fragmeister

Hi Raiders, You know I think I like getting ready for a fishing trip almost as much as I like the trip itself...well maybe not almost as much but I sure like the anticipation. I am doing that now. I am preparing for an early start this coming Fishday ...er I mean Friday. The boats all fuelled and ready to go, I will prepare food tomorrow and buy a little frozen bait as a standby. I will head off down the Parra at around 3am and expect to be back at around 5pm. I have re-rigged 8 rods and a hand line in anticipation carefully replacing any suspect looking leaders or stripping off the last few meters of line and retying all my knots. I have serviced my gear, sharpened my hooks and inspected every rig a few times over. This is what I am taking. 1) Handline with 6lb line and a small long shank hook - my yakka rig 2) My Sabiki bait rod for when the yakkas are fired up and will take the lures without loading them with bait 3) A spin stick loaded with 3Kg line and terminated in a swivel attached to a little white bait looking metal lure for anything that busts up on the surface. 4) Another little spin stick with my favourite squid jig. 5) A 5- 10 Kg 7 Foot ugly stick fitted with a Shimano Baitrunner, 10KG braid and a 20KG Leader and a two hook rig for live squid 6) Another 5-10kg 7 foot ugly stick pretty much the same but with a single extra strong live bait hook for live yakkas 7) A 15Kg Ugly stick fitted with a shimano TLD15, 20Kg braid and a 30KG leader with an extra strong live bait hook. for those kings who keep busting me off on the pilons. 8) A 3 KG rig as a stand by for tossing soft plastics. 9) Another 3 kg rigged for bait fishing bream and flathead ( when I am having my lunch) My aim it to catch my live bait and target jewies before dawn and kings up until about 10am when they I find they tend to go a little quite. If I see any surface action I am ready to toss the metal lures and later in the day I might just take it easy, burley up and see what comes along. I am fishing by myself after a rough week at the office. I love company but there are times when I just want to be accountable only to myself... and the fish. Luxury.... I am sure many Raiders can relate to this. Wish me luck.

The best part is you stuck to it and didn't give up! I have many a fond memories of fishing from the Jetty that runs along side the baths there at Como. Try late afternoon/early evening a few hours either side of a high tide from the end of the jetty. Cast out towards the marina or moorings. Use light line, a very small sinker, a small baitkeeper hook and some chicken gut. Leave a little slack in the line and they will virtually hook themselves. You will catch some good sized bream. Cheers Jim

Nice fish... didn't take you long to make a mark on the Sydney Fishing scene! You don't miss the Port Phillip Bay snapper? Cheers Jim

Can't agree more Harry, Many years ago I fished the tubes in Jervis Bay I remember dispatching some of the live bait (yakkas mainly) when the fishing was slow and immediately cooking them up in foil on the fire ... The taste and texture would put the best fish shop fare to shame. Cheers Jim

Thanks, So did you guys manage to concentrate on your schoolwork yesterday or did your mind wander off to fishing?

Thanks Buddy, Much as I expected. I have to say every time I duck in and take a look at the "fresh fish" on display I note the poor condition compared to what I am accustomed to by catching my own. Cloudy eyes, bruised flesh most un-gutted and un-bled... not the best recipe for a good feed of fish and goodness knows how old they are. I remember reading once that with the bycatch, loss and wastage of unsold fish only 20 percent of what is caught actual gets sold and eaten. This is a pretty pathetic use of a resource. Cheers Jim

Hi Fishraiders, I often walk by the fish shop on the way to my office...( I figure if I can't go fishing at least I can look at some fish!) and for as long as I can remember I have noticed many fish for sale that are clearly undersized. I assume that commercial fisherman are permitted to keep undersized fish and this is possibly because the capture methods kill the fish anyway but I am not sure. Anybody out there know what rules apply to commercial fisherman in regards to undersized fish? Cheers Jim

From memory, these pictures of birds were taken on Fraser Island. I was doing a family holiday thing and you know what, I didn't wet a line. I just watched ( and swam with) metre plus kingies, huge bluefish and massive mullet. May the gods of fishing forgive me my sins!

Hi Raiders, Took this shot in the harbour while fishing for livies. ...looks like the end of the line for that little fish. Cheers Jim

Thats two extremes if I ever saw them. Dentist one end and fishing the other. Good strategy... and nice result. Cheers Jim

They say that best thing about forums is that it concentrates people with common interests who can relate to each other about common experiences. How true that is. I have a regular Saturday meal with very good friends and my family. We have a good feed, a few drinks and play board game and just shoot the breeze. Sometimes they will say " You look tired Jim... what you been up to? I say, I went to bed at 11:30 and got up at 2:30am to go fishing... The tide was right and I wanted to launch the boat and cruise down the Parra and into the harbour nice and easy , throw a few plastics at the various bridge pilons on the way and get some live bait and be ready for dawn. I fish my usual spots until the fish quieten down a little then I have an explore and try a new place here and there. Eventually I will realise I am hungry and eat a quick sambo ( which tastes fantastic even with the faint taste of fish) . By the time I start to get tired or even think about heading home its 3 o'clock in the afternoon and I seriously entertain waiting for dusk for another quick peak time session. I remember I have guests and head on back up the river during daylight hours . I get home, reverse the boat into the driveway, do the post tip boat maintenance and fish cleaning ( hopefully) bit, have a shower to freshen up, grab a beer and sit down to wait for the visitors. Its about 6.00PM and yep, I am tired but its a good kind of tired. Now the folks at Fishraider will get this and say " Yeah, sounds fair enough" but my long time friends and family will shake their heads and say " You're crazy" Thank god for the forums. Stick at it buddy. Use the depth of knowledge in the forums, and soon enough you will remember the good times that bring you back and catch you more fish. Cheers Jim

I do ok around the rock wall near Luna Park or the Valentia st wharf at Woolwich Cheers

Good work! I am yet to catch a legal snapper inside the harbour this year. Yowie Bay, from a Yak, You guys sure get your fair share of fish.! Cheers

Hi Al fella, Nice part of the world over there at Maianbar. Yaks are always on my radar to give a wide berth... gotta have respect for the quality of fish you guys catch at times. Cheers Jim

Good read and a well considered post. Cheers

Spot on... I should stick to water I know! It's the Wollondilly River.

Thanks guys, Made a little mistake there, its actually the Wombean caves... I'll take along a few lures and give it a shot. Cheers

I think that is a good choice. Century have always made great batteries and for a long time were at the forefront of battery technology in Australia making deep cycle batteries not just for automotive and marine applications but also traction batteries for electric golf carts and forklifts. I wouldn't rule out that there may be cheaper batteries of equal quality but Century have the track record. Cheers Jim

hmmmmm... I guess not! LOL

The voltmeter is an indication that the alternator is doing working and to some degree how well it is working. Alternators actually generate Alternating Current (AC) and this is subsequently converted to Direct Current (DC) ( between 13 and 14.4 Volts depending on the engine RPM) by the regulator and by diodes inside the alternator. If one or more of these diodes goes open circuit it will cause an increase in the DC output voltage which can cook your battery and other sensitive electricals. Poor battery terminal or alternator connections caused by corrosion are also a potential cause of higher alternator voltages so make sure they are corrosion free, cleaned and done up tight. If your Voltmeter reads around 13.0 to 14.4 Volts when the motor is running you can be reasonably confident that all is well. If it reads more a little more , say 15 volts I would confirm everything with an electrical system check because your Voltmeter may not be accurate. If it reads 16 volts or more and used to read 14 Volts then you are in real danger of cooking a battery and things need to be checked out immediately. The NRMA battery replacement and check suggested by OZ_Brett is a good idea and will give you the confidence that both batteries and the charging system are up to speed. If it was a car you just used to go to the corner shop I would whip a battery in it and think no more of it but because its your boat and its no fun getting towed back in I would go that one step more and get it checked out with proper test equipment. Cheers Jim

I am an electronics engineer by trade and worked in the automotive industry for 10 years before moving into computer software. I believe your issue is almost certainly the age of the battery as already suggested by other members. Without seeing your battery it would be likely to be a minimum of 50 ampere hours. Your sounder would be lucky to draw 1.2 amps so the basic formula says 5 Hours X 1.2 amps is 6 ampere hours. Only a poorly charged or dud battery would be flattened by your sounder running for 5 hours. Most marine batteries can be deep cycled around 700 times before they need to be replaced. That can happen over a short or a long period of time but at either extreme, ( all in 12 months or all over 10 years) other factors come into the mix that reduce the 700 deep cycle ball park figure. Its all very scientific and complex really and even with the formal training and industry experience I can't keep up with the latest changes in battery technology. Having said that I do remember the important stuff and the advice given here by the members is very sensible. Replace the battery ( both if they are 10 years old) and get the alternator checked. and... go you for have a dual battery setup!... phew! Cheers Jim

Hi Fishraiders, Going on a camping trip with the family to the Abercrombie caves. We cross the Abercrombie river on the way from memory ( went there 20 years ago). Seem to remember it being quite a small stream with populations of small browns and rainbows. Anyone have any tips for the area? Cheers Jim

Yes , Its at Kendall Inlet. From memory its a single ramp. Cheers

Ah ha! I knew it wasn't just me. Cheers Jim

Somethings never change. I found a set of these in my shed on the week end in my annual ( read every decade or so) clean up which must have been 30 years old if they were a day. I know this because I moved through the same evolution in rock footwear as you by the sound of it. I used to live at Kingsford and fished Maroubra when I used these in my early 20's. Still in the original packaging which, except for the faded colours, is exactly like the packaging in your picture. They had a price tag on that I think reads $8.50. Based on the average wage at the time that was a lot more money proportionally that you paid for yours today. Mind you, I used to wear my rock cleats on Dunlop Volleys which were cheap as chips in those days. Today they are a designer shoe so when you add any of today's sandshoes ( joggers) together it may end up the same cost Ah, the memories, it's enough to make me want to fish off the rocks again.