Squid Inc.

I have been catching some impressive gummies around Edithburgh.Try the rips around Saltana Point around dusk.Use squid heads on a running rig.I know its not against the law to catch and keep females but after gutting a good size female a few years ago and finding over 30 pups happily swimming around inside her,i have made it my rule not to keep females.The one I am holding here is a male.

Agreed.

Just getting back into the hobby, after years of absence. Hit BCF, thinking they'd be able to give help/advice on gear etc., needed. Probably OK if you know what you need but not great with the knowledge Dept. Later, found an Indy tackle shop. Well stocked, helpful and very knowledgeable. Guess who's getting my business

Painted up a few each of these trout candies this arvo. Im a big fan of my new rainbow trout pattern..
Might add some red speckle to the brown trout pattern though... 
These will be up for sale in the next few days if you are looking for some trout lures..
They come rigged with bbk hooks. 

This video is one from many weeks ago when I headed back to the fast waters in the upper reaches of the Meander River.. Certainly a area that's a little tough on the body..
cheers
Adrian
 

Well got home today and after finally over a month and a half i got some packages! Not all of them but its a start

 
The last lot are 120mm and 40g will be painting them first to use them on the Salmon! 
If there is anything in particular youd like to see get painted or would like me to paint let me know. Im always open to buy and paint different lures.
 

Hi all..
I recently got a Watersnake PFD jacket from WA on special for $69 + $20 to post.....In red so its easily seen. Arrived today. Tried it on and its comfortable to wear.. Fits well..
way below half price..... Im getting old and not as strong a swimmer as I used to be.. so I thought that this would be a great idea... Had to try at that price... Hope I don't have to use it, but you never know....
Also got the new Storm Biscay minnows soft plastics to try on salmon this year for something different.. Not cheap but looks the part..
I got the 90mm and the 120mm.... Should work on flatheads as well...
Cant wait to go away again... Might do the bottom of Yorks for a week or 2 soon.... 
Mike

Cheers mate. 
Im glad the 1st lot of lures i sold are to fishos that actually fish and catch fish. So hopefully they come back with some good photos videos etc.... 
I'M hoping to get out alot more myself now that my overtime got taken from me at work. Plus winter trout fishing is alomost upon us so I'll be looking to paint up alot more trout lures... 
My biggest issue is finding blanks that not only work bu are going to be readily available for me to get..
Plus i don't want to step on other lure painters feet. Hence why i haven't painted any cod/callop lures...
It's also a case of do you bulk paint say 5 different types of lures in say 3-4 different patterns And sell bulk or do you go with paint what i feel like and try sell it? If it sells great. If not i guess it can be mine to use. Haven't decided yet. 
I'll  keep just painting lures and creating my own styles and if i sell a few great! If not no big deal... i know that when i do get a chance to  go out to fish I'll only be using my lures and Rezbait plastics. All my other brand name lures have been packed up and put to the side... 
 

Now i got my painting up to scratch i cant wait for yellowfin season... got some killer designs im mind... 
Been using alot of everyday items as stencils... once i get a mic for my go pro i might makea few videos up to run through the processes i go through to paint. 

Parasitologist Dr Kate Hutson replied to my email and sent some interesting papers and a photo. Here is her reply:
"....
.  About two years ago some fishers were seeing this quite a bit in SA on mulloway and some photos were sent to me (among others). It was confirmed as the skin fluke, Benedenia sciaenae by some folks based in SA who got to sample some fish.  See attached paper by my PhD supervisor Ian Whittington (now deceased). This is a monogenean ectoparasite that feeds on skin cells and mucous. Fish tend to get irritated and (presumably in an attempt to dislodge them) will rub (‘flash’) against surfaces. This can lead to secondary infections – bacteria usually. I’ve found B. sciaenae in wild fish in SA and it is not uncommon.  I have not seen the clinical signs of disease progression on wild fish in person, just photos.  To diagnose, immerse the fish skin in fresh water and the parasites (transparent when alive) will die and turn opaque/white (see photo attached; the big sucker to the right is the posterior end).  Of course, it could be something else entirely, but this is the most likely diagnosis.
 As to the reasons for not seeing it on fish from other states… well I’ve seen it in farmed A. japonicus (mulloway) in NSW, so it can occur there.  It could be seasonal.  It could be infection intensity.  It is not unusual for capsalid monogeneans to be site specific. We found adults might congregate for mating and new recruits seem to bury under the scales in some species (see my student’s paper attached)........"
So, the parasite is definitely in SA fish and the "rub it off" reaction would cause the rash/brusing and associated inflammation/secondary bacterial infection.  It is interesting to see a related species lives under barramundi scales. So, I have scratched my itch on this one!!!
 
 

Trujillo-Gonzalez et al. 2015_Tracking transparent monogenea.pdf

Well it's Official!

 
Got Rezbaits to put these lures up for sale on his Facebook page and they sold within an hour! Super Stoked to sell my first lot of lures!
With all the practice and trial and error I am getting more confident Everyday with my Lure painting skills and makes me keen on selling a few more. I was hesitant it getting them up for sale but glad i did. All the money goes towards more fishing gear so thats a plus!
Keep an eye out on the For Sale thread you might find some coming up for sale

Seeing as the trout season is now closed here in Tassie I thought I would post a trout fishing video on the site every now & then,  This was from one of my early trips during the trout season..
cheers
Adrian
 

Painted these jerkbait style minmows up in my mullet pattern. I like this pattern and will be keeping it as an staple part of lures that I'll be selling every nowand then.
Most lures will be sold between 8-12 bucks also dependant on wethe or not people need terminal tackle rigged to them. Atleast the bare minimum they will come with split rings as people like to put there own hooks/trebles on...

I also painted these up for myself some bream crankbaits...
Might get into bream lures a bit more as easy to get ahold of and people bream fish! 

Do your hooks snap? This could be why,

Metal fabricator has a simple hack that may improve the life of your hooks
 

 

I think its because they school up so close and are rubbing against each other?? Thats what we have always thought anyway as we have seen them in schools of a 100 and more fish.. if you look at this photo you can see the mark behind the rod..
 

I've had a look - and a chat to a fella thats caught more Jewies than me -  and our river fish, landed in nets, dont seem to have sores or bruises - But they arent suppossed to spawn in our rivers either.

I'm still waiting on a bloke who has 100's of Melbourne river Mulloway photos, to get back to me. But so far, all we can remember, are clean skins😉

(The Bream - which do spawn in our rivers -  get beat up and exhibit sores during spawning time - not so much bruises - but their tails get bloody and they will have bloody sores on their bodies aswell )

Thanks Mr Fish. That report will make interesting reading! I have not done a proper survey of photos (presence/absence of bruising "rash" +location+ month) and it is sometimes hard to know if the picture in an internet post (say, "tackletactics.com") is a reliable indicator of location, but it certainly seems most common in SA West Coast Fish. Not just there, though, the ones below are Salt Creek, Murray Mouth and (allegedly) Victoria (the smaller one with white fishing rod). I have not seen any (yet) in pics from WA, NSW/SEQ, or South Africa (where they call them "kob"). I have located the contact of a parasitologist in New Zealand (ex-SA) who I will email pics too for an opinion, too. 

Hi there brains trust.
For years I have wondered why pictures of big mulloway often show a pink area of bruising on the flanks. In contrast, I have never seen this on underwater footage of NSW/Qld mulloway taken by divers and spearos. I am really curious to see if anyone knows more. I even began to collect images to see if the bruising was limited to one side, or the other, and if it occurred only on largest fish. 
Early indications are it is mainly surf-caught, bigger fish, and often down the side toward the vent. See examples below, and the one with a yellow circle.
The only things I have shortlisted from a range of possibilities are (a) a parasitic infection of some sort on the skin under the scales, (b) sand rubbing the fish when it is being landed, (c) some sort of contact with the line during the  typical way mulloway fight, and (c) "spawning behaviour" where males might nudge females.
As a semi-retired fish biologist, this is one of those questions that buzzes around in my head begging for an answer!! I don't think it is anything sinister.
Apologies if the photos below are yours! I just Googled them off various FaceBook forums and the net.
Any ideas or observations??
Thanks

Unfortunately, about 30 years ago we started paying ferals to breed.  Not surprisingly, they did.  This is just one of the many, many undesirable consequences.

Not necessarily the cowards way, maybe the smart way. I don't do a lot of jetty fishing because I don't have the patience, and I don't meant patience for fishing, I mean patience for some of the morons that you see up there.
If you are going to approach these thieving bastards in an effort to educate just be careful, I have heard stories from quite a few that have spoken to people doing the wrong thing and they have copped abuse, been threatened (one was told they will go looking for his family), knife pulled, full blown arguments.
If you approach them and are told to F*** off you are better off walking away unless you are prepared for the possibility of the above consequences. Some of these people know what they are doing is wrong and don't want to be told about it.
I'm not saying don't say anything, just be careful
Cheers
Yorky

When it comes to people taking undersized fish - I took the cowards way out and just stopped fishing where other people were - no more crowded piers  - no more crowed jetties - no more crowded hot water outlets for me.

Melbourne has hotspots where huge amounts of people gather and behave poorly - I just avoid those spots now. In one spot you would have no time to fish, if you confronted every one shoving undersized fish into safeway bags between the rocks.

It used to be infuriating and having a word, only stops the problem while you're there.

In alot of the spots I fish - I've never seen anyone else fish - its much more relaxing - no more people casting over the top of you - no more getting snagged on other people snagged lines - no more sitting in a tip of rotting bait in discarded bait bags - while I do miss the social aspect and camaraderie between fellow enthusiasts who do the right thing - in some spots the righteous are in short supply.

I do have a couple of spots where I'll see the same faces and although we dont speak the same language - we communicate through nods smiles and hand gestures. What we do have in common, is a respect for the water were fishing. And sharing the water with those who respect it - is now a prerequisite for me casting out a line

@vogon I do not know the answer, but it frustrates the hell out of me.
I do know that there are those that do not know the rules & are surprised when told that what they are doing is illegal.
There are those that do not know the rules but don't care to know them. and
There are those that know the rules but don't care to follow them.
In the shop we are constantly talking to people about fish bag & size limits as well as safety equipment rules laws and it is very disheartening when you get replies like "they've got to catch you" or "I don't do it very often" or "that's not right"
We had an older gent one day tell us that he often gets his 30 Whiting, "fishing by himself", when we told him that it's not allowed he said "the boat limit says 30" we explained that the personal bag limit applies up till 3 people then the boat limit applies, we even showed him where it says that in the size & bag limit flyer from PIRSA but he still wouldn't have it. He's either very ignorant or is planning to use the old "I didn't know" as his defence when he gets busted.
Maybe the answer is more compliance, bigger fines, hit them where it hurts (back pocket). If they've got something to be scared of they might comply more.
And it's not just any one race, it is across the board
 
and you thought your's was long winded 🙂

Yeah I’m the same for my most often used but the others get broken down so they take up less space

I hang my reels off the rod they go with.  

Just did a quick free hand mock up with the jigsaw😉
it wasn’t as pretty as his😉
but once I get my hands on my Circ saw and a straight edge - I’ll be laughing
 
 

They look a bit slicker than my current spare reels storage