Slawman

I recently installed a set of guides for my rear keel roller and it has made the world of difference to loading. They are almost the same as what Fab1 has done like in this thread:

That has not been my experience Noel. Same hull shape, one out of aluminium, one out of glass, the glass will ride better in chop, mainly due to the weight. You could probably weigh down an aly boat to get a similar result but that would eliminate one of its key advantages.

For sure, if you had a Punt on your list cross it off.....

The biggest difference I have found after owning and driving a lot of boats is boat hull material (fiberglass or Aly) and length. The heavier and longer the better for ride through chop. Deep V and dead-rise are subtleties that affect handling and ride but not as much as the weight and length. The best boat I have ever driven for "chop" is a 22ft haines formula which was powered by two V8 truck engines (my dads boat). Could be driven almost flat out back from long reef to the heads in a southerly - Not comfortable but possible. Very heavy to tow (3 tonnes) and very thirsty for fuel.... You need to drive them to work out what aspects of performance are important to you.

You are quite correct. My use of the term "west" in this case is a bit loose. I was fishing at Obelisk beach close to middle head. I would not eat anything caught too far upstream beyond the harbour bridge either. Union Carbide has a lot to answer for.... https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fishing/recreational/fishing-skills/fishing-in-sydney-harbour

Interesting you would say that and I would have agreed a while ago however there seems to be a massive difference between manufacturers and the way they mix and match their technology. The Certate is supposed to be almost a Saltiga if you look at the parts but I wonder how much different it would be to fishing the Stradic? Is the extra $300 your are paying for longevity? Reliability? I don't know but I would like to.....!

The 3000 weighs the same as the 2500 which I thought was a bit funny and has the same drag? I have never experienced service from Daiwa but the number of problems others have posted puts me off.... At this stage definitely leaning towards the new Stradic, I will put the 1000 on my list to check, thanks Jon.

What I do like about his reviews is that they are fact based and considered and most of his reel reviews are done after at least a few hours of fishing and a few fish to boot (at least that is what he states). I take no more than that from them. I like the Hull truth forum as well, my google searches often land me there.

I am interested in gear in general and have far to much gear for one lifetime (at least that's what my wife says). I just like good gear and good value and value real world experience and others opinions. Right now I am interested in the new 2019 Stradic FL, probably in the 3000. Comparing it to the 2019 Certate, Sol 3 and matching it up with a 1-3 kilo bream rod for tossing soft baits at structure in Sydney Harbour.

Hello all, I have become quite disenchanted with the number of nonsense product reviews online in general but for the purpose of this post, in relation to spinning reels and rods. How does someone sitting in front of a camera winding the handle of a reel and telling us how good the box looks, how shiny the knobs are and how "smooth" it feels constitute a review? These generally come with a number of links to an e-shop purchasing option... So far I have only been able to find Alan Hawk giving useful information on gear (and this forum also of course). Does anyone have any other suggestions on who is giving actual reviews on gear?

The new FL has "X Protect" which is the only real difference with the SW isn't it?

Good choice Poly. What Rod/line did you match it with ?

Hey Troy, good fun project. Once you are done with your building/renovations take the boat somewhere calm and close to shore for a good few times to test everything out, old boats have a way of failing in the most unexpected ways. When you put the floor back make sure that anything you put under it is easy to access ie. bilge pump. eventually you will need to service it or repair it and you want to make that as easy as possible. Get new good quality batteries if you have not already and install a good isolator switch. If you have the option, mount the battery as high as possible in the boat to keep them dry in the event of a spillage...

Hi Fezza, I have a Formosa 550 with a 115 that suits me just about perfectly in my current situation. I wanted something light that could tow and could be handled solo. It has a cabin so the kids can sit it out on their iStuff if needed. It is a fishing boat primarily and it lets me fish anywhere around Sydney and offshore (weather permitting) pretty comfortably. The ride is rougher than an equivalent fiberglass boat but you can control that somewhat by the way you drive it and the aluminium is much lighter than a fiber boat which is a plus. The only thing i find myself wanting for is an ability to go offshore in rougher weather and the potential to overnight on the boat which I would go to a 7m for. The 115 gets me along at 30 knots and has not missed a beat. I guess the 115 in this size aly boat gets it along roughly the same as a 150 on the same size of fiberglass boat. I would encourage you to do a sea trial with a few models (Aly and fiberglass) if you have the opportunity so you can get a feel for the differences first hand.

There are a whole lot of things it could be however I agree with a few of the other posts to check how the batteries are holding charge. This can be quite a tricky thing to do without the proper gear (shops and mechanics tend to have proper load testers). When batteries fail equipment starts acting up (seems almost random) as the voltage drop and then recovers and then drops again in a fairly short time. Age, how many times they have run down and how they have been kept all impact on the useful life. If it were me I would be sticking in a new set as a starting point....

Thanks Derek, I was actually trying to find your posts as I could recall reading it and thinking at the time what great info. I remember reading some information from an experienced Sydney operator about how he puts the guts on a hook so they stay on but cannot for the life of me find that info. I cannot work out how he did this as all the guts just seem to be soft and similar in consistency whenever I have used guts....I cannot even tell if they make it to the bottom still on the hook.

Thanks Paddy & Mrs Swordfisherman. I found the search on this occasion was not fruitful so I thought something with this title would make it easier for a search in the future perhaps. I have read a lot of information but mostly vague (to me) I get the squid has guts, a head and a hood but exactly how to present and cut is info that would be really helpful. Maybe there are no specific techniques to be aware of. I have personally found that tubes are good guts and all for snapper and kingies but know many prefer the specific cuts mentioned above.

Hi all, I am wondering if I can have some advice on how others cut Squid into baits for Kingfish? In particular how do others put gut or head on the hook? What is the best way to get the gut to stay on? Cut the hood into strips or tubes? How big? ie. how many baits would you get out of a 1kg (20cm hood) Squid?

Hit the water around 8 this morning with my daughter. I like to ask exactly the kids what we are going for before we leave to see if I can get some buy-in (does not always work). Today we were going for Squid and Leather Jacket as my daughter loves both of them fried with a bit of flour. Had a flick along the west side of the harbour for not much then hit a few (3) around the Obelisk; Safe and sound in the tank. Always have trouble dropping these things in as bait......as far as I am concerned they are prime dinner table fare but dropped one at the barrel and lost most of it to pickers before heading to Sow and Pigs for a few Leather jacket. I swear these things are related to Piranha..... Could not raise any Yakkas for the life of me?? Home for a great feed of Salt and Pepper Squid and LJ. Truly underrated these LeatherJacket, what a sweet little morsel and no tiny bones either....

Very happy with mine. Has not missed a beat in over 150 hours.

Some great action there Pickles and some fine eating. Great stuff.

Given your budget, I would go for a Daiwa BG 6500 combined with a Daiwa Saltist Coastal, probably the 70XH. Stick some 30lb braid on there with a 30lb Fluro leader and your ready to rock. You will pick the lot up for between 400 and 450. I am pretty brand agnostic with gear but the BG range is just outstanding value at the moment. It would be worthwhile going into a shop to get a feel for the rods and look over the lures to appreciate the weights you will likely be casting. Most people tend to get a much heavier rod than they really need. I just put a set together a very similar set for my son.

What a great trip, thanks for sharing. I am tempted to do the run myself now.....:)

There's too many options...... I go with a PE3 / 4 rated rod capable of casting up to 100gm jigs and a spinning reel with at least 13 kilos of drag. You want it as light as possible (easy to carry, handle, use) but still with the chance to land a decent kingy. When I am shopping for a spinning set I look at the target species, line weight, jig weight and then look at reels that will put the drag on to warrant the line weight. Beyond that it is how good the sales guy is or how persuasive your mates are to land you with something specific.

I would not serve it as Sashimi on Wednesday. Unfortunately freezing for Sashimi needs to be immediate and fast/specialized (not what you can do with a domestic freezer). Have some Sashimi tonight and take a few selfies.....Freeze the rest and cook some steaks for your guests perhaps.