macca02

Down along the waterfront of Hardy's Bay (Brisbane Waters) nippers are available!

I haven't fished terrigal beach before, but you can catch good squid off the rocks at the "haven" (to the right of the boat ramp near the skillion)

I used Form Ply for mine, coated with a marine 2 part sealer, and glued the carpet to. This was 6+ years ago, and it literally looks the same as when i first did it, hasn't rotted or warped. The main thing is to seal it with a few coats of good stuff (can't remember the name of what i used, but it was pricey), and to keep water off it (make sure you have a boat cover if its left outside, and that the water doesn't just pool up and drip through). If i was to do it from scratch again, i probably would pay the extra for marine ply just for even more peace of mind.

As all the others have suggested, more weight at the front. (Another person, Battery - if you're going to add some electronics) I've got a 25hp on my very old 13ft tinny, its really light and previously when not on the plane you had to stand up to see. Since I've added in false floors, casting deck at the front and a large battery at the front. This has made a huge difference to handling as the weight is a lot more evenly distributed.

Thats a Biggg Bream! What was the book called, was it "Anglers Omnibus"?

+1 for both Patonga creek & Booker Bay wharf (though usually people there, but worth a look). Pretty much anywhere along the ettalong/booker bay foreshore you're in with a chance for flatties!

Nice catch! Wouldn't mind giving this a try soon. Do you look for anything particular when choosing a spot to anchor up at? Just a heads up, pretty sure this is illegal in Brisbane Waters, its essentially considered a trap.

Raider 65 easily the best entry level metal for kings/salmon/tailor/bonito, Halcos are great with good action. Basically just cast as far as you can, let sink (depends on depth, how long you let it sink) then crank it back in. Mix up your retrieves aswell dont just do the same flat out crank in everytime.

I've heard things of sweep being good livies, but if you can get yakkas/slimies then definetley chose them over sweep. BUT if you can't get anything better, then a livebait in the water is better than none. I've had a rat king eat some sort of reef fish that got hooked on my bait jig.

Kings LOVE bonito. Biggest problem is keeping them alive for a good amount of time. Pin them really lightly and when you catch them, try and bring them in as fast as you can, have everything setup ready to go and get it straight back in the water. They are nowhere near as hardy as fish like yakkas, but they will tempt big kings.

Easily Big ANgry Fish for me! even though its NZ based, theres alot of fishing time!

Starlo Stix 902 shorespin 2 piece is the go. I picked mine up for $90 when they first came out, have had it for over 5+ years and has seen alot of use and abuse, caught plenty of small kings on it, bonito, salmon, tailor, mack tuna, drummer, bream etc I purchased a T curve offshore revolution 9ft, similar stick but about $150 more than the starlo stick, i actually prefer the starlo.

Definetley a 4000 sized reel, more than enough line capacity and drag for the fish you'll intend to target, and the perfect size to hold/spin with all day. A quality 4000 shimano (eg. Stradic, Sustain) or equivalent sized Daiwa, matched to a rod capable of throwing upto 70 grams

Pretty much all reels i own are shimano, that being said the only non shimano reel i have is a 2000 Daiwa SOL (not the new one) and it has held up much better than my 2500 stradic. Stradic is noisy (bearings) and nowhere near as smooth compared to the SOL. As others have mentioned though, you can't effectively target all those species with one reel. Get 2000-2500 spin reel, you'll be able to target flattys, bream and small jew. Kings however, thats a different ball game.

Black Magic and Jinkai is what i usually use for heavy leaders. Uni knot with 3-4 turns is what usually do in heavy leaders, and leave a little bit of a tag end and tighten as much as you can by hand. But yeh sounds like it could just be a dud leader?

I'm fairly sure you can get Power Pro in less than 5lb. I've got 3lb power pro in moss green on my little bream stick, bought the line about 2 years ago. Have a look on the net and id think you'll be able to get some 3lb or something, unless they've discontinued it in lighter sizes?

No offense, but i don't see why you want to use the whole 6 hooks on the bait jigs! I find it much easier (and tangle free) to cut the bait jig in half or thirds.

For $600 you can get a good quality combo. If you're after spin gear, for around 200-400 you can get a nice Shimano/Daiwa reel (I've got the 8000 Sustain and its awesome!), leaves you $200-300 for a decent rod + braid and you're good to go.

Been using power pro for awhile now and haven't had any dramas!

Hey mate circles work good on drummer, haven't tried groper but a fish is a fish and i reckon they would work fine. I was put onto the mustad Demon 2/0 for drummer from another forum, they are great circle hooks and very cheap (which is what you need when you're getting snagged/busted). As others said, don't strike. Its hard to get used to not striking lol, but just try and keep tight lines and let the fish hook its self. I don't know about increasing your "hookup" compared to J hooks. but it will decrease the amount of gut hookups, especially if you wanna release them.

Top catch mate!!!! thats a nice jew! I'm also on the jewie hunt off the beach on the central coast!

I don't know alot about the productiveness of the reefs, but trolling the headlands around broken bay with livies/lures put you in a good chance with a king. Also pittwater starts to fire this time of year and over the next few months.

pescatore5: I don't find them uncomfortable at all. I think maybe when i first tried them out they were a bit, but after that you get used to them and you forget there even on. It mainly depends on the shoe your wearing though, its thickness/shape etc. I use the wetsuit neoprene boots(without spikes) for all the low edges,where i know i'm gonna get my shoes wet. And i slip the spikes over. When fishing ledges that are high and dry and a bit of a trek, i wear hiking boots/work boots. And put spikes over that when i get to the platform. With both boots i dont find the spikes uncomfortable at all. I've had my spikes for over 2 years now, and i do fish off the rocks very frequently. They are rusty looking but the spikes haven't wore down and they provide solid grip. When i get home from fishing i just spray them with the hose and hang them out to dry. Also you can get some cheap ones off online shop, that have small spikes and they slip over for really cheap. I haven't tried them but i heard they're okay, but 'id imagine they'd wear at the same rate as the rock hopper boots (though about 1/8th of the price. The ones i use are rubber, but have metal chains and very large spikes/teeth, that i got from local tackle store. I've noticed alot of the good tackle stores have them.

I think thats the thing. Just because its a higher ledge, in no way makes it safer. If anything its more dangerous. Slip in at avoca, and you're a short swim from the beach, and phone call away from lifeguards coming straight out, Angel ring getting tossed in etc. Always alot of surfers and fisherman around etc. Slip in at Winnie, you're in big trouble. If the swells up then its too dangerous to try and get back onto the rocks, no angel ring etc.

Not to stray from the topic, but AFAIK Winney bay is an ocean effluent outfall, treated sewage is pumped out there from the Kincumber Treatment works. So koalaboi isn't exactly wrong!