On overnight trips to the canyons off New Jersey, live squid and chemical lightsticks have both proved their value in tuna fishing. This rig combines the two. First, I tie up the rig with two Owner 3/0 Mutu circle hooks snelled about two inches apart (eye to eye) on 40- to 60-pound fluorocarbon leader. I then attach a 1 1/2″ Cyalume lightstick above the lead hook by passing a clear plastic tube of slightly greater diameter over the line and pressing the lightstick into the tube, so it grips the line near the lead hook. Then I slide a bead onto the leader above the first hook and lightstick. I grip the squid in a wet towel and use a modified meat skewer with a hole drilled in the butt end as a needle (a bait-rigging needle works, too) to pass the leader through the body of the squid, being careful not to hit any internal organs, and tie the leader to the main line. The lightstick, when activated, emits a glow through the translucent body of the bait, where the hooks are well hidden.
– Rick Becker, Madison, New Jersey
