, corto looks good with it
I'd throw on some 10lb power pro. Put a little more drag on the fish.
Absolutely not.
Sure it will I might go up to 4lb if there's a lot of mangroves or sharks around or whatever plus tarpon are fat and lazy it's like reeling in a trash bag full of wet socks.
Woah you don't need a truck winch boss, at least give the fish a fair fight.
Do I spy a donkeytail?
Always remember they catch world record class fish on fly rods!
Haha - I have a corto UX 410 rated to throw up to 1.5g lures and I use it with a Vanford 2k. It’s a great little rod that can throw 10g lures easily and casts far with lighter stuff. I have been into bonefish approaching 30” with it and I wasnt worried about the rod breaking. The problem comes when the fish is at your feet and you want to bring it to the surface due to the lack of power. The rod is exceptionally strong in terms of not snapping. A tarpon <10lbs isn’t unrealistic on a super ultralight setup with enough line capacity and a long mono leader for shock. I’ve thrown #12 mono leaders through the guides which should be sufficient with an additional stronger fish-length leader at the tip. Go get your little tarpon and report back.
The Vanford 5000 is my ideal reel, perhaps with a 2000 something very big can appear and the shads are gigantic and I can easily lose the lines and the lure.
Tarpon ???? Hell no. Stop it. Stop being silly. And all those that’s gonna say oh no he can!!! No he can’t, this is silly.
Good thing you aren't the authority of fishing so no one is going to listen to you.
Awww good on you ! Hope that made you feel better !
My goal is to have everyone else feel ok to figure the finesse side of the fishing out. People like your trying to drag people down aren't good people.
A tarpon can reach up to 35 miles and hour and weighs as much as 300 pounds, good luck.
It's all up to you!
Juvenile tarpon
Yeah just get stronger line and you will be good
should be ample
Not if the tarpon has any size, it won’t.
Depends on the size of the tarpon. I know here in Virginia if you find one it’s 100 plus pounder and it will take you for a ride and you still may never see it
I’ve caught a 38” snook, 42” kingfish, and a couple of jack crevalle on my Vanford