SMn

Hahaha as long as there's no swell... I think I'll stick to my yak and my mates can watch from the shore!

Cracker fish mate congrats!!! A 10kg specimen will be all you can think of now...

Thanks for the info quochuy much appreciated! Can't wait to give them a crack.

Hi mate, I used soft racks when I first got my kayak and they worked very well. They can scratch your roof though so make sure they are clean and the roof is sand/dust free before you strap it down. Make sure you have a thin rope tied down from the front of the yak to under the front of the car and the same with back if your on a longish journey to stop excessive sideways movement. I've never had water come into he car though but imagine it happening if really soaked.

I think they range in size from 2500 up... the smaller you go the less heavy line you can fit. The 7000i I used off the beach was pretty heavy but held a fair wack of heavy line. They are robust reels and reasonably cheap, I was using a mates combo that cost under $120 for rod and reel (beach setup). Check them out online I saw a fair few for sale a while back. Balancing on top of the rod would take a bit of getting used to if your paddling a yak. Maybe a good idea for trolling but for constant casting from a yak would be tiring pretty quick.That Spinfisher Jet01 suggested looks great too and probably more user friendly for casting and trolling. Have you used an overhead from your kayak before? Edit: I would still prefer an Alvey to an overhead or spin reel any day though... if you can try a few and see what your comfortable with.

cheers mate, I probably wouldn't have taken the plunge if weren't designed by Alvey.

Yeah mate that's along the Central Coast Highway and where I have thought about launching as well. The lagoons are a bit of fun, no keepers though (water condition is a big factor). I have seen some woefully undersized fish caught and kept both at Avoca and Terrigal lagoons. Small baits and very small hooks are the ticket for juvenile bream, small flathead and the occasional whiting. I fish them mainly because I can walk my kayak down to one with the kids, they are safe for the kids to fish from with me in the yak. So a bit of fun and safe but not worth it if you're after serious fish or keepers.

I use Alveys off my yak (I use Alveys for all my fishing hahaha), a 500c5 for bait and plastics on a 7ft uglystik and 455be trolling reel on 6'6" el-cheapo 5-10kg boat rod. However if your not familiar with these types of reels they can be very cumbersome on the yak, but have exceptional line capacity. Hardest fighting fish so far has been a good sized salmon on both reels handled nicely. No kings for me yet hopefully summer will see success. My overhead and baitcaster experience is pretty limited, however, I have used an Abu 7000i overhead in the surf and a low profile Daiwa baitcaster in my yak before. Have you looked at the Abu Garcia Ambassaduers range for overheads? I reckon if your chasing Kingies line capacity and weight vs size would be high on preferences, as well as fish stopping power. I think weight will be your biggest trade off in finding a big fish reel. Good luck!

G'day! Driving down Melbourne over Christmas for 2 days then fishing my way back up to the Central Coast over about 2 weeks. Seeing as how space will be an issue with bags, tents and other contraptions for the wife and two kids, I decided to buy 2 telescopic rods for my Alveys. A particular online tackle shop was having a 25% sale which ended last night and I was able to pick up both rods for a very reasonable price. I am a little apprehensive about telescopic rods, but taking my 14ft one piece Butterworth is out of the question and even 2 or 3 piece rods just wont cut it space wise, especially with the kid's seats in the car, so telescopic it is. I will be using the 555te rod (10'6") with a 500c5 (2kg mono) and 600bc (4kg mono) for whiting, trevs, bream and flathead. And the 650gts rod (4.1m) with a 650a5 (6kg mono) and 650grbc (10kg mono) for salmon, tailor and other toothy critters. These rods wont be in my everyday rotation when space isn't an issue and will most likely live in the boot of my car after this holiday, with a reel for those off chances I find myself in a particularly fishy spot in future. I have absolutely no experience with telescopic rods, if anyone has used these particular rods or similar rods I would like to hear what they are like/how to care for them/pros and cons/ etc... ? Any knowledge and advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for your time, Phil.

As far as baits pillies are great all rounders, however, a box of the blue Lunds Cali squid can be pretty tempting for most species of fish as well. Can use them whole on a gang or 2 hook rig, a 3 or 4/0 pinned through the tip of the hood and a 1 or 2/0 between the eyes. Also you can strip them as smaller baits. Just remember to clean out your bait box/bag of any squid, because week old pillies small rank but week old squid is another sensory experience altogether; it's almost like physical blow! Hahaha...

I usually like a bit of drift as it adds to the action of the baits. If there's not much swell then drift is better than set. I usually start as light as possible and if the rig isn't washed in or to the side too much stick with it, or upgrade enough so it just holds the bottom with a bit of movement. Too much movement and you run the risk of tangling up a paternoster. If just using a running sinker I like a lot more movement so start much lighter than I would with a star sinker. I usually take star sizes 2-5 and generally settle on a 3 in most situations; with a ball, bean, spoon I usually have a few between 1 and 8. For salmon and tailor in small to moderate swell I like a size 4 bean, it gets good movement.

Nice catch mate, where abouts were you fishing?

Well done! Some great fish. I live local but have mainly yak fished the lagoons around Terrigal and Avoca, I've been meaning to seriously hit up the Broadwater and Erina Creek, where abouts did you launch? Top effort mate!

What a fish! Well done Jr! Bet it was a great fight!

like most people have said try a paternoster rig with a surf popper on top and a gang hooks on the bottom (for a pillie or squid strip) then a size 2-4 star sinker. It's illegal to have more then 3 singles or sets of hooks on a line and just too complicated to have 5 singles or sets on the beach. I usually don't bait the popper so it flutters more when washed around. Dynamite rig for sambos and tailor. You can buy them pre-made and you just attach the sinker and baits.

I've found blood worms on a small longshank hook, an orange bead above the hook and a small sleeve of orange tubing above that, with 6pb leader, swivel and above that a light weight sinker. They can be buggers to catch sometimes and at others they just smash the baits. I usually fish for them on a low tide or just as the tide starts rising.

How good are they Alveys, so much fun! Well done mate!

Well done on the sambos mate! 71cms is a cracker! I've only caught squid land based either just before sunrise or just after sunset, usually with a squid spike through a pillie.

Good on ya mate! Hope you both score some memorable catches.

yep it's water resistant not water proof, while it has an underwater camera feature and is rated for saltwater, I won't be swimming with it. Just nice to have that extra bit of protection when caught out by a wave or I drop the bloody thing in the sand when trying to take a pic hahaha... you must always wash it with fresh water after its been in salt. Warranty only covers manufacturer fault so if you mod it or change in anyway they won't replace.

Hi Harry, my wife's iPhone did the same when updated. I looked at the iPhone 5 when choosing and there's a few good water resistant cases for it but the screen was a bit to small. While the Samsung Active can handle dust and water no worries, it's still not shock proof, so you'd need a cover in case you dropped it especially at work. I'll let you know how this one holds up after a couple more trips if you're interested.

It's awesome they have made this change, hopefully there will be plenty of jewie posts in the years to come. Fingers crossed it'll be me posting a few hahaha!!!

G'day, Just thought I'd post about my new phone, I'm far from a Tech whizz, but I lost my galaxy note the other day and obviously it has disappeared from the face of the earth. So I set out to get a new phone and I wanted something I could fish with off the beach, rocks and kayak (I know you can water get resistant cases for some phones, but I wanted something simple). I thought it was wishful thinking but by chance I stumbled upon the galaxy s4 active. I searched high and low for something that would suit what I wanted and came across 2 phone's that is water resistant up to 1m (for 30mins) and dust resistant, a Sony and a Samsung. I went with the phone closest to what I had originally had and got the Samsung. Most of my fishing is from the beach and rocks and I always had my phone as a camera and way of contacting people when I was fishing. With the note I had a bulky protective case and a zip lock bag which made taking pics and sending texts/calls a pain. I tested my new phone in the water giving it a dunk in the local lagoon as I went for a fish this arvo and it bl00dy worked! No dramas at all. I certainly wouldn't take it snorkeling or anything, have no problems taking it beach or rock fishing. I'll still have it zip locked when fishing from the kayak as an extra redundancy, it seems you can't get an after market waterproof case for water resistant phone. however, I'm pretty stoked to have a phone that can handle a bit of spray and the occasional dunking without adverse affects. it seems water resistant phones will be available from many different companies from 2014 on so if your in the market have gander. I only chose the Samsung because I was familiar with that brand and by no means do I suggest that anyone should get one or that it is the best, but just be on lookout if you're after a new phone do a bit of research for one that's water resistant as it seems to be something that a few mobile companies are making an attribute of their new models. When will they make a smart phone that's as robust as an Alvey! Hahaha... If anyone has had any experience/problems with this phone I'd like to hear about and if anyone picked up a galaxy note outside of Gosford station please PM me as I was very attached to that phone and using this new one meant I had to preview this at least ten times before I could submit, with such a small screen. Hope everyone is having a bonza weekend! Cheers! Phil.

Brilliant mate well done on the jewies! Glad jetskiers copped a serve too. Maybe the new legal limits in jews will see a come back in the population in a few years, but seems like you've got it down to an art now! Congrats!!!

Mate!!! That's awesome! I know never to swim there hahaha. Great story, must have been an epic fight! You'll remember that fish for sure. Well done!