# Centerpin line set-up?



## TIGGER

Hey guys, I did a search first but did not find my answer.

I just purchased a starter centerpin for myself. What would be the best line set-up for this reel. I am a Chargrin River guy. I notice that the reel has the "open" frame spool. I figure a backing of some kind is needed first. I won the reel on ebay. I would have asked this question if I had bought it at a local tackle shop. The reel is nothing fancy but will be a nice starter reel I desire to continue down this path.

With these incredible drags would I go to even a lighter line than I normally use. On my spinning reels I use the 8 to 10 lb lines as a rule of thumb. I think I would go with that again. Is that alright?

Thanks for any suggestions

John


----------



## master of steel

For backing I use 20lbs dacron line as all pinners I know use that. You should half fill the spool with it. 

As for mainline, most pinners use Siglon F and I think Erie Outfitters is the only shop that carries it. I would get 12lbs Siglon as I and others have had issues with 10lbs test snapping in cold water. Siglon is much thinner than other mono of the same test class. Its a great line that is very limp in cold water and you can mend it as it doesn't absorb water like other monos. 

For the leader, I use fluorocarbon and I buy a big spool of Seagaur Carbon Pro in 8lbs test. It's cheaper than buying the leader material that fly fishermen use. For tippets, I find 6lbs is the best and I've landed large fish using it. That's where a long flexible rod comes into play.


----------



## liquidsoap

Ditto to what master of steel said.
Floating line helps a lot, and Siglons line is pretty weak. 12lb will work great.
I use 6lb test as a leader fwiw.

Work is slow this time of year, send me message with a free day and I will put you on some fish with that pin :G


----------



## jojopro

*Backing:* 50-100 yards of 20-30 lb test braided dacron is the standard. The purpose of this thicker diametered braided line as backing is to; 1) Help fill the spool so that less mainline is needed, and 2) protect delicate spools from being warped or grooved by thinner diametered mainline under tension.

*Mainline:* 12 lb high vis floating monofilaments are most commonly used. Note that these lines I'm referring to are specialized float fishing monofilaments that are rated by, or very close to, their actual breaking strengths, whereas most regular monofilament llines are rated only by their line diameter not true breaking strength. Most of these specialty float lines in 12 lb test will have diameters similar to your standard 8-10 lb test monos. Some of the most commonly used float lines are Siglon F (first choice of many float fishing anglers but has been discontinued and is thus becoming harder to find), Ande (inexpesive, and comes in low vis), Optimum (my personal preference), and Raven (I've heard very good things about this newer line, and Raven is one of the top names in float fishing products).

*Leader/Tippet:* Fluorocarbon. Use fluoro leaders/tippets that are of lighter breaking strength than your mainline. My preference for leader/tippet line is Redwing Phantom. I tie 'shot lines' onto 8.8 lb test (actual breaking strength), and then for my leader/tippet I'll go as strong as 6.6 lb test in heavily stained water, and as light as 4.4 lb test in clearer water or for highly pressured fish. I'd recommend connecting all lines to eachother, (mainline-shot line, shot line-leader/tippet, mainline-leader/tippet), using a microswivel.

For the absolute best selection, prices, and knowledge of floatfishing/centerpin gear go and see Craig at Erie Outfitters http://www.erieoutfitters.com/. If you are close to the Chagrin and don't want to make the trip to Erie Outfitters, than you may want to check out Chagrin River Outfitters http://www.chagrinriveroutfitters.com/default.aspx. Big box stores like Gander Mountain will have some of the basics, but overall lack the selection of specialized floatfishing tackle.

Learning to cast the pin and to effectively fight fish on a reel with no drag can be very challenging at first. It takes lots of practice and patience to really get the hang of it, so practice practice practice and don't get discouraged. This site http://www.flyandfloatfishing.com/centerpin_videos.htm has some excellent demonstrational videos on how to cast and rig up your new pin. I'd highly suggest learning to 'Pull Cast' first, and don't bother with any type of side casts since they cause horrible line twist. Put your time in and before you know it fishing with the centerpin will become second nature to you. Good luck and enjoy.

John


----------



## TIGGER

Thanks guys. I have been intrigued by the centerpin for a while. 

I remember the first time I saw a person using one was on the Chagrin around 1996. It was a slush flow with nobody around and fish were on. I thought to myself why is this guys coming down the river with a fly reel in these conditions? He set up in the same hole and was making pin point casting in the open areas. It was just an underhand flip with amazing distance. He passed by and showed me his new reel and rod set-up and explained it to me. He had invested alot of money in his. I believe at that time it was $450 for the reel ...........he order from out west. 

The next day I saw another fella with one. I was amazed how far he was flipping to the other shoreline with no effort at all. I could not believe how you could hold the current line at a great distance with no bragging of the bait in an "un-natural" way.

One more question. I have an old Diawa rod that is a 10-1/2 footer. It has only a 4 inch extension from the back of reel seat. Could I use this as my starter rod? It is a little softer rod. Will this create a problem with the springy-ness? 

Jojopro............... great link!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks again

John


----------



## peple of the perch

Hey John,

These guy did a seminar at Gander mtn. in Mentor. They were pretty informative. I believe this is the website that they had listed in there pamphlet. There is a bunch of good info on centerpining and steelheading in general. There should also be some informational videos on centerpinning.
http://www.flyandfloatfishing.com/index.htm
Here is an article about line on a centerpin too.
http://www.flyandfloatfishing.com/spey/lining_your&#37;20spey.htm
The Videos
http://www.flyandfloatfishing.com/centerpin_videos.htm
There looked to be more sites too, just Google Centerpin steelhead.


----------



## liquidsoap

TIGGER said:


> Thanks guys. I have been intrigued by the centerpin for a while.
> 
> I remember the first time I saw a person using one was on the Chagrin around 1996. It was a slush flow with nobody around and fish were on. I thought to myself why is this guys coming down the river with a fly reel in these conditions? He set up in the same hole and was making pin point casting in the open areas. It was just an underhand flip with amazing distance. He passed by and showed me his new reel and rod set-up and explained it to me. He had invested alot of money in his. I believe at that time it was $450 for the reel ...........he order from out west.
> 
> The next day I saw another fella with one. I was amazed how far he was flipping to the other shoreline with no effort at all. I could not believe how you could hold the current line at a great distance with no bragging of the bait in an "un-natural" way.
> 
> One more question. I have an old Diawa rod that is a 10-1/2 footer. It has only a 4 inch extension from the back of reel seat. Could I use this as my starter rod? It is a little softer rod. Will this create a problem with the springy-ness?
> 
> Jojopro............... great link!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> Thanks again
> 
> John


If you are fishing a small area of water it would be much easier to use a smaller rod. IMHO it is a lot easier to manage a great drift with a longer rod. That being said its not necessary.

What did you get if you dont mind sharing


----------



## TIGGER

Hey Nick. It is not labeled. I got it out of Canada. It was only $60. Nothing fancy. It spins nice. I think it is European it stated. It will be a good one to learn on. I wanted to go to the Chagrin tomorrow but I have family plans. I may use it on Punderson for ice-fishing this week. Just kidding!  

John

Thanks peple. Great links also!


----------



## peple of the perch

TIGGER said:


> Hey Nick. It is not labeled. I got it out of Canada. It was only $60. Nothing fancy. It spins nice. I think it is European it stated. It will be a good one to learn on. I wanted to go to the Chagrin tomorrow but I have family plans. I may use it on Punderson for ice-fishing this week. Just kidding!
> 
> John
> 
> Thanks peple. Great links also!



Centerpin Reels for icefishing? You might be on to something TIGGER!!!! :B!% lol


----------



## jojopro

TIGGER said:


> Hey Nick. It is not labeled. I got it out of Canada. It was only $60. Nothing fancy. It spins nice. I think it is European it stated.


A centerpin that spins for $60!?!?! You've gotta be kidding me! Nearly all pins nowadays have the manufacturer's name on them somewhere. It's usually only the OLD reels that don't. There are a lot of avid centerpin reel collectors out there that pay crazy money for old or rare reels. Most centerpin reels actually appreciate in value over time, especially handcrafted ones in which smaller numbers exist. I'm quite curious to know what you got for just $60. Any chance you could put up a picture of it? If you took it into Craig at Erie Outfitters he'd probably know what type of reel you had, and he could really help you learn to use it. It sure would be crazy if for just $60 you bought a reel valued at $1,000 or more from someone who was cleaning out their grandpa's attic and didn't know any better.  Regardless, have fun with it.

John


----------



## KSUFLASH

John,

Everyone beat me to the punch. www.flyandfloatfishing.com is a great resource for all your Centerpin needs.

-KSU


----------



## ShutUpNFish

They quit manufacturing SiglonF line. You might still be able to find some, but quantities are limited. Some alternatives to consider are Cortland Endurance, Raven Mono, Ande Premium and new Ultima Flo-Cast. Good Luck!

Incredible drags? Did you, in fact, purchase a centerpin? On most pins, the "incredible drag" is none other than you!


----------



## swatskee

thanks guys for the kind words about our website. We have out a lot of time and effort into bringing good info and we have a lot more planned.

as far as the siglon goes, it is getting harder and harder to find and will not be available soon. I'd disagree however, i'd spool up with 10lb mainline for around here.....

you can pick up line at chagrin reiver outfitters and i believe Dan still have Singlon left as well and it's close to you......

thanks for the support guys!

Sean


----------



## davef

ShutUpNFish said:


> They quit manufacturing SiglonF line. You might still be able to find some, but quantities are limited. Some alternatives to consider are Cortland Endurance, Raven Mono, Ande Premium and new Ultima Flo-Cast. Good Luck!
> 
> Incredible drags? Did you, in fact, purchase a centerpin? On most pins, the "incredible drag" is none other than you!



Gander mt. in washington pa. still has some in stock. They had 2 colors in several different pound tests marked clearance on saturday for $9.97 a spool. 12 pound orange was still marked $12.97 though.


----------



## MEISTERICS

John, I do not prefere 10lb. I ran it for a season and would much rather 12lb. for a mainline.

If you have 8lb flouro, depending on the manufacturer it will quite possibly be stronger than the 10lb mainline(diameters are not consistant and a totally differnet line)! Sometimes even six will be stronger! And the cold weather can really weaken some of the mainlines out there when there is a kink, abrasion, and at the knot. I just tried the Cortland endurance. Fished it about 4 times. Not so bad! and cheap. IF you can get your hands on siglon i have never heard one complaint yet.

Its just a preference for me to use 12lb. i can horse a fish if necessary. or if i am snagged will will only loose whats below the leader.


----------



## bighomied

hey guys i also purchased one off ebay for 51 dollars heres how it looks


----------



## bighomied

another pic


----------



## freyedknot

i have some FREE braided dacron in the 25/35 lb test .if anyone needs some.


----------



## bighomied

I Could Use Some


----------

