New Outfit Question

[steze]

Hi everyone, i just purchased a 7 ft Shimano Catana rod with a shimano sienna 2500 reel. I want to start fresh water fishing and im not sure on what size braid to get and also what type of lures should i be looking into as ive never used soft plastics or any other lures before except for metal lures. Any information would be great help as i am just starting out on this type of fishing.

[chrisg]

Start off with 6lb braid and a 6lb leader. When you get more comfortable with using the outfit you could go down to 4lb but 6lb will give you a bit of leeway for some rough handling. Go for a good value braid first like Fireline or Stren Microfuse and don't over fill the spool. Make sure the line is 3mm from the lip to reduce wind knots until you get more comfortable.

Search the forums as there's heaps of stuff on the right knots for braid and how to get started.

What fish are you chasing so we can help you with lures etc.

C.

Edited March 27, 2010 by chrisg

[steze]

Start off with 6lb braid and a 6lb leader. When you get more comfortable with using the outfit you could go down to 4lb but 6lb will give you a bit of leeway for some rough handling. Go for a good value braid first like Fireline or Stren Microfuse and don't over fill the spool. Make sure the line is 3mm from the lip to reduce wind knots until you get more comfortable.

Search the forums as there's heaps of stuff on the right knots for braid and how to get started.

What fish are you chasing so we can help you with lures etc.

C.

Hi Chris, thank you for your help. I am targeting bream, whiting, and flathead. The knots is something i have to look into thoroughly, I plan to use a fluro carbon leader as that seems like what most people use. According to our knowledge is my outfit decent quality? Only reason being going for the stradic was out of my budget and i didnt want something too expensive for my first lure and soft plastic outfit.

[chrisg]

Its a good first outfit..no problems there.

Fluorocarbon is a good choice but get a spool of mono in 6lb as well for the surface lures. A couple of cheap poppers around 5cm should see you have some fun in the early morning and evening.

C.

[Victor78]

Hi Steve

I got ya message i cant txt back cus my phone is broken ill buy a new 1 berfore Easter.

sounds like a nice combo you brought it would be orsome to catch a Bonito on it. The best place to learn to lure fish with plastics and hard bodies is at Chipping Norton lake as there is no current there and you can learn the action and pauses of lures there very easysly plus you might catch someyhing decent there too.

I might head out to Black Rock tomorrow as it surpossed to rain most of next week

[steze]

Hi Steve

I got ya message i cant txt back cus my phone is broken ill buy a new 1 berfore Easter.

sounds like a nice combo you brought it would be orsome to catch a Bonito on it. The best place to learn to lure fish with plastics and hard bodies is at Chipping Norton lake as there is no current there and you can learn the action and pauses of lures there very easysly plus you might catch someyhing decent there too.

I might head out to Black Rock tomorrow as it surpossed to rain most of next week

G'day Vic. I was wondering why u didnt reply. I thought you might of changed numbers. Im not comfortable with the graphite rod yet because the guy that sold it to me said that its alot more fragile compared to the fibreglass ones that i have been using of the rocks. I'm pretty sure that there is alot for me to learn in lure fishing. I will try Chipping Norton actually because its quite close to home and i dont intend to keep the fish from there anyway so yea, sounds like a solid idea. What days are u working? Im not ready to fish yet because ive got no lures, no braids , nothing. Just the rod and reel. Ive been checking out some of the Berkely GULP range and there are so many. No idea which one is suitable for which. And with blades, my god they are so expensive. What sort of species would you be targeting at Chipping Norton.?

[cut_loose]

Hey mate, I gave up on the Berlry Gulp as im sick of there packets, Leaks leaks leaks .. Even the tub of Gulp alive, And you get some many ones with bent tails its not funny. Im sticking with the Squidies with S Factor.

For Braid 6lb Sunline, I got it and i love it best braid ive used, Fluro carb 4lb & 8lb Sleath Leader, Nice knot strenth.

As your just starting out grab 2 or 3 Blades. TT's and Strike Pro are better. Ive had luck with a bronze one from Strike pro. Also grab some clear-ish white squidies with a purple top and some light jig heads,You'll catch everything on them.

Remember also, Cheap lures mainly = Dont Swim Right + Cheap Hooks = Less hookups/ Less fish

Pay a little more for the lure = Lures That Swim Right + Good Sharp Hooks that wont rust/break = More hookups/ More fish

[Breambucket]

Hey mate

I like using fireline for the main line as its a little stiffer than other braid i have used and seems not to get any wind knots.

Sunline fc rock is a really good flurocarbon leader and is relatively cheap @ $20 for 100m and try to use 1-2 rod lengths and 6 lb for both will be a good starting point.

As for the plastics i really love the berkleys, there packets do leak sometimes but i keep mine in containers upright and dont have a problem, i actually keep all my minnows (without packets)in a air tight tupperware container witrh all different colours and never have problems with colours mixing or leaking.

Fish light, i use 2g jig heads from 3-7m depending on water flow and that way the lure will present better to the fish and really help'd me get alot more hits. thin gauge hooks will help aswell with hook ups

Alot of other plastics work well too but i always choose natural looking colours that are not to stiff to help with the action with the lure

The most important thing is to keep at it because it might take a little while to get the hang of it but eventually when you do you wont turn back

Cheers

Pete

[steze]

Thanks everyone for your help. Will probably head out to my local tackle store and grab some braid and some lures first. Probably will head out to either chipping norton or east hills to test it out. Will post up a report once i do get a chance to fish.

[Victor78]

G'day Vic. I was wondering why u didnt reply. I thought you might of changed numbers. Im not comfortable with the graphite rod yet because the guy that sold it to me said that its alot more fragile compared to the fibreglass ones that i have been using of the rocks. I'm pretty sure that there is alot for me to learn in lure fishing. I will try Chipping Norton actually because its quite close to home and i dont intend to keep the fish from there anyway so yea, sounds like a solid idea. What days are u working? Im not ready to fish yet because ive got no lures, no braids , nothing. Just the rod and reel. Ive been checking out some of the Berkely GULP range and there are so many. No idea which one is suitable for which. And with blades, my god they are so expensive. What sort of species would you be targeting at Chipping Norton.?

Steve its possible to catch on lures bream, flathead, whiting, bass, estuary perch, talior and at times jewfish in Chippo lakes.

[chris268]

Hey mate, I have a catana with a sienna fd 2500. Great little combo that's fairy cheap. I've got 6lb fireline on it and use 10lb sufix invisiline fluro. I use this for plastics targeting bream and flatty. I bought some ecogear sx40s and will be trying these out on my current combo.

[steze]

Hey mate, I have a catana with a sienna fd 2500. Great little combo that's fairy cheap. I've got 6lb fireline on it and use 10lb sufix invisiline fluro. I use this for plastics targeting bream and flatty. I bought some ecogear sx40s and will be trying these out on my current combo.

Hey buddy, we pretty much have the same outfit. I just purchased 6lb fireline with 10lb flurocarbon for the leader. I have no idea what sx40s are.

[Blood Knot]

Hey buddy, we pretty much have the same outfit. I just purchased 6lb fireline with 10lb flurocarbon for the leader. I have no idea what sx40s are.

Steze SX40s are a small minnow type hard bodied lure made by Ecogear - very popular with bream luring guys.

Cheers Blood Knot

[steze]

Steze SX40s are a small minnow type hard bodied lure made by Ecogear - very popular with bream luring guys.

Cheers Blood Knot

Thanks for the heads up. Im learning new things everyday. Currently saving up a bit of cash to purchase some lures. Cant wait

[chris268]

get some plastics and jig heads and give it a go.

my first fish on plastics were flathead. they eat almost anything so they would be a good first species to try and target. any plastic that has some sort of tail action would be good. check out the gulp or squidgy range