Dave_

No problem mate, I was interested too as I caught a number of 33cm flatties last week that I didn't think we're duskies but I wasn't sure so back they went. Apparently these only grow to 45cm.

After a little research, I think the Flathead is a yellowtail flathead (Platycephalus endrachtensis) these are different to the bartails.

Nice mate. You always seem to get a good mixed bag of fish. I'm not sure on the flathead species either. At least you know they all taste good!

Haha, yeah mate the bream are always there! My young bloke landed one that looked around 27cm but we weren't really targeting them. I also seen a lady land 2 thumpers.

Yeah mate I've got the 1302HRS 10-20kg 90-180g cast weight. At one point I used a 50 gram sinker with a 33cm Tailor frame with the head on minus the fillets and it casted well with 50lb braid. The rod feels light in the hand but it feels strong loaded up. I can't wait to give it a serious test. If you have a look at one, don't be alarmed by the super long butt on them as they're designed to be cut down to suit. The long butt is great for casting imo and I won't be cutting mine. It's only a bit of a pain if you're holding the rod all day which you're not likely to do (not me anyway) Just be aware that a new model released this week, Sensor Surf IZM. I was going to wait for this but due to all the good reviews for this one, I decided to get it. As for the beach, a 4wd is the go mate. You don't need anything special, just take all the usual precautions and you'll be sweet. At least this way, if one gutter isn't producing you can move on quickly. The beach is bloody long mate. Oh, don't forget a permit. Cheers Dave

Yeah cheers mate, at least I know my bait was where I wanted it!

G'day Raiders, Been busy so this report is a little late. Went to Stockton last week to try my luck at a jew or pelagic or anything haha. Got set up and got a few yakkas and sent them out, I was trying out my new Saltist 6500h and Sensor Surf 10-20kg. The livies got smashed...but not by Jewies, by red rock cod at 40+cm! We got 3 at this size, I've never seen them this big before! They were definitely big enough to keep for a feed but as I'm not sure of how to prepare them (poisonous?) I let them go. Things went real quiet until a big explosion of whitebait erupted at my feet. We quickly tied on small metals and had 15 minutes of mayhem on the Tailor with the bream sticks. They weren't huge, smallest went 32cm so I kept a couple for bait and a few for a feed because my mate loves em. After that, a different, faster moving bust up occurred in front of me at the end of the wall. I knew they weren't Tailor but I wasn't sure what they were. They wouldn't touch my 20g gold halco twisty but suddenly a guy near me gets smoked on his bream rod using a tiny whitebait profile metal. He quickly threw an identical lure on his bigger rod and landed a big Bonito. Looked 60+cm. Within 5 minutes, the Bonnies were gone. I threw out a few ganged pillies at the end of the wall and landed 4 or 5 Flatties all at 33cm! That was annoying until I landed a decent one at 46cm. I also caught a weird little shark I've never seen before. Any ideas? I couldn't stay for the evening change of tide due to other commitments but the Jewies are around right now. All the Jew guys are getting them. A 36kg and 37kg pair got landed off the beach a couple of nights ago. The yakka schools are chasing whitebait up the beach so the bait and fish are easier to find. Cheers Dave

Nice work mate, blades are really versatile aren't they. How do you find the Caldia?

Yep, that's Lake Mac for ya. I had the exact same result last time I fished it....plenty of undersized or undesirable fish and a nice flatty in the end. That's the thing about it though, you never know what will turn up... Kings, Jews, monster Flathead... Like you said, it's surprisingly big and it can be hard to find the fish but the variety is great. Good luck if you head out in the morning, I look forward to hearing how you go.

Tough luck bud. I guess it's comforting to know that it's not just me who has days like these hahaha!

I'm happy enough with the 75cm legal length because I just think it'll result in more quality sized fish but I really think something needs to be done about the fact that you have to let a dying fish go to waste just because it's undersized. It's a hard one to find a solution for though. Too many people would abuse the ruling.

This is one strange looking fish. The only thing I've ever seen that looks anything like this is a weird Aussie Bass that looked like it was half Carp! It was a legit fish that one of my mates caught. I'll try and find the pic.

I haven't used either of those 2 models but I do have an older T-Curve tournament 2-5kg 7' (ish) and a G-Loomis IMX SJR843 8-15lb 7'. I have also owned an old Sedona in the past too, they're a tough reel. Both rods are absolutely awesome.

Both Glenbawn and St Clair are fishing awesome at the moment. Don't forget to stop at the little bridge over the spillway after you come through the boom gate at Glenbawn, there's some huge Bass under there. We've had a heap of rain up here too and that can bring the Silvers on but mostly on bait. Worms and believe it or not, snails, are the go for them. These Silver Perch get huge and if you can find them, you'll get them upwards of 55cm and sometimes 60cm. Obviously Bass are the main target species but Glenbawn has Silvers, Yellas, Cattys, Carp and the odd big Cod. Good luck mate.

Man, I'm super jealous. I went to Port Douglas in May and absolutely loved it, maybe a little too much.... I'm making plans to go up there and stay up there haha. The fishing options are unbelievable. Well done mate, top fish there.

Best whiting by-catch ever? Nice work mate.

I used to love the carp bash they used to have at Lake Liddell near my place. There was literally truck loads of the buggers and they all got turned into fertiliser. Carp are good fun to catch and you're only doing the environment a favour by taking them out. Surprisingly, there are still plenty of people around who think they're poor sport and therefore don't target them. I think these are the people who haven't caught one.

Good luck mate, I hope you get amongst 'em!

G'day Raiders, I've had a slow start to the Bass season this year due to work and study commitments but I managed to go for a flick a couple of times this week in my local Hunter River. A couple of 45 degree days and an approaching thunderstorm had me thinking they'd be pretty fired up so me, the young bloke and a mate went for a look. Well, they're about but man are they hard work right now. Funnily enough all fish so far have been taken on the surface with blades, divers and vibes proving unsuccessful. We've been getting plenty of hits and misses and reaction strikes which tells me they aren't quite fired up yet and they only come on once the sunlight is completely gone. Tiemco SSC's and Jitterbug style lures are doing most of the damage but the Sammy 65 accounted for a couple. As you can see, most of these fish are only small but I'm considering giving plastics a go next time because the water is full of larger baitfish at night which I believe are Australian Smelt. It may just be a case of matching the hatch. We did drop a couple of larger fish but they're very elusive right now. Cheers Dave

Thanks for your opinion on the T-Curve, it sounds like a big strong rod which is definitely what I'm after.What I want is a dead set whopper stopper. I've got a Baitrunner 8000 O/C and I don't consider that huge being only 9kg drag. I want a set up that I can dominate huge fish with, I'm tired of getting smoked off the stones. I just want something that puts the odds more in my favour. 40kg Jew, Tuna, Kings, Sharks etc. All of this will probably just result in me getting pulled off the rocks haha!

Great responses fellas, thanks heaps. I also noticed that the sensor surfs are being replaced by the sensor surf IZM series but I don't think they're out yet. I'd like to check these out.

I'm looking at a new heavy rock fishing set up and I'm trying to get an idea about the Daiwa Sensor Surf and the Shimano T-Curve Revolution Coastal rods, both in 1302 10-20kg. I'm not close to a tackle shop that has them in stock so I can't get a feel for them just yet. Has anyone used these rods? I'm looking at a Daiwa Saltist 6500h or Emblem Pro 5500 or a Shimano Ultegra ci4+ 5500 to match with this rod. All have 15kg drag which is what I'm after and high retrieve speed. Any thoughts on these would be appreciated. Cheers.

I agree with you mate. I've got a Gillmaster graphite surf rod I got in 2004 and it's still going strong today. I even caught a dolphin on it once, yep, a dolphin (by accident, it took a huge live pike...no joke). Another time, when I was on holidays, it was on the back of my ute when I pulled into the carport and I forgot it was there. I drove it into the roof and there wasn't a mark on it. I don't know the rating of it because there's nothing written on it at all but when I caught the dolphin, I had an Okuma Epix EB-80 on it which has a 15kg drag and 60lb braid. I thought it was going to snap and I could hear it making weird noises but she held strong and has since caught other big fish.

Awesome Jew mate, shame the Kings didn't wanna play.

Top fish mate. They look awesome at that size.