Beginner Surf Fishing Questions. (NSW, AUS)

[DragAddict8500]

G’day, 

I’ve been interested in surf based fishing & off the rocks fishing for a long time now & after binge watching Briggsy on YouTube I’ve decided to give it a red hot shot. Got some questions to ask the community.

Q1: What Rod/Reel would be ideal for a beginner? Should I purchase a surf combo for learning? (PENN SPINFISHER 650SSM SURF COMBO 10ft or 12ft) or similar?

Q2: I would like to focus on using lures, what LB braid/LB leader should I aim for?

Q3: I’ve heard 9-10ft rods are better for lure based fishing on beaches/off rocks as opposed to 11-15ft rods, is this true?

Looking forward to hearing back from everyone,

Cheers. 

[noelm]

Way too many variables to really make comments. First off, the length of the rod is kind of relative to the conditions, a long rod can help keep line off rocks and out of surf, a shorter rod might be easier to use. Seeing as you're going to start off using lures, you will need a rod specifically for casting distance, so, that should be your first compromise. Most fish you encounter will be medium size (Tailor, Salmon and so on) so a stiff/heavy rod and line should not enter the mix, neither will heavy line or a big reel, none of those fish are going to run 100m so line capacity is not an issue either. Lures will be small lightweight metal or plastics, once again, heavy line will not be needed and will indeed reduce casting distance.

[Green Hornet]

Firstly welcome to the site @DragAddict8500, you’ll find no shortage of good info here, no matter what style of fishing you do.

I don’t fish the rocks these days but do a lot of lure casting from the beach and you are correct in assuming a 9-10 foot rod is ideal, unless you need the extra length to clear any nasty country off the rocks as Noel’s mentioned . A longer rod will tire you out quickly and a shorter rod won’t give you the casting distance you need, so a 9-10 is the happy medium.

My advice when selecting a rod and reel is head into a good tackle store (not a supermarket chain) and talk to the guys behind the counter. Perhaps if you give us an idea of where you roughly are, other than just NSW, someone could recommend a reputable store close to home.

My preference is to fish PE1.5/15lb braid and use lures around 35-50g as these give you good casting distance and enough stopping power to handle any fish you’re likely to hook into on the beach. Go a bit heavier off the rocks, especially if you’re in kings country, anything up to PE5/50lb for those buggers. I do own heavier and lighter outfits, but the above is what I use 90% of the time.

If you’re new to rock fishing, make sure to stay safe, wear appropriate clothing, footwear and a PFD.

Also, up the top right corner of the page is the search function. Take a look as this topic has been covered several times and you’ll find a wealth of information in there specific to your needs.

[slothparade]

For lures I prefer a shorter rod 8-10 ft, as I find they're less tiring to use than a 12ft rod. In saying that, a 12 ft does work but you'd want to be pretty fit to cast that all day. 

Spinfisher surf combos is a great starting combo, that doesn't break the bank. Those reels last for ever and the rod isn't to bad either. 

If you want a lure rod, I'd be looking at a different combo though, I use a battle 2 on a tiapan, found the spinfisher to heavy to use all day especially on a big surf rod also a 12 ft rod becomes a bit cumbersome as you will want to be reasonably mobile. 

Line depends, I like 15-20 lbs mono for general surf fishing, don't know why, just prefered it to braid, though when I'm targeting specific species I'll change to braid. I always preferred to use slightly heavier mono, as I sometimes use heavy sinkers and found that lighter breaks when sending then out. 

For lures I prefer braid, about 20 lbs, with 20-30 lbs leader. 

[noelm]

Very true, weight of the outfit is a big factor, also don't think you're going to catch 20KG Jewfish and Sharks, what you're planning on doing is pretty basic fish. It might not seem like it, but casting for long periods is hard work, even when you're young and fit, a heavy reel and unbalanced rod will see you giving it all away before you even get started.

[DragAddict8500]

Thanks for the speedy replies! These responses have helped heaps!
 

As for my location, I currently live in Belmont, Lake Macquarie/Newcastle NSW - Going to visit the local Tackle World/BCF/Anaconda stores to have a chat with more people & see what they also recommend. 
 

I’m considering purchasing the penn surf combo 10ft rod / 20lb braid / 30lb leader / 30-50g lures. 

[mrsswordfisherman]

29 minutes ago, DragAddict8500 said:

Thanks for the speedy replies! These responses have helped heaps!
 

As for my location, I currently live in Belmont, Lake Macquarie/Newcastle NSW - Going to visit the local Tackle World/BCF/Anaconda stores to have a chat with more people & see what they also recommend. 
 

I’m considering purchasing the penn surf combo 10ft rod / 20lb braid / 30lb leader / 30-50g lures. 

Welcome to fishraider. Members here are happy to help. 
Come back and let us know what you bought 😃

[Bryant fish]

Go to a tackle shop not a chain store one that specializes in only fishing and don't think you will be catching huge fish

[Mike Sydney]

My experience speaking with staff at the “big snake” chain is these are retail workers not anglers - don’t expect great advice there! I have had better luck with the other big store, the Bankstown and auburn locations have enthusiastic and knowledgeable anglers working there but I’ve heard that’s no so at other branches!
 

I’d definitely pop into a dedicated tackle shop first for some more credible advice.

Also, excellent username  @DragAddict8500! Got a chuckle from me. 

[Rebel]

Welcome to the Show.

I go beach fishing & rock fishing a lot.

10' TO12' Spin rod.

4000 TO 5000 reel.

I use a Penn Prevail 2 rod on the rocks.

Beach  11' Dawia over there rod.

I can use both these rods for rocks or beach.

Good luck.

[GoldenHourFishing]

Hey mate

I noticed you are from Belmont, perfect. 

I have a light shore jigging setup that I dont use as much as Id like. Anyway 2 weeks ago I needed to go to HWS in Belmont and I got up super early so I could cast the surf at Blacksmiths at sunrise. 

When I got there the conditions were mint! Almost no wind and hardly any people there. I am also new to surf casting specifically but my setup is perfect for it. 

Anyway I started chucking some nomad 20g ridgebacks. Wasnt long before I hooked up onto my first tailor (Maybe 35cm or so)

Then I got thudded by something with a lot more weight and my drag started screaming, I knew it was a decent sambo. Took me for another 2 runs and I dragged him in. 

I hooked onto another sambo but I went really hard on him and he busted me off (leader snapped) pretty dumb as he had nothing but open space, I could have just tired him out. 

Anyway all up about 5 tailor and one salmon (Maybe 50cm) chucked them all back. 

So much fun on the light gear! And you wont feel wrist fatigue. Just cast as far as you can and rip them in, mix in some rod jerks to make the metal "dart" so it doesnt just look like a straight moving torpedo in the water. 

 

My light shore jigging setup:

Shimano Hardrocker BB S832MH 6-12lb 

18 Shimano Exscence Ci4+ 3000MHD 

Daiwa J braid 10lb

 

Its an 8ft 3 rod, some people might prefer a 10ft, but you can chuck 20-30 gram metals crazy far with like pe0.8. It wasnt until later in the day that the bust ups were way out behind the waves, and no rod and reel would have reached them by then. Anyway Ive got it all on video I might upload to my YT next week. Surf casting is heaps of fun. 

 

[Drunkenfisho]

On 2/15/2023 at 1:29 PM, Bryant fish said:

Go to a tackle shop not a chain store one that specializes in only fishing and don't think you will be catching huge fish

Agreed, big chain stores usually don't have as much good info of the area as the small tackle stores...people from the smaller tacklestores know the areas way better than most of the young employees at your common big chain stores