Jump to content

Blackfish Weed


Reeso

Recommended Posts

When Im targeting blackies I have only used the string weed successfully. This weed is very sparse and I can only find it in a few locations near my place. North head and Dee Why are the main spots. However Cabbage weed seems to be on the rocks everywhere and everybody seems to be using it but I dont really know how to rig it on the hook. With string weed I do the normal 3 wraps around the line, pushed down over the eye and then wrapped around the hook. I tried a bit of cabbage weed yesterday at middle head just out of curiosity, I put it on just by threading a leaf onto the hook. But it bunched down in the bottom of the hook and attracted no attention from any fish. Its probably bloody simple but I havent been fishing for blackfish for very long and just need an explanation of how to present the cabbage weed on the hook? and does anyone have a preference for cabbage, or string weed?

I havent had any success in my blackfish sessions over about the past 3 weeks. Middle head, which is my normal spot and is usually pretty productive, has gone very quiet so Im either doing something different or theyve just simply gone off the bite.

When I was there yesterday for four hours, I gave up the weed after a bit and just fished with bread for one decent drummer.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Reeso,

There is a bit of a knack to it, but it is not difficult. When you pull a piece of cabbage off the rocks, try to get one that still has the little root attached. You don't need a huge bit, just enough to cover the length of the hook and maybe a cm or so below. Some bits are quite narrow like streamers and these are the ones I prefer. Push the hook through the bottom end of the leaf and then tie a couple of half hitches around the top root section, but above the eye of the hook ie don't tie the cabbage to the shank of the hook. The root section gives you something to put your hitch around.

I prefer No8 hooks for blackfish on the rocks. There are chemically sharpened ones in green, but ordinary sneck pattern work just as well. Make sure your float is properly weighted so there is not much showing above the water. It is better to have the weight on the float rather than on the line. I prefer fixed floats, but plenty of people use running ones. Be prepared to vary your depth under the float if the fish aren't coming to the party. Also give yourself a leader of a generous length; up to a metre is fine. Some blokes like to use small shot on the line. I prefer a single ball sinker (00 size) sitting on a size 14 swivel, then the leader. Fluorocarbon is becoming popular for leaders, although any decent mono in around 6lb is fine.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pull the cabbage from the rock with the root attached, I thread the hook firstly through the root and slide it up onto the line very gently, then I pin the leaves leaves once or twice depending on the size of bait (which depends on the day) Half hitch around the root and you're set. I hate the sneck hooks and prefer to use a mustad 540.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Bashir,

Its good to hear that there are some "blackfish off the rocks" fans on the list.

I prefer it to any other form of fishing; you might say I'm addicted. It can be quite frustrating learning how in the early stages. You can show someone the basics in half an hour but it takes a couple of years of regular practice to become any good at it. The fish are pretty frustrating too at times. Some days they will wolf down a lump of weed as big as a lettuce, next day it is a tiny little piece you can hardly get on your hook. One day they are right up under the float, next day they are 3 or 4 metres deep. And on other days the drummer wipe you out time after time!

They are a great fish for someone who does not like getting up too early in the morning. You can catch a good bag without having to get up at the crack of dawn.

If there is nothing doing early on with other varieties of fish, you can still come home with a decent feed.

What sort of gear do you use? I have two rods, an old yellow Sportex that is ultra slow in action, plus a Sneider "Mag Bream" that doubles as a light beach rod. Plus a couple of Alvey blackfish reels.

I hope that between us we have been able to assist someone else to catch the bug.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

G'day Guys,

Well you can add me to the list of blackfish fishermen, and I love fishing the rocks, and for Reeso's benefit, I have been fishing around Middle Head for 15 years or so. The trick to fishing Middle head consistently is to use SMALL baits and the softest cabbage you can find. When the fishing is slow ( and it can be at this time with the clear conditions) you need to fish deep, or really shallow under the the white water on shallow reef ( sometimes 2 feetfrom waterline to your sinker). It depends where you are fishing, but there are about 4 different types of spots at Middle Head alone. These range from genuine rock fishing type spots, to genuine estuary type spots. Probably why it is one of my favourite spots in Sydney, you can always get out of the wind, and there are blackfish there year round, as well as a bucket of other species, we should catch up for a fish some time.

Matt

Edited by macman
Link to comment
Share on other sites

In the estuaries I have an old shakespeare sigma blackfish rod, this thing is the biggest noodle you have ever seen, its great fun and I have landed a few drummer on it too somehow. :wacko: My rock rod is a 3145 one piece rod. Custom made although in serious need of a rebuild with the grips eaten my roaches and the thread finish almost gone. :( I use alvey blackfish reels with the sidecast option as I am not as good with the traditional centrepin casting. I don't fish for them as much as I used to, but I target them all over sydney.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In the estuaries I have an old shakespeare sigma blackfish rod, this thing is the biggest noodle you have ever seen, its great fun and I have landed a few drummer on it too somehow. :wacko:  My rock rod is a 3145 one piece rod.  Custom made although in serious need of a rebuild with the grips eaten my roaches and the thread finish almost gone. :(  I use alvey blackfish reels with the sidecast option as I am not as good with the traditional centrepin casting.  I don't fish for them as much as I used to, but I target them all over sydney.

69615[/snapback]

G'day

I mthink thats the blank I use, only its a 2 piece pacific composites GP3145, does that sound right, I made it myself, didn't use grips, just this wrap around squash racket type stuff, one of those fuji open seats and cord bindings.

Matt

Link to comment
Share on other sites

G'day

I mthink thats the blank I use, only its a 2 piece pacific composites GP3145, does that sound right, I made it myself, didn't use grips, just this wrap around squash racket type stuff, one of those fuji open seats and cord bindings.

Matt

69622[/snapback]

G'day Bashir,

remember this ?

http://www.fishnet.com.au/forums/viewtopic...w_post_id=98333

This is the rod I am now using.

Matt

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Since mine has the sliding seat (Its actually a shimano real seat not fuji??? dunno why I said that??) I will rip off the old eva grips and probably go for the vb cord grips, have them on another rod and really like it. I think I will wait unti all the guides fall off before I look at a full rebuild.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How'd I miss this post :wacko:

Add me to the list, I love niggerin :1clap: - usually from a breakwall or estuary rock or boat. For boat or estuary work I will often use a JW Black Queen deluxe as Bashir says "a real noodle of a rod", Iv'e also got a Mag Blackfish two piece I use off the walls. Alvey blackfish reel [sidecast as I also suffer the same problem as Bashir].

I'll use string weed when I can get hold of good quality stuff, prime streamers or crunchy cabbage. I prefer streamers that have a latex texture about them, single leaf with hook passed through twice and half-hitched above the hook. I carry a selection of home made and commercial sliding floats with torpedo sinker over small swivel and split shot on the dropper. 8lb main line and 6lb mono leader, though lately I've been trying flouro leaders and they seem to work quite well. Either size 6 sneck or Mustad Chemically sharpened size 8 depending on how timid the bite is.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Mmmmmmm bled filleted, cut into bite size pieces, tempura batter and just a minute or two in hot oil Yummy Yummy,

If youre going to eat the fish whole you MUST MUST clean out the black stomach lining.

my luderick rods are an old (1979) butterworth 4144 with a 4 inch spike and the sliding reel seat (first rod I ever home built ) for the rocks and a Abu garcia pommy style match rod 12 footer for walls and estuaries, use a Avon MK 4 (the flash one with drag and have an unused BNIB Avon tucked away) also use the alvey off the rocks if range is a problem

also have a Black Queen (my first fishing rod) that I caugh my first and many more blackfish on.

Havent been niggerin for about 5 yrs but the recent run of posts had me looking at my floats earlier today :1prop:

Used to fish a lot at the ferry wharf at taronga, lady macquaries chair near the baths , hole in the wall, warriewood blowhole and the wharves around pittwater

Edit: Just realised on rereading my post how old that makes me as youre not allowed to fish at most of those places anymore, used to catch the train and bus to get down to the harbour and then spend ages trying to fossick up enough weed to use as bait let alone berley (lucky they like bread, caught a few on that when I couldnt get weed)

Edited by pogo
Link to comment
Share on other sites

i used to have a grice and yooung...that was a great reel, i found it the perfect sized spool, unfortunately it fell into disrepair after years of abuse and neglect. replaced it with an alvey centrepin, bought 2nd hand for $30! which was a great buy but it has nothing on the old grice and young.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Gee there are some beautiful pieces of equipment around! :1yikes:

69960[/snapback]

Joe, I know you are thinking of retiring your fly rod but did you give any thought to it making a half reasonable sort of estuary luderick rod.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sorry for completely Hi-jacking your post Reeso! :wacko:

George, the writting on the rod says it is an 8foot 7-8 WT, but it looks very flimsy/noodely to me. Is that normal?

I just had an epiphamy! I'm going to take it out tommorow and see if I can manage to use it on some Sambos! And if I do manage to hook one, and break it, then it will be the perfect excuse to drive to ABA some time soon! :thumbup:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No worries, met an old bloke up at winney bay on the weekend, showed me how to tie the weed on the right way. Sorted. Whilst we were there, right over the outfall, he caught 8, myself-0.

I only had one decent hookup the whole weekend, of which I probably spent about 6 hours fishing for blackies, and one of me knots failed. It just wasnt meant to be.

but one other thing, a bit off topic, whilst I was down near Rosa Gully last week I noticed a few big lobsters in the rockpools and was tempted to grab a few, but these were sort of black mottly lobsters, not the seafood resteraunt kind. Can you take them or are they protected?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest bluecod

If anyone has any spare time tomorrow they could do worse than get down to South Whale - as far South as you can walk to and fish in towards the Ovens - to catch a feed of luderick. My son was down there yesterday and saw a couple of older gents pull out a catch of about half a dozen good blackfish - by the sounds of it the best would have been up around the 3lb mark and the others around 2lb.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No worries, met an old bloke up at winney bay on the weekend, showed me how to tie the weed on the right way. Sorted. Whilst we were there, right over the outfall, he caught 8, myself-0.

I only had one decent hookup the whole weekend, of which I probably spent about 6 hours fishing for blackies, and one of me knots failed. It just wasnt meant to be.

but one other thing, a bit off topic, whilst I was down near Rosa Gully last week I noticed a few big lobsters in the rockpools and was tempted to grab a few, but these were sort of black mottly lobsters, not the seafood resteraunt kind. Can you take them or are they protected?

70313[/snapback]

Mate grab them lobbies if you can, but remember its only two!

In sydney we only get two varieties, the eastern rock lobster that is a dark green on his back and slipper lobsters that look similar to a bug, but a bit more orange and bigger!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...