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Jewfish Tactics


King slayer

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  • 3 weeks later...

some great info here,

last few nights ive been targeting jewies,

have had 2 rods out one with a yakka the other squid strip, using about a 30/40lb trace with 5/0 hook on the strip and double snell for the yakka.

funnily enough the one time i did land a 60cm specimen the other night, it was on another light rod with 10lb line that i threw out with a 4/0 and squid strip just for the fun of it. seems lighter tackle works best.

fish was caught an hour after full tide at night.

have been told low tide is best, but that may be for the bridge i was targeting.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Some excellent info in these posts:

I am a big fan of Geoff Wilson’s assessment of Mulloway fishing :)

This opening paragraph on a book he wrote about Mulloway fishing sums it up beautifully for me….

“Most people who go fishing are unlikely to catch a large Mulloway. This is because Mulloway, particularly large Mulloway, are difficult to catch. To have a realistic chance of catching a big Mulloway, it is important to target them specifically, at least for a period of several months, putting aside your other fishing pursuits while you do so….”

And there's this classic line:

" What often happens, is that the angler who, after reading something along these lines, sets out to fish for big Mulloway. He goes to the trouble of either catching his squid, or other fresh bait that day, arrives on a location to find other anglers are catching Salmon, Tailor, or whatever, and abandons the big Mulloway project altogether to get into the action........This angler is not ready for Mulloway fishing..."

If you ever come across his book called Bream, Flathead & Mulloway And How To Catch Them, I highly recommend anyone wanting to catch Jewies grabs it, as the Mulloway section alone is excellent with words of wisdom and puts it all into perspective, Mulloway fishing that is, coming from a fishing legend with quite a few big Mulloway under his belt, let alone all the knots he’s shown us…

Cheers,

Spizza

Edited by spizza
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Hi everyone,

I'm new to fish raider and I got to say thank you to all the threads posted, I'm taking notes and trying to put them to practie from all I read whilst going for my first jewie ....... I'm heading out this saturday night for another crack and thanks to all the advice here I'm feeling a tad more confident than usual hahaha.

I'll keep you all posted and thanks again.

Kev.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I went a few days ago to Port Kembla just off the rocks at the coal terminal and got a Jewie at 10am which i thought was an odd time ?

All i used was my main line (30LB) through a large sinker ( so the sinker can move up and down the line freely)

a wire leader with snap swivel tied straight on about 30cm length and a size 4/0 suicide hook

had a squid head on and just left it sitting on the bottom for a few minutes and bang rod almost snapped in half (only using cheap gear)

and it was away .... was a good fight and a tough fish

Had never caught one before so was exciting none the less for an amateur fisherman , guessing it was about 55cm or so

180076_195582937133249_100000446321948_644161_7104161_n.jpg

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hey Raiders,

The info on this thread is great. Espeacially for me as im new to chasing jew's (started 2 weeks ago) and so far no luck. Well we have caught 2 jew's 1 of 5kg and the 2nd of 6.5kg's. Only problem was it was caught on my mates rod who I fish with. Yet not on mine. I dont think im doing anything WRONG but i know i can improve my technique some how to make my hook up rate just that little bit better.

I currently use a 12ft Platinum Ugly stick with a Daiwa Saltist 6500H spooled with 550m of 50lb Suffix Braid ontop of that i use about 2 - 3 metres of 80lb Fluro Carbon leader (its surprisingly thin for how heavy it is). I use this with a running anchor sinker with a slide, from the swivel infront of the slide i usually have about a metre of leader that goes to a 5/0 - 6/0 Octopus Circle Hook. I dont use snell rigs as yet because i cant tie them very well, but my mate has been using the same setup and has been picking up some good quality fish. Ill usually slap on a freshly caught squid or live squid and if thats not around live yakka or butterflied yakka ! I get a good cast out and let it sink, tighten up the slack and wait for the bite. Does it seem that Iam doing something wrong? Or is it that I just have to put in the hours and the fish will come. My mate who i fish with has been fishing for jew's since he was little and knows everything about them. But he cant see me doing anything wrong, he just tell's me patience, but its getting to me now that ive been out about 9-10 times in the last 2 weeks and the most ive had is 2 bust off's. One was on a live squid which got smashed and then snapped off on maybe a rock im guessing. 2nd bust off was when i had live yakka on and had a huge run then the hooks pulled so dissappointed. Can anyone tell me if iam doing something wrong or is it just a waiting game for these illusive fish.

Any help at all will be highly appreciated!

Also ive attached a picture of the 6kg jewie my mate pulled in the other day underneathe the harbour bridge, lol he's lucky though cause if I wasnt there to bring it in and net the fish, he would never have landed it. So technically does that mean I half caught it lol ?

Cheers Raiders,

Mr.KingSpooled

post-18263-028614200 1300335923_thumb.jpg

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Hey Raiders,

The info on this thread is great. Espeacially for me as im new to chasing jew's (started 2 weeks ago) and so far no luck. Well we have caught 2 jew's 1 of 5kg and the 2nd of 6.5kg's. Only problem was it was caught on my mates rod who I fish with. Yet not on mine. I dont think im doing anything WRONG but i know i can improve my technique some how to make my hook up rate just that little bit better.

I currently use a 12ft Platinum Ugly stick with a Daiwa Saltist 6500H spooled with 550m of 50lb Suffix Braid ontop of that [b]i use about 2 - 3 metres of 80lb Fluro Carbon leader [/b](its surprisingly thin for how heavy it is). I use this with a running anchor sinker with a slide, from the swivel infront of the slide i usually have about a metre of leader that goes to a 5/0 - 6/0 Octopus Circle Hook. I dont use snell rigs as yet because i cant tie them very well, but my mate has been using the same setup and has been picking up some good quality fish. Ill usually slap on a freshly caught squid or live squid and if thats not around live yakka or butterflied yakka ! I get a good cast out and let it sink, tighten up the slack and wait for the bite. Does it seem that Iam doing something wrong? Or is it that I just have to put in the hours and the fish will come. My mate who i fish with has been fishing for jew's since he was little and knows everything about them. But he cant see me doing anything wrong, he just tell's me patience, but its getting to me now that ive been out about 9-10 times in the last 2 weeks and the most ive had is 2 bust off's. One was on a live squid which got smashed and then snapped off on maybe a rock im guessing. 2nd bust off was when i had live yakka on and had a huge run then the hooks pulled so dissappointed. Can anyone tell me if iam doing something wrong or is it just a waiting game for these illusive fish.

Any help at all will be highly appreciated!

Also ive attached a picture of the 6kg jewie my mate pulled in the other day underneathe the harbour bridge, lol he's lucky though cause if I wasnt there to bring it in and net the fish, he would never have landed it. So technically does that mean I half caught it lol ?

Cheers Raiders,

Mr.KingSpooled

Hi Mr KingSpooled

I rather like your idea of using an overhead reel and rod combo such as that particular model Diawa reel matched up with a rod such as the top of the line Ugly Stik 12 foot platinum model for your landbased work. I usually run a combination of overheads, non casting Alveys and spinning reels in my side console boat which are matched up with U.S. model Ugly Stik Tiger Rods and also their sensitive 25lb U.S.Bigwater models for that little bit of sporty fun that goes hand in hand with using larger baits on 80lb braid main line and 60lb leader. In saying 60lb leader my friends and I dropped down from 80lb leader due to the fact that the 80lb was too thick in guage in the readily available brands such as Jingkai, Black Magic and Shogun and the baits were not being hit by jew when one would think they should have been given the same attention as the outfits that used 60lb instead of 80 or even 100lb which is often used by others fishing around rocks, wrecks and structure etc

When talking jew rods in my opinion everyone should include overheads in their rod and reel supply due to the size of the bait and the size of the fish that they a likely to encounter. I use a couple of 9 and 10 foot U.S. model Bigwater rods as boat rods but I generally use these as range finders on non casting 725 Alveys and Diawa overhead reels which can be spooled up with several hundred metres of braid line to allow the livie to swim off directed into the current whilst holding the running snapper lead in my hand and allowing it to catch up later by dropping it into the water as the bait drifts towards a distant pylon or structure to cover an area where the boat may be anchored well back from etc.

As to using circle hooks on jewfish we tried doing that up in Ballina when they first started using them to "gently" catch and release Tuna a big brother thing to protect Tuna Stocks. Our catch rates were well down on others who opted to use octopus hooks or standard J hooks. The reason that circle hooks are a big no no for jewfish is simply that jewfish have a hollow cavity mouth and a circle hook can be dislodged from the front of the mouth of a jewfish far too easily and as such is not really going to be a confidence booster for anyone aware of these shortcomings at the start of a jewfish session.

After trying to straighten the points on the circle hooks unsuccessfully we ended up vowing never to use them on any species and using circle hooks on any specimum has now become a confidence thing to my Ballina friends as well.

It would be a good idea to use fluro carbon monofilament line from the water level down and just drop the bait over the back of the boat into the current and let it float off as I described above - that way you wont have the problem of the braid to flurocarbon knot catching in the guides and after all fluro carbon leader negates line visilbilty and has become very popular and is certainly a big enough seller to warrant the benefits of using it. As to hook size on your two hook rig, your 6/0 5/0 combination is fine but don't be afraid to use 7/0 or 8/0 for the bottom hook and 10/0 for the top hook i.e. the first hook tied which becomes the tail hook for larger baits and holds the shank of the bottom hook and the connecting leader between the hooks down onto the body of a live bait so as to provide a head taker such as a jewfish enough room to swallow the bait without running into an upright shank and a leader line which is otherwise angled directly back to the rod tip and particularly so that you can have your bait swimming away from you in situations other than when trolling or drifting while letting out line and pausing your bait periodically.

Hope this information is of some help to you.

Cheers

jewgaffer :1fishing1:

By the way Mr KingSpooled I notice you live in the south west and if you would like to send my friends Johnny Doi aka fisher doi and Joey aka Joco on Fishraider a pm and arrange with Joey to bring Johnny up to my place in Campbelltown for a visit one Saturday I would be able to go through quite a lot of jewfish catching methods with you and the others at the same time. Johnny and Joey have fished together landbased in the past and attended a reunion of old friends at my place in Campbelltown late last year but haven't had a chance to come up and catch up on our fishing as we had planned and have a few sessions in my boat which being a side console can fish 4 people no problems but as far as getting up to my place for a get together on fishing for jewfish Johnny Doi does not have a car licence at the moment.

Edited by jewgaffer
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Hi all,

I love how so many have contributed to this, its cool.

A few things have come to light on the subject for myself and good fishing buddies and I was wondering if any of you had something to add to these:

1. I catch jewies semi-regularly form the boat in my usual waterways, doing more or less the same thing I have done for a while now. Fish with squid just caught, maybe a yakka, tailor or mullet just for variety; Always around moorings, drop offs, reefs in sheltered deepish water (between 6m and 22m depending on the area, but usually the deepest part of the the immediate area.

Now this is all fine and it works..for school jew. I am still rather keen for BIG jew, but haven't cracked the meter yet.

I have heard some interesting theories on fishing shallow areas of tidal creeks and sandflats etc in expectation of big jew, but I have been reluctant to give it much of a go.

Anyone have any experience with getting Big jew on any particular method or type of location?

2. I have just about completely thrown the tide change theory out the window, having caught many more jew on sunset/sunrise, usually hours away from any tide change.

On the beach it seems the general action heats up on the rising tide about half way up and then dies off completely about an hour to half hour before the tide change where we fish, and quite consistently too. Mind you only a smattering of jew have ever graced our presence on the beach, so its hard to say if they also fit the category. Most captures are salmon, sharks, flatties, tailor and occasional suicidal bream who eat live poddies on 10/0 hooks! It does happen.

What do you guys reckon?

Dave

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Hi all,

I love how so many have contributed to this, its cool.

A few things have come to light on the subject for myself and good fishing buddies and I was wondering if any of you had something to add to these:

1. I catch jewies semi-regularly form the boat in my usual waterways, doing more or less the same thing I have done for a while now. Fish with squid just caught, maybe a yakka, tailor or mullet just for variety; Always around moorings, drop offs, reefs in sheltered deepish water (between 6m and 22m depending on the area, but usually the deepest part of the the immediate area.

Now this is all fine and it works..for school jew. I am still rather keen for BIG jew, but haven't cracked the meter yet.

I have heard some interesting theories on fishing shallow areas of tidal creeks and sandflats etc in expectation of big jew, but I have been reluctant to give it much of a go.

Anyone have any experience with getting Big jew on any particular method or type of location?

2. I have just about completely thrown the tide change theory out the window, having caught many more jew on sunset/sunrise, usually hours away from any tide change.

On the beach it seems the general action heats up on the rising tide about half way up and then dies off completely about an hour to half hour before the tide change where we fish, and quite consistently too. Mind you only a smattering of jew have ever graced our presence on the beach, so its hard to say if they also fit the category. Most captures are salmon, sharks, flatties, tailor and occasional suicidal bream who eat live poddies on 10/0 hooks! It does happen.

What do you guys reckon?

Dave

Dave long time no see mate! I'll have a chat to Brett and tee up a session for the three of us- we'll see if we can dong a few bigguns on the head this winter!

Cheers

Musty

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Hi Mr KingSpooled

I rather like your idea of using an overhead reel and rod combo such as that particular model Diawa reel matched up with a rod such as the top of the line Ugly Stik 12 foot platinum model for your landbased work. I usually run a combination of overheads, non casting Alveys and spinning reels in my side console boat which are matched up with U.S. model Ugly Stik Tiger Rods and also their sensitive 25lb U.S.Bigwater models for that little bit of sporty fun that goes hand in hand with using larger baits on 80lb braid main line and 60lb leader. In saying 60lb leader my friends and I dropped down from 80lb leader due to the fact that the 80lb was too thick in guage in the readily available brands such as Jingkai, Black Magic and Shogun and the baits were not being hit by jew when one would think they should have been given the same attention as the outfits that used 60lb instead of 80 or even 100lb which is often used by others fishing around rocks, wrecks and structure etc

When talking jew rods in my opinion everyone should include overheads in their rod and reel supply due to the size of the bait and the size of the fish that they a likely to encounter. I use a couple of 9 and 10 foot U.S. model Bigwater rods as boat rods but I generally use these as range finders on non casting 725 Alveys and Diawa overhead reels which can be spooled up with several hundred metres of braid line to allow the livie to swim off directed into the current whilst holding the running snapper lead in my hand and allowing it to catch up later by dropping it into the water as the bait drifts towards a distant pylon or structure to cover an area where the boat may be anchored well back from etc.

As to using circle hooks on jewfish we tried doing that up in Ballina when they first started using them to "gently" catch and release Tuna a big brother thing to protect Tuna Stocks. Our catch rates were well down on others who opted to use octopus hooks or standard J hooks. The reason that circle hooks are a big no no for jewfish is simply that jewfish have a hollow cavity mouth and a circle hook can be dislodged from the front of the mouth of a jewfish far too easily and as such is not really going to be a confidence booster for anyone aware of these shortcomings at the start of a jewfish session.

After trying to straighten the points on the circle hooks unsuccessfully we ended up vowing never to use them on any species and using circle hooks on any specimum has now become a confidence thing to my Ballina friends as well.

It would be a good idea to use fluro carbon monofilament line from the water level down and just drop the bait over the back of the boat into the current and let it float off as I described above - that way you wont have the problem of the braid to flurocarbon knot catching in the guides and after all fluro carbon leader negates line visilbilty and has become very popular and is certainly a big enough seller to warrant the benefits of using it. As to hook size on your two hook rig, your 6/0 5/0 combination is fine but don't be afraid to use 7/0 or 8/0 for the bottom hook and 10/0 for the top hook i.e. the first hook tied which becomes the tail hook for larger baits and holds the shank of the bottom hook and the connecting leader between the hooks down onto the body of a live bait so as to provide a head taker such as a jewfish enough room to swallow the bait without running into an upright shank and a leader line which is otherwise angled directly back to the rod tip and particularly so that you can have your bait swimming away from you in situations other than when trolling or drifting while letting out line and pausing your bait periodically.

Hope this information is of some help to you.

Cheers

jewgaffer :1fishing1:

By the way Mr KingSpooled I notice you live in the south west and if you would like to send my friends Johnny Doi aka fisher doi and Joey aka Joco on Fishraider a pm and arrange with Joey to bring Johnny up to my place in Campbelltown for a visit one Saturday I would be able to go through quite a lot of jewfish catching methods with you and the others at the same time. Johnny and Joey have fished together landbased in the past and attended a reunion of old friends at my place in Campbelltown late last year but haven't had a chance to come up and catch up on our fishing as we had planned and have a few sessions in my boat which being a side console can fish 4 people no problems but as far as getting up to my place for a get together on fishing for jewfish Johnny Doi does not have a car licence at the moment.

Hey mate,

The only 1 thing i might have got you mixed up with is the use of overhead reels. I DO use overhead reels, but im not the greatest angler with an overhead in my hands, so the only overheads i use are for boat setups. The actual Diawa Reel I was talking about is a 6500 Size Spin reel. Its actually made for jiggin with a 7.5:1 ratio or something close to that. The only reason i dont use my TLD25 via land based is because i cant cast them, im only new to overheads so havent really used them except on charter boat's which where simply a matter of dropping the line to the bottom without causing a major bird's nest pull it up 1 metre and wait. Simple i know but it just mean's ive never actually attempted to cast with this reel. But basically my setup is a 10ft surf rod with medium action and 6500 size jiggin reel spooled with 50lb braid. Yeah recently been doing some shopping and i got 2 different types of leader. 60lb Mono in Black Magic (tackle shop ran outta fluro carbon) and i also got 50lb Penn Mono (same situation, no flurocarbon left), so on my next outtings i will be using these leaders. Only issue is the 60lb Black magic leader is very similar in guage and limber as the 80lb fluro leader. Same with the penn 50lb mono leader, just not as flexible, but im guessing just that little bit of a difference could mean fish or no fish true. Iam actually learning atm how to tie snell rigs, and its coming along great,so that isnt an issue no more. Yep i understand exactly where you are coming from when you say the circle hooks dont stick. Thats exactly when i hooked up on that good fish but it ended up popping the hooks, I used circle hooks that night. So ill be looking more towards the good ol suicide's in the 5/0,6/0,7/0,8/0 and also the live bait hooks ! Ive got all these hooks in brand new sealed packets in my tackle box, but i just left them as i strictly vowed to circles. Pssht epic fail that was. Ok so new game plan, smaller leader, no circle hooks, snell rigs. Im sure something good will come of this.

And yes i do live in the south west. Yeah coming up to your place and learning some new stuff and having a fish would be awesome. Yeah I can get onto them and ask if they would also like to come down. Well ol mate is like me then, lost my license for over 6 years, spewing. But yeah if we do organise a time and date and i can get my missus to drive me down and if Johnny and Joey dont live to far away i can always pick them up and we can all come down together. Well Ill put through a pm to the guys, but if you can give them a heads up so they dont think im just a random asking them to come out with me that would be awesome.

So hopefully I will be able to meet you soon and learn some good knowledge and skills.

Cheers for all your help matey,

Jez

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Hi all,

I love how so many have contributed to this, its cool.

A few things have come to light on the subject for myself and good fishing buddies and I was wondering if any of you had something to add to these:

1. I catch jewies semi-regularly form the boat in my usual waterways, doing more or less the same thing I have done for a while now. Fish with squid just caught, maybe a yakka, tailor or mullet just for variety; Always around moorings, drop offs, reefs in sheltered deepish water (between 6m and 22m depending on the area, but usually the deepest part of the the immediate area.

Now this is all fine and it works..for school jew. I am still rather keen for BIG jew, but haven't cracked the meter yet.

I have heard some interesting theories on fishing shallow areas of tidal creeks and sandflats etc in expectation of big jew, but I have been reluctant to give it much of a go.

Anyone have any experience with getting Big jew on any particular method or type of location?

2. I have just about completely thrown the tide change theory out the window, having caught many more jew on sunset/sunrise, usually hours away from any tide change.

On the beach it seems the general action heats up on the rising tide about half way up and then dies off completely about an hour to half hour before the tide change where we fish, and quite consistently too. Mind you only a smattering of jew have ever graced our presence on the beach, so its hard to say if they also fit the category. Most captures are salmon, sharks, flatties, tailor and occasional suicidal bream who eat live poddies on 10/0 hooks! It does happen.

What do you guys reckon?

Dave

G'day Dave,

Great post indeed. 29000+ views speaks for itself

As a relatively new inductee into the 1m club, I can't speak with great authority. We have both fished the same spots in the same waterway (in the same boat at the same time even), for many hours and I reckon Middle Harbour is not much of a holding ground for big jew. There are plenty of schoolies in the system but I have only hooked up twice on big fish there (and lost them both!). I would say the beaches are a more likely spot to crack a big fish. I would say the importance of tidal flow is strictly relative to the specific spot due the the speed/power of the current and the nature of the bottom (depth, structure etc). The water in MH is relatively slack (compared to the Hawkesbury or a few other spots) and tidal flow is less important there, particularly in the deeper spots. That said, the spot I can most reliably catch school jews at the right time of year fires for 2 hrs before the top of the tide and shuts down 1-2hrs into the runout. Combined with a good high pressure system and low evening autumn light, it has been very consistent.

My beach fishing experience has generally been that most of the action has come on the run up tide, up to and including the top of the tide. There has nearly always been tailor about when I have caught jews and I love chucking a butterflied fish or just a head with guts hanging out and blood and oil washing into the suds.

My advice for catching a 1m+ jewie (for what it's worth) is either keep hitting the beaches or consider fishing the Hawkesbury and try to hook up with someone you know has pulled big fish from the river. I have seen 3 good fish pulled in (13-24kgs) right alongside my boat by a member and an ex member of this site both of whom have given me great advice (not to mention the one and only Jewgaffer! Great to see you back :thumbup: ). There are sacrificies though especially for you as it is a longer drive to get there, you need to put in longer hours and it is a much more open waterway to fish in a tinnie so much less comfortable. There is a hell of a lot of water to get to know as well. The person I regard most highly as a producer of big jews admits it is a numbers game and spends 3-4 days on the water with sleeps in the cabin between sessions. There are probably even better fishos out there who have learned to narrow the windows though. I don't buy the statement that the pros have destroyed the river. I would fully expect it to produce less fish and less big fish than the good ole days (even more so since the pros that were kicked out of the harbour moved their operations up there) but there are still good fish in the system. It is just a long learning curve to gain the know-how.

Good luck and PM me if you want any specifics (except for my special spot as it is secluded and sentimental and I don't tell anyone!). I have heard whispers of some big jew having been caught in my very local waterway up here on the central coast (albeit from the guy who sells me bait). I hope to be able to offer more and better advice soon. But summing up, the bottom line for me is that the broad theories (tide changes/time of day, etc.) are fine and generally true but the fishermen who regularly produce the goods rely on an intimate knowledge of a particular spot/spots. The right spot and the specific method for that spot is the most important factor.

PS

I didn't touch on bait but all the old sayings are surely true and no secret. Fresh/live is best and big baits catch big fish are both well worth keeping in mind. My one and only big jew was caught using a live 30cm tailor and 2x10/0 hooks. It is hard to imagine a big predator chasing a small yakka or even small squid for a meal, though i am sure not unheard of. I am not entirely sold on the theory of squid is king and everything else is substandard. No doubt it is a great bait but I love to send down an offering that is a bit out of place. A slimie or pilchard caught somewhere and used as live or butterflied bait somewhere else. The previously mentioned producer of big fish uses only cut baits (butterflied yakkas and slimies). They need to be changed regularly too to present as fresh. (this does entail a lot of bait fishing and the death of quite a few baitfish for little result often)

PPS

These ramblings (bought on by procrastination) weren't really meant as advice for you Dave. I know you know your stuff and have fished the Hawkesbury. Just my aquired wisdom (probably worth 2c) from having a few years on the water and having bagged a reasonable tally of jew. To anyone reading this hoping for their first jew, you have got to get obsessive and be willing to spend hours on end, remaining as observant as possible to build up the knowledge. I read great advice in a book (by Geoff Wilson I think); that being pick a spot you know has produced fish (actual recent verifiable reports in the genuine location, not just rumours of some guy catching a monster in a place he probably lied about in the first place) and fish it 10 times. Better yet, get a mentor and fish with him asking as many questions as he can bare to listen to. It is a long and sometimes weird journey but deeply rewarding when it all comes together.

Edited by humesy
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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi Raiders,

I know a lot of us are on a mission to get that whopper Jew, and some of us who are just cracking the code are just trying to get Jew on a semi regular basis. I'm sure most will agree that Jew a very rewarding and also at times (and for the same reasons) very frustrating target.

The only way i have managed to catch a few is by taking little bits of info from everyone and every source I can find, and just putting the pieces together till they fit, and of course putting in the time.

So.. my point is I propose to start a thread here and now where we can all enter in our little bits of knowledge, for those inclined to share, and from it we can mutually benefit. I DO NOT propose to elicit secret spots, as I believe these fish deserve the respect they have earned from their elusive nature. However from learning about specific techniques and types of water to fish, we can all up the enjoyment factor of the sacred Jewie quest.

I'll start by sharing what I know from my own experience and I hope some others can do the same.

My learnings so far, based on limited experience are as follows:

I have caught all of my (3) Jewies this year in Middle harbour. One in very deep water on the channel edge at high tide in around 22m , and two from shore in a hole around 4-6m deep at low tide. All were hooked within 1/2 hr after the tide turn or there abouts. All fish were caught at or just before day break.

I have caught one 60cm size on a defrosted, but recently caught squid head on the bottom, which when gutted, had my yakka in his belly that was stripped off the hook not long before his capture.

One from shore (69cm) was taken down by a half squid, again caught and frozen earlier, and my biggest and most recent on a 7 inch white gulp jerk shad in the same spot, before day break.

The two in the shallow water did not swallow and run with the bait, but just tapped at it and had to be struck while chewing to be hooked.

My basic method for fishing the plastic is to use about 1/8th to half ounce head, with double lift and drop all the way back to the shore or boat. Similar technique to flattie fishing, and they like to jump on too!

I have been recently trialling the gulp wriggler grubs in the largest size, and I think the jewies will find it hard to resist one of these, but time will tell.

I have had a few go's at the beach recently, so far resulting in on pulled hooks and one gummy shark. Both of those came from a deep gutter connected to the ocean, just after dark on a high tide. The pulled hooks was the night before full moon, and while I can't be sure it was a jew, It didn't feel like anything else I could name.

Generally speaking my tackle is 30lb braid, 40-80lb Jinkai leader (between 1.5-3m), with rod length to suit the spot or technique and a 4500 shimano bait runner. Rigs are varied for location, but usually a two hook rig for bait and plastic on a loop knot.

Like i said there's some info there which other may be able to use, but I'm sure others will have a lot more to add than I.....

Dave

Thanks for the tip matiee, be sure to try and hook one up soon. i've also heard of guys catching jews further down the river near puttny and cabirita, have you tried jew fish fishing down that way? and with the tide turn does it matter if its turning to the low or high side of it if so witch would be the better?

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Terrific post!!! Some of the tips already posted are GOLD!!!!

Don't overlook the humble beach worm as a bait, either! They are like jellybeans to jews!! I taught a Forster Buddy (top jewie catcher using big SPs) how to pull worms, then we retired to the Northern Breakwall at Tuncurry, to fish the last of the out tide. The Breakwall (on both sides) has many 'caves' running along it & the jews sit in these caves, out of the flow, waiting for something tasty to float by!

I cast as far 'up current' as I could, then waited with bail arm open til the line went slack, then pulled in the loose line to 'stay in touch with the sinker' as it bounced along the bottom, heading towards the sea. I continued winding in the loose line and suddenly WHACK! The rod bent in half & I was having difficulty standing upright on the breakwall rocks! wacko.gif

I yell out "DARRYL" ..... & my mate starts jumping from rock to rock to try & get to my side, gaff in hand ....... when PING! GORN! sad.gif Darryl heads back to his rock & I re-rig & cast out again ....... for ANOTHER hit. "DARRYL" & he sprints over again & I am busted off, yet again! dry.gif He hasn't had a hit yet!! This is in the middle of the day and full sun.

I rig a full sized, big, fat beach worm onto the hook & run it up the line, so that about 10cm is left flopping at the end. This way, they appear 'stretched out' in the water - much as they do when they pop their heads out of the sand, to search for food. In deeper water, jewies rub themselves in the sand & their ammonia scent brings the worms from their holes (according to some who have scuba'd near Jew holes & caves.) The worms are fairly upright, apparently, swaying in the current & the jewies go in & try & scoff as many as they can! 1prop.gif

Absolutely fresh beach worms are the best - all the better if you have caught them yourself.

I didn't land a jew that day, but Darryl did. After I left, he landed 2!! To be honest, I reckon my only chance of landing a decent jew would be on the beach as it would be too difficult for me to drag one up the breakwall. One day .....

Sails/Cam was with me one Xmas on the breakwall when I hooked a good sized soapie (caught on worms) & he was clambering down the rocks to try & grab the line when the fish got off!mad.gif I already had it cooked and on the plate!!!unsure.gif

Another tip worth considering is to vacuum pack any jew bait so that it hasn't been frozen. Vacuum packed 'fresh' and refrigerated - it will look as good as the day it was caught, with only it's juices to marinate itself, not ice crystals. You can vacuum pack squid, tailor & blackfish whole or filleted (jewies other favourite meal.) You can buy the larger sized vacuum packers for about $100 these days - a worthwhile investment for fishing (and camping as well - I use it to pack individual meat packs for Keith & I when we go camping.) You can even precook meals (soups, stews etc), freeze them, then vacuum pack them & reheat them in a saucepan of hot water, ready to serve!! Too easy!

An old fishing buddy once advised me to set the biggest treble that I had under a large bobby float (with relevant sinker setup, similar to a blackie setup) and wind 2 or 3 worms around & thru the barbs of the treble .......... toss it out into the channel at Forster & 'walk' the float down to the end of the breakwall. From memory, Forster side is easier to do this, due to the light pole setup there. It seems that worms sometimes 'ball up' and no self respecting jewie would pass up a mouthful of worms! I've only tried it the once, but the tide was still running too hard & I didn't get a hit. This method is best suited right towards the end of the out tide, when it has really slowed up a bit.

The only other jewie I caught was on the rocks at Janies Corner (Seven Mile Beach) when I was spinning metals for tailor! I'd made the metals from the handles of old stainless steel cutlery that I'd bought from Op Shops ....... so was doubly happy when caught on my own home made lure! tongue.gif It was just a soapie, but gee, it tasted good!1clap.gif

So, armed with all the tips already put up on this thread ......... get out there & nab one!!!biggrin2.gif

Cheers

Roberta

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  • 3 weeks later...

Reading all these great tips I'm feeling very frustrated that work and uni take up so much time!! Ah well, got to pay for the boat somehow!!

Thanks to everyone for sharing their knowledge! One day soon I'll do it all justice!

I second that im in the same boat as you, we are fishing for grades, not fish >.<.

Edited by Rafinx
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  • 2 months later...

this is well filled knowledge treasure chest for the most ellusive fish the Jewy,

thanks for sharing guys,

as i am landbased fisho what would be the best way find a jewy spot, its not like am just asking i been trying for a long time and because of no success i am relying on this last resort, i know all the basics on cathching them, but never got lucky,

i fish mostly in sydney harbour as i rely on cityrail and sydney buses,

thanks again for the effort boys

Zed

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  • 1 month later...
  • 4 weeks later...

Its time to make my little contribution to this already awesome thread.

but before i do, THANKYOU to EVERYONE who took the time to add soo much helpfull info. rest assured i will put all the things i learn from this thread into good use :P

About 3 weeks ago, while fishing for jews under the bridge, i noticed something about the way my bait was being presented.

i usually just cut a slab of freshly caught yellow tail and thread my hook through it twice(i find fresh slab bait better than live). i had this rig dangling in the water and noticed the bait spinning in the current.

so i re-hooked it, making sure it is linear and straight. also i added a half hitch knot the tip of bait so that the water hits a sharp point and streamlines past the bait. tried this out by dangling the bait in the water again and it stayed pretty still.

cast it out, 10mins, and voila !!! jew ! two mates with me was in disbelief. now i pay alot more attention to how i hook on my bait.

regards

Leo

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I was just interested to know when the readers and fishers think the best time of year is to catch jewfish in the harbour is? Are the warmer months better?

honestly i don't know the "right" answer, but personally i find the warmer months produce more school jew or soapies but heaps of them. and start May, June, July when its cold, the numbers severely diminish but larger ones are caught. also, during the colder months, more attention and time must be put in to catch em.

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  • 1 month later...

Hi Guys,

I'm looking at gearing up for my soon to be, first jewie :biggrin2:

I have a good idea of what rigg I should be using. However, I am unclear of what rod I should be using.

I'll be on a boat, and generally fish inside, hawkesbury or the hacking.

I'm looking at a 5000 Stradic FJ, with a Bluewater Spin 10-15kg - Do these these sizes go together/and appropriate for jewies?

Cheers,

Dave

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi Guys,

I'm looking at gearing up for my soon to be, first jewie :biggrin2:

I have a good idea of what rigg I should be using. However, I am unclear of what rod I should be using.

I'll be on a boat, and generally fish inside, hawkesbury or the hacking.

I'm looking at a 5000 Stradic FJ, with a Bluewater Spin 10-15kg - Do these these sizes go together/and appropriate for jewies?

Cheers,

Dave

I got a bluewater 10-15 for an 8000 baitrunner, it could be alright, maybe might be abit unbalanced.

Mine I used because I can launch heavy weights in the Georges while the tides start to rawr. Maybe try a 5-8kg T-cure?

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi guys, haven't posted for a while but I still keep an eye on all things Jew. One thing that has puzzled me for years are the habbits of Jewfish. I'm talking solely about Jews in the surf and in particular around Sydney beaches. It sounds strange but if I just pretend to be a Jewy for a day, would it go something like this.

Spend all day out near some structure, ie a reef at the beach headland. Then as the sun gets low in the sky, I set out to find some food. Now does this mean I start at say the North end of a beach and scower every gutter along the beach for a fresh feed of what ever as I head South or do I already know where the bait is from previous nights and head straight to that particular gutter and sit and ambush my prey.

What I'm getting at here is if I'm fishing a particular gutter on a beach, will a Jew likely be passing at some stage or will he bi pass my gutter in search for his resident gutter. In other words, is there a small window of oppoutunity where the fish will pass your bait at some point in the night or tide cycle or is it the case of fishing the right gutter at the right time.

I hope this make sense because I'm starting to confuse myself now.

Thanks

Nathan

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