Ooglies of the deep.

[fishfeeder]

I am thinking 80lb braid with a 1kg sinker, about 5m of 150Lb leader to 3 hook paternoster rig for the drop
The sinker is attached with a 4-6lb leader and should brake off with a good yank so winding up just hooks to start a new drift..

Using mono line sounds crazy, with stretch and thickness would cause you to need huge amounts of weight and you would need heaps more line out to get to the bottom........ Isn't that why we all changed to braid in the first place.

I have never done this before but think some of you are thinking your bringing up the Titanic not a fishy...

[Floating Rib]

I like the idea about using the anchor ball to retrieve, sounds easier, must admit id love to give it a go but im not geared for it so think after one retrieve using the 6/0 penn id give up, Muddy Toes would you share the info in that enlightening PM you got?

[lucee81]

I am thinking 80lb braid with a 1kg sinker, about 5m of 150Lb leader to 3 hook paternoster rig for the drop
The sinker is attached with a 4-6lb leader and should brake off with a good yank so winding up just hooks to start a new drift..

Using mono line sounds crazy, with stretch and thickness would cause you to need huge amounts of weight and you would need heaps more line out to get to the bottom........ Isn't that why we all changed to braid in the first place.

I have never done this before but think some of you are thinking your bringing up the Titanic not a fishy...

No Brett YOUR bringing up the fish not us we are planning and dropping the lines

[Noelm]

you would never use mono in those depths (well you can, and we did years ago) the mono is just for the paternoster setup, using bricks and stuff on a breakaway system is OK, but you need to have a boatload of bricks when you start, and there is nothing like a heap opf bricks sliding around to do some damage to your boat or toes!, as I said, unless you have a good Alvey reef queen or similar, go the handline system, it is a million times easier than a rod and reel, trust me, I have been there and done it too many times.

[rabbi]

Hi,
I have fished the edge of the shelf for Barcod,nanygai,and whatever else I can catch out there.
I use a wilson live fibre 15 to 24kg 2metre rod wih 80kg braid on a Penn 330GTi overhead, which is fine out to the 1000 foot mark 150 fathoms or 330m.
Rig is simple, Big swivels with 3 hook dropper rig with 8/0 Octopus hooks out about 30cm from mainline which is no more than 100lb mono. The dropper rig is no more than 2metres long and clipped onto mainline wth a big coastlock.
In about 200 to 300m of water I use about 1/2 pound of lead or a 300 to 400gm jig as a sinker. If you have to use any heavier there is too much current and it will be almost impossible to hold bottom with whatever you throw over the side of the boat.
Works fine with most of the fish caught out there these days.
I have caught snapper on the jig halfway up too.
I dont like using electric reels as it falls into the "catching" category moreso than "fishing".You are only allowed 5 fish out there anyway so make the most fun out of the 20 to 30 minute wind up
cheers,steve

[fishfeeder]

Noelm, You probably have a wealth of information on this sort of fishing, anything else you can pass on would be handy...
Like I said I have never done this but can see some benefits in going as light as practical..... I can see a huge tangle with 400m of line/cord on the deck.

You mentioned Squid for bait, What do you think about mullet soaked in tuna oil.

For a sinker, I was thinking steel bars, like a large jig.... They would drop fast and are easy to make after a trip to the scape yard..

I must be stupid, but I can't wait to give it ago...

[Crunchy]

I "Caught" one once (Hapuka) many years ago on a charter boat off White Island in NZ in about 300M of water, was using a short boat rod and mono, skipper says, "Want to go again"....ummm no thanks I'll let someone else have a turn now I dont recall enjoying it that much.....

[lucee81]

For sinkers i can get a shite load roofing lead a good 30-40kg at least and start melting, granted they wont be pretty but FREE and wont care about leaving them 400mt under water.
here is a really dumb question but what about replacing the rope on the anchor winch to line and using the anchor winch to lift the line? i sure as shite would hold that much rope on the anchor anyway so its pretty useless out there.

[Noelm]

OK, here is my bits and pieces, for sinkers we use either a bunch of Snapper leads, (up to 6-10) or beer cans filled with concrete with a loop of wire left in the wet concrete, they work OK, and cost bugger all to make, sash weights from old windows are good, but hard to find these days. For bait, you want something that is hard to get off, Squid or Cuttlefish is what we use, but fish flesh will be OK, as long as it does not fall to bits on the long drop down (and we are talking DEEP here) sometimes I use a bit of that glow in the dark tube on the line where the hook is (don't know if it makes a difference or not) glow sticks and the like don't seem to be of any use at all (in my experience), I now use a reef queen with 150lb braid, and 100lb mono droppers, sinkers are on about 30lb line (in case you get snagged)hooks need to be big and strong. There is some pretty tough fish out there, and some don't like being yanked out of their holes, so good tackle is a must, there is also some pretty hideous critters as well! when/if you get your deep water fish three quarters of the way up, they will bloat up and just float to the surface (except the Green Eye sharks), even if they get off, you can just drive over and net them on the surface, their eyes will be on stalks, all extended from the sockets. I prefer the handline (with cord) technique over a rod and reel any day, it will only take two guys taking turns to pull it in, kind of suspect an anchor winch will not have a constant duty cycle to allow for one to be used, but you never know. You need some current to get good fish, it is a pain in the bum, but deal with it, we have the boat constantly on the move, driving up current a bit, around in a circle, anyway to keep the line down as best possible, it is hard work, but the rewards can be some very good eating fish, down my way we get heaps of Gemfish, pretty ugly looking things, but they taste OK. You will either need some starters GPS marks, or a good sounder to find the bottom structure, the steeper the bottom pinnacles the better.

[outwide1]

What he said.lol
I have done a bit of it now off Cape Morten,we use Diawa Tannacom Bull 1000 electrics spooled with 130lb braid.
We fished in depths from 250-600mtrs.My deckie thought it would be good while i was using the electric to drop down on a Shimano Torium 30,bad mistake on his part after hooking a monster bar cod that absolutly killed him bringing it in.
We have made leads out of V cans which work well.
I wish i had my photos here at work to post of what we have caught.
We mainly use mullet and squid for bait.
I have also started using lumo lights and deep water flashing lights with good success.
It is hard work but the rewards are awesome,2 drops and you have a good lot of flesh.
The pro line fisherman off Morten do a lot of this style of fishing and don't like it when you fih there areas.
And no this is not a dig at this group of people who work hard for a living.
The best people to know to get an idea on where to go would be game fisherman,i have found my best deep
water marks whilst trolling the shelf for blue marlin.
Other then the above theres not alot more to know,as some have already said,you will need to a good sounder set up.
Cheers Mick

[Muddy Toes]

I don't think the pros have much to worry about Mick......we are all very green at this style of fishing.

The more I hear about it the more I want to try it.

[outwide1]

I don't think the pros have much to worry about Mick......we are all very green at this style of fishing.

The more I hear about it the more I want to try it.

It has that effect,its about exploring new frontiers.
The best part is you just never know what is going to come up.
There is these long orange fish out there,(not flame tails)but another fish that
the flesh is like mac tuna blood red,tried using them for red baits after discovering
just how red the flesh was,no good for bait either.

[rabbi]

I try to use something for bait that does not act like a parachute on the way down. live yakkas pinned thru the nose are good and squid hooked through the pointy end are good too. Mullet strips are parachutes.
I often use a 400gm knifejig with a metre of leader and put a big SP on the top. Jigging is fun but you dont have to work the jig too hard just wind up 10m slowly and drop it back down. not hard work.
I have caught 3 Barcod in one drop at times on dropper rigs with over 30kg of fish on and they fight well up to about 80m from the surface. then they blow their air bladder and float up.
We have been out there on flat days with no current at all and just sat over the top of them pulling them up.
They seem to bite better after lunchtime
I reckon its more fun fighting them on my gear and the the bragging rights are better when you do it the hard way, you dont see game fishos using electrics.
Each to their own.
Cheers, steve.

[Noelm]

Our main species down south is Blue Eye Trevalla, Gemfish, Hapuka and Bass Groper, odds and ends are Green eye sharks, a silly rockcod looking thing we call an Ocean Perch, a hideous, vicious thing called an Oil Fish that would scare the bejesus out of anything that swims, plus some reasonably rare catches like Oar fish and Ribbon Fish, I found a link to a local charter operator near me. (I have no affiliation with them at all) all in all it is a way to catch some different species using rather heavy and not too sporting gear.
http://www.predatorcharters.com.au/i...999999&catid=3

[snapperdan]

Just saw on gamefishinghub.com.au that a fella got a baby sword off coffs the other day while having a drop. They are always a big posibility when out there as well. Better to be prepared for the 100kg bass or 150 kg sword.

Also take heaps of ice. Get yourself a kill bag or 2 and dont scrimp on the ice. Pretty easy to end up with a big pile of top quality fish. Treat it well.