Revan

Mono is better than braid for abrasion so, rock fishing, also it stretches so it's good for slinging heavy weights far and not snapping line, it's a good all round line that is cheap and works, yes braid has a thinner diamter for it's strength but casting distance is most often heavily overrated, but not always.

Ed beat me to it I was just about to mention Dacron line lmao 

Propaganda from those big criminals out there in the trawlers mate, they don't like competition hahaha!! Not that my hand line would be a threat! Hey who knows, I guess some day I'll see but for now I got a bit of online shopping to do and a few test sessions on location.
Cheers mate.

Mm..

Well how much does it cost? according to what I see the annual fee is $341.05c a year which is just 93c a day, surely I could easily make that back by eating the fish I catch, so far I'd probably at a net profit from getting the license so I don't think it's so expensive, in fact I'd view it as a great investment.

The real question is why would I be out on a trawler? I don't have a trawler, my commercial equipment includes a hand line, do they have capitalist monopoly pre-requisites at the fisheries or something?

 

Cheers! I appreciate the heads up.

Guess I'll have to look into a commerical license if I want to use a set line.

Hey there, I live in Brisbane yes, I wouldn't sit around waiting, I'd prefer to come back and check after the tides have shifted, but why do you say that? What's the state of the river? I have read about that biological spill, man they kept that one on the low-down imo.

Phil

That stuff looks right up my alley, it appears to be plenty strong at whatever diameter also and you're right it does seem like it will fit through a common hook, this should do.

'Dead sticking' - thanks, I knew there would of been a word for it! not fishing offshore though, just fishing estuary locations with the tides, so we'll see.

Oh I can handle a little bit of rope burn now and then, just want this stuff to avoid cutting.

Like I said to ellicat I will be fishing from shore mainly in estuary areas, I should of clarified sorry, I believe you're referring to trawling with a surface lure? Not sure. 🙂

 

Hey folks,

Looking to rig up an old school handline with larger fish in mind for passive fishing, no reel.. just hook, line and sinker, lasso style.

Firstly I despise using gloves so I would like to have the line made of that thicker twisted or braided rope like you see on vintage equipment, I want to catch larger fish so I would probably opt for 100lb line, but where can I source this old type of line? Does it have a name?

As for hooks, I assume I would want want a circle hook but I'm not sure how I'd rig it with the thicker line and if it would fit through the eye of the hook etc, perhaps they make hooks with larger eyes but where can I source them? Do they have a name?

As for bait I could just use a fish and call it a day however I was questioning lures, I know typically they need to be actively worked in the water but what about floor dwelling creatures such as, crayfish, crab and octopus? apparently some tournament guys on youtube have great success using soft crab lures with minimal movement, what are your thoughts?


Cheers

Hi all
Today (after yesterday's success) I decided I'd go for another session. Before I start this report (it's not very interesting) I'd recommend you read the last one, Session #59, if you haven't already because at least that one wasn't a donut 😉. I was going to leave at about 1:00PM, as it was overcast so not too hot. The sky had other ideas though, and it starting storming. After the first batch of heavy rain, thunder, and lightning, I made my move with my dad to get to the park.
As I got down there, I saw the usual water dragon, but this time it was seemingly sheltering under the wooden boardwalk instead of staying next to the mangroves. Try and spot it 🤣.

See it?

There!
After I made it down there, (only to be stormed on again). I had caught a glassy, a mullet, and two bream in the cast net. The bream were released, but the mullet and glassy were deployed on the lines. They sure put up a nice and fun tug of war. I love the feeling when you know you've got something good in the cast net!
  
It was raining hard in this pic and I just got a photo of the bream in my bucket - but they were released
After the first cast net throw on the mudflat, I went back to it. I didn't get anything except mud and glassies for the next throw or two, but soon I hit the motherload (after a shelter under a nearby mangrove tree and trying to conserve body heat as it was so cold). It was about 2:45PM, and I felt the tugs in my net. I saw the flash of silver, and while a ocuple lucky buggers got away, I brought up 10 or 12 12-18cm mullet. Yay! That's live bait for the day covered. 

It was a welcome surprise as I wasn't expecting it!
I changed bait on the line I caught the salmon in the last session to a poddy mullet, and the salmon line to a bigger mullet (well actually it had a mullet from the throw with bream). I decided to keep the 8' rod with a glassy, in hope of a bream munching down on it. I moved this rod from out the front into the pylons to try and maximise bites. The storm had well and truly passed now (No, not the footy team) and while I was netting another fella rocked up. He was very friendly to me, and after we introduced ourselves to one another we started chatting. His name was Michael - very nice! 🙂. He said he was just going out for a nice arvo fish and came across this spot on Google Maps. He told me he doesn't do too much fishing (commonly with his mate) but was liking it and was even thinking about a kayak. He had one line with prawn and the other with a plastic, so I gave him some advice on where he could flick (around structure for a possible flathead, bream, or cod) and general fishing talk about the area. 
It was still really quiet, with the only action on the rod tips being from the livies (they were that lively haha). Michael got a hit on his line, but unfortunately the fish spat the hook before the hook was set in properly. The day was really quiet from here on, with me doing numerous throws of the cast net, chatting away to a bunch of different people, bait checking and untangling the livies, and watching/chatting to Michael (seeing as though he got a couple more hits).  
A bit past 5:00PM, my mum and dad came down to get me. I let the smaller mullet go, and kept the ones that were more suitable to shark bait. I was a bit disappointed with the session, but it may just be another 30 before I get my next salmon. It was good fun overall, and I hope you enjoyed the report. Thanks for reading, and sorry for any spelling errors. Here are the stats of the report - 
Stats of Trip - 
Tide: Low, 12:00PM, .6M, High, 6:35PM, 2M
Moon Phase: Waxing Gibbous, so not too much run
Fish caught: Squat
Bait caught: Prawns, mullet, glassies
Bait used: Live prawns, mullet, dead herring, glassies
Air Pressure: 1010.7
Humidity: 87%
Rain: 37.8mm
Weather: Stormy, Cloudy, Wet, Humid
Tackle used: 12lb, 14lb, 30lb braided mainlines, 20lb, 30lb fluorocarbon leader, 80lb mono trace, size 2 and 6 bean and ball sinkers, 
Overall success rate: 15% - at least I got some bait
Cheers Hamish 🙂 
P.S. Sorry for any errors 

Good shark baits!

Revan, the main defining feature of a 'commercial' fisherman is that they are trying to catch fish in bulk and selling it - so just leaving a set line out is not a commercial fisherman, simply a recreational fisherman.
If you want to do that then great, I'd love to hear some stories. But I'm very surprised you get a license that cheap. Normally someone would own the license and you would work as deckhand on there boat and work your way up.
Guess I was wrong - sorry.
Cheers Hamish 🙂 

If I understand what you have said here, then you would be breaking the law by using a "set line". Here is an excerpt from the Qld Recreational fishing rules and regulations :-

Fishing equipment - Fishing Lines - Tidal water

 A cross line, drum line, free-floating line or set line is NOT included as a fishing line.
 You must be present with the line at all times.
Whoops - Ellicat beat me to it while I was cutting & pasting.
 
 
 

You can't have set lines in tidal waters -
https://www.qld.gov.au/recreation/activities/boating-fishing/rec-fishing/rules/equipment

You might be thinking about Braided Dacron line.

1. No, it is not stupid. EG You're running 12 leader and trace for flatties, then decide to chase bream. I would just change my trace to a lighter line. (Actually I couldn't be bothered but it's just an example).
2. Don't know. Don't use it.
3. In addition to Revan's comment, when fishing light in shallower water where there's not much difference in feeling a bite between mono and braid. EG Whiting in 2 metres of water using 6lb.
4. If it ain't broke don't fix it. If you'd like to try something different - For hooks I use a locked bloodknot or a uniknot. For swivels I use a Jansik knot.

Mono is better than braid for abrasion so, rock fishing, also it stretches so it's good for slinging heavy weights far and not snapping line, it's a good all round line that is cheap and works, yes braid has a thinner diamter for it's strength but casting distance is most often heavily overrated, but not always.

In that case it may be a bit more likely you'll have success on live baits, like mullet and herring. Keeping a handline our the back like that could mean a threadfin salmon, jewfish, big flathead, or even a big cod depending on where you're fishing 🙂 
Cheers Hamish

That stuff looks right up my alley, it appears to be plenty strong at whatever diameter also and you're right it does seem like it will fit through a common hook, this should do.

'Dead sticking' - thanks, I knew there would of been a word for it! not fishing offshore though, just fishing estuary locations with the tides, so we'll see.

Oh I can handle a little bit of rope burn now and then, just want this stuff to avoid cutting.

Like I said to ellicat I will be fishing from shore mainly in estuary areas, I should of clarified sorry, I believe you're referring to trawling with a surface lure? Not sure. 🙂

 

Are you talking about that Venetian blind cord type stuff ? You should be able to pick it up at blind shops or somewhere like Spotlight.
I imagine it'd burn your hands on a good fish if you couldn't hold it firm. The size hooks you would use would have a big enough eye, I'd imagine.
You must be fishing offshore, so 'dead sticking' a soft plastic is definitely a successful method.