tips needed to improve my fishing

Member Joined: Aug 25, 2009 Posts: 8

hi i am new to sea fishing, i have a 9 foot spinning rod and i fish from peirs and rocks

i would be very greatfull if someone could give me some tips to improve my fishing skills

my main aim is to catch mackrel

i have some spinners, some feathers and some float kits which would you reccomend that i use

thanks chris

Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 2:58 pm

Hi Chris welcome to the forum. Most if not all the mackie bashers off southparade peir use feathers dont know much about spinning so cant help you there. HAPPY HUNTING.

Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 4:16 pm

well welcome 2 the site man to tell ya the truth the best way 2 catch mackys is feathers with a green r blue fish spinner on the end of it an dus cast it out and jig it back in. hope i could help man. TIGHT LINES CHE!!!!lol

Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 4:23 pm

Spinning/feathering needs to be done in the right conditions - usually clear water and best with a rising tide in a harbour or river entrance. I do it occasionally but only when conditions are right. I personally do far better with natural bait on the bottom and after dark.

Member Joined: Aug 25, 2009 Posts: 8

thanks for your help

would it be useful if i baited the feathers or a spinner with mackrel strips

chris

Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 6:30 pm

mackrelmadchris123 wrote:

hi i am new to sea fishing, i have a 9 foot spinning rod and i fish from peirs and rocks

i would be very greatfull if someone could give me some tips to improve my fishing skills

my main aim is to catch mackrel

i have some spinners, some feathers and some float kits which would you reccomend that i use

thanks chris

Chris, I dont know where you are from but you are probably having the same weather as we are in the West. If we get a few calm days you should try using your float kits off the rocks or pier when the mackerel are in.Use small strips of mackerel and set the hook for two or three feet deep. You will have a good chance of mackerel or pollack or even garfish and they are all great sport on light tackle.

I dont know what your rod is rated for(wieght wise) but dont overload it by using too many feathers, stick to strings of three or four feathers and a four ounce plain lead..I dont know if hauling a string of six mackerel up the side of a pier would do it any good.

As for pollack, my personal favourite method is light spinning with a jellyworm or sandeel. Tie a rig clip onto afour foot length of strong line( I use 60lb) then thread a barrel lead up the line then a bead then a crimpto hold it together.At the other end tie a 3/0 hook and thread your jellyworm onto that. Black jellies seem to work the best here or Storm wildeye sandeels. I will take a few photos and post them later.

Good Luck.

NEIL

Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 7:31 pm

Baited feathers works wonders and also catches other species.
Cheers keith big grin

Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 7:48 pm

rabbi2 wrote:

Baited feathers works wonders and also catches other species.
Cheers keith big grin

Agreed (again LOL), whiting season will start in a few weeks. My mate had a whiting on every hook on one occasion last autumn with small mackerel strips and a little pot of mashed up mackerel and tuna just above the sinker.

Member Joined: Aug 25, 2009 Posts: 8

thanks for all your help it is really useful and i will give it a try

Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 8:28 pm

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The first picture is of the rig I use for spinning for pollack

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The second picture is of a small selection of jellies, the top one is the Storm wildeyed sandeel. This is the most successful pollack lure for me

The third picture is how a wildeye looks when mounted on the trace. Frozen sandeel or even a thin strip of mackerel can be whipped on with bait elastic in the same way. If you are using a natural bait it will need to be changed everytime you hook a fish

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I find the best pollack fishing down here happens when a high tide coincides with dusk and you can fish into darkness. Hope this helps.

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Member Joined: Aug 25, 2009 Posts: 8

the casting weight on my rod is 15 - 45 grams so what weight of barrel weight would i need

chris

Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 9:24 pm

Blimey that sounds a bit freshwaterish to me. I wouldn't bother with a rod which can't cast at least 60 gms as I would worry about whether it would bust with a big fish on.

Member Joined: Aug 25, 2009 Posts: 8

there is nothing wrong with my rod

i was reeling in a mackrel and a seal bit the mackrel when i was reeling it in and it didnt even break the line and i reeled in the spinner and the head of the mackrel so it is a pretty strong rod

Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2009 10:41 am

mackrelmadchris123 wrote:

the casting weight on my rod is 15 - 45 grams so what weight of barrel weight would i need

chris

Dont go for muich more than an ounce bullet or barrel lead. Most pollack are under your feet in the kelp on the rock marks over here so you dont need to worry about massive casts.

Dont try to haul fish up the side of the rocks, see if you can find a SAFE place to land them close to the water, watch for swells. As I said earlier cut your strings of feathers down so they only have three feathers on them, or better still,be content with catching them one at a time on a spinner. Nobody needs great big sacks of mackerel and imho its not much fun hauling them in six at a time. I usually catch enough for a days bait then stop the feathering and start proper fishing.

I dont know how you would convert the grammes to test curve of a rod but I use a two and a half pound test curve carp rod built on a Harrison blank.It is twelve feet long and gives me the extra advantage of bullying big pollack out of the kelp while being able to absorb the crashing dives of the bigger pollack.

Member Joined: Aug 25, 2009 Posts: 8

thanks for the advice

i am going to my local angling store today to get all the stuff

just out of curiosity howmuch would all the stuff cost just so i know if i am getting ripped off or not