Fab1
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Posts posted by Fab1
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18 hours ago, Yowie said:
I'm just wheeling Fab home after another successful day he had fishing in the Hacking.
That's about right too.I'm not hard to push as I don't weigh much when I'm unladen without fish.
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What a great report with great results for the little fellas.Top photos mate!!
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20 hours ago, bluefin said:
I caught one in Lake Illawarra on a size 1 mustad bait keeper hook about 20yrs ago.It was barely hooked through the top lip and was about 5mm longer than the hook.
As soon as we got home we invited all the neighbours for a feast and they had to roll out the door they were that full when they left.
Ps.My mrs filled them up on salad.
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Hint hint moderators.
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As far as I know they reward members that contribute and help others with comments and posts.
I'm a gold member and waiting for admin to reward me with the lifetime platinum award for having their boat locked away in the garage the longest and being the best fish bait feeder and worse fisherman ever.
Now that award I'd cherish.
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On 4/5/2022 at 4:00 PM, Yowie said:
Headed out early this morning to Lilli Pilli, and it was one of those days.
Anchored on the edge of the deep water, pulled up a couple of large yakkas so cut them up and used them for bait, the pillies produced nothing. Prior to sunrise, there were fish jumping about, mostly Watson bonnies, some leaping out of the water and out of casting range. Once the sun hit the water, the fish disappeared, though I did pull out the mack tuna on a lure, quite a speedy fish for it's size.
The yakka strips produced the reddie, tailor, crab, and what I though was a good fish at first on a handline, but turned out to be a long tailed ray, quite a speedy critter.
Once the sun was up, I up-anchored and pumped a few nippers, then drifted the Lilli Pilli flats. I only planned to stay a short while, but found some fish so fished there for a few hours. The nippers produced the bream, whiting, flattie, sand mullet and a trevally about 40cm that was released. The mullet contained some roe so it is spawning time for them - could have caught plenty but had enough fish.
As I was about the head home, fish started jumping over the sandbank at the mouth of South West Arm so I headed over at at pace and threw a metal amongst them for the 2 Watson bonnies before they disappeared for good. A few feeds for me, and some for family as well.
Very nice work as always young man.Keep up the great work/reports.
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11 hours ago, Crabstar said:
Long time no post.
Grabbed the missus and went on holidays to Forster on the 8th March, to which we were greeted with flood waters, took the boat out once on the lake but it was coffee, never seen it that brown in my entire life. Tried the boat for 3 hours and basically gave up wasn't feeling it. Remaining few days i was slugging plastics out between the peak of the high and the low of the low which equated to 0.
Returned to work after having 2 weeks off, Worked for 1 week and took another two weeks off.
20th Of March went out for a jew bash at captain cook bridge at night, tried everything to no avail, clocked struck 1am and decided to go home nek minute boat fails to start, lucky i was able to get a tow back to Sylvania if not i would of been stuck for a few hours. Turned out to be the starter on my 30hp mercury where it jumped the fly wheel in order to start and jammed, but how was i suppose to know in the dark lol. The same day coming home my car decided to give up on me, resulting in towing a car and a boat trailer
Monday 21st March- after ringing around Sydney to find someone fix my boat before i go to Nambucca Heads on the 26th March, dropped the boat off by using the misses car the same Monday purchased a brand new car, resulting Friday 25th a new car pick up and boat being fixed.
Nambucca Heads- Departed Campbelltown Saturday 26th March which we knew we were heading into the rain but went otherwise. Booked for 10days there, lasted 4 nights before being evacuated from the caravan park because of flood waters.... For my effort in the 4 days i got 3 nice muddies and lost a 90cm model of a flathead using a plastic from the break wall.. (at least we go credited back our money for next year up there)
Looks like i have brought the rain to Sydney, apologies!
And here i thought something extraordinary was going to happen as I was reading your post like a meteorite landing in the boat and sending you overboard or perhaps you running into an iceberg or something.
The only thing that could have happened worse than all that to you is having come fishing with me.
Let's hope your luck returns on the next trip.
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Plenty of options mate.Pour a slab,lay paving,a few sheets of plywood,steel plates under the wheels,Timber sleepers,the list goes on and on depending on what you want.
What you want is something with plenty of surface area to take the weight and spread the load to minimise prevent sinking.
If it's your own home id do something temporary then go the slab route.
Boats,caravans,cars etc on lawns is a mugs game as you're finding out.
Good luck.
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Just be like me.Mine revs out at 0 rpm sitting in garage and every week I look at it it hasn't used any fuel at all.Very fuel efficient.
Great advice both Frank and Noelm have given you.
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Good work mate.Water must look like a mineral spring.🤣😂
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20 minutes ago, Yowie said:
Some fish there, and they have to eat. Just a matter of finding them.
Thank you. I saw another boat out there, thought maybe you, then another thought - too early for Fab. 😂
You will never see me out in this crap mate.Hats off to all you guys getting out there That's the only good thing about this crappy weather....less boats.
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I thought about fishing today.After a split second i thought I'll leave the fish for Yowie for a little while longer and rolled over until I got woken up early in the morning at 2pm.Well done!!.
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1 hour ago, Pickles said:
and/ or removing the head/ shell
I better stop doing this to my prawns and pilly's. Don't need to worry about the rest.😉
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Great work!! Tell your daughter that's a bigger whiting than all the fish one of the idiots you know on here has ever caught.
Nothing like taking them out and teaching them mate.
Now where's that idiot...
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2 hours ago, DerekD said:
Hi Noob,
I think 1-3kg is a little too light as a starting point. Suggest you look at a 2-4kg which will still be fun to fight the fish on but have enough backbone to land the larger bread and butter species. I also think the lure rating is a little too light to start with. Consider 2-12gram region. Halco twisties are a great lure to have in your kit and the 10gram is a great match to the baitfish we see in summer when the pelagics get active.
Coincidentally I've been working on an article on and off for several months to help people like yourself with their first lure outfit. Still got a fair bit more writing (it grows every time I think about it) and several photos and videos to add in. I'll copy and past some of what I've done so far in case it helps you:
Hi All,
So you want to get into lure fishing as you have heard it is a great way to catch fish or the lures in the shop look cool or that is what your mates are getting into, etc. You buy some lures and start using it on your existing gear and realise it seems harder than it looks. There is a point at which you start to get despondent as you are not catching fish and your loved ones are starting to joke about it. Obviously lures don’t worked as advertised. I come across a variation of this scenario several times a year. When I break down the “why” the biggest factor and easiest to fix is usually having the right gear. This is a subjective article in that what works for me may not suit you but there is over 15 years of learning, aha moments and teaching others behind what I’ve put together. What I am trying to do is give you enough information to help you make an informed decision based on your requirements with the final choices being up to you. Like most things in life there is a learning curve and I hope this article will shorten yours by several years. This is intended to apply to spinning outfits.
If you told me I could only fish one class of outfit for the rest of my life it would be the light outfits in the 1-4kg range. My preference is the light (say 2-4kg) but the following will also apply to the ultralight (say 1-3kg) gear. My first fish on a soft plastic was on a soft fibreglass tip Shimano rod in the 2-4kg range with 8lb mono off a boat moored at Balmoral beach in the early 2000s. My friend introduced me to a white grub on small jig which I spent a little time working through the water column before hooking up. The fight took a little bit longer than it would these days but I really didn’t want to lose it. After a cautious fight up came a beautiful (and legal from memory) silver trevally. That experience changed my fishing world dramatically in several ways and exponentially revitalised my passion for fishing. The reel was a bit clunky (no infinite anti-reverse) and I realised that the line and rod felt too spongy to properly work the lures so I made some gear upgrades. After a couple of false starts I kind of hit the jackpot with the set up I ended up with and then fished for probably a decade. The rod was a 1st generation Shimano 2 piece (I started with a 1 piece and that was one of the false starts) Raider series Bream Finesse graphite 7 foot 6 inches long rod in a 2-4kg and 3-12 gram lure rating. I still own it but I haven’t used it for a couple of years. The reel (I had a false start with another brand) I bought was a Shimano Symetre 1500 (I preferred the handle over the 2500). The best value braid back then for me was the Berkley Fireline in Crystal (white) in 125 yard lengths. The backing was 8lb mono. The recommended joiner knot according to Berkley was the uni to uni. I still rate that outfit as a great starting point depending on your budget.
Before I go into my usual excessive detail I want to give you some things to think about as to “why” you should consider fishing lighter outfits (especially with lures) as a starting point. A lot of what I teach people will scale upwards into heavier outfits.
Consider the legal size of most bread and butter species, bream (25cm), snapper (30cm), flathead (36cm for the dusky), tailor (30cm), trevally (silver 30cm), whiting (27cm), luderick (27cm), etc. In the legal size most of these would weigh about 1kg max. Yes they can grow bigger but how many of these would you actually catch over say 2kg. Fishing with a 10kg outfit takes a bit of the fun out of it as you can winch a fish in rather than play it (not really giving the fish a sporting chance either). My theory is that people buy the heavier gear because it was on special or just in case they hook that 1 in a 1,000 fish but forget about the 999 fish they will more likely be hooking up.
The follow on from that point is that with the finesse gear I expect to get more hook ups. Yes, I might lose the odd fish but if I am getting three times the hook up rate of someone using far heavier gear then I am still ahead overall.
I find I am never bored. I’m focussed on the cast. Working the lure. Thinking about the next cast. Feeling for bites. Thinking about how I can change things up and what to try next. I even get a lot of joy out of seeing the water mist at the reel as I rip out a good cast and then watch the braid slowly float down to the surface of the water on a wind still day.
The quality of fish has gone up and at times the quantity too. Think about what happens if you throw a piece of bread in the water. Usually it is the little fish that race in first. The larger fish haven’t gotten that way by being stupid or at least trusting their instincts. I still get smaller fish but it is the bigger fish that are more likely to engulf that lure if you can convince them they want it.
It is a really versatile outfit. I can be working the bottom for flathead and then the mid to upper water column for pelagics. I can throw on a metal slice (e.g. Halco twisty) to cover some impressive distances when fish are feeding on the surface on the small silver baitfish. I can go freshwater and use a popper or celta spinner for bass. Use hardbodies such as Tassie Devils or Rapala CD7s for trout. Use a squid jig to catch bait or a feed of salt and pepper calamari. Put on a MMD Splash prawn or similar to chase bream along the oyster encrusted rock walls inside Sydney. I can even use bait on the same outfit to chase carp on corn or whiting on the flats with yabbies.
I can head out pretty well anytime for a fish without a lot of pre-planning. Have an hour to spare and driving past some likely looking water. Grab the rod out of the back of the car, put on the reel and the lure and then start fishing.
With lures I don’t have to clean the smell or mess of prawns after a fishing session. At worst I have to clean some of the scale type glitter off my fingers or face (otherwise I look like I’ve been attacked by someone with fairy dust). A packet of lures and jig heads will generally give you more bang for buck than bait which might only be used for a single session before being dumped.
It is a bit more satisfying to catch fish as you are fooling them into taking your lure. As a bonus there is some poetic justice in there as the fish or squid picks on something smaller than itself to find something bigger than itself on the other end of the line.
If this of interest to you then please read on.
Disclaimer: I am a huge Shimano fan for several reasons. I like the gear as I think it is well designed and made. I have had a lot of wonderful memories using their gear. I used to work near their offices and they have helped me with a number of issues (services, replacing broken rod tip, spare spools, upgrades) and because of their after sales support I’ve had no hesitation in recommending their equipment to others. I do use other brands. There is so much competition out there that if you don’t make a competitive product (build quality or price) you risk falling by the wayside. I am not sponsored by Shimano but I’ll often mention their gear because it is a way of setting a minimum bar for comparison and I also don’t have the time or the funding to test every product out there. As you are the one going to be using it take the time to look at other brands. I don’t see an issue if you buy something just because the colour rocks if it meets my other criteria.
The rod at a glance: Graphite all the way. Seven-ish foot. 8 guides minimum. Short butt (add measurement here). 2 piece recommended over 1 piece for travel. 2-4kg is a good overall line rating for bread and butter species. Rated for 3-12gram lures.
Now in more detail:
Graphite over fibreglass due to the reduced weight and fast response. You are creating the movement in the lures and I find the stiffness of the graphite rods means every twitch I send down to the lure is not dampened by the rod. Stay away from the rods with a fibreglass tip for this kind of fishing.
There are several downsides to graphite rods but this isn’t an issue as long as you are aware of them and factor them into your fishing.
Like for like they are a bit more expensive than their fibreglass cousins but due to improved manufacturing the price difference is getting smaller and smaller.
Graphite conducts electricity. Keep away from power cables and thunderstorms.
Graphite bruises. If it is going to be a boat rod and banging up against the gunnels or other metal surfaces in time the points of impacts will develop minor cracking which will likely bite you when fighting a fish sometime in the future. People think the rod is faulty when it breaks due to previous poor handling.
It is not as robust as a fibreglass rod. If you have ever seen the classic Australian movie “The Castle” there is a scene where they bend over a Shakespeare Ugly Stick rod on itself. You don’t do that with a graphite rod and you don’t need to either. It is referred to as high sticking when fighting a fish and it is a bad habit.
Rod tip speed usually translates into lure speed and added casting distance. All other things being equal I expect to cast further with a 7 foot rod over a 5 foot rod. My rods are generally in the 7 foot (213cm) to 7 foot 6 inches (229cm). You can go longer but these are often specialist rods and become a little awkward to handle.
To ensure the line loads up evenly along the rod blank look for 1 guide per foot of rod length plus 1. So a 6 foot rod should have 7 guides. A 7 foot rod should have 8 guides.
2 piece rod versus 1 piece. When I started I bought the 1 piece Finesse Raider 761 based on the advice from a friend rather than the advice from the guy in the local tackleshop who said I wouldn’t notice the difference. 1 piece is a pain to transport and store. I bought the same rod (762) in 2 piece asap after I found it for a good price. The 1 piece has lived in the garage ever since. The problem with the two pieces is that after an extended casting session they can sometimes separate and you will see the top of the rod flying off.
You can also get 3 or 4 piece traveller rods if you need something even easier to transport. They will fit in your suitcase on say a business trip or with your gear when hiking.
The reason I like a short butt on my rods is that the longer ones bump against the meaty part of my forearm when working the lure rod tip down with the grip I prefer. As per the photo below I prefer a reel leg to butt distance of XXcm or less.
The line at a glance: Braid and not mono. Stick with major brands. Colour up to you. Highly recommend 0.06mm diameter for casting distance. As a starting point consider Berkley X5 4lb (0.06mm diam.) or Shimano Kairiki 8 6lb (0.06mm diam.) or Daiwa J Braid 6lb (0.06mm diam.). I’ve been also pretty happy with Shimano Power Pro 4lb (0.08mm diam.)
Now in more detail
The transition from monofilament to braid in the last 20 years has been a game changer. I’ve been advised that mono has a 10% stretch versus the 1% stretch of braid. This lack of stretch means any bites or twitches of the rod are transmitted directly up or down the line.
Braid is skinnier and lighter than an equivalent breaking strain mono so it mean you get better casting distance out of the light lures. It is often more susceptible to nicks and cuts than mono hence the use of a leader at the working end.
It is stronger than you think so go lighter for added casting distance. I think the reason that most braids overtest is that it puts a safety margin in to allow for the strength reduction factor of knots. These days I’m mostly using X5 in Crystal and the breaking strain shown on the box is 4lb USA or 6.4kg (say 14lb) Europe or 14lb Asia.
If you are concerned about the strength of the braid unroll out about 60cm and wrap it around your fingers then gradually load it up and try and break it before you cut yourself. Don’t snap your hands apart as this is not a real world scenario. When a fish hits your lure in the real world that shock is taken up partially by the leader and mostly by the rod tip flexing. Essentially in the real world that load up is smooth and consistent. I haven’t had anyone break the 4lb braid I use when demonstrating the strength of braid. This guideline also applies to testing knots, gradually load the line up to what you consider a fair breaking stress rather than snapping your hands apart.
Backing: Unless you get a deal to fill your spool off a bulk roll at the shop that 125m to 150m of braid will not fill up a spool fully. We use mono backing to top up the spool to within 1-2mm of the inner lip of the spool. For my 4lb braid I use 8lb mono. The leftover 8lb mono can be used as leader material. The nice thing is that if you set the backing up properly the first time the next time you have to replace the braid you just strip it back to the joiner knot and load up another spool of the braid you had before.
The reel: Suggest a 1500 to 2500 Shimano or Daiwa sized reels (not all manufacturers use the same sizing so I’m using these brands for a size comparison not specifically saying buy one of those two brands – they are however an excellent starting point). Biggest thing is make sure it has a smooth drag and it should have infinite anti-reverse (no matter where you stop winding there will not be any play backwards such as happened with the older reels). Check that it balances well on the outfit. It has to feel right is the best way I can put it - if I put a Shimano size 10,000 reel on a bream rod it will feel off. Alternatively, once you put the reel on the rod the centre of mass will generally be where the grip of the rod meets the blank.
General advice:
The gear you are buying is mass produced and shipped in bulk. There may be some manufacturing or transport issues. Before you walk out of the store check everything you can. Are the guides all aligned and not bent. Has the top guide been broken off (it happens). Is there a problem with the finish. Do the pieces go together smoothly and tightly. Pick up the reel and look for dings. Wind it fast and slow to feel for rough spots (close your eyes if you have to). Do several fast start and stops during the winding (as if you were working a lure). How much play is there. It is far easier to sort that out in the store than argue later that it wasn’t your fault. If you do find an issue please do me a favour and raise it with the staff to help the next person coming along and not catching the problem.
More fishing gear is damaged by poor handling or transport than to fish. Most of my rods go in a soft case and then into a hard case which I can then leave in the back of my car. The soft case stops them rattling around which helps if you store more than one rod in a case. I use Seahorse rod tubes but found over time the handle broke so worked out a way of replacing those. I put a different sticker on each case at one end as it allows me to identify which rod is which and it lets me know which end is the butt end of the rod in case I decide to store them vertically. Shimano make some nice rod tubes with a sling. I’ve also made my own for one of my larger traveller outfits by heading down to the hardware for some pipe, end caps, foam and PVC glue.
My reels go in a neoprene cover so they don’t bang against each other. Mostly I use Shimano ones as their current design allows you to keep the reel handle in working position and it suitable for left or right hand applications.
More to come....
Geez mate!! I Would of had to start writing all that 3 weeks ago to be able to post it yesterday.😂😂😂 excellent, well written info mate.Loved it.👍👍
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13 hours ago, zmk1962 said:
Great work ... keep the reports coming ... I need this hit frequently to survive the boatless period ... Yes I am an addict!
Cheers Zoran
Think how much $$$ your saving.Another week or two without a boat you'll be able to buy a house in Sydney for cash.
Great work and loved the video Larkin.
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1 hour ago, big Neil said:
Trialling a 4 day working week in the UK for the same pay. On the plus side, extra time off...on the minus side, more time off usually equates to needing more money. Be interesting to see how the trialling goes. bn
They can keep that!I prefer my 7 day fortnight roster.Never work more than 3 in row.
Other departments at my work do mon-thurs 10hr days and every Fri,sat or sun off.
And then their are the Chinese few who live there and only own 7 houses in North Sydney.
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2 minutes ago, Yowie said:
Keep on dreaming. 🤣
I won't catch them from my lounge mate.You're safe for now.
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8 minutes ago, slowjigger said:
Yes it's a better labour market recently due to Covid closing our borders. Unemployment is actually lower than pre Covid despite all the disruption to business.
Unemployment figures are a joke mate.If you work casual 1 day a week you're classed as employed.
To me employed is when you work at least a 38hr week!!Non of this 1 day crap.That's going to pay your rent/mortgage/bills etc isn't it?
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11 minutes ago, slowjigger said:
You almost need an Olympic Gold Medal to get a permanent job these days.
I knocked back 7 in 3 weeks mate.It's not that hard.They were 3 month probation like usual then permanent.I knocked them all back due to pay and shifts mainly.
You can pick and choose when you already have a job.
I know what I'm worth.
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2 minutes ago, slowjigger said:
Kerry Packer used to do it and his co-workers would let him when he was in training. When he became the boss he would never walk in that part of the plant.
Non of us can say we've been saints 100% of the time no matter how long we've been working or where.
I can only speak for myself and know that when I work no one stands a chance and if I want to I can bludge like the best of them.
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9 minutes ago, mrsswordfisherman said:
Not a fan of people on night shift sleeping unless it is their break time and/or others are covering. There are not many industries that would "allow" sleeping on any shift. Getting your work done and thinking that justifies sleeping may lose your job for a few reasons and attract disciplinary action or dismissal.
Generally not a good idea.
Agree.I never have had to worry as I've never slept anywhere nor will.Aa for them...I honestly don't care as long as it doesn't effect me.
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Happy Easter Raiders.
in The Bar
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Still there.Yowie complained his bung knee and cut finger were hurting pushing me and he took off leaving behind his pink handbag.