Soobz

Depends.
Tommies and garfish I sprinkle salt and pepper, then dust in flour, before frying quickly in a lightly oiled fry pan.
YFW I like to crumb in panko crumbs before shallow frying.
Crab, I like to make serve with spaghetti.
I also like to make tommies into fish cakes.
In summer, when I catch most of my fish, I have loads of home grown tomatoes, cucumber, basil, chillies etc. for the salads. I get a lot of satisfaction from serving a meal that is mainly made from what I've grown and caught.

If weather permits this weekend. I’ll give the old Jarvis walker fibreglass nibble tip -a head to head challenge with the daiwa scratchy graphite stick
 
 

Obviously bleed and get straight on ice when you catch one.
Knock the fillets off ribs and all no need to scale, then cut the ribs away completely, like straight down pin bones and all, that part is just packed with bones, good berley though, or crab bait but not worth even trying to save to eat in fact it can mess with the next bit.
The fillet you have left will be almost diamond shaped, skin from the tail end, start it with the knife but once started you should be able to just pull the skin off, it will also pull away any pin bones you missed making a mess if you tried to get greedy and "save" the rib section at 45cm minimum it's a big fish, accept the small loss as part of nature's design.
You should have a perfect fillet. Do not wash under water! At no stage do you want the meat to get wet Most fillets are better to some extent without getting wet, even with seawater but snook more than most I've found can really just go to crap, just clean off any bit of blood or scale with paper towel and lay out on paper towel if not eating immediately.
If you've done it right you'll have a perfect slab of delicious boneless, skinless flesh you can cut and cook anyway you like, with practice you'll be able to do it quicker than it takes to read this post.
Might do a video if I can get out again sometime soonish and remember to do it.
 

Yeah we used to catch 40 pinkies for every snook on lures. The standard snook take was a noticeable single take - no warnings with missed hits - then a bit more weight than normal - then they would come to boat quite easily in a slow arc. Then when you pulled there heads up to the surface, they would shake their heads and slice through 8lb leader and steal your lure.

But occasionally you would get one that put on the after burners and went nuts - usually the bigger than average units.

I watched them getting air bourne while smashing gars, so they do have the ability to generate power - most of them save a bit for when they are in the boat and your fingers are near their mouths😉

This is a sign the world has gone mad if anything is.
Don't get me wrong, I quite enjoy the old snook, both catching and, when fresh, on the chew (just accept you're losing the entire rib section then skin for A grade fillets, mmmmm), but $20kg for whole fish would be near on $40kg for fillets which is crazy talk.
Tommies, mullet, bloody STs(!) etc are a similar sort of price & don't even start me on the real crazy stuff like cockles and pillies. This is bait people! Not $20 per kg food!
No-one on here actually buys seafood of course so I guess what I'm getting at is, now more than ever, YOU CAN'T AFFORD TO NOT GO FISHING! So let your bosses/missuses/etc know how things are and get out there when you can and start saving a fortune!

I agree, with a few exceptions most fish are absolutely delicious if treated right and prepared correctly, I agree that people who won't eat certain fish have likely just.not had them prepared correctly and finally I also rate fresh snook up there with anything.
But most importantly in my message GO FISHING!  There's never been more justification and it's good for the soul.

Yeah I reckon you're right. Taste is personal and Im a marginally better chef these days - so I reckon I'll revisit some of these species I'd written off in the past

Ive written off a few fish because they didnt compare well, when eaten side by side with others cooked in the exact same way. My expectations of how fish should taste and their texture is based of the ones Ive eaten most often in the past.

Goat fish are another one that some people rave about, that I release.

Snook and Goat dont make up a huge percentage of our overall catch, so its easy enough to just chuck em back and go for the ones I know how to cook.

We used to do alot of catch and release, and fish much more often than now - getting a feed of pinkies was a matter of heading out to the shallow reefs for an hour or 2 and it was exceedingly rare not to get a few.

Any day of the year, the pinkies just used to be stacked up and waiting for your lures. I had to instate a rule that I couldnt take fresh fish, if I still had some in the freezer. So there were alot of weekends where catch and release was the only option. And it was under those circumstances that I made some of my choices of what was worth keeping.

My mind set was  - if im going to kill a fish - I better really enjoy eating it - and ones that werent as good as Pinkies and flathead got a free pass. There were enough of the ones I liked, to not take ones I didnt like quite as much.

But those days are long gone  - so the next goat or snook I get has a right to be very nervous 😉

Tackleworld Adelaide have another 20% off atm, obviously to match SFS. I'd happily buy from SFS but *every* rod I was interested in was out of stock even before the sale.
Anyway, enough head scratching, time to buy, and the winner was;
21 TIERRA 702LXS Light 2-10g 7'0"/213cm 1.5-3kg 2 section ,Extra Fast taper, ~90g
Wasn't actually on my list, but the same grip as the Infeet won me over everything else I handled. I also liked the extra fast taper, more backbone than the Infeet but pretty much the same tip from the last 2 guides. Somehow 20% off $179 came to $119, could not say no.
BTW, had another look at the Crucis Tempest VXS (not solid tip), and I was very tempted.
Heaps of great light action rods these days, damned hard to choose even when price is not an important consideration. What I have come to be more aware of is grip shape means a hell of a lot to how much I enjoy a rod. It's the difference between feeling like you're holding the rod vs. it being an extension of your hand/arm.

Tackleworld Adelaide have another 20% off atm, obviously to match SFS. I'd happily buy from SFS but *every* rod I was interested in was out of stock even before the sale.
Anyway, enough head scratching, time to buy, and the winner was;
21 TIERRA 702LXS Light 2-10g 7'0"/213cm 1.5-3kg 2 section ,Extra Fast taper, ~90g
Wasn't actually on my list, but the same grip as the Infeet won me over everything else I handled. I also liked the extra fast taper, more backbone than the Infeet but pretty much the same tip from the last 2 guides. Somehow 20% off $179 came to $119, could not say no.
BTW, had another look at the Crucis Tempest VXS (not solid tip), and I was very tempted.
Heaps of great light action rods these days, damned hard to choose even when price is not an important consideration. What I have come to be more aware of is grip shape means a hell of a lot to how much I enjoy a rod. It's the difference between feeling like you're holding the rod vs. it being an extension of your hand/arm.

Tackleworld Adelaide have another 20% off atm, obviously to match SFS. I'd happily buy from SFS but *every* rod I was interested in was out of stock even before the sale.
Anyway, enough head scratching, time to buy, and the winner was;
21 TIERRA 702LXS Light 2-10g 7'0"/213cm 1.5-3kg 2 section ,Extra Fast taper, ~90g
Wasn't actually on my list, but the same grip as the Infeet won me over everything else I handled. I also liked the extra fast taper, more backbone than the Infeet but pretty much the same tip from the last 2 guides. Somehow 20% off $179 came to $119, could not say no.
BTW, had another look at the Crucis Tempest VXS (not solid tip), and I was very tempted.
Heaps of great light action rods these days, damned hard to choose even when price is not an important consideration. What I have come to be more aware of is grip shape means a hell of a lot to how much I enjoy a rod. It's the difference between feeling like you're holding the rod vs. it being an extension of your hand/arm.

Tackleworld Adelaide have another 20% off atm, obviously to match SFS. I'd happily buy from SFS but *every* rod I was interested in was out of stock even before the sale.
Anyway, enough head scratching, time to buy, and the winner was;
21 TIERRA 702LXS Light 2-10g 7'0"/213cm 1.5-3kg 2 section ,Extra Fast taper, ~90g
Wasn't actually on my list, but the same grip as the Infeet won me over everything else I handled. I also liked the extra fast taper, more backbone than the Infeet but pretty much the same tip from the last 2 guides. Somehow 20% off $179 came to $119, could not say no.
BTW, had another look at the Crucis Tempest VXS (not solid tip), and I was very tempted.
Heaps of great light action rods these days, damned hard to choose even when price is not an important consideration. What I have come to be more aware of is grip shape means a hell of a lot to how much I enjoy a rod. It's the difference between feeling like you're holding the rod vs. it being an extension of your hand/arm.

Purely for bait fishing my favourite whiting rod over the years was a Jarvis Walker fibreglass rod. The 'Tooradin' model. At 188cm it was a great little rod in the boat and loaded up very nicely with any KGW on the other end. 😉

That's pretty much how I do it, though I use a M8x50 machine screw with 2 mudguard washers.
I'm curious what "freestyle" was. 🤔
What I do need to make is a spool holder that keeps light tension.

I couldnt find my old braid reversing spools the other day so I tried doing it freestyle - what a nightmare that was.

So it was straight down to the Hardware the next day to make a new set
 

 

I used to use a Gomuku Red with a 2500 on it as a snapper rod to chase snapper on plastics. But with a quick rig change it turned into a awesome whiting rod. Well until it went for a swim at Marino.
Planning to get another before snapper season opens again to use on the kayak.

A few rods that I am aware of,  but have not checked them out as I would probably end up buying them!
I keep lists of them just in case 🤣😂
My list only has rods below $500. Although some are inexpensive like the below Abu Garcia at $160
Abu Garcia Veritas PLX Tournament, VRTT-S 721UL 1-3kg 7' 2" 2-8gms 1pc
Daiwa 20 INFEET EX 752ULFS-ST 7'5"  Line 0.5 - 3Kg  Lure 0.5-5gms  2-Butt    
Diawa 22 TD ZERO 762ULFS, 0.5-8g, 1-3kg
OCEANS LEGACY QUEST  QSR732XUL 2-8LB Weight 58gms 
Shimano Anarchy 21AN782ULF 7'8" 1-4 Kg, 1-5 gm
Have fun looking for your new rod.
 

My favourite ultra light for lure casting at Yellow Fin Whiting is the: 
Abu Garcia Eradicator Real Finesse ERFS-76LT-TZ  7' 6" 2pce Line 0.6-3lb Lure 0.1gm-12gm
Not sure if they are available now. There were some on ebay. The 7' 6" Rod only 66 weighs grams !!!
A couple of slightly heavier models I have (amongst too many others!), which are also good for YFW lure casting,  yet easily handle a few big Flathead or Salmon:
Shimano T Curve Premium 21TCP782LC … 7' 8" 1-4 Kg line,  1-7gm lure. 2 pc
Shimano Zodias ZOD270UL+ 7ft  Line 3-5 lbs  Lure 2-7gms   JDM model
All the ultra light models need some care.
Cheers, Des

The main way I can imagine how the Albright can slip is the tag end of the braid is too short or not tied off. Best finish is the rizzuto, which is really similar to a uni knot, or just do several half hitches. The Albright does require a hard cinch down, as per most knots, if the braid hasn't gone a darker colour it's not tight enough. Make sure you leave long tag ends to pull on before snipping down.
I changed from FG to Albright because I had some FGs slip on some sub 12lb braid brands, plus it's so much easier to tie on a rocking kayak.
Easiest knot and pretty much slip proof is the surgeons, but it's bigger than most and not the strongest.

I don't fish much using heavy leaders and have found the slim beauty a great knot. I find the FG knot, when setting the knot, requires you to put the leader under too much strain for light line. The FG knot is completely dependent upon the braid biting into the leader material, which is why you need to put a lot of tension on the lines when setting the knot. Knots like the slim beauty, don't need to bite into the line, because you are wrapping two knots around the lines (a uni knot and variation on a clinch knot) which then are pulled up against each other and can't slide past each other (similar to using a stopper knot).
When tying the slim beauty I don't start like most videos show. In most videos, they say tie a double overhand knot leader, tighten until a figure eight forms and thread the main line through. But if you look at the resulting knot, it's just a 2 turn uni knot. So I tie a 2 turn uni knot. This video demonstrates this nicely (from 1:32 to 2:52).

Sad news reported today of Aussie fishing icon Alvey Reels shutting the doors permanently.
Link to original article https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/manufacturing/australian-fishing-reel-brand-forced-to-close-after-102-years-amid-drastic-price-hikes/news-story/63caad4108d0191fc1da4a3269ae64c4
 
Australian fishing reel brand forced to close after 102 years amid ‘drastic’ price hikes
Iconic Australian brand Alvey Reels will shut permanently after 102 years in coming weeks as a result of immense market pressures.
After more than a century in business, Australian fishing reel brand Alvey Reels will shut up shop permanently.
Increased cost pressures have forced the Queensland-based manufacturer to close its doors after 102 years, according to a statement released on Monday.
The company announced it had “made the difficult decision” to cease operation on June 30.

It cited issues with sourcing raw materials, “drastic” cost increases, significant and increasing domestic and global supply chain logistics issues, and staff shortages caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The company still had “significant supplies” to clear and has planned a “structured sell down”, the statement said.
“We anticipate running with warehouse/dispatch and administration staff with current stock on hand, which will carry us through to January/February 2023, but we will not be able to remain open after this time,” it read.
Products will remain available via its website, and authorised retailers will continue sales until they run out of stock.
Calls to company phones will be diverted to an answering service to assist the admin team.

“We at Alvey Reels deeply regret this difficult decision, and while we commit to supplying as many of our products as we can for as long as we can, our immediate priorities are our loyal staff, our dedicated retailers and passionate supporters and customers,” the business said.
“On behalf of the Alvey Team, we thank you all for your 102 years of support.”
The company experienced significant export market growth, product innovation and expansion as it entered its centenary year of 2020.
Its success came off the back of an announcement in 2017 from Bruce Alvey – a descendant of the man who founded the business in 1920 – that it would need to shut because of plunging sales.
When the news broke, there was an outpouring of support for the company that allowed it to continue trading.
It ultimately attracted attention from Con Athans, who expanded the business to include a broader range of gear, including high-end apparel.

KastKing SuperPower Braided Fishing Line in 8 strand
 

Normal is another word for average  @dmck I'm supernormal* 🤣
*(it's a real word, I won that argument with my wife, and winning an argument with your wife proves you're supernormal)
 
@Des yeah that's a concern I have too, thumbs are more a problem, I look for reels with big round/EVA grips now.

Been meaning to discuss this for a while.
I'm right handed, meaning I cast with my right hand, and like most righties I did wind with my right hand too. When I got the yak I got the irrits that the steering is my left hand, so after I've cast, every time I needed to adjust the steering I had to swap the rod to my right hand, adjust steering, then swap it back to left, repeat ad nauseum.
It got me thinking, why do righties wind right handed? Makes no sense when you consider pretty much every reel we use is geared, so it's not about more cranking powers, and you want your strong/accurate hand on the rod. It's just inefficient doing cast, swap hands, crank, when you can simply cast, crank.
So I changed the handle to left hand wind, and it took me all of an hour of fishing to be completely comfortable with it.
There's been a few interesting things that followed from it.
- almost all brand new reels out of the box with handle already fitted are left hand wind, at least the ones I've picked up in the last year or 2
- fly fishing was easier to pick up because hand swapping is risky with takes often as the fly lands.
- there's a lot less LH wind baitcasters, which isn't a huge issue as I can use RH, I just don't want to anymore , but I expect most lefties buy RH wind baitcasters 🤣
- it's amusing immediately swapping the handle on a reel when the salesperson hands it to you as they always seem to swap it back when you're done testing
I feel like a goofball it took me 40 years to work out it's better for me and was so easy to change. YMMV