Hey guys Im thinking of spooling some heavy monofilament on my Dad's ole baitcaster. I would like to use it in my upcoming alligator hunting trip. The limiting factor is what is the max drag for the 5000C Ambassdeur? I have the star drag tite and the drag seems to only be 5 to 8 pounds. What would I adjust in the reel to increase the drag? I hope it max's out at 15 to 20 pounds???

I would greatly appreciate yalls expertise!

Warmest Regards,

Allen

Allen put something on it so you can turn it more. Get some more leverage to tighten it up. We used to put a wrench on big reels and tighten them down to pull AJs out of the rigs. Just make sure you got big enough mono on it.

Btw I'm doing the same thing to a 7000 ambassador for gators. But I usually use it to free line dead bait for kings while snapper fishing.

Probably need to replace the drag washers

That was my first thought also. If you holler at RiverRat, he can hook you up and will do a good job.

Thanks guys I will check it out. I figure a gator just pulls the boat. Spooling it with 80# mono. Figure with the weight of treble snatch hook that a 30 yd cast should suffice. I guess if I man up I could set hook and then abuse my thumb for free spooling. We would throw do frr spinning baitcasters and it was surprising how many decent fish we caught.

You won't be able to cast it with that size mono. Minimum 80lb braid

I believe a 6000 is 10lbs; so 5-8lbs is probably about right with new washers

Cobia type spinning rod, good spinning reel, heavy braid. You’ll get a lot more drag on a big spinning reel, than a bait caster. The bigger drag washers on the spinning reels offer much more surface area which equals more friction. You can get 40lbs of drag on most of the new Penns from the 5000 series up. Even the smaller series reels will give you 20lb and the mid sized 30lbs. Bass type BCs can’t touch those numbers.

Yes he’ll pull the boat around, but if he gets in deep water, and you’ve only got 5-10lb of drag, it’ll just slip continuously and you’ll struggle to be able to pump him up off the bottom and get him to where you can finish him off. Don’t get me wrong, you can absolutely land one on a bass reel, but if your intent is to punch your tag and put gator in the boat, there are better options.

Agreed. But if that all you got, get over the top of him and wait till he needs air. Just keep pressure on him. When he come up get a hand line in him.

Yeah I agree. I have a 7000 series Battle. I guess I watched my buddy catch to dang many gators on a Bill Dance Catfish Special. Probably seen him bring 10 to the boat plus a couple 7-8 hammerheads with the $60 setup.

You could wear a leather glove and use thumb pressure to slow him down. A quality spinning reel has much more drag power than a 5000.

5000 won't hold enough line. A good gator will spool you fast

The 5000 won’t handle a good size gator. You’re better off buying a big spinner and heavy rod and load with 80# braid like the others have mentioned.

Those reels at any size are the most overrated piece of fishing equipment ever conceived IMO. Throw it in the garbage and walk away. You can get a better reel all day for less than $100.