DexterCatt

..yes that would maximise the yield.

Sorry to hear that Rebel. If you don't mind me asking, what is the abuse about, is it the catching, or the releasing or both, or just the fishing?

...that did occur to me Rebel. Not much reward for investment for them if true. And perfect timing. Cheers.

...that was certainly the hope, Noel. Go to know for future reference.

No, no relation Neil. Thanks for the reflection though.

Happy New Year fishraiders. On new year's eve, I took my early-teens son down to South Maroubra in the hope of getting some Whiting on light gear in the late arvo. There was no one in the water aside from a couple of surfers out the back. There wasn't much happening in the way of bites, but there was a reasonable amount of pedestrian movement, with a few stopping for a quick good-willed chat. At one point a couple stopped to enquire how i was going - using almost entirely gestures and facial expressions. They looked perhaps 60 or 70, of East Asian origin, and as far as I could tell had no English. The gentleman did most of the communicating wirh smiles and movements and thumbs up. I'd shown them my remaining, still wriggling tube worms which seemed to impress, and we settled that I was hoping for a fish of about 40 cm by outstretched hands (we can hope). Anyway they stood back and watched for about three minutes when I got my only bite, and not a big one. I reeled in to excited oohs and aahs, the line went slack, and I felt disappointment for them. I kept retreiving in case the fish had run toward me and the little weight came back on the line to produce a shining, pretty little Dart of maybe 25 cm including fins. Truly a little fish but my first Dart all the same (pic attached). My son had come over for a look and my new companions were very excited, with big smiles and regular thumbs up. This isn't really a fishing report and what came next is my reason for writing. As I was removing the hook from the fish's mouth with intention of returning it, the lady spoke for the first time with "give me, please", somewhat insistently. Still smiling, I quickly thought it through - no legal size for Dart, how am I going to explain catch and release as an ethic, make a friendly stranger happy. So I put the fish in a little bag that she had ready. She smiled and nodded and said thank you about four times, and they walked off, with the man turning to wave and give a thumbs up two or three more times. So my son remarked that there wasn't much of a feed in such a little fish. I ageed, but I added that they seemed well pleased with it. We went on to speculate that it was quite possible that they had first hand, or at least generational memory of true famine, and that might explain why a live fish of any size is a prize to them. Or at least why their culture prizes the keeping and eating of small fish. And one last thing occurs to me as I write. These cultural factors may explain why some people from some communities may keep fish in contavention of size and bag limits. Let me also remark that such practices are not limited to any stereotype. And in every case information and education are the first steps. I can assure readers that if the fish was legally undersized of another species, it would have gone in the water. Thanks for reading and good will to you. DC.

Thanks for the info. I'm new to weed baits. What puzzled me is that one had the texture of hair, and the other of string. So is it that the weed can take different textures, perhaps depending on habitat, age, or something else?

That makes for good advice. The health of the ecosystem is the health of the fishery.

Hello raiders, I was down on some rocks in Botany Bay today. There was cabbage/lettuce weed to be found, sometimes close cropped, others quite leafy. My question though is can anyone please identify these varieties as shown in the attached pics, and tell me if they are any value as bait. Thanks in advance.

Thanks again KB. I picked up that Steelite from Maroubra. The seller was a very experienced Luderick fisho. He took the time to show me some of his gear including some really little handmade centrepins, and an Iso rod. He mentioned that he fishes tournaments. A few minutes later after I'd left, he shared a document and slideshow that were a primer in Luderick fishing and float fishing in general. The Interesting thing about the beginners guide was that it used a Luderick float rig, but was based on burleying and baiting with bread with the aim catching fish - luderick, bream, tarwhine, and others. So I presume its meant to get people catching fish as fuss free as possible. What has struck me as I get back into fishing is the amount of good will there is in the fishing community. This place is a example, but also in the stores and today, a good bloke I met through Gumtree. DC.

Thanks KB, yes i saw that one at Maroubra also. Worth a look perhaps. I think the ad said minor repair, but hard to tell what from the pictures.

...like the brand new in box Seamartin I saw in Lennox Head for $280 in 2005. What would I need that for I asked myself. Prices went ballistic about 5 years later.

Yes it's very unlikely to pick up a Steelite in near new condition., I imagine. With that in mind, by markets do you mean the kind of community markets found in country towns where a fisho stall might be found between the local woodturner and the candle lady? Is there an equivalent in Sydney city. I'm near enough to paddo markets in Sydney but can't recall seeing fishing gear. There's also a huge Vinnie's up tge road, perhaps I'll check there. Then there's online...

Thanks for the replies. So weight is an understandable consideration. Is the graphite Alvey heavier than say an old Steelite? Can the Alvey be cast as an ordinary centrepin, or is this a weight/inertia compromise?

Hello readers, I'm thinking of trying some float fishing for fun, for Luderick and potentially other species. I see Alvey have two float reels, with the main difference being the sidecasting turntable mechanism (there's probably a better name). One model appears to have the traditional metal latching design, and the other model the easy-cast design, which is a spring loaded plastic affair with notched positions. Do any here have advice on choosing, either regarding durability and/or usability. Thanks and regards, DC.

So I see that Shimano have placed another reel in the 3+1 bearing, pin-through handle threadline (there's an old term) market. We now have Sienna ($60), Nexave ($75), the new Catana ($90), and Sedona ($111). Prices for the smaller sizes in the shops. I have a Sienna 2500 and a Sedona 6000. The Sedona feels a bit nicer and has a multi-washer drag. The Sienna has one metal drag washer and one felt. So this seems like a reasonable price/quality distinction. It's hard to see how two other models can be squeezed in between though. Anyone have any insight here? Are the Catana and Nexave different in any significant way, either from each other or from the other two reels? Or is this just a marketing ploy?

The blokes at the bait shop said "goodluck, most of the whiting are upriver". I figured a couple might be around. Overcast, sun setting, tide rising, small sinker.

It could also be in the timing I suppose. I did give a little slack on feeling the bite as I had missed a couple of hookups.

Thanks for the replies - striking earlier and barbless (or filed) hooks both sound like good ideas. Barbless are hard to find in the shops but there are online sellers. "Owner" is a brand that seems to show up in the searches.

Hello fisherfolks. I got a couple of 35 cm whiting yesterday, and decided to release them. I was in doubt about whether to keep them. The first reason being that they were hooked deep in their gullet. The eye of the no. 2 longshank hook was about 15 mm from their mouth. I didn't want to mangle their insides, and there was no visible bleeding, so i figured the hook would rust out (or fall out if the wound ulcerated a little). But I was concerned that I might be consigning a handsome adult fish to death, and that I might better have kept them. However, the other thing that encouraged me to release was that I was fishing between the airport and Port Botany, from one of the little beaches on the bay. From time to time I got a whiff of avaition fuel, and wondered about toxins in the water. So my questions:- 1. When fishing worm baits for whiting, what hook size and pattern to use that assists hook removal and healthy release (hooking the front of the mouth) without strongly penalising catch rates? 2. How confident are you about eating fish caught near the port and airport? With whiting, is it a matter of them just as likely having travelled from Maroubra or Cronulla beach 72 hours earlier, or do they stay in place for weeks, months?

Cheers to you LF. That's a rabbit hole for some future date. I'm still honing my conventional skills and knowledge...

I went ahead and browsed a couple of sites on ISO fishing. That's exactly what I saw. Well done and thank you.

...or ordered from overseas.

Hello everyone I have a question. I was down at Rose Bay when I happened to see a couple of fellas fishing. Although language was a challenge, they said they were after blackfish and confirmed by showing me a pouch of weed they were using for bait. They were using an unidentified fishing rod. At a distance I thought they were using a plain pole of about 10 or 12 feet. Closer, I saw the setup involved a small (1000 size?) threadline/spinning reel. What was strange was that the line guides looked very small, and almost as though they were partly recessed into the rod itself. I didn't want to ask more because they seemed a bit awkward talking to me, possibly language related. Does this outfit ring a bell for anyone? If it's any help the fellas looked East Asian. I mention this not to discriminate, but to help identify the equipment by regional preference/origin perhaps. I've done some searching this morning and I don't think it was a Sabiki rod, if that helps. Regards and thanks, DC.

Thanks for the reply. It's good to read that you have faith in the Sea Bass. I'm wondering if the Penn feels heavy if you're continually making casts?