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By Donnell CulpepperThey are the three-six sportsmen who iish with outfits lighter in several respects than the smallest used In stream andlake fishing. They are the big-game- fishing enthusiasts who tire of using six-thread Mne (breaking point 16 pounds dry test) and then try three-thread, the kind that breaks when a weight of more than eight pounds is attached.There are a few sportsmen who try this kind of fishing. Fewer still are successful at It.Just imagine a line that breaks at eight pounds. It’s just a little stronger than that which a housewife uses in sewing on buttons. As a matter of fact, the three-thread fishermen refer to it as button thread. They used tailor’s button thread in wartime when other lines were unavailable.We fished with a pair of them recently. .There are a few others we could have fished with, but we picked these two men because one is a holder of three world records and the other is his constant buddy. Together they make probably what is the greatest big-game fishing team in Southern California.They are Bill Pigg of Balboa Island, the record holder, and Don Locke of* Long Beach, his pal. They own a small but fast boat, the Big Boy 111, which is moored just in front of Bill’s place in Balboa. It is their third boat together. Friends oiicesaid that two men couldn’t own a boat jointly and remain happy together. Bill and Don did and now they are closer friends than ever.■BEFORE we tell you about their latest trip which produced a new record for Bill, we'll explain their fishing outfits.First, the three-six:The rod tip weighs four ounces, lighter than most all fly rods. It is 60 inches long. The butt is of light material also. The reel may be any standard ocean fishing reel that the angler desires. The line issix-thread, about which we already have told you. The line may be doubled for 15 feet just ahead of the steel leader, also 15 feet long. It is not wise to tie any knots in such line as that decreases its strength. Thebest way is the wrap-aroundand tie-back with dc-ntal floss.The three-thread outfit issimilar except that the rod tip weighs only three ounces and the line is as heretofore described.We won’t go into details of the bait and leader except to say that the 15-foot leader is standard equipment on all mar-Jin outfits. The best bait is a flying fish, bridled in such a way that it won’t spin and twist or untwist a line.Bill and Don were cruising off the east end of Catalina when Bill sighted the marlin that later proved to be a record fish. The day before we had fished the 14-mile . bank off Newport with only a bonitoshark hookup.The three-six outfits were set in their sockets at the stem and BUI was skippering. He brought the boat half-around, easing by the marlin at trolling speed. Once past the fish, he eased farther to port to bring the skipping baits near themarlin.f|^HAT marlin must / have been hungry because he grabbed the first bait in sight. It was Bill's. Don let out a yell and in a flash too quick for a camera to eatch Bill left- the wheel and had that outfit in his hands. The reel was spinning like mad.Just as quickly, Don reeled in his line, put it aside and took the wheel.Three-six and three-thread fishing are teamwork betweenO u t r i lt;y ger clothespin arrangement used for marlin.Mrt^TtLEfilAII SWDHAMB MWAWNI
Newspaper Details
Long Beach Press Telegram
Long Beach, California, US
Sun, Nov 07, 1948
Page 4
Full Page
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USA 17 Oct 2020
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