antonywardle

Fin-Nor LT100 Lethal can winch up the titanic, and you can get one for around $130 I think it is 25 KG of drag and holds 300 yars of 100lb braid I like my one

I heard that some people used to superglue their hook to the back of a crab to keep it alive Not sure if this is true or an urban legend

@Admis I've not seen it written that it has come into affect yet. Maybe take one with you. Most of the links that I've seen posted are to news websites and nothing government. The one government link I found implies that it in now in force and nothing about a warning period, Watersafety NSW

I would guess that the main problem is the way that the law is written and not with wearing life jackets.

I did that. I had a spare cable and attached it to my jumpstarter. Initially I thought I had a dud until as the touch screen didn't work. What you have to do is touch the black connector at the same time, as sitting on the table, there was no earth. It worked well after that. I have a Lowrance Elite 9Ti

Hi @big NeilNot seen any carp, although there is an eel and fresh water crayfish. A bit further down there is mullet too. I did see a blue car fish, that blocked the road yesterday too. They tried to drive though that in the daytime. I could understand it a bit at night, as the lighting is very poor, but in the middle of the day?

we got a little bit of rain on the central coast

I had a bent tip pig stick built for me recently. Its too nice to use. I hear that the big blanks are hard to find these days so if you have some you want to part with, let me know!

Thanks for the info about the PLB. I had been wondering about them as well. cheers

Good replies everyone @Smobaby I'd also heard that, but never found anything offical online. other than to say that they must be replaced. I really can't see how a flare that expired yesterday is an issue. I keep mine up to-date and only show these to anyone who asks to see. My next lot expire in June. @Berleyguts I think you are getting the Beacon registration mixed up with the Epirb battery expiration. You need to reregister your Eprib every two years with AMA. I've now got three listed on there. @wcurrall I ended up going with the GME MT600G (be careful if you ar elooking for one, there is an MT600 no g, so this doesn't have the GPS and is about $60 cheaper) for this reason. I guess, if you need it, then having someone get to within 100m of where you are can only be a good thing. 10 year battery life means it is about $26 a year for the peace of mind. I guess we just need to hope that what they wrote is true. I also looked at some user reviews and found this one: Awesome epirb super fast rescue in 30 minutes when I sank so I only lost 1 leg leg to the sharks if I bought a cheaper one I could have taken longer to find me and I would have lost both legs to the sharks. So I guess the GPS version is the way to go if you want to save a leg!

What model of EPIRB are people going with? I've now got two that need their batteries changed. Thinking of adding another to my collection along with my 12 flares 😉 I've got a GME MT400 and an ACR RLB-40 The GMEMT600G looks ok, and comes with a GPS

Welcome aboard. I think that most of the time, bigger is probably better, particularly if you are heading offshore. Anything over 4.8m means that you have the option of fishing solo with out a life jacket on. A bigger boat means that you might need a bigger tow vehicle. If your trailer has brakes then you'll need a yearly inspection and the rego is about $100 more. A bigger boat may also mean that you have a bigger engine and fuel bill and it may stop you getting somewhere in estuary fishing. Alloy is a bit more forgiving for new boaters hitting something than FG. i have a 5.8 metre second hand StreeFree alloy boat, and i love it. No advice about the differences in your selections, the above is intended to give you extra things to consider after you've decided on your fishing style and have narrowed down your list a bit more. I'm looking forward to seeing what you get and the photo of it!

nice work on doing it yourself!

I don't think that the VSR charges both batterys. The engine charges the first one, and the VSR allows charge through for the second one. My VSR is connected to my starter battery, and when it is charged a little red light comes on and it charges the secondary battery. I leave my 1-2-both switch on 1 which is where the starter battery is. I also have a volt meter on my instrument panel and it changes when this is happening. Do you have a battery charger? If so, connect it to the main battery and then let it run. Once this battery is full, it should then charge your second battery and the VSR charging light comes on. That might help you decide where a potential issue is. The cable that the VSR (maybe 2mm or 4mm) uses is very small, so I don't think you'd have to worry about voltage loss with that. Voltage loss from the battery to the instruments up the front, or if your wires to the engine are long can cause an issue. How old is the outboard? Maybe your alternator is getting a bid sad. Good luck!

I heard that mowong are much better if you leave them whole and take the fillets off without touching the gut lining. I don't find them too bad myself nice catch!