kingfishbig

Yes I got an Avon Royal MK11 at the local markets for $12 and that price included quite a nice blackfish rod!

Didn't Shakespeare buy the Avon tooling for the MK111 model? That's my recollection and I have a Shakespeare centerpin which looks identical to the Avon Royal MK111.

Though plate aluminium boats are are very different kettle of fish compared to pressed ones.

Yes at moment I am tossing up between the Surtees 575 and the Quintrex Yellowfin 5800. The flooding keel with the Surtees is a good concept as weight is an asset when underway but they are still light to tow. Although for the money you don't actually get a lot of room with it's 2.1 m beam. The Yellowfin has a 2.4m beam and it is quite heavy - just the hull is 960 kg.

Well you can go for runabout or cuddy cabin (ideally with clears and bimini). It's a bit of a false binary ie half cabin verses a centre console. The rear of the boat is the business area anyway as mostly offshore you will be trolling or bottom bashing (and even casting you can do that from the rear). Having some structure up front protects you from the wind and spray and adds to safety (eg if you cop a green one over the bow). You would have to be extremely hardy to fish offshore in a centre console off Sydney in winter.

White lithium grease is the go (you can buy it in spray cans). I think you will find that is the only lubricant Teleflex recommend.

There is catcability to consider. Fish wise up to the offering of fishermen. in other worlds just because you can't catch a fish doesn't mean he not there. PS: Australian waters aren't particularly lacking in productivity, ie are about average for warm/ temperate continental shelf waters.

Sounds reasonable, though it would be helpful to mention the year model of the hull and motor (may have been repowered). It's good that it has a 175 (a lot were sold with 140 Suzuki's which made them a bit under powered). Remember that they weren't that dear new (around 40K several years back with the cheaper motor options). I have heard that some 599 have had cracked hulls so it might be worth looking into (it was mentioned on the polyboat owners website). Also factor in it will be quite heavy to tow.

Boat size is actually very important when going a significant distance offshore and part of being a 'good skipper' is recognising this. Which FADs are you talking about by the way? There is one near the Peak and I think some of the others are a bit further out. I'd be looking at something at least 17.5 to 18 ft with a good moderate to deep V hull, ie plate aluminium or fiberglass.

I know this isn't exactly what you asked but if you are looking at a larger boat have you considered the new Quintrex Yellowfin range? They start at 5.8m and are a better proposition for offshore fishing than the two hulls you mentioned.

Thie Tradeboat review of the 575 Surtees gives a hull weight of 498 kg and a BMT weight of 998 kg. Also the Surtees website gives a BMT dry weight of 995 kg for the 575 hardtop.

Well you said 5.5m alloy so those models popped up (and also they have a light towing weight). I haven't owned a Crv so I am just going by what I know. As I said if you are well under the max tow weight I don't see too much of a problem. The biggest drawback would be that it would be a bit slow and underpowered. As I said if you are just going a short distance to the local boat ramp you can put up with such shortcoming at least for a while. PS if you do decide to get a better tow vehicle then there is no need to go to much expense. A Ford Falcon from AU!! on will tow a 1.3 T rig easily and are cheap as chips (depending on the year model). Actually they have a higher tow rating than a lot of medium 4WDs.

I'd get the boat first and see how it goes. If you are well under the vehicles rating of 1500 kg I don't see what the problem is. Pressed tinnies and the likes of the Surtees and Barcrusher of 5.5m shouldn't be more than 1.2 or 1.3 T fully laden.

It's interesting that it came in that heavy. The specifications for that boat are a hull weight of 620 kg and a towing weight of 1.11T, which is typical for a pressed tinnie of that size. Also I tow a 1.3T boat with an XR6 Falcon (non turbo) and I hardly know it's there on a flat road like the M5. Fuel consumption ticks up but only slightly.

A lot, but not all 5.5m boats will be close to 1.5T fully laden, if not over it. There is also a big difference between towing a few km to your local ramp and towing several 100 km on the highway. If you think you will be doing much of the latter I would suggest having a significant buffer, ie being somewhat lower (say 20%) than the maximum allowed, for safety and stress free towing.

Actually a paternoster rig works quite well in the surf, either with 2 hooks/ traces or 1. It helps with casting having the sinker at the bottom and the fish don't seem to mind either.

I wouldn't worry about salting them. I don't think the salted version is as attractive to fish. It doesn't hurt them breaking up in some cases as it acts as burley. If you need a tougher bait just switch to something else, eg squid or a fillet of a fish with a tough skin. PS: thawing them out in the fridge overnight on a layer of newspaper toughens them up somewhat.

You might need a new cable, they tend to rust over time - actually you have done well to get 13 years out of one. PS: white lithium grease is the best to use for greasing the steering rod.

A bit of length is also handy for beach fishing to stop your line continually being caught up in the shore dump. 11.5 to 12.5 ft is a good choice.

The Pfluger Salt 2 series is hard to go past. The 60 size would suit your purpose. It's carbon fibre drag is rated for 13kg. They have a strong simple design. If you shop around it should come in under your price range.

The age as well. They only have a limited lifespan (about 6 years) and as the tread does not wear out like on your car it is easy to keep them too long. Another thing to watch out for is that they may not be that new when sold. There is a code stamped on them which tells you the year and month of manufacture. Under inflation is also a big cause of blowouts. It leads to heat build up. If you are anywhere near the maximum load rating then I would put close to the maximum air pressure.

You could give the ABU combo a go. I have no idea of the durability but ABU is a reputable brand and their cheap baitcaster combos (Black Max, Silver Max etc) get very good owner reviews.

Maybe you price limit is putting people off. A good quality second hand outfit might be the go and better than something new but cheap and nasty. A level wind reel would be preferable. The Shimano Charter Special 2000 is popular. Also the ABU 7000 is effective for this sort of fishing are there are plenty of second hand ones for sale.

Overheads are more mechanically efficient than eggbeaters, ie it is easier to wind in line under pressure. I actually use mine as a winch when bottom bashing with braid, ie I don't pump and wind to bring in a fish, just wind slowly. It leads to a lot less pulled hooks (remember the boat is going up and down on swells as well).

I'd probably go for the platypus Platinum. It's a nice handling soft line, fine for it's b/s but with good knot strength. It has an average amount of stretch which is probably not a bad thing off the beach. A bit of give in the system is a good thing when fighting a fish with also the wave surge to contend with.