Bay Tuna.... What gear?

[Damned67]

Hi All,
I was out between Harry's and Green on Sunday, and there were schools of tuna everywhere. I'd like to spend some time targeting them, even if they're mack tuna and not long tails.
Other than a 4 stroke engine (even if I idled up to the borderline of casting distance with my 2 stroke, the fish went down), what sort of tackle should I have on hand?
I'm guessing something 7.5' or longer to get out a long cast?
And what's a good size slug to start with? I understand the principle of 'match the hatch', or whatever it's called, but I couldn't see what they were feeding on.

Cheers!

[STUIE63]

I don't know if down there is any different but up here I use a little metel slice about 50-60mm long called a knight in the blue colour

[castamasta]

G,day Damned67
Been a few years since i chased tuna,i used 7ft rods in the 4-6kg range which there are plenty of qaulity in that range.You need something that will cast 20grm slugs [thats alll i used on th mac,s]easily,longer distance the better of course for the reasons you mention about the fish being spooky.I used to stop up wind when they were shy and cut the motor and drift into casting range,requires patience but worth the effort,also sometimes you can park up ahead of the direction they are moving,if you watch them you will work out a pattern to which way that is,most times into the wind anyway,not every day but most.Also i found speed was the key to getting hits,it was hard to get smaller, faster gear reels back a few years but they are more common now.Hope that helps a little.
Cheers,Gav.

[benno_r]

We chased them a lot in Dampier harbour, and our weapons of choice were always 7" spin reels, rated to 6 or 7kg. I used a Daiwa Heartland 12-17lb, but my fishing buddy used a Samurai 302, which was a cracker.

In reels, we used 2500 size Daiwa, and 3000 size Shimano. I prefer the Shimanos because they have the higher gear ratio to burn the lures back in. The faster the retrieve, the better. My Stradic 3000FI has landed me maybe 50 Mack tuna/doggie Tuna/school Macks on 10lb Power Pro, and is still going strong.

Lures - 20-30g Twisties in Silver.

Have fun, it is one of the most frustrating/rewarding fishing pursuits I have done, especially on the light gear!

Cheers,
Ben

[tunaticer]

I would opt for a 3000 or 4000 stradic with 15lb braid and a 7' 3-6 or 4-8kg spin rod. The rod needs to be fairly tippy to cast down to a 10 gram slice if they are feeding on tiny baitfish, often are. A 15kg longtail is a big battle on even a 4-8kg rod but still easy to land them if you have the patience and the stamina for them. Trust me, they can make your arms ache.

[Horse]

Something around the 7' 4-7kg is perfect. I use a Shimano STP Maxspin and it does the job well. There is a Nitro that suits very nicely as well. I like the Stradics in 4000 or so size but there are plenty of reel options out there. Just make sure the rod can cast down to 15gms or so as my main slug that I use is around that size in either Gillies Baitfish or R2S Searock. I like the white ones but others probably work just as good.
Mac Tuna can be very fussy and pull hasrd in the larger sizes but the bigger LTs are harder work

[Damned67]

Thanks All!
Went out today about bought some smaller slugs to add to the collection.
Next question: What size hook to use?

The hooks on the 15 and 25g R2S Searocks are tiny, and I need to upgrade them to feel confident in the tackle.

[Horse]

Don't upgrade too much as the weight will make them blow out more. I only upgrade to slightly bigger hooks and suprisingly they seem to stick. If you are chasing larger LTs then you will have to go stronger but you can usually use a heavier slug

[Marlin_Mike]

I have a Pelagic brand rod, 7ft 12kg. I have a Penn Spinfisher 850 on it with 20 lb line. I have it in the boat ready with a slug on it at all times. No just have to get another boat and I can go chase them

Mike