April was Tournament time and I'm pleased to report another great Peter Goadby Memorial tournament has been completed. We had a role up of 30 boats, beautiful weather, Amazing prizes and wonderful sponsors help to make a successful tournament . I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the skippers & crew who entered the tournament. Special thanks to all the sponsors who support Sydney Game fishing club. Thank you all for support. There were also a lot of people behind the scenes who gave up their time over the weekend to help out. Thank you to our club secretary Annita Flannery who organized all of these helpers. I am already looking forward to next years tournament! Special Note: It will be the club's 70 year anniversary so don't miss out on this one. Events coming up: we have the Tuna slam this year but we are going to limit it to Sydney boats only. The prize pool will start at $2,000 and with the Yellowfin reports already starting to show up we have extended the tournament time to JUNE, JULY & AUGUST plus the waters will be central zone waters. Its a simple concept, heaviest Blue fin or Heaviest other Tuna $250 boat entry you must pay before you start fishing . Its also time to mention that its also nearly time for renewals. Membership renewal invoices will be sent out in the month of June so please make sure your bar account is fully paid and renewal sorted.
2-5-21 Nicco Marsh with a nice yellow fin tuna weighing 45.7kgs on 37kg line. The boys also got themselves another one slightly smaller as well
2/4/2021 Congratulations to Dann Moses on board My Molly weighing his first 42kg Yellowfin they also lost a nice Blue Marlin
FROM THE PRESIDENT
Tightlines Tiddles
5/4/2021 Congratulations to Oscar onboard Shoki with their 52kg Yellowfin
Calendar of Events SGFC May 2021 15th - 16th Summer Pointscore 15th - 16th Broken Bay Invitational Tournament 2021 + Central Zone Weekend 17th Start of Winter Pointscore 25th Committee Meeting June 2021 1st Start of Annual Tuna Slam 1st Winter Pointscore continues 6th Club Meeting 22nd Committee Meeting July 2021 1st Annual Tuna Slam continues + Winter Pointscore continues 6th Club Meeting 27th Committee Meeting
Champion Female Angler went to Maddy McCure fishing onboard Gale Force and Champion Junior went to Luca Searl on Tshukdu. A great weekend all round, which would not have been possible if it weren’t for our generous sponsors; IBW, Short Marine, Sylvania Marina, Furuno, Dalbora Bertram, Fishing Station, Otto’s Tackle World, Undertow Saltwater Apparel, Bayside Marina, Great Northern, Lewis Financial Management, Dick Rowe Marine, Viking, Tantrum Lures, Pakula Tackle, Decorative Solutions, Pantaenius, Net and Tackle Sales, Wellsys Tackle, Tax Perfect, Cruise Marine and Collin Forrester Jewellers. We are truly thankful to all of our sponsors for making this tournament possible and also all of the competitors who took part to make the even another success for SGFC. Champion Boat Tag & Release: Gale Force 21,500 Runner Up T&R: Rage 20,000 on count back Third Place T&R: Anyfin 20,000 Champion Lady T&R: Maddy McCure Champion Junior T&R: Tag Luca Searl Champion Boat Capture: Rampage 20,145.40 Runner up Capture: Geronimo 13,447.83
2021 PETER GOADBY MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT Saturday 17th & Sunday 18th April
The Sydney Game Fishing Club’s 2021 Peter Goadby Memorial Tournament was held over the weekend of the 17th and 18th April with a great turn out on both days. After a week of wild weather off the East coast, the fishing gods smiled upon the fleet with almost perfect conditions across the two days. The 30 registered boats and 10 central zone boats left from their homeports early on Saturday, with fishing kicking off at 7:30am. The competition got off to a flying start with Gale Force calling in the first fish of the comp; an estimated 100kg striped marlin caught on 15kg line at about 9:00am. Although the conditions were ideal, the fish were fickle. The fleet spread far and wide with varying degrees of success. Highlights of the weekend included Geronimo’s capture of a Blue Marlin on 24kg line with a short length of 2.65m that weighed in at 187.3kg. Rage tagged a Black Marlin on 24kg line to angler Luke Page. Anyfin and Mr Pig tagged a Stripe a piece on 24kg line. Sunday started off with a few sore heads after a great raft-up at SGFC. Everyone was quick to dust off the cobwebs and eager to get some more points on the board, with it being a very close competition. The Tag & Release section was tight with three boats tagging two marlin each but ultimately Gale Force won Champion boat tagging one of their fish on 15kg. Runner up boat & third place were decided on a count back. Geronimo of Broken Bay Fishing Club caught the heaviest Blue Marlin, weighing in at 187.3kg on 24kg line - slightly shy of the 225kg target and just missing out on a $10,000 prize! Rampage from Broken Bay took out the prize for capture with a 145kg Blue Marlin on 15kg line and Geronimo was runner up in the category.
Late in the afternoon, the boats had either given up or run out of fuel, the yellowfin had stopped busting up and the gannets were in-active everywhere, waiting and sitting on the water, almost as if they knew the yellows would come back eventually. Trolling on my way back I was at the 250 fathom mark and the sun was close to setting, still vigilant, I spotted some distant splashes so I turned 150 degrees and faced south east once more. I spotted some gannets flying relatively high and hovering. As they got closer the splashes grew larger and gannets began diving so I upped my speed and head straight for the commotion. Once I arrived at the area, immediately 2 rods hooked up and I was on. As I reached for the first rod the fish had come off leaving 1 rod screaming, which I wasn’t too fussed about as I was game fishing on my own for the first time. I pulled the lines in and strapped the rod in for the fight of a lifetime. With the spool running very low I made the decision to put the drag just passed strike and began fighting. I realised that it was so late in the afternoon that I wouldn't make my log-off time so I radioed in to marine rescue and let them know I was going to be back in late. After around 20 minutes of back and forth, I had got some line back and I upped the drag a little further to put some heat on the fish while it was tired. Just under the boat my eyes lit up and heart started pumping once again, it was the biggest yellowfin I’ve ever been hooked up to. Just under the boat around 10m down the dog fight had just begun and I backed off the drag slightly, but still past strike. The dog fight lasted 10 more minutes and I finally got it to the surface. I unclipped my rod from the harness and placed it in the holder, grabbed the trace and gaffed it, I missed its head and hit it square in the body and held on for dear life…I began wrestling it at the boat while it splashed around on the surface eager to get away. 5 minutes passed and after my third attempt of pulling the fish in, I was finally successful.
Just before the first weekend of May the weather was great and there were reports of some decent sized yellowfin being caught during the week. As I watched the weather, I kept my eyes and ears open for reports and as such the bite, during the week, seemed to be moving in closer and closer. The first report mid week started with yellowfin being caught at Kiama at 2000 fathoms, then the following day at 750 fathoms. Originally I planned to fish the tournament but my usual fishing suspects could only fish one day and so I made the call to fish on my own and to head out off Kiama where the fish had been reported. At first light I hit the water and dropped my lures at around the 200 fathom mark in 19.5 degree water in search of some yellowfin. I ran 2 skirts and 2 squidges, both rigged up different as I generally like to put a variety in my spread. I headed south-east off Port Kembla, passing a few gannets around the 200 fathom mark and a few good signs of life. As I ventured deeper, the sun was hidden behind the clouds so I found it hard to gauge the water colour but as I ventured deeper it slowly warmed up. Once I entered no mans land (1000 fathoms) the water warmed up to about 21.3 degrees but the birds became less apparent. I was faced with the question of whether or not to change my line and head back or press onto towards the current, which I pressed on to. At around 1500 fathoms I came across mutton birds working and feeding accompanied by a whole bunch of splashes. I trolled around for 15 minutes before I packed my lures up and positioned myself downwind and current. Whilst I lay idle I cast a lure straight into the middle and after a couple winds hooked straight up! The surge of adrenaline was soon accompanied by the realisation I was hooked up to something small… Striped tuna! I had a little fun for 20 minutes casting, catching and releasing the little stripies on my new rod and reel and focused back on my task of catching a yellowfin. I put the spread back out and heard reports of yellowfin being caught around 750 fathom mark directly west of where I had been. So as quickly as I had put them back in I took them out and headed back towards the shelf back into the colder water where the current backs off. I got to the marks which a boat had given of a yellowfin hook up, which actually turned out to be at 400 fathoms and was very quickly greeted by a bait ball of saurys being chased by 30kg yellowfin. They swam right through my spread, jumping in and out of the water both yellowfin and saurys, a surge of adrenaline pulsed through my veins as I anticipated a hook up and nothing…. They jumped off passed my lures and not even a look but I pressed on with a mixture being disheartened and excited. It’s been a little while since my last yellowfin and I was eager to hook up! Hours past, chasing bust ups left, right, infront, behind. Most of the boats in the same situation as me, with only one boat hooking up after several hours.
YELLOWFIN TUNA MAY
Day 1: Perfect conditions, glassy water, sunny 26 degrees, 4 knot winds, low wave height, so we took advantage of the conditions and travelled at 40 knots past the continental shelf. At 9:30am we saw a group of birds and started marking Tuna at 30 fathoms. After catching and releasing a few striped Tuna we marked a large Marlin coming in for a feed.At 10:32am, our Talica 50 hooked up to a monster Blue Marlin on a Tantrum medium bullet.Kameron ordered the instructions, Shimano Beast Master 9000 was used to bring in the dredge, all lines brought in and then they set me up with the harness for a long fight.Then we saw him. A monster Blue Marlin jumping out of the water, he was so heavy he could not jump high enough to release his full body out of the water.What a fish. A Giant!! The fight was exhausting and very difficult, at times the Marlin took a lot of line and we had to wind in again and again.At times we could not wind at all, locked in stale mate. Luckily, our skipper, Kameron, was very skilled at moving the boat to help reduce the workload.
Then at 11:25am, the Giant was on our Grady. What a spectacular sight.Sadly, the fish did not survive the fight, so we decided to bring him back to Watsons Bay to weight at the SGFC.Before coming back in we enjoyed stick baiting into a bust up of Yellow Fins.First, we caught 5 small yellow fin all over 10kg and then we marked some bigger yellow fins. Kameron ran to the front of the boat and cast to the big yellow. The big yellow chased the stick bait and leapt out of the ocean like a torpedo, taking the stick bait.What a great catch by Kameron. This yellow fin was 52kg upon weighing later.When we got back to Watsons Bay, we called Annita (as the club was closed) to ask if we could use the weighing scale.We measured monster Blue Marlin and to our amazement, it was 200.65kg and 2.7 metres long.
I finally convinced dad to upgrade our BRIG Eagle 10 to a proper fishing boat, Grady White 336.We traded our boat in with Ryan Short at Short Marine and then put new Simrad electronics into the Grady. We also upgraded our gear via Scooter Kerstens from Fishing Station including Talica 50 and Talica 25’s.Finally, we had all the gear but still needed more idea!! We decided for the upcoming Easter 2021 long weekend we would invite two professionals to join us on a three-day trip starting with Good Friday. We picked our good friends, Kameron Othman and Scooter Kerstens, both young game fishing experts.
Team Pacific Fishing: Easter Weekend 2021:
from braid to orange line, and then at 35 minutes to leader. Scooter said, “he’s coming up”.Then we saw him, A BEAST!! This fish was a MONSTER!!We saw the Blue Marlin rise to the surface and swim next to our boat.With gloves on, Scooter grabbed the leader and started winding it around his arm.It was 11:13am and the Massive Blue was tied up next to our boat.Kameron jumped into the water with his Go Pro to film some under water footage of the Big Blue.Then we had to bring him onto the boat, which was a major challenge, 3-man job, Kameron, Scooter and dad heaved him through the Grady door.
Then we started gaining on the Marlin in reverse.Closer and closer, then another long stale mate. On many occasions I wanted to give up.How long would this take? We were 20 minutes into the fight. My hands started to blister, and I needed cold water to drink, my nose was dripping with sweat.At 30 minutes into the fight, we changed
* 3 Big Blue Marlin, 6 Yellow Fin Tuna, 1 Mahi and 4 Striped Tuna, By Roman Stathis (Age 13) * Instagram:“pacific_fishing” instagram.com/pacific_fishing * Youtube:Pacific Fishing * Business Enquiries:pacificfishing2020@gmail.com
* Follow us at Instagram: “pacific_fishing”instagram.com/pacific_fishing * Youtube:Pacific Fishing * Business Enquiries: pacificfishing2020@gmail.com
Day 2: On day-2 we also brought along Jay from Fishing Station and my brother Dom. To cut a long story short we caught another 2 Big Blue Marlin.That’s 3 Monsters over 2 days. Jay brough in the first one with an 8-minute fight and he was released. My older brother Dominic (who is 15) brought in the next Blue. It was 3 metres long and we estimate 240kg. The fight lasted 35 minutes and Dom’s hands were badly blistered.We brought him close to the boat again and tied up his bill and held him by the bill for a while.We released him after taking some great photos and getting some beautiful footage of this Big Blue! This is all to a great team, great boat, and many hours at sea we enjoyed the most amazing Easter Weekend of my life. The memories and friendships!!
FUNNY FISHING JOKE A guy had planned a fishing trip to his favorite fishing spot on the flats of Florida. He packed and began the trip to the water. He launched his boat, motored to his sea trout honey hole, and began fishing. In no time, he caught the biggest trout he’d ever caught. He cast out again and was delighted to catch an even larger trout. Every cast, he caught a trophy fish. Then his mobile phone rang; it was the hospital telling him his wife had been admitted to the emergency room. She may die, they told him. The fisherman is worried, but he wants to catch the world record trout, so he decides to have just a few more casts. He pulls in three more really huge trout, but his conscience begins to get the better of him, so he reluctantly pulls anchor and motors back to his car to go to the hospital. Running into the emergency room, he meets up with a stern-looking doctor. The doctor sees the man dressed for fishing and scolds the husband: “Your wife has been at death’s door for hours now. You kept fishing after you were called, didn’t you? You ought to be ashamed!” The fisherman sobbed it was true. “Well,” said the doc, “I hope you had a good time; your wife will survive, but your fishing days are over… She will require constant care from now on… 24 hours per day. You will have to do everything for her.” The fisherman sobbed, “Oh God, I didn’t think it was that bad, I feel terrible!!!!” The doc grinned and nudged the fisherman with his elbow… ”Just kidding, buddy… she’s dead. How many did you catch?”
Adopted Twins A woman has twins, and gives them up for adoption. One of them goes to a family in Egypt and is named ‘Amal.’ The other goes to a family in Spain, they name him Juan’. Years later; Juan sends a picture of himself to his mum. Upon receiving the picture, she tells her husband that she wished she also had a picture of Amal. Her husband responds, ”But they are twins. If you’ve seen Juan, you’ve seen Amal.” Wanna Race? A Man Pulls Into a Gas Station in his Porsche, and a kid on a tricycle starts riding around him. “Wanna race?” asks the kid. “No thanks,” laughs the guy and drives off. When he gets on the highway, the kid suddenly zooms past him. “Wow!” the guy says and floors it. He catches up and the kid disappears behind him. A minute later the kid flies past again. Astonished, the guy pulls over, only to see the kid come zooming backward, then forward again, until finally he comes to a stop next to the car. The man opens the door to find the kid on his tricycle, wheels smoking. The kid pants, “Thanks for stopping mister. My suspenders got caught in your door.” 25 Cents A guy took his blonde girlfriend to her first football game. They had great seats right behind their team’s bench. After the game, he asked her how she liked the experience. “Oh, I really liked it,” she replied, “especially the tight pants and all the big muscles, but I just couldn’t understand why they were killing each other over 25 cents.” Dumbfounded, her date asked, “What do you mean?” “Well, they flipped a coin, one team got it, and then for the rest of the game, all they kept screaming was, ‘Get the quarterback! Get the quarterback!’ I’m like, hello? It’s only 25 cents!”
SAINTLY WHISPERS
BROWNS MOUNTAIN: FACT FILE Co-ordinates: 34-02-00S, 151-39-20E Distance: 22nm/41km off the Sydney coast, about 24nm from Sydney Heads Target Species: blue-eye, hapuka, bass groper, gemfish, mako sharks in winter; yellowfin and bluefin tuna in autumn and spring; all gamefish including blue marlin in summer and autumn; broadbill swordfish at night; big sharks year round Warning: Browns Mountain is a long way from land and not recommended for small trailer boats or in adverse conditions for any boat
Browns Mountain Images of Sydney' s 260 million year old submerged VOLCANO. 41km off the coast of Sydney
Browns Mountain New images, co-ordinates and reef detail for Sydney's premier offshore fishing spot
Browns Mountain - a popular offshore fishing spot 41km off the coast of Sydney has now been revealed in unprecedented detail by CSIRO’s latest Research Vessel "Investigator". You can see the 3D imagery at the Fisheries and Marine Environmental Research Lab - FAMER facebook page:
www.facebook.com/Fisheries-and-Marine-Environmental-Research- Lab-FAMER-UNSW-202034416636273/videos/
Browns Mountain is the remains of an ancient volcano, also known in the geological circles as Mount Woolnough. A voyage led by Iain Suthers (UNSW) last year deliberately passed directly over the peak (June 17, 2015) on their return to Sydney Harbour. The vessel’s instruments recorded the size, shape and acoustic characteristics of the mountain. The productive reefs that form Browns Mountain are also home to large deep-sea species such as gemfish, blue-eye trevalla and bass grouper, especially during winter aggregations. Game fishers catch oodles of yellowfin tuna, southern bluefin tuna, marlin, mahi mahi, wahoo, sharks and other pelagic fish in the local area. Browns Mountain is on the edge of the continental slope, between 375m to 550m deep, and rises approximately 175m above the seafloor. While only two kilometres of the volcano base are visible on the sonar, other research reveals the full extent to be more than 13km in diameter! So troll around the area and don't just stay glued to the peak. RV Investigator’s sonar revealed a double peak, with a trough in between. It is the remains of a volcano approximately 260 million years old, composed of distinctively hard rock compared to the surrounding sediments. The origin of the name “Browns” Mountain may have been named by Jack Paton (a life-long member of Sydney Game Fishing Club) which he named after his old deckhand ‘Browny’. Paton's boat, the M.V.Signa, a purpose-built game-fishing boat he built himself in 1970 and named after his wife Signa (Sig) is still operating as the Signa charter boat in Kiama today.
The name Mount Woolnough is due to Hedley (1910, p.20) who wrote: “... I propose with the permission of the Society [i.e. the Linnean Society of NSW] and of Dr. Walter G. Woolnough, to name this submerged cone Mount Woolnough, ...”. Walter Woolnough was a professor of geology at the Universities of Sydney and Western Australia, and advisor to the federal government. The mount was originally discovered by the famous around-world oceanographic survey by HMAS Challenger in 1874, and was a source of interest for Woolnough. This latest revealing voyage led by scientists from the Sydney Institute of Marine Science (SIMS) deliberately passed directly over the peak June 17, 2015, on their return to Sydney Harbour while towing plankton nets. But the news of this research is only now emerging in the public domain. The vessel’s instruments recorded currents around the mountain and also the size, shape and acoustic characteristics of the volcanic structure. SIMS scientists Iain Suthers and Moninya Roughan were investigating how tidal currents and ocean currents flow around obstacles such as Browns Mountain, as they can attract fish as well as contribute to overall fisheries’ production. Ocean currents deliver plankton to the small baitfish, which attract large pelagic fish such as marlin, mako shark and tuna. The productive reefs that form Browns Mountain are also home to large deep-sea species such as gemfish, blue-eye trevalla and bass grouper, especially during winter congregations. At the time of the survey, a large warm-core eddy of the East Australian Current was sweeping over Browns Mountain at about 1 knot (0.5 meters per second). The current often runs fast and up to 4 knots here in summer, making bottom fishing impossible at times. A similar process probably contributes to the recreational harvest from Sydney’s Offshore Artificial Reef, which although only 12m x 15m in area, nevertheless results in a harvest initially estimated by SIMS scientists to be 1-2 tonnes of fish per year but since downgraded to 500kg per year. Credits: These words were reprinted courtesy of Professor Iain Suthers from the Fisheries and Marine Environmental Research Facility, School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, at University of NSW. Video footage courtesy of CSIRO. We have added a but of info from our own experiences fishing Browns Mountain over the decades.
Rigging basics for Southern Bluefin Tuna http://www.fishingmonthly.com.au/Articles/Display/19667-Rigging-basics-for-SBT Jarrod Day|First Published: March 2016 + Photos from SGFC archives
The lure of catching southern bluefin tuna is in the veins of the majority of Victorian saltwater anglers these days, and with tuna right on tap just a few hours west of Melbourne, it’s no surprise! Catching tuna isn’t for everyone, but the desire to catch them is always there, secretly hiding away under your skin. Not everyone has a boat capable of heading to the tuna grounds but I’m sure most have that special mate that does have a boat big enough to battle the southern ocean swells. That said, finding tuna maybe a task in itself, but if you haven’t got all the rigging requirements in order, landing your fish might prove to be an impossible task. There is no doubt that all species of tuna put out a fierce battle once hooked. However, the techniques used to catch the various species somewhat differ between one another. When it comes to southern bluefin on the Victorian West Coast, trolling lures is the most widely used technique. Rigging right for SBT is imperative due to their power and with the possibility of hooking fish in excess of 100kg, ensuring everything is 100% is what will have you land that fish of a lifetime and not be the one thinking what went wrong for the rest of your life. Rigging for tuna is not just about threading the leader through the lure to the hook, it is about the entire setup, from the rod and reel to the line, leader to the right hooks. THE SETUP So you’ve you gone out and upgraded your boat to something much more substantial in order to reach wider fishing grounds and subsequently target game fish including southern bluefin. When targeting such fish, there is a standard that is required to be successful in landing a fish. You can use whatever rod and reel you want, but the end result is going to be dictated by what you have chosen to use. When purchasing your outfits, you need to take into consideration the lure spread you’re going to set to entice the fish to hit your lures. A basic trolling spread consists of five lures, comprised of two hardbody lures or vibe style lures trolled in close to the motor, two skirted lures staggered at different lengths and a shotgun situated in the
When targeting tuna, having a selection of at least a dozen lures will allow you to be versatile with your spread.
Some hardbody lures do not swim from the packet or can be belted up and require tuning. A length of single strand wire with each end containing a haywire twist will keep them from pulling out of the water.
Accidents can happen on the ocean, and bust-offs are common. Always make sure you have an adequate rigging kit when you head out.
rocket launcher being the furthest lure out. If you’re on a budget, you can forgo two outfits and just run three; the shotgun and two for either skirts, hardbodies or a mixture of both. The outfits need to be able to cope with the pressure of possibly battling a genuine 100kg fish. In the past, I have heard people say they wouldn’t want to catch a fish of such size, but you never know what fish is going to take your lure, so you might as well be prepared in case one does so you don’t lose your lure or worse, your outfit. Most outfits consist of a 5’6” game rod rated 15-24kg or a straight 24kg rod. Budget wise, most rods in the $150-$200 range are suitable. Shimano’s Back Bone Elite fits into this price range, while if you’re looking for the next level up, Wilson’s Aussie built Live Fibre Strokers sit in the $300-$450 range. Reels are equally as important and need to hold a significant amount of line. A big tuna can strip a solid 500m of line in seconds and to stop it, you’ll need as much line as you can get. Shimano’s TLD 50w loaded with 24kg line are pretty much the standard when it comes to tuna reels as well as the TLD 30w for those anglers that wish to fish 15kg line class. If there are big tuna about, a TLD 50w loaded with 24kg can handle them, but many anglers choose to go up to the next level and use either a Tiagra 50w or even an 80w loaded with 37kg line. In finishing off the setup, tie a double in the line and attach either a 150lb-200lb wind-on leader. Some anglers prefer not to use a wind-on, and would rather a long plaited double. The use of the wind-on provides better abrasion resistance than just the double and makes it easier to trace the fish to the boat as the leader is thicker, unlike when trying to hold into just the doubled mainline. Either way, on the end of the double or the wind-on, you need to attach a heavy-duty snap swivel. On the double, this can be attached via a cats paw knot while on the wind-on, the swivel can be crimped. LURE CHOICE Choosing which tuna lures to buy is always a conundrum that is not solved easily. It makes more sense to buy a good dozen lures and be done with it. This also gives you the opportunity in switching lures while out on the water to see if the fish favour a specific colour, size or lure action. Your pack should include different length lures, diving depths, actions and colours. RIGGING LURES There is much more to rigging lures than just banging on a set of hooks and heading offshore. Lures need to be rigged right so they perform in the water as well as offer you the confidence that nothing is going to go wrong when battling a fish.
Swapping the treble hooks to inline single hooks instead of sticking with the standard treble hooks will increase your success.
Always ensure your rigging is 100% otherwise you could lose that fish of a lifetime
Bluefin Sydney Game Fishing Club Smartbill came home with 3 Aaron landing the bigest 81.5kg on 24kg Jerome landed a 67kg on 24kg boom
Byrom von Bonde with his 81.9kg Bluefin Tuna on 10kg line. What an amazing effort well done to Byrom and the crew of Smartbill
Hardbody lures all come stock standard with a set of treble hooks – most do anyway. Experience tells me that trebles and big fish result in disaster. The fish can bend trebles quite easily, so it is best to remove these and replace with single inline hook either on the belly or just on the rear. Though you can use two inline hooks, I advise against it. If a fish gets both hooks in each corner of their jaw and flexes to rid the hooks, one can tear out or buckle. Using one hook is the best approach. Some hardbodied lures don’t swim properly either and while this could be from any branded lure, knowing how to rectify this is very important. Most lures pull out of the water for a few reasons. Either you have attached the snap swivel directly to the lures tow point, which doesn’t allow the lure to freely move enough or the tow point on the lure is bent and needs straightening. Other factors can include anglers tying the lure onto the leader with a knot that will also cause it to pull out. I have found that by attaching a 1m length of 170lb single strand wire, with each end containing a haywire twist, you can solve this problem. Occasionally, it won’t, which will then require you to check the tow point and or just change the entire lure. Sometimes, after a tuna hits the lure, it can cause them never to swim correctly again and you will have to replace it in the spread. Skirted lures on the other hand need full rigging. For tuna, I take a 2.5m length of 150-200lb leader. On one end, tie a Flemish eye and crimp. Slide the lure onto the leader and thread on two crimps. Place a hook onto the leader and tie another Flemish eye to secure the hook and measure out the crimps doubling the leader over. The lure should be spaced so the hook’s barb is just inside the end of the skirt. Crimp tight with each end of the crimp flaring out so not to damage the leader. Start your troll There are many ways to rig for tuna and each angler might do it different to another, but many use the same or similar rigging processes as outlined above. Regardless of how you rig up for tuna, ensure one thing, that you’re confident it will hold together once a fish takes the lure - especially if it’s a big one!
Your outfit will be your most prized possession. Always ensure it is rigged to perfection. Tuna will find the weakness in your tackle so go above and beyond and make sure there isn’t any.