Naked Science Forum
General Science => General Science => Topic started by: paul.fr on 23/09/2008 21:01:31
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Why when I go fishing (well, used to go) does a cod of just a few pounds in weight, feel like, and seem to fight like a monster shark on the end of the line?
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Hi Paul it might be because in the water takes the main weight
of a fish and out of water (sea, river, lake) then the full
weight of fish or any other animal is taken by Gravity.
BTW I've never been fishing it's only Rosalind's surmise.
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It's more or less all muscle and it is swimming away or to the side of you. Also there is a fair amount of resistance involved just hauling a fish through the water.
Fishing rods are very 'bendy' and long so 1. they appear to be highly loaded and 2. the load at the end may produce a force which is four or five times the force on the line, due to the leverage. Even reeling in a 50g weight can be quite an effort at times.
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If the fish was inert you'd just feel it's weight and the drag from moving it through the water but as it's actually trying to escape you're also feeling the force that the fish is applying to the water in it's efforts not to be landed.
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One of the reasons that we use a rod is that is a 'force multiplier' (in as far as it makes it easier to feel a small nibble on the bait whilst not holding the bait unnaturaly rigid in the water). But this advantage becomes a disadvantage when the fish is being reeled in.
You can avoid this effect when, for example, your rig has become stuck by pointing the rod along the line. You can reel in much moe effectively that way as there is no leverage on the rod. This is not good with a fish on the end because it's movements can pull it off the hook without the shock absorbing effect of the bendy rod.