It's more difficult to tie good knots in very heavy mono . Thanks in advance. Ralph Tag lines are lengths of line that run from the outriggers. Tag lines are not necessary when trolling with live or rigged bait, and some experienced skippers believe that the drop back from a standard outrigger clip set up is beneficial even when trolling with artificials as the fish has a little more time to properly take the lure. However tag lines are popular amongst many lure fishermen and with the appropriate hardware, easy to set up and use.
Most crews use tag lines that are roughly the length of the outrigger.
The tag line is tied to a ring on the halyard, or one of the attachment rings of a standard rigger clip, and passes through a weighted tag line return which runs freely on the outrigger halyard enabling it to slide up and down both the halyard and the tagline itself. When the tag line is set the drag of the lure causes the return weight to rise up the halyard allowing the tag line to do its job. But when a fish strikes, and the strain is taken off the tag line, the weight drops down the halyard bringing the tag line with it. The actual material of the tag line varies depending on the preference of the captain, but most boats in Madeira seem to prefer light tag lines of approximately 150 to 200 lb mono or Dacron. Traditionally the fishing line was connected to the tag line by way of a rubber band which was wrapped several times around the fishing line and tied to the tag line with a slip knot.