Captain Spanner

My guess at the short answer is you are trying to cast too quickly for the amount of weight on the end of the line. Try a smoother or slower cast. Or at least the start of the cast needs to be slower. My attempt at the longer answer is that it is probably snapping as your rod is still loading up halfway through the cast because the force on line is too much at that point in time. Basically there are two main parts that make up the force being applied to the line during the cast. The mass (you'd think of this as the "weight" of the sinker & bait) and the acceleration of the rod which you are trying to transfer to the sinker. If you are trying to punch holes in the horizon then you are probably putting alot of effort/force into the cast and the rod is accelerating too fast for the amount of resistance "weight" on the end of the line. This scenario can be seen if you take a lighter weight and calmly cast it out. take note of the tension on your finger during the cast and how much the rod bends. Then cast the same weight with more force, you will do this by trying to make the rod go faster and i bet you can feel more tension on your finger and that the rod bends more during the cast. There is more strain on the line. Basically at some point the strain is too much and the line breaks. You have to either decrease the weight on the end of the line or the acceleration of the rod. Hope this helps

There should be a product code that might give a hint. Otherwise you could try to cross reference the product code/model number with the silstar catalogue if there is one. Mind you i haven't tried to do this.

I wouldn't stress about that. If 20kg is your luggage limit you've still packed too many clothes, just wear more on the plane, they wont weigh you. You could also try to get your mrs to wear some of your chromies as Jewellery so as to fit more in your bag. She'll love the idea as long as you dont forget remove hooks or at least crush barbs (joking). On a more serious note: not sure if you're heading overseas or not but i've heard some guys have trouble importing gulps and other similar biodegradables because they have fishy stuff in them that gets flagged by Quarintine so dont get too many of those confiscated $$$. Also, Quarintine will be interested in you if you fish freshwater whilst overseas so if you do, keep in mind what needs to be washed and declared. Good luck

I've got/had a 6-10kg crystal blue and a 3-5kg crystal blue that i love. I fished a 6500 BR on the 6-10kg for kings and jews with 20lb mono and sometimes to 30lb braid successfully and it was great. I unfortunately broke the reel seat on it on a king. So i reckon as long as the reel seat on the 10-15kg Crystal blue is stronger than the 6-10kg and it feels like the reel fits snuggly in the seat then i think it would be a great combo. Just my opinion on the situation anyway.

I probably wouldn't bother specifically targetting squid anywhere upstream from Captain Cook Bridge. You will get arrows around the bridge at times but probably better off focussing on areas in the bay such as any weedy or kelpy areas near kurnell, yarra bay, Laperouse. But the bay definitely isn't as good as the hacking for squid. Good luck

Try not winding the leader knot through the guides when casting, maybe try a slower smoother casting action. You may also have more problems when casting into the wind. Good Luck

Guys just my opinion but i would want something i can cast fairly well for fishing for jewies even from a boat and i dont know how well larger overheads like the Tyrnos will do that unless you're very experienced. i know couldn't do it very well so thats why i use spinning reels. If you dont intend on casting or you are good at casting bigger overheads you can obviously disregard this post. Tekotas, Trinidads and Calcuttas are probably more suited to casting if you want to go the road of overhead. If it was me i'd go with a biggish spinning reel like at least a 6500 Baitrunner or if you want to fish 50 to 60lb properly an appropriately sized (8000 or up) Speros, Saragossa or equivalent Penn or Daiwa. I personally use Shimano 6500 Baitrunners with a range of 20lb mono to 50lb braid but this would struggle for serious kings close to structure because they just dont have the drag pressure unless you grab the spool obviously. Just make sure the rod and components (reel seats, runners etc.) can handle the drag that you will apply with the reel. Good luck

I run my divers about 30m back around sydney and how hi your rod tip (being the towpoint) is from the water effects how deep it dives and how far back you need it. and if you have it closer to the water your lure will skip out less. Try the wall, hot water, airport, heads and markers. I often find a small chromie will help break up the boredom with tailor. You'll have to wait for someone with a few more years experience to comment on water temps, fish depths and species. Regarding things being scared of the motor, i often run my small chrome lures at the back of the propwash. Good Luck

I'm at work so ill have to be quick. We went there last weekend for the 1st time. We got a few flatties in the shoalhaven river on Saturday in a number of spots on a range of 3" to 5" gulps and Squidgies. Minnow grubs, Wrigglers, shrimp, fish and shads. 1/8th and 1/4 oz jig heads depending on tidal flow, working the steep river banks and other drop offs. They weren't too fussy as long as it reached the bottom and wiggled a bit. Good Luck

Definitely worthwile trolling yakkas without a downrigger. i have been pulling 2 livies on the surface and a squid on the downrigger for good results lately. i now just use a single livebait hook sideways through the nose for trolling. I find they drown less than when the hook is vertical through their jaws potentially locking their mouth either open or shut. I use 60lb leader and only use a 2 hook snell rig on the livie for bigger baits at anchor, (top hook sideways through the nose so he can swim into the current). If you want to get the baits down try the poor man's down rigger that i used to use with a break away lead on a sliding sinker clip above a 2 to 3m leader. Experiment with 1 and 2 hook rigs for livies to find out what you're confident using. I think they last better and present better with only one hook but it takes a while to feel happy that you wont miss fish (usually tailor or sharks anyway) by not having a hook at the back. Good luck and remember everyone has their own favourites so there is no right or wrong way to do it.

Anyone got any good ideas for securing spinning reels like 6500BRs when trolling/downrigging. I can see that cable tie combinations around reel seats could work but not ideal. Any other ideas? maybe serious velcro straps like on a surfboard legrope/flipper savers?

I'm pretty sure they give you a pretty nasty spike so just be careful when handling, even when cleaning.

I spoke to fisheries on thursday and they said that the Sydney East FAD (The Peak) and Sydney South FAD (Port Hacking FAD) are missing and they will be doing their best to replace them this week and update the coordinates on the fisheries website very shortly after they have been deployed. You can keep an eye out on their website. http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/recrea...twater/fads/map

Would i be able to get a rough idea from somebody how far out the bait and the marlin have been from the heads and the closest boat ramp.

Many tackle shops should have them and i would imagine give them to you for free. Otherwise ring fisheries and they'll post one to you along with other guidelines

Not to scare you but just a few things to think about. Until you are very confident with your boat and location only ever tie the anchor rope off the bow so the boat is pointing head on into the current and chop/wind/waves. If you tie it of the side or especially the back corner it is very easy to to take a wave or boat wake over the back and once the corner gets bogged down the water pressure can drag your boat under very quickly like how a diving lure works and you often only need one wave in a small boat. On a similar note, dont anchor in channels and thoroughfares and be very careful on the edge of shipping channels such as the one that goes past molineaux point in Botany Bay. When the tender and tug boats go past they tend to put out a pretty nasty wake and it stands up and sometimes breaks when it hits the end of the channel. I always use chain. it helps pull the anchor flat across the floor so the pulling angle is lower and it holds better. And it's good to lower your anchor in and not throw it so that you know it's not tangled in the chain. Good Luck

I'm pretty sure you can do it next to St George Sailing Club near Captain Cook Bridge.

I'm no expert but from what i understand dual beam means there are 2 settings that can often be run one at a time or together. It is like having a flood light setting in a torch (wider area in shallower water) and spotlight setting (narrower area but goes deeper/further). My old Hummingbird Wide eye has this and if you have it on wide mode it loses the bottom at a certain depth (can't remember what, maybe around 50m) and if i switch it to dual it gets a bit deeper and narrow mode even deeper. I think the dual frequency is a similar concept as described by Mike. Hope this helps.

Mine is just a cheapy i think and it has lasted for years. I normally always have mine out when drifting unless it's dead calm. They also help you position the angle your boat drifts at depending on where you tie it to your boat so you can fish over the side, back, a chosen corner, depending on conditions (remember the angle of your outboard helps with this too.) Also if you take your canopy of clears down it may help your cause. They act as a sail. I sometimes use mine to stop my boat swinging at anchor if the wind and tide are not cooperating. Good Luck

Just a few things i've noticed. I find that it happens alot less if i dont wind the leader through the guides when you are casting so that it is not getting caught and causing a mini jolt during your cast (and sometimes causing a knot around one of your guides?) This seems to happen more if your leader and or braid are too big for the guides on your rod. I think the line keeps coming off the spool and not travelling through the guides resulting in the eggbeater version of an overrun. Your knots seem to be happier if the dont continually bang on the guides too. Maybe try a different leader knot. I pretty much always use a double uni but others here may like alternatives. It just depends what you like. Different braids also behave differently in different breaking strains. Also when you are doing a flick and take up the slack style retrieve and winding slack line onto your reel. When this happens sometimes it loops come off the spool out of turn causing a wind knot. Try winding in with the line under pressure every now and then (some people say every 5 to 10 casts but just keep an eye on it) to make sure you dont accumulate loose line on your spool. Good luck

Lighter leader is fine. I was just saying that they weren't deterred by it on that day and if you feel more comfortable with a heavier leader just in case a bigger one swallows it down. As mentioned 20lb or even 15lb would be fine for the smaller ones. Im sure people use alot lighter ones on bream gear for fun.

I normally start from botany so i normally go to the close FAD (Sydney East FAD i think) 1st and the Botany wide FAD next (Why drive twice as far if the fish are in close). Keep an eye on the weather and dont take risks. The weather looks good for the morning and the noreaster wouldn't be too bad to come home with if you're coming from the Hacking or Botany Bay but it doens't look too bad anyway. http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/nsw.asp FAD location from the fisheries website http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/recrea...twater/fads/map Sydney East 33° 59.316' South 151° 20.951' East (Closest Port Botany Bay – 9.5km 98m deep ) Botany Bay Wide 33° 59.672' South 151° 26.743' East (Closest Port Botany Bay - 16km 140m deep) Sydney South 34° 07.658' 151° 23.254' (Closest Port Port Hacking. I was there a couple of weeks ago its about 20km from the entrance to the Hacking.) All of these are valid methods. If you want to catch a big one then pulling livies around the area and trolling them down current past the FAD, (try them down deep too if required) is probably your best bet. Or you could also try pulling skirts (I like dark colours especially with purple) or different lures around when you get there or get near it. If you just want to catch one i'd start at least 50m up current from the FAD and cast out unweighted pillies and throw a few cubes or at least some form of burley over as soon as you cast out and keep burleying as you drift past the FAD and continue for at least 100m or so past the FAD. By doing this sometimes you can take some of the school with you. I'd normally use a half pillie on a 6/0 or a whole pille on 2 6/0's (the top one just slides free above the bottom one) rigged upside down with a hitch around the tail to keep it straight. Last time i used octopus circle hooks because even the little fellas have pretty sharp teeth. Circles aren't necessary, i was just experimenting but they did work well and my leaders lasted longer. I just give them a couple of seconds to take it down (with a bait runner) or at least let them take up the slack before smoothly adding pressure to set the hook when using circles. Last time i went i used 40lb fluro leader which is overkill for the little guys but they weren't afraid of it. You can have a livie out while doing this but just make sure he doesn't misbehave too much and turn all the other lines into a new net. (another favourite past time of livies is to swim around the wrong side of the FAD if you drift too close) You can try flicking plastics, chromies, poppers and whatever else you want as you drift past. Dont be afraid to drop Knife jigs down near it. remember they are often in a school so only have as many rods out at a time that the number of people in the boat can control. (eg if you are by yourself and you have three rods out think about what you would do if they all went off at once) There will most likely be other boats doing similar things and you will see they will sort of take it in turns drifting past the FAD and staying out of each others way (in theory). Just wait your turn and jump in the line keeping a reasonable (just think how close you would like people to your boat) distance from the other boats and try not to drive though peoles burley trails I use a sea anchor to slow my drift when its windy, this gives you more time in the strike zone. Dont be surprised to see Rat Kings and Striped Tuna around the FAD either. good luck

Slinky's right. Can't really get around pickers if they are there and hungry. often strips survive better than heads or live and whole baits but if they want it they'll take it. so you'll have to move sometimes if im suspicious of pickers and don't have squid to burn i'll quickly send down a test bait like a scrap piece of squid, wing etc first and if it gets picked off straight away with no obvious strike or comes up with those nasty little telltale holes and tatters just move to another spot. Don't trust your hard earned live or fresh whole baits down there if they are in short supply and if you're not sure if the kings are there or not. I learned this one the hard way when we were going from marker to marker fiddling with the new sounder, trying to figure out the difference between bait, jackets and kings.

If you're super determined i'd start with egimax then go as small a jig as you own then try different colours then different sizes then lighter leaders, bits of fish or prawns flesh on the spikes, fish bait on a squid spike. I went squidding in the hacking last weekend and had at least half a dozen chase my jig 1st cast and keep playing with it and watching but not take it properly. they started to lose intrest 1 by 1 as i kept changing colours and sizes. After half an hour or so of this stupid game i caught 1. Sometimes they just don't want to cooperate. Come back at a different tide or time of day.

I've added to the Sashimi topic but i posted it in this thread http://fishraider.com.au/Invision/index.ph...pid=290233& that Malacoota Pete mentioned so that all the similar info is in one thread.