helliconia

Welcome Cobba! See how much more fun it is when you have to use fishing skills instead of hand netting the fish at the boat ramp because they're so plentiful in Qld looking forward to reading more adventures!

Huey might be able to give you some options to think about in that price range. Also check out the sponsors thread in the top section for past specials he's advertised. One thing to keep in mind when mooring boats is the costs of slipping and anti-fouling every year. Moored boats are a great breeding ground for barnacles, weed, algae and all sorts of interesting marine life that eats hulls, not to mention corrosion. Ring a few local marina's and ask about the costs. I believe their usually charged by length/weight of the boat being slipped. Good luck with the search. Just remember research is the key to making a decision your comfortable with!

Here's the Regupol Link. Looks good and when my carpet gives out I'm thinking of doing my boat in it too

Great advice there Greg! I have to admit to being a bit of a lazy fisherman sometimes and my catch rate reflects this admirably lol I'm grateful for all the advice you and others post that helps me out a bit. One day when i have more spare time I'll start putting it all in to practice and I'll be thanking you all under my breath with every fish caught

Mobile mechanics will often cost more than taking it to a workshop, personally I'd rather save the money. Best bet is to hit the yellowpages and ring a few, and check out our sponsors, I believe theres a mobile mechanic on the list but not sure if he does your area.

I'll be there with bells on!

I caught a Tern on a whole ganged pillie off Palm Beach rocks years ago. Felt more like flying a kite than playing a fish haha

Yaks can beach launch from Palm Beach and paddle straight west to The Basin

Showing my ignorance here, but do outboards have a thermostat that restricts coolant flow to make it warm up faster? If a thermostat isn't opening and closing up properly it will mess up the heating and cooling abilities.

Want to add some more info for us? How many in the boat fishing or not fishing? Are you a fair weather fisherman or do you want to get out in any conditions? Do you prefer a boat with a cabin for shelter or are you happy with an open boat? A bit more detail might help us give you some ideas. For my two bobs worth, my 4.75 runabout does me nicely for 2-3 people. If its raining theres only room for 2 under the canopy/clears. By the time I added a live bait well and all my gear it gets crowded pretty quickly. A friend has a 4.5M open boat and he can fit 4 on it fishing comnfortably but if it rains you better have a waterproof jacket. Also doesn't his handle the chop as well as mine, the runabout is a lot dryer ride in rougher water.

Another thing to remember is that 100M of rope/chain isn't going to hold you in 50M of water. It's recommended to use 3-7x the depth as your rope length depending on the conidtions. More current/wind = more rope. This allows the anchor to get a steep angle on the flukes as they enter the bottom and hold you better.

I emailed the guy last week about seat pricing and he got back to me promptly, so I guess he's still in business.

My 4.75 metre runabout gets a bit bouncy in the chop. You'll get a more comfy ride near the back

Saw a post in here somewhere for some reconstitutes rubber matting, can't remember the name of the stuff but it look good and the poster said it worked great. Might be a bit better on the feet than synthetic turf.

A couple of my best mates come with me sometimes and I refuse their offers of money because i know with their families they're doing it harder than me. If it was a one off friend or acquaintance I'd have to give some thought to taking them again if they didn't offer something. It's a matter of manners, everyone know it costs money to run a boat and fish. I think decent people would offer an amount that's in their budget. That said, there's always the fact you could be sponging them for info too so it all works out in the end

He's using a running rig - one swivel is running on the main line, the other is a stopper with a leader to the hook. I'm assuming your using this on the beach? To fix your problem, shorten the leader between the running swivel and the sinker, you shouldn't need 20cm for that bit. Try tying it down short to 5cms or less and they shouldn't wrap around each other. Another way to sort it out is to remove the sinker leader altogether and just run the main line through the eye of the sinker. You may need to use a bigger stopper swivel or crimp the sinker eye a little, or you could use a snap swivel on the sinker instead of a leader.

You're welcome

You can't see the attached picture?

Red X marks the spot Yarra. Edit: Didn't realise that pic was so big... scaled it down a bit Created a google map for the area. PM me your email and I'll send the link so you can put marks on it.

Mine has LED's as well, not sure of the brand - it came with them new, and I use them at night to line the boat up on the trailer for a drive on retrieve. Between the brake/parking lights on the trailer and the car I have enough light to see the rollers and line up the centre

Towlers Bay and Careel Bay usually hold some bream and whiting. The west side of Scotland Island can be OK too. Somewhere south of the jetty at Palm Beach theres a channel marker post and I found a hole near it a few years back. Can't remember exactly where it was though, but it was out towards the middle of Pittwater. Anyway if you can find it we got some good size bream there too.

More funt o be had using the top half I'd think! Welcome! I fish the Hawkesbury/Cowan Creek area a lot too so keep an eye out for me.

The lengths some people will go to to grow their own bait

Sorry I didn't make it to JB like I'd hoped. Partner was keen to see how our dog would handle the boat and National Park's won't let us take her to Appletree Bay. She feels guilty leaving the dog alone on weekends since it frets for us all day while we're at work. I'll have to figure a quicker way to Brooklyn to launch with the dog if we're going to fish Cowan. Glad to hear you're getting onto them though, I definitely have to give it another try before they leave us again

Unfortunately couldn't make it to the Hawkesbury today. Mrs Hook (hope she doesn't catch me calling her that!) and I decided to see how the dog would like the boat. She was pretty terrified at first but we were helped by the flat water on Botany Bay this afternoon. Stopped near the end of the first runway for zip, then drifted the 7 metre mark off Brighton beach for a plate sized flathead,. Trolled a 15cm lure back to the ramp as the sun set for a 33cm tailor, talk about punching above your weight. That one will be the dogs reward for not messing up the boat in her fear Hopefully be back to the Hairtail at Cowan Creek next weekend