western suburbs spot

[stevce]

Hey guys,

Recently knew here, i have tried hotties some ppl might know it as warmies nothing there, port melbourne pier lil bits but no hook up.

Now is it just me that has bad luck or am I doing something wrong...

any suggestions where u are for sure to catch??

[raco09]

To be honest I believe most spots are spots where u are'sure to catch'. I guess at the end of the day its luck of the draw. I've fished plenty 'sure to catch spot's' with no return. That's how it is sometimes.....

[Timi200]

I have fished the hotties in the evening and used prawns and I caught some big trevelly and bream but I think the best time to fish the hotties is in June/July that's when they seem to fire up.

[stevce]

yeh true that.

I've heard that dalingsford and navan park in melton, just got stock... you think worth a shot?

[Timi200]

Lol I was having a conversation about naven park on this website if you search naven park You will see my conversation I have been to haven park 4 times and got a few bites each time I go but no hook ups a guy said that he catches trout on power bait and worms at darlings ford so maybe going there is worth a shot. I was gonna go try dalingsford today but the weather put me off.

[Timi200]

Or if you wanna catch something bigger Albert park lake in Melbourne has some big yellow belly on offer.

[Tomcat1]

what kind of fish are you trying to get stevce? if its snapper you want and you are fishing land based the best time to go is when the waves are crashing over the pier. the big snapper come in close in the rough weather. i use pilchard, squid and chicken breast for bait usually. i use paternoster rig on 2 rods and running sinker on 2. if i catch a salmon i fillet it up for bait too. if you ever end up around mordialloc pier area message me and i will try to go out and fish with ya. maybe i can give a few pointers. good luck on the fishing mate. and remember only way to catch them is to keep trying.

[hskim00]

i use pilchard, squid and chicken breast for bait usually. i use paternoster rig on 2 rods and running sinker on 2. if i catch a salmon i fillet it up for bait too

Just a bit side tracked questions regarding your setup. This snapper season I personally have given up using running sinker (star sinker too) but been using paternoster rig with bomb shaped sinker only for pinkies and snappers. It is only because I generally fish in rough grounds and I find paternoster rig works better to decrease loss of tackles to weeds or rocks.

But my current problem with this setup, I get more pinkies but less big snappers. My so far outcomes this snapper season haven't been bad but I would say NOT that impressive. No snapper more than 3 kilo has been caught but nurmerous pinkies and a few snappers under 3 kg :wall:

Wondering if you have ever experienced that different styles of rig bring you different sizes of fish, apart from your bait choice and size?

[Fish-cador]

hello hskim, I agree with you. Paternoster rig is very easy to manage and running sinker is sometimes a pain specially when there is current or waves to toss your bait around.

Running sinker rig will give you the benefit you need if you will let the fish run (i.e use bait runner reel, loose drag or open bail arm with rubber band to hold the line). This will give the fish time to swallow the bait and hook. To avoid tangles, use short dropper about 6 inches to a foot from your sinker. Dont use a stopper above your sinker. You should let your main line or long leader slide through the sinker attachment (i.e. ezi rig). If you dont allow enough line to be pulled by the fish, running sinker is no use.

I get bigger fish when using running sinker setup specially when they are very timid and picky. Most fish will drop the bait as soon as they feel the weight of the sinker. Letting them take the bait for a mile or two will give them time to swallow the bait.

However, if they are thick and there is a feeding competition, you will have a similar success on paternoster rig. I caught all my snapper last night on running sinker setup. I had one big bite on paternoster which almost took my rod and rod holder but I did not hook up. Probably there were several fish competing for my bait and the first one that picked up the bait took off but the weight of the sinker affected its capability to swallow the bait immediately. That is just my theory on that big take but no hook up.

[hskim00]

I had one big bite on paternoster which almost took my rod and rod holder but I did not hook up. Probably there were several fish competing for my bait and the first one that picked up the bait took off but the weight of the sinker affected its capability to swallow the bait immediately. That is just my theory on that big take but no hook up.

That is what I have been experiencing with paternoster setup. Everytime I had a good sign of big red on my 12ft rod, it was not hooked up properly so I lost it either on my action to grab the rod or on my line retriving :wall: I will take your advice and use running sinker more often and at least when I fish on local piers with less weeds and rocks on the ground.