slinkymalinky

The best way to get started in bass fishing is to 'play the percentages'. Stick to just a couple of lure types to begin with and concentrate on getting them in the target zone. I'd recommend getting some spinnerbaits for sub surface and small poppers for surface fishing. With spinnerbaits, 1/4oz is a good all-round size... heavy enough to fish deep into snags, light enough to be able to swim them over weed beds. Get a recognized quality brand (some cheap spinnerbaits can work well but until you know what you're looking for, stick with something you know will swim properly). I personally really like SMAK and Bassman spinnerbaits. Get either double willow blades or combo blades (large willow, small colorado)... Big or double colorado blades make more noise and you can fish them shallower but again, combos are common and good to start out with. Don't get a mass of colours to begin with... stick with a dark colour (purple, purple/blue, purple/black are always faves); and a more natural colour (brown, pumpkinseed, gold)... fish purple in low light, natural in clear water or when the sun gets up. Cast the spinnerbaits INTO every likely looking snag, pocket or ugliness you can find. And I do mean 'into'... if you're casting at logs or trees and the spinnerbait isn't 'banging wood' then you're not close enough. For poppers, again avoid the temptation to buy a stack of different types to begin with. Start with something simple like a small popper (a 35mm River2Sea Bubblepop is good)... and if you know how to 'walk the dog', maybe a 65mm Lucky Craft Sammy or similar type. Nearly all my surface luring (and fly fishing) for Bass is with black lures and flys and its a good percentage bet. Fish them early and late while the sun is below the horizon or in deeply shaded pockets and again fish them hard into cover and structure... There are a million lures and techniques that will catch you Bass but if I had to give only one bit of advice when starting out... keep it simple. You can get so caught up in lures, colours, techniques etc that you can get very frustrated and spend most of your time switching lures instead of fishing. Cheers, Slinky

Sorry for the report with not too many fish photos, since the camera stayed in the box for most of the weekend. Jewhunter invited me to fish the Borumba fishing comp over the weekend just gone. The fishing wasn't great but it was steady and the weekend was a whole lot of fun. The Mary Valley Fishing Classic is put on by the Mary Valley and Gympie Lions Clubs each year. This year we got up there on Friday afternoon in time to have a 'pre-fish' (makes it sound like a serious tournament but it's not... its just a casual, fun, family event). There were over 90 competitors who made the trip and who mostly ended up camped below the dam wall... us included. Jewhunter and I packed light... just a swag, a small tent, lots of beer and nibbles and the fishing gear. Tackle for the weekend was light spin and baitcast gear and a whole lot of spinnerbaits. We headed out onto the dam at around 4pm to check some likely spots. Jewhunter knows Borumba very well and sure enough the first spot... a timbered shore with a heavy weedbed... immediately produced fish. I landed a couple of bass including a nice one a touch over 40cm while JH managed to hook a horse of a Saratoga within 10 minutes of starting fishing. He fired a cast into a pocket between a group of trees and as soon as his 'Toga Special' spinnerbait landed, the water exploded. A golden, pink slab of a Toga, easily an 80cm+ fish, erupted from the water only to throw the hooks as so many of them do. We ended up with half a dozen fish in a short session. Unfortunately for us, those fish were the biggest we encountered for the weekend. Jewhunter's Toga would have won the comp with only 1 fairly small one landed that we're aware of for the whole weekend. We celebrated back at camp with some adult soft drinks and some dinner, which included dagwood dogs from the Lions Club. What exactly possessed me to shout us both one of those salmonella sticks, I don't know... but I do know that when combined with a complete lack of coffee in the mornings I had to put up with Jewhunter grumping and grumbling a lot. And I had to put up with fishing for a lot of the weekend surrounded by a cloud of toxic gas drifting back from the bow of the boat. Aaaaaarrrrgh. Anyway, the comp proper started on Saturday morning and after the briefing we got out on the water a little later than we'd have liked. At this point, Jewhunter decided he needed a new spinnerbait for his Bass outfit. His eyes lit on a particular purple spinnerbait in my lure bag and he snaffled it immediately. He'll probably tell you he asked and I agreed but I think some kind of psychological manipulation was involved. Turns out the fish of Borumba were particularly attracted to that spinnerbait... the only one I had. I only ask one question... would you trust this man?? We managed half a dozen bass in the first 20 minutes but only 11 for the whole day (of which only 3 were mine... damn that purple spinnerbait).The fish were pretty small with a few in the mid 30's but lots of 'micro-Bass'. As soon as the sun was on the dam, the water temperature started to climb rapidly and the fish just shut down... even in shady pockets and shores. The water temp in some parts of the dam got up to just under 30 degrees by lunchtime!! Even so, Borumba is a beautiful dam to fish. Varied, very fishing territory with lots of timber, weedbeds, deep rocky edges, shallow weedy shores and always something to cast at and see. Its small enough to get around easily without burning a bunch of fuel but big enough so that even with 90 competitors on the water it didn't feel too crowded. We even had a QLD Lungfish surface for a mouthful of air right in front of the boat... now that was special! Eventually the heat and hard fishing got the better of us and we headed back to camp for some medicinal beverages. Jewhunter had underestimated the effect of the heat the previous evening so most of the fluids had already been consumed so we headed into the Imbil pub for more. JH is a devout Tooheys Blue drinker so he wasn't impressed by accidentally being served a schooner of Great Northern... but his sweet talk and smouldering good looks managed to ensure he didn't pay for it as Bec the barmaid had a few laughs with us. Restocked, we had a great night back at camp. JH managed to win a couple of lures from the Lucky Dip during the casting contest. I'm still not quite sure how either of us could even see the targets we were supposed to hit, let alone with a strage baitcaster loaded with mooring rope, in the dark, well under the influence of medicinal beverages. I know that it isn't easy to pick out a birds nest in torch-light while wearing wobbly boots! The second morning was another beautiful start to the day. We had a pretty good start with 11 fish in the first hour including a couple of 40+cm Goldens for Jewhunter, my own first Silver on lure and a bunch of bass including a few 'measurers'. With fish in both live wells we left a very productive shore full of downed timber to get the fish to the official measuring boat while they were still healthy (its an entirely catch & release comp). By the time we got back to our spot the sun was on the water again and just like the previous day the fishing shut down. By chasing some shady spots, JH managed to keep finding the odd fish with us boating 15 or so for what ended up a short morning session. We were off the water at around 10am. A great weekend on the water that we both needed. Thanks for the invite, mate. I'll be back next year although with some nose plugs and a strict 'NO DAGWOODS' rule. Cheers, Slinky

I've owned and used both brands. I've owned at least half a dozen Okumas but don't have any now... which is an idication of what I think. Don't get me wrong, they are very good reels and I think that they have improved a lot over time. But the reason that some people experience them 'stiffening up' could be because IMHO, the bearings in Okuma reels are not as good quality as in Shimano reels. In its earlier days, Okuma was one of those manufacturers who marketed reels heavily based on 'how many bearings'. I'd rather fish with a reel with 3 high quality bearings than 10 cheap bearings. Good bearings operate better, last longer and are more forgiving (slightly) of lax maintenance. BUT the main reason people have Okuma or any other reels stiffen up is that they don't look after them properly. The best bearings and the best reels in the world won't keep working properly if they're not looked after. IMHO Shimano make better reels than Okuma but Okuma reels offer good value for money and are still great reels. Whether you get Shimano or Okuma PLEASE look after them properly. I makes me cry when I see what people do to some reels before then blaming the reel for not working properly. Slinky

Try Exit Mold or Liquid Bleach... used to work for the seats in my boat. Cheers, Slinky

G'day SeaHuffKing, One size doesn't really fit all with lubricants in reels. There are a couple of principles to think about: 1. Heavy grease gives most protection and lasts longer but slows down gears and bearings 2. Light oil gives least protection and needs re-lubing more often but allows better free and fast movement of parts (e.g. bearings effecting casting distance or free-spool should be oiled) 3. Lubricants and water don't mix so use lubes specifically for marine/fishing applications but ALWAYS assume that any splashes or dunking will mean stripping, cleaning and relubing reels 4. Lubricants don't last forever so preventative maintenance is important. The more you use the reel, the more frequently you should service it. ALWAYS clean reels after every session. I grease gears on all reels but with bearings some get grease, some get oil (and some even get tricky stuff like teflon suspended in solvent but that's a whole other kettle of fish). With light spin reels - I usually use light grease on gears (using heavy grease can make the reel feel a little 'heavy' which isn't want I want for finesse fishing) - I oil all bearings (shimano's oil is fine. I use a product called Corrosion X. There are heaps of brands of oil specifically for fishing reels) With bigger spin reels - I sometimes use heavier grease on the gears - Sometimes I will use grease in the side-plate bearings and line roller bearing - I usually oil other bearings With baitcasters - I use light grease on gears - I use oil on all bearings and level wind With overheads - I usually use heavier grease on gears - I usually use heavy grease in side-plate bearings - I use oil in shaft bearings that effect free-spool/casting Hope this helps but just remember those principles. Cheers, Slinky

The Broadwater near the Seaway and the Seaway itself are the places to fish after really heavy rains. Fish either side of the top of the tide and there will be a lot of clean water in and around the Seaway. When the tide is absolutely at dead stop, the fish will often shut off, except around the mouth of the Seaway where there are often still a few eddies and white water around the rocks. (The jewies tend to come out right around the change too) Fishing the edge of the clean water where it meets the fresh can be productive Fish along the rock walls. In the Seaway, concentrate on the South Wall from inside the Broadwater up to a bit past the VMR station, then swap to the North Wall from there out to the entrance. Just outside off the end of the North Wall are some good deep holes too if the weather is kind. Concentrate on the area of where the wall meets sand depending on how you fish you're a good chance of Bream Flatties Jewfish and a host of other good fighters (Jacks, Moses Perch, Spangled Emperor & Grassy Sweetlip, Trevs, etc,etc. At the turn of the tide, try fishing the pipeline in the seaway (if there is any kind of decent tidal run you'll just lose a lot of gear). The north wall around into the broadwater is a good long run and a known hangout for Flathead, Jacks and Bream... but it's ugly ground on the bottom with a lot of snaggy rocky bottom so expect to lose a bit of gear (but its worth it). I've always had the most luck along this run when there is good current flow but not massive (as it gets too hard to fish). The north wall of Wavebreak island is worth hitting too (its the wall at the north end of the beach directly opposite the seaway). With a lot of fresh water around, expect the canals to be tough. Just follow the tide and the saltier water. Cheers, Slinky

Black Spot Goatfish

Just thought I'd post a quick note about the perils of salt water and why you really should be diligent with reel cleaning and maintenance. I just pulled down a Shimano Chronarch 100 baitcaster that had done a recent trip to Weipa. The reel was in good condition and the main point of the service was to upgrade the drag to Carbontex. But despite the reel being only barely used, I found a completely trashed bearing in the right side plate. Sorry about the crappy photo... all I had at the time was my iPhone. So how did it get like this??? It wasn't dunked, it wasn't misused, it didn't get splashed by a wave... the only exposure to salt that this reel got that we can work out was the fine spray from running around Weipa creeks in a runabout. In other words, it was used exactly the way it should be used yet it still destroyed a bearing. Capiliary action can 'suck' salt water into tight spaces in the blink of an eye. The owner of this reel didn't do anything wrong in using the reel but he wasn't as fastidious with his cleaning. It goes to show why you should clean reels EVERY TIME you use them in salt water. Inspect and lube them regularly. And I'd recommend doing a full service and relubing after any extended trip (where almost inevitably the reels get used harder than normal). KEEP THEM CLEAN, Tony

G'day Chris, I can't help with specific spots but just a couple of tips on gear, having done the challenge myself.... 9wt rod is ideal (you'll be casting heavy and/or very wind resistant flies) Shooting head lines make long casts with minimal room for backcasting a lot easier (as well as delivering those big flies well) First time I tried I had a 10wt (too heavy) with standard wt forward lines (hard to cast with only room for a small amount of line out from the tip). When I switched to the 9 wt/shooting head combo it all came together and was much more fun to fish with. Cheers, Slinky

Hi Scott, Mail it to Shimano. There service centre is very good and reliable. Cheers, Slinky

You might need some professional help. You could always claim you were targeting Murray Cod and the Carp were all bycatch.

Sadly, I can't programme TVs and stuff either. Thats why I spend my time playing with reels. S

G'day Scott, Something hasn't gone back together correctly. There could be a number of things that are stopping the reel winding. All I can suggest is that you don't try to force it but you will need to pull it apart and try to work out where the problem is. Make sure you have a copy of the schematic drawings with you and as a suggestion, take close up photos every step of the way so you have something to follow when you put it back together. If you're not confident to sort it out though, you'll have to send it to be serviced. The original grinding noise by the way is likely to be either gears or bearings that need to be replaced. Cheers, T

Good on you for taking up the challenge, Scratchie. It might sometime seem a bit thankless from us members but there are those of us who appreciate you putting in the time to keep the site great. Cheers, Tony

Merry Christmas Jani. Your knife came in very handy... I was drooling over it when Stewy showed it to us. Beautiful.

Stewy... you deserve the great result. I've rarely seen anyone put in the casts that you did over a weekend. I think you went beyond dedication and into the realms of insane bloody-mindedness but that's why you landed half of all the fish caught for the weekend. As for it taking a toll, I think the combination of lots of heat and sun, waaaay too much sugar, and the diffuculty breathing from the twiggy-stick laden air in the cabin, all contributed. I had a great weekend and it was fantastic to finally get some fishing done with you. I can confirm that the river is definitely west of the Great Divide. We'll try to find it again soon. All the best to you and Donna for the new year and congrats on some great fishing. Cheers, Tony

I used to fish Gerringong and Kiama area quite a bit. The rocks at North Weri are good for drummer and livebaiting or spinning might get you a king or bonnie. Black Head is an awesome platform for spinning, throwing plastics or bait fishing. Lots of squid around too. A couple of kms South you also have Seven Mile Beach... the area at the South end, Shoalhaven Heads, at the surf club is easily accessed by car and there used to always be good gutters and channels that are good for tailor and jewies (not that I ever managed to get one)... plastics should be a good go there. Crooked Creek at the north end of Seven Mile Beach is always reliable for flatties but takes some work. Fish on the last of the run out... you'll need to slop through a bit of mud to get to the deeper weed'lined channel and holes (only accessible by foot near low tide). The sandy holes and channel were one of my favourite fly fishing spots so plastics there would be a no-brainer. Cheers, Slinky

Gday CC, I've never experimented with doing this but I think if you used a stronger spring in the ratchet mechanism beneath the spool, it should make the ratchet louder. Just be warned though, that the ratchet adds friction and unlike in most baitcasters and overhead reels, can't be disengaged in a spin reel. The increased friction will add to drag & wear out parts quicker. Cheers, Slinky

G'day alluring, Congrats on your first cod capture... and it is a capture. If you have it on the lip grips then you had it caught. I'm guessing you probably would have released it anyway. The lost lip grips and spinnerbait probably stings a bit but lost gear happens to anyone who goes fishing. The only big shame is that you didn't get yourself any pics but you've got the memory and as anyone who has caught Murray Cod knows, there's no way to completely explain just how incredible the hit of a cod can be. Now you've got a great excuse to go out and do it again. Cheers, Slinky

Hi Poacher. Looks like a clever mount for the motor... I think you might have some trouble getting your rig into the average bass stream though I can see some sneaking around over Snapper ground on the cards though. Cheers, T

Great Bass. I'm surprised it didn't give you more of a fight... it's in amazing condition... almost as fat as me!! Bass on surface is hard to beat. T

Get one of the big plastic carry bags from IKEA. Cut a couple of small holes to drain water then you've got a cheap, ready-made sling for big fish

Well done on adding a new species to the list... Too funny travelling all the way to Europe and finding Redfin. Are they a highly sought after target over there? Cheers, T

I'm all for stocking species in appropriate waterways for recreational fishing... but it has to be the right species in the right place. Just because Jacks could be stocked in Clarrie Hall doesn't mean that they should be. Clarrie Hall is a dam full of smaller bass because its full of insects frogs and mosquito fish instead of yabbies and bony bream. Putting Jacks in there would probably be the end of the bass fishing... the smaller bass and fingelings will just become Jack snacks. I've not heard anyone anywhere asking for them to go in. Saratoga seem like a much more appropriate choice if another species is warranted. The environment up at CH is just made for them... lilly-pad central. And they coexist with Bass very well in places like Borumba and Hinze. If I want to catch Jacks there are no end of waterways near the Tweed valley to get them, including in the Tweed itself. There was probably someone somewhere in a university who thought that Cane Toads represented an exciting new opportunity to control cane beetles too!

The other thing to do with your jitterbugs (or any lure for Bass) is to throw them right into harm's way. If you're not occaisonally getting hung up on snags, you're not fishing close enough to them. Try positioning yourself (either on the water or the bank) so that your Jitterbug swims right along the edge of or over the top of submerged snags, logs, and other ugliness. Expect to get hit when your lure is in the ugliest part of the ugliest snags. I heard a saying once that for every 10cm further away from a snag you land your lure, you reduce your chances of getting a hit by 10%... not a real fact but if you don't cast into the ugliness you won't get many Bass). One of the reasons that Bass fishing is so much fun is that you get to sledge each other heaps every time a lure ends up in a tree... but people who don't get sledged, don't catch fish.