lastworm

I was actually going to suggest the OSP Dunk, it’s my favorite for bass and always seems to produce. I use the 57mm model. The beauty of the dunk is that it’s a crash diver, so it gets to its maximum depth really quickly. Another slightly cheaper alternative is the Daiwa Infeet Spike, very similar profile and characteristics to the Dunk. In my opinion, getting as close to the snags as you can is more crucial than anything. Sometimes you really need to get DEEP into the gnarliest and ugliest snags to get results.

I’m no expert on bream on hard bodies, but my understanding is you do the same as above but slow it right down. When you think you’re going too slow, go slower.

Best crank or jerk baits for bass I find are the suspending type. Cast as close as you can to the snags (hit them if you have to), do a few quick cranks to get the lure down, let it suspend for a few seconds and then slow roll back. Throw in some pauses on the retrieve as often the fish will be following it and the pause seems to really piss them off. The beauty of suspending lures is they will hang in the zone on the pause rather than float up which is a little less natural for a baitfish.

I just had my latest custom build arrive. No expense spared, built on a Northfork composites MB661-1 IM blank, short stubby cork grip, titanium Torzite guides. Rod specs are 6’6”, 2-6lb, lure weight 1/32oz - 3/16oz, will be paired with my 22 Aldebaran BFS In my opinion once you go this finesse with rods, custom is the only way to go to get the rod to do everything you want. Alternative is to go budget BFS from overseas, but you’re always going to compromise in some area. If you want something high quality off the shelf locally, I’d suggest looking at the Shimano Expride BFS, around $350-$400. Or the new Ian Miller Drifter BFS, $450 from memory.

On a side note, if you do go for the new spine assembly, its probably a good excuse to upgrade to kick-up fins 😁

The guy received a $500 fine. Pathetic.

Read this earlier and it infuriated me. The bloke will get away with it by pleading ignorance. The guy had enough knowledge to have all the gear and kit to go spear fishing, was clued up enough to know the fish was edible, but didn’t know he was targeting a protected species in an exclusion zone. Common sense should have the book thrown at him.

Wow, trip of a lifetime! Not sure about being in a kayak with crocs around though 😰

My local is teeming with them at the moment. Huge fish that look to be about 4-5kg swimming in schools of 20+. One stretch of about 50m was so thick with them I had to paddle on as my lure kept grazing past them, coming in with big 20c coin size scales on the trebles. Horrible things.

I think it’s probably coincidence by the sounds of things, if not technique as mentioned above. Still seems like something the fish are causing during the fight rather than you though.

I buy my crank baits/jerkbaits from a Japanese site and pay around $12 each instead of $30 locally. Also tend to be more colour options available, as well as models. When you buy 5 or 6 at a time and factor in the $15-$20 postage they are still far cheaper than they are locally, local markups are insane.

No advice but this is top of my list of things to do, very jealous mate.

Ottos tackle Drummoyne will send it away and have it professionally repaired. Speaking from experience the rod builder that does their repairs is top notch. Sometimes it’s a couple of months turnaround though. Compleat Angler can do repairs for you on the spot if you have one nearby

Nice fish! These things are on my list of species to catch. Handy to fish with someone “in the know” and be able to target them. They are so often just random bream and Jew bi-catch.

I’ve got a Hobie Sport that I use for bass in small creeks. The reason Hobies hold their value so well is they don’t really have too many issues, and the aftersales support is amazing as you can pretty much buy every part you need to repair them brand new from Hobie. If anything the only part you really need to look at is the mirage drive itself, pedal it with your hands and ensure there are no obvious creaks or grinding, no rust on the chain obviously, then ensure the rudder lines move freely and aren’t frayed in any way.