spog61

must have been a bitch to light & drag onSorry Livebait, couldn't let that one pass

If you don't want to outlay the big bucks for a set of cobalt drill bits for drilling stainless steel, try using fresh lemon juice as a cutting fluid, trust me it works.A lot of alloy steels have a tendency to "work harden" this means if they're stressed in any way they'll tend to change properties in that area i.e. at the point where the drill bit cutting edge engages the steel, for some reason? something in lemon juice inhibits this tendency.This trick was shown to me many years ago by an old German welder.Cheers, Spog

I had to back & have another look! I missed the fish the first time {SMILIES_PATH}/cheesy.gif {SMILIES_PATH}/cheesy.gif

They're called kick chains, and I can till remember how much uprooted sea grass we used to have to shake out of the net after the prawnies had been working, by the end of the 2nd or 3 rd shot your arms were ready to fall off. Recollections from days as a power haul decky in the mid 80's, as soon as the belly in the net used to get loaded up with weed the skipper would always deem that was the best time to change me over to the cork line which meant I was the one doing all the shaking, couldn't possibly shake the lead line as it might come off the bottom an inch or two and let the fish out?? {S

Here?s one I picked up from a Sth African fishing show & have adopted, pick up a cheap meat tenderizing mallet or as they call them ?choko hammer? they?re ideal for tenderizing squid baits, can?t bring myself to chew it like the old timers used to. I just keep mine in the boat with a 4x2 off cut to hammer on. Look for one with a longer handle as they make good back scratchers as wellCheers, Spog

Agreed Yobbo, I've lost count of the shitty days I've spent down the shed tinkering & fine tuning, a few beers & some tunes for inspiration, but thats when Ranger's anagram kicks in But who cares, a lot of us boaties have only this single passion, a lot of my buddies are motor enthusiast & we all pretty much know how much money you can throw at that. I'm also lucky, I have a wife that loves her fishing so it's a passion shared.Cheers , spog

Hey fellas, just thought I?d relay the first 2 replies I received from our pollies after sending the letter template with the following personal addition, as encouraged by the following site; www.ffc.org.au/Desalination.html. ?(to the relevant Ministers now expressing your concern regarding this development proposal. FFC has provided a template letter to help get you started on our email campaigns page)??I?m sure you?ve already read what?s below, I would just like to add that we only have to look at what the lack of foresight by our ancestors has done to the River Murray. I?m not against desa

Just thought I'd post a story that still makes me grin & grimace at the same time, but only if you're standing on the outside looking in.In the early 80's I was living & working in the NT, used to come home once a year to catch up with the mates for a few beers & spend all my hard earned cash.On one trip home a mate filled me in on his recent fishing trip where he took a novice out snapper fishing, the novice was given a hand line rigged paternoster style & was instructed when boating the fish to grab the swivel as came up to gunwale height & in one smooth action lift &

Great twist to the tip! I've booked my tennis ball in for a xxx wax. {SMILIES_PATH}/grin.gif {SMILIES_PATH}/grin.gif

Absolutely agree Niftrev,The resource greatly lacks sound & fair management, unfortunately we've yet to have a government with the balls to tackle it head on. Absolutely not!, but it would be another weapon in the Dept's arsenal & if it meant just one more conviction I would class it as justified. I know this for a fact as I once worked as a decky on a power haul boat with hook indorsements & that is why I used the word "compliant"! again it's the few (quite a few) stuffing it up for the many!Quotas on finfish for pro's is the way to go & is way way over due & also the

If All the revenue generated goes back into rec side of the resource then I say yes.The only other thing that bothers me is, as a boaty I will have to ensure that all my passengers are licensed novice or otherwise! I would like to see a special boat registration category introduced, i.e. "Fishing Vessel {SMILIES_PATH}/embarrassed.gif

Here?s another way off looking at it, as pointed out by a compliance officer some time ago.Currently the department does not have the tools to successfully convict suspected rec fishers of commercial enterprise, i.e. unless they catch them in the act of actually selling their catch or get the recipient to testify they have very little chance of achieving a conviction. With the implementation of a possession limit any alleged offender found to be in excess could be deemed as having a saleable amount & therefore prosecuted accordingly.This officer also allayed my fears that such a scheme wou

Some of you may know this one! A quick and easy alternative to a rod bucket, is to grab a tennis ball & cut a slit in it so that it fits snuggly over the rod butt, it's quick to install, takes up very little space & surprising how much more comfortable it makes the fight or lure fishing from the shore with long rods.Doesn't hurt as much if you accidentally jab yourself in the goolies either {SMILIES_PATH}/grin.gif

Might work alright with tea bags though {SMILIES_PATH}/smiley.gif

Even if you consider yourself to have perfect eye sight, pick up a pair of cheap reading glasses from supa cheap or the like, + 1 or + 1.5 magnification are more than ample & keep them in your tackle box, they make dealing with tangles a lot easier. especially if you fish light.I know I do a lot less swearing since I bought mine {SMILIES_PATH}/grin.gif

excellent site & report my letters are soon to be on their way & I urge all to read & respond accordingly.So much for the so called "Big Australian" feels a bit like your wife cheating on ya!

Could be an Idea to invite certain parties to join S&H to view posts on an obviously hot topic, i.e members of federal, state & local gov. There are many well presented valid points & concerns posted on this topic. Not only a means of like minded people to communicate but a platform for airing their views/concerns to the appropriate authorities. just a thoughtrgds,Spog

Do we want to set a precedence? If small desal plants turn out to be commercially viable should irrigators & other industry be allowed to re-locate to costal areas & draw on a seemingly limitless supply? The decline of the Murray started with the first pump! I like the Idea of desal plants, the melting polar ice caps are introducing plenty of fresh water but lets keep the discharge out of the gulfs and concentrate on getting it as far out into the open ocean as possible. Stuff the developers, industry & governments who are looking for a cheap way out.

Plus golf can be played anywhere there's enough space, so why do they have be by the sea side. Save the sea side for those that rely on it for their water based activities.I also think that there will be little benefit for the local economy as golfers tend to wine, dine & party in their own club house & seldom patronize other establishments, especially at the upmarket end of the scale. {SMILIES_PATH}/angry.gif:(" title="Angry" />

Yep! just get some of that low vis mono & set up a trip wire plus just happen to have some savlon & bandaids with ya {SMILIES_PATH}/cheesy.gif

Just had another thought! I wonder how much pesticide, herbicide, phosphate etc will leach into adjacent waters from predominately intensive golf course green keeping maintenance????

And here's me thinking councils were there to represent the best interests of it constituents, this is the epitome of arrogance.Well written post Ranger

No worries mate, gave me a good excuse to try out the new crayons as well!

We all know that fish have sensory perception, ie. smell. sight, vibration, temperature etc etc, & pain is really exceeding the comfort threshold of any of these senses ie. bright light, loud noises, hi/low temps can all cause pain in humans, that much we know, given that fish have a brain & nervous system I would expect that they probably do feel pain but from my experience I believe that there thresholds are higher in some areas & lower in others, probably lower in say temp & vibe/sound & higher in touch, which is a survival instinct & at the same time enables them t

I like em all, except the dynamite, too hard to identify the species afterwards. That's probably why I'll always be just an average fisherman, I just can't bring myself to focus on just one discipline or species, I like to spread myself around and dabble in all aspects of the greatest pastime ever stumbled upon by man.