Adam F

Admittedly we didnt get the chance to test it out on such a fine Ray as Alun's but we were armed with 30-50lb class rods, 30lb braided mainline and 150lb traces to Varivas barbless 7/0 hooks. We were in 110' with a fair tide and 1-1.5lb of lead - Im sure we would have needed this gear of we hooked anything near 20lb - the heavy traceline was to safeguard against Tope - which Im glad we did! The heavy line didnt seem to put off the rays and made sure we saftely landed and returned these magnificent fish. Thats it for me now until Oct! next trip will proably be for cod!!

BW and Dawn Raider started whilst it was dark this morning and launched from Weymouth at 6.30am. The wind was much more than we expected and the slate grey skies made me think that a lumpy bumpy day was in store - but once at anchor it didnt seen too bad. My mark produced from the off - target species as well - Blondes, Undulates and Spotted rays all came to the net within the first 2 hours - in total we had 4 on BW (making 8 rays in total for the two boats) best on BW went 12lb 14oz Undulate to Gordon who also had a 3lb 12oz Spotted. My best was a 10lb 8oz Undulate - all lovely fish. The tope then arrived, and dispite not being target fish provided Gordon and I some electric sport for well over an hour - four fish on at once - screaming takes - searing runs - two tope on the deck and playing another......we had about 20 fish between us best going 20lb. The tide then swang to ebb and dispite trying a few other marks they didnt produce so we called it a day at 3pm and headed home. Nice to do something different - but the big blonde still eludes me!! AF

Glad you had a safe and enjoyable experiance Terry. You were right to anchor. The sole are around for at least another month or so - the best months I feel. As we had a very early start this morning I lay awake at 3.00am listening to the wind growing - but assumed you would be home by then! Next time maybe we will go congering - and we can buddy our two boats up? Adam

You now have the numbers. The spotlight you have on the top of the cuddy will probably be more of a hendernace then a help - the beam has a tendancy to reflect off the white cuddy roof, blind you and ruin your night vision. We steam back to the entrance using night sight only - its surprising what you can see at night when your eyes become adjusted. When in the harbour I get the crew to use the spot, but either held very high out og sight line or around the side of the cuddy.

Terry, You have a PM. As for night fishing from Wick and in general, tell me if im teaching egg sucking, but here are my tips from experiance. Have plenty of light - a headtorch is a must as it helps baiting up etc. A camping lantern or similar is also good - I have 2 x 12" flouro tubes in the cuddy of BW - whatever you do dont use a petrol or parrafin lamp - dangerous on a small boat at night. The sole grounds are OK with regards to pot buoys but as you know Xchurch harbour is very shallow and at night the buoys are almost impossible to spot - we take a 1,000,000 candle power search lamp - using this in conjunction with the plotter ensures you stay in the channel. It is worth radioing Solent CG on 73 to advise him of your passage plan - at least then if anything happens he knows you are out there - not essential during the day when other boats are around and you can be seen, but a different ball game at night. But in general night fishing can be exceptional and pretty good fun too - be safe and let us know what you caught! Adam

I have a 24" blue and white fender for sale, I think they are about

Correct

Im not jealous! ...much!!

60 ltr - a 120 is an over kill, the 60 will hold 200 eels or about 30 macky.

Good work Trev - never considered using trout, didnt think the sea water would do any good! May be tapping you up for a few as the macky dissapear!

Rough guess - about the same - 2 speeds (decent) are a fortune, buying two reels also gives you more flexibility and you can have different braids on each on - a big 2 speed will be too big for drifting and light lining on a wreck.

I think the rules have changed in the past few weeks Duncan to allow members a greater window of oppertunity. Yes, it is the 7 hour window - but now between 6am and 6pm I think?

What type of wrecking Kam? I assume that if you want a fast retreave wrecking reel then you are talking about using it for working gills or shads over a wreck on the drift? If so then the Abu 7000 series take some beating for both speed and strength. If you want a beast of a reel for hauling big leads and fish in big tides then you wont want speed but low strong gears - a 2 speed reel is nice to have, but ask your self how often you will use this reel, how often youll need the 2 speeds and balance this against the high cost of one. I would recommend the Shimano TLD20 for this usage - reasonably priced and built like an outhouse, Penn do a similar jobbie.

Good question Kam. Generally reels with fast gear ratios tend to be used for lighter uses. Beach casting, or light boat work. Its a bit like a bike really. The high gears retreve line quickly but when pushed to retreave a heavy weight and quickly they cane easily give up - unless you have a very, very good quality reel. The lower/smaller geared reels are mainly used for boat fishing where heavyish leads are the norm. They retreave slightly slower but the low gearing means heavy weights and loads are not an issue.

Kod, When I re-engined my 165 last year and was shopping for engines all of the places I looked (new engines) were offering free fitting in an attempt to get me to buy. I went to Select Marine in Poole who sold me the engine for about the best rate I could find anywhere give or take a few quid, fitted it for free, are local if anything goes wrong in the future and threw in the first 60 hour service for nothing....downside is that they didnt replace the throttle box or any of the cables which I thought came with new engines - they just used the exisiting ones. Anyway - cant add much to the above. What engine will you go for? If its any help I went for a 60hp 4 stoke EFI Mariner. I am pleased with it but after having it for a year I think there are better on the market - if I did it again it would be either the 60/70hp Suzuki (mega quiet, soooo responsive and loads of low down torque) or the Etec - 75hp - as small as a 40hp Mariner and Paul at Warrior claims that these will push the 165 to 40 knots! Adam

Happy Birthday Mike - (Afishonado) you mad old dog you!!

Here we go - do your worst! - For those of you who dont know, its Bob F taking a dip on Sunday.

Finally downloaded a few piccies from Sunday, heres a stern view - us lot of motley so and so's amongst the shiney Fairlines!!

What length and guage chain are you using Steve? As Im sure you are aware it is not the anchor its self that actually has the majority of the holding power - you could have a 10kg anchor but if you didtn have any chain this would break free - the chain holds the flukes parallel to the sea bed and creates the holding power. I often anchor is rough conditions in deep water and big tides and have never had the anchor slip more than a few feet when it settles? There must be a reason considering the matched set-ups we both have??

Try this: http://www.grogono.com/knot/bowlineboating/indexL.php

Friday: Had a corporate day booked with Chris Caines from Weymouth. Plan was to go bassing, but the wrong tides and lack of sandeels put the stops on this. Instead we had a good day on the black bream, the clients had a good day and I bagged a 7lb Bull Huss. Sat: Tired from the day before, but still on the hunt for this years double figure bass. Gordon and I left Wick early en-route to the island. A fresh F4 Easterly wind against tide meant a slow bumpy ride and a lost rod and hat for Gordon Struggled to find joeys, all big fish. Drift speed was a little too slow and wind pushed us across the tide and wind was in the dreaded east - thats my excuse anyway! Apart from the bacon and egg baps we had in Alum Bay the day was useless no takes at all! Sunday: As you have read we had the family day out behind Brownsea - great fun! Out again Weds to try again! Adam

Rach and I had a cracking time and as all above had said we really must do it more - a cruise around to the West would be nice next time? Bob had his collar felt for a second time on the way back towing the ringo across the harbour - the Harbour Patrol on Jetski caught up with him!! I took a few good piccies which Ill post later when I get home. Adam

Steve, I have seen you comments on the 7.5kg before - As I mentioned I have never had an issue with my 5kg. Considering the exact matching of our set-up I wonder whether the polyprop rope is a factor? Many of our 20' plus boats in the club run a 7.5kg - the 165's are only 16' so a 5kg should be ample. We regulary fish south of the island and over to the west in 3/4 knot tides and provided enough warp is let out then it holds fine. Adam

Islander - I have a 165, and would recommend a 5kg Bruce, 16' of chain and at least 300' of 12mm qoctoplat rope. Their are several very long threads on this forum re. anchor warps, use the search engine on the top toolbar. In 2 years of owning the boat I have never had the 5kg Bruce slip and it recovers everytime - it also stores neatly in the front anchor hatch. Adam

Poppers; The bass wouldnt count then - they are a banned substance!!! You would also have to question the sexuality of the bass!!