Jack741

There’s also the wreck at Quakers just behind the point that holds yakkas. If you have a sounder you should find it no problems.

Thanks all for your comments/ recommendations - great to get some insight in to peoples experiences with some of these reels. @PaddyT @Nyxy cheers for the insight to downrigging - certainly keen to give it a crack, just need to finish building the base for our Penn Fathom Master downrigger out of ally plate (OEM base plate is roughly $100 AUD for a piece of plastic 🤦‍♂️) @kingie chaser I suppose my reasoning for initially listing these reels was that I don't have all too much experience with Penn & Fin-Nor and was keen to hear opinions on those particular brands as they are not always viewed as the "go to" brands (whether this is for good reason or due to brand loyalty). From some reviews I read (mainly American) the general consensus was that they held their own - no particular report on how they faired when going for Kings (apart from the Fin-Nor Offshore). There is a fair amount of info I've found on the Saragosa VS Daiwa BG vs Slammer 3 debate - would you go for the Saragosa out of those three? Pricing was initially up to $200 - but could probably convince myself to spend an extra $100. May just wait until an 8000 Saragosa comes up for sale. I've seen them go for sub $250 before. Side note - I ended up getting the rod on a 60% off deal, so didn't drop the full amount. Cheers,

Hi All, Hoping to get some advice on a new reel that will be matched to a Daiwa Demon Blood 72MH PE 3-5. This combo will primarily be used for downrigging live squid and yakkas in the hope for a few hoodlums. We are about to setup a downrigger on the boat. I am basically after a tough, no frills reel and am not too concerned about weight as I wont be casting all that much (if at all) with this combo. Have other combo's for casting etc inc. Soccorro 6000 that has handled kings to 90cm+. So far I've got the below reels on my review list (inc. pricing/deals but wont mention where due to forum rules) that I plan to probably spool up with 50lb braid. Penn Spinfisher VI 6500 ($175 inc. 300M Berkley 50LB X9 braid). Maybe 7500 would be better? When downrigging, would a Liveliner version of this reel be better? This appears to be a pretty good deal and the IPX5 rating seems like a clear advantage as the reel will probably cop some spray. Fin Nor Offshore 6500 ($120) - I know one charter boat in Syd uses these. Fin Nor Lethal 60 ($99 inc. Fin Nor Rod) Penn Battle 2 6000 ($110) Pen Battle 3 6000 ($199 for HS model or standard) any clear advantage of a high speed model apart from slight increase in braid capacity & retrieve per crank (quicker to get them away from structure? - I assume retrieve per crank more useful for lure fishing application) Image is from the Penn site showing differences between HS and standard models. At this point in time I think I am leaning towards the Spinfisher. Appreciate any feedback/suggestions/ experience people have had with any of these reels. Cheers!

Good to see the squid are back after the rain! I'll head down for a quick flick hopefully this weekend in between study

They definitely are still around in middle harbour been averaging 2 every session, generally around the 60-62 mark Even in chocolate coloured water

Kings are starting to show up around moorings of Scotland Island, got a couple of fun little rats today on pillies

Thanks mate Nah I trolled it behind the boat doing about 4 knots, didn't spot them before hand but I know they like structure so thought there would be a chance they were hanging around the moorings

Bit of a late report here Headed out with a mate up to Pittwater on Monday (21st) and was on the water at about 10am with a plan to find a nice spot out of the Southerly. On our way I decided to troll my new Rapala CD 11 lure that I had just bought over the weekend. Having never trolled before I thought I may as well throw it out to give it a try. About 3 minutes later, as we passed Royal Motor Yacht Club, zzzzzzzzz my rod buckles over. The next 10 seconds were mayhem, between me trying to get the rod out of the rod holder, my mate scrambling to the back of the boat to steer and the continual Southerly pounding us. With everything under control the fight began, mid way through the fish fell asleep and then sure enough once we saw colour he made a b-line for the bottom. Having not hooked up the sounder yet, I had no clue as to how much depth I had to play with. After a few minutes we got him in the net and into the boat. Both of us were so stoked as its the first legal king either of us have caught! He went 70cm and got turned into some delicious sashimi and dinner for the fam and grandparents Can't wait for summer Yew!

I stay at the South Durras caravan park during Summer so I usually just fish that side but either North or South would be good I pump nippers up near the mouth of the south side and there's heaps of nipper holes up there, the whiting go mad for them I think the lake is currently closed, so it may have filled up a bit but you should still be able to wade out, if not there's plenty of spots to fish from the shore It's a great spot, it's where I got hooked on fishing! Jack

Give Durras Lake a go if you don't mind a short drive Try pump some nippers which is fun in itself Plenty whiting, bream and flathead that will keep the little guy entertained Jack

Yeahhh Old Mate!

I spend two weeks of January down at Lakesea every year. The lake itself is full of fish (flatties, bream, whiting.. etc). Fishing straight behind the caravan park can get you some large flatheads and bream. Further up towards the entrance there are some huge whiting, but be prepared for a strong current as the lake is currently open. I found the most productive bait to be live nippers which can also be pumped in the lake. I went prawning this year as well and got a big bowl full of large prawns... some people were getting a few kilos a night the week before i got there. Beach fishing is also good and there is some deep gutters right out the front of the caravan park (dangerous beach for swimming). At the south end of the beach the headland is often fished by rock fisherman but I've never done it myself so can't comment on how productive the spot is.

Yeah broken spine seems to be the general consensus. Sent an email to Fisheries just then to try and get a definitive answer. I'll post the reply when it comes

No worries I just let him swim away after a few photos His back half seemed much heavier in the water making him swim strangely with his head lifted Had a crap sense of direction as well, swam straight into my sisters leg (que squeals) then practically jumped into my hands haha

Not edited just put up second photo to put the size of fish into perspective