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marty

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Everything posted by marty

  1. Trolling a pink Micro Mullet in less than 2m of water has always been a great way to find a few while covering some ground. Especially good if the lizards are not responding to plastics.
  2. Welcome Mick. If you are new to offshore, make sure you pick your days as it can be dangerous. Assuming you will be crossing the Seaway, and if so be aware of deadmans bank straight out from the northern wall - waves break there regularly on a good swell. Also, try to pick your tides - run out on a good swell creates some nasty waves. As far as fishing goes, perfect time now till March to chase Mackerel. You can fish Palmy and Mermaid reef (as Kat said) as they are not very far out - although they can be busy on the weekends. 12 and 17 fathom reefs off Southport also get a few. Dollies are wider out. Don't forget your safety gear if going offshore - flares, jackets etc and an epirb if more than 2 nautical miles off shore. Good luck
  3. As already mentioned, try to fish the tide changes as the current will slow - but it always rages through Monaco St so you don't get much slack time. On the run out tide, if you are in a boat fish the corners of the canal that link to the Nerang river - there are some nice eddies there.
  4. I chase Snapper on the reefs off the Gold Coast, but same story, always best bite on first light. Hard to do sometimes if there is a bit of swell as you prefer some light to cross the Seaway. We also usually get a second bite window on the tide change. Haven't tried sunset, early evening yet - just need to find time and good weather window. Marty
  5. marty

    Boat proppeller

    www.propellerrepairsaustralia.com.au 6/48 Johnston St, Southport QLD 4215 Have used this place several times. Prop always comes back like a new one and price is reasonable.
  6. Stainless for me - and as PolyGF said, replace the clamps with stainless too. Done on it my last two boats and no problems once done.
  7. Thanks all - boat sold this morning (not to a member of AFO)
  8. I upgraded a while ago, just never got time to move the Hornet on (plus is a good crabbing/prawning boat). I got a 4.8m Galeforce centre console - more suited to offshore fishing yet still okay to buzz around the Broadwater and rivers on the Goldy. Thanks
  9. 50hp 4-stroke EFI Mercury (440 hours), Electric Start, Hydraulic Trim and Tilt Minn Kota 55hp bow mount Riptide electric motor with Auto Pilot, foot pedal, 110ah Ritar AGM battery Quintrex galvanised trailer, disc brakes, light truck tyres (80% tread), walkway, spare galvanised wheel/tyre Lowrance HDS 5X sounder with transducer, plus LSS-1 structure scan Canvas bimini cover (removable) Under floor fuel tank (approx 50 litres) LED navigation lights, 1 metre high anchor light (removable), under gunwale LED floor lights Extended front casting deck (removable) Swivel bucket seats x 2 (removable) Plumbed bait tank with variable timer switch Sand anchor, chain and rope Electric Bilge pump Safety equipment (2 x lifejackets, 2 x oars) Selling due to upgrade $11,000 ono
  10. I live local to Talley creek and rarely fish it due to a number of reasons. If you are boat fishing there are only 2 ramps and they are a nightmare on a hot weekend. Talley is one of the new spots you can tow tubes and waterskis, so is very popular - even though the allowed tow area is quiet small. Trailer parking is limited too so can be a long walk from the ramp on a busy day. They do get some good whiting in the creek but might be tough during the day on the weekend due to the amount of people, etc. The canals are not a bad spot to chase a Jack - plenty of pontoons to cast to. The upper reaches have some fishy looking spots but limited bank access, and if travelling by boat it is 6 knots most of the way. The GC highway bridge gets fished heavily every night. Plus the end of the rockwall at the mouth always has a few flicking a line.
  11. Mermaid is probably the most consistent reef close the the Seaway, although if you run that far down you may as well join the crowds at Palmy. This year Burleigh Gravel Patch has been better than previous years, especially for Spanish. It also depends on the time of year - the more northern reefs fire later in the season - 12 fathoms and Pinnacles off the Seaway are good in Feb and March - but not everyday as I showed! For the reefs other than Palmy, yes I usually motor around till I find a good show of bait - and also gives me a chance to see if other boats are catching them in certain spots too.
  12. No - all our fish were caught out wider. As you said, it was such a good day we made the call to go wider. Can't tell you the exact spot as it is a closely guarded secret amongst a few close mates, but I can tell you it is around 40m deep (check the first photo for confirmation, plus look at the bait stacked up). I have had jets do a low fly by when fishing up the Pin - blink and you miss them. Never enough time to get the camera out.
  13. Yes Kenne, was certainly a great day on the water. I tried around the Pinnacles area early, but with Mackerel fishing if they don't show up it can be very quiet. That is the main reason I went through the Seaway as it gives a number of options to try different species and techniques. We were on the water till about 10:30 but I don't remember seeing any fighter jets (maybe they went by when we were hooked up haha).
  14. Had some family visiting this week and decided Tuesday was a good forecast to chase a few Mackerel. After convincing them of an early start we crossed the Seaway at first light and headed out the local reefs to chase some Mackerel. After trying a few spots and not seeing one Mackerel boated from any of the nearby boats the pressure was on and a new plan was hatched. Headed a bit wider and decided to bottom bash in the hope of some Snapper. A few undersize fish decided to come aboard then my brother nearly loses my rod overboard as he gets a good hit. After some swearing and a little coaching he manages to pull up a 65cm Snapper. This well and truly upgrade his previous biggest fish of a just legal Bream. Half an hour later and he gets another good hit and again nearly loses the rod overboard. After a decent fight and a couple of good runs he has a 110cm Jew beside the boat and I am thinking to myself “glad I packed the big net”. A pretty successful day and always good to see a non angler get the thrill of fighting a decent fish.
  15. Great lure for Flathead - caught plenty using them. Haven't tried them on many other species yet.
  16. marty

    Leakage

    Good advice so far, and yes if it was me I would be filling the hull with water while on the trailer to see if there are any leaks. As for the bungs, the rubber o-rings that go around the bungs can become dry and crack - check them and if needed you can just replace the o-rings (if you have spares of same size). 160 litres is a lot of water (and weight) - I would be very keen to find out why and how to fix it before I ventured too far in your boat.
  17. marty

    Hairtail

    There was a run of Hairtail in the Broadwater a few years ago - in fact once the word got out they got smashed and were thinned out pretty quickly. Yes they are good eating - which is probably why they got fished so heavily. Such a pretty fish - and a very unique swimming action. Congrats on the capture - and release.
  18. In regards to the sight casting setup, don't forget to consider lure weight range when picking your rod. For Mackerel I commonly spin slugs from 15-45gms. A lot of rods that you may consider will have a max lure range of around 30gms, especially when you start getting into lengths over 7'. When you start frantically casting heavy slugs at tuna busting the surface, you will be happy you have that extra bit of strength in the tip. My preferred rod length for doing this is around 7'6" - long enough to get a good cast, but not too long to be a hinderance in a boat.
  19. Coomera is a good river with plenty of options, but also lots of boat traffic on weekends. The Pin is a much larger area and also has heaps of options - but also busy on weekends. Both are good spots - just depends on what you want to catch. During Summer I would favour the Coomera, especially if you are going to fish night or early morning. Marty
  20. You don't need baitrunners @Hweebe but they are easy to use for this style of fishing. You could always use a basic spinning reel with good drag, and fish it with a light drag setting, then once you hook a fish tighten the drag to the required load. Same result as using a baitunner, but not as clean - and you need to know exactly how far to tighten your drag before you start fishing. Also, these rods are sitting in rod holders - i am not holding them. As I said this is just what I do - everyone out there has their own method and techniques. Some fish whole pillies, some use no wire when the fishing is slow. What works today may not work tomorrow. Bait fishing gets results and you can have a few baits out oat one time, but I love spinning for them. Nothing better than a good cast, fast retrieve and coming up solid to a good fish. You work harder so appreciate each fish more.
  21. Setups and rigs for Mackerel fishing vary from angler to angler - no set rules. And I won't list brands to avoid starting a Ford v Holden debate My bait setups are fibreglass rods 6-7' long, 6-10kg rating, with bait runner reels (approx 250m line capacity and 9kg drag), spooled with 20lb mono. I don't use braid on the bait rods as it gets a bit dangerous when multiple rods go off at once. The rig is a 4/0 octopus hook, with 100mm of 17-30lb multi strand wire and a swivel. I use cubes of pillies no bigger than 50mm and float them out the back of the boat. Often use a float (ballon or foam) on one rig to vary the depth of the bait. My spin setups are 7-8' graphite rods, 5-10kg rating, with a 5000 size reel, spooled with 20-30lb braid and 1m of 30lb leader. Slugs vary in size from 15-45gms and colour changes on the day - white and pink are the most successful. Thanks
  22. Right now Mackerel are firing. Try Palm Beach or Mermaid reef - you don't need GPS marks, just look for the boats! If you want to go to 18's or 24's start with the generic marks to get you in the right area, then spend some time slowly motoring around and watch your sounder. Mark any spots that show good bait and/or sort of structure or small humps. This time of year it is also worth looking at the Seaway Pinnacles - Mackerel showed up there in numbers last season. Again, start with the generic marks and use your sounder. Plenty of structure in this area. Not sure how much fishing knowledge you have but search the internet for what species are caught at different times of the year, and what rigs and techniques are best for each species. Mackerel are generally caught high in the water on unweighted bait rigs ( I like single hooks, small lengths of wire and cubed pillies), whereas Snapper are caught on the bottom using weighted rigs (I like 3 gang rigs with whole pillies). Thanks
  23. First time I have tasted Kingfish and Spanish - so far the Kingfish is the best for sashimi in my opinion.
  24. Magic day on Palm Beach reef this morning - minimal wind and fish played the game. Started early and was second boat on the reef, ensuring we secured the same spot as last week. Some of the astute AFO members may recognise one of the boats in my pic. Action was slow through the morning with the odd fish, but switch was flicked at 6:30am and it was mayhem for 45 mins. We had two triple hook-ups and four double hook-ups which always make us look like amateurs as we dance around the boat. At one stage I was spinning a slug when one of my bait rods went off, so I gave the spin rod to my mate. I wind left handed (like all true right handed lure fisherman haha) so he struggled - and as soon as he got coordinated the line went tight and drag was screaming. I ended up with a good Spotty from the bait rod but my mate kept fishing my spin rod, eventually landing a 110cm Spanish. He claimed it but I am a little dubious as to whose fish it was We managed to land the Spanish, a Kingfish and five Spotties before calling it a day. Our conversion rate was terrible - we must have lost 15 fish this morning. One of the Spotties was lost to a solid Shark that took the fish beside the boat. Anyway, my decision to extend my holidays by one extra day turned out to be a good one. The mackerel mayhem always brings a smile to my face. Marty
  25. I prefer to launch from Currumbin as it is so close (to me and the reef) - Tallebudgera creek is also close but I don't like crossing that bar. It was surprisingly quiet yesterday (30 boats maybe) - on a good day you can expect 80+ boats. I think everyone went the day before because the weather was better.
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