Scotch_Egg2012

I'm not so sure they will end the Suzuki tie up.  

Mercury's vessel view displays have been Simrad units for a good few years,  my Mercury vessel view unit is a Simrad GO5 with some slightly different software. My GO9 which I purchased in 2017 always had Mercury engine support. 

Suzuki are the choice of most commercial operators I think Brunswick would being making a mistake to alienate themselves from that market. 

I think it will go more like the VAG business model.  Where they have definitive brand seperation pretty much like the current Simrad/Lowrance/B&G setup all aimed at different sectors of the market. 

18 hours ago, Petroni said:

10 turn seems like a 'belt and braces' knot but knot puller ordered (to save my ageing fingers) and practice will start at the weekend! Thanks.

You'll be suprised how small the knot will end up. 

Well done for having a go,  it doesn't always go your way but will make it much sweeter when it finally does

Just going to add onto the already very good advice that your knots need to be braid friendly.  Braid will slip if the incorrect knot is used or the correct knot tied poorly

I use Berkeley whiplash which is one of the thinnest braids and my go to knot is a 10 turn Grinner knot. Practice tying it at home 

Enjoyed the report some quality fish caught. 

You've done a great job training your skip. Looks like he handled the situation well

Feel your pain with other water users. Surprising how many don't know the rules of the road. 

They are seriously good images,  might have to look at the active imaging upgrade

Can I ask where at St Caths you fish I also have a mark there that you might be better off trying

Will pm you the Sandown numbers

Glad you managed to have a go, marina looked quite busy when we got back in on Saturday,  saw Jersey girl and Scorchio in ready.  I'd say as long as you didn't hit any one else's boat or damage yours it was a successful first go.  Fair play on heading to St Catherines. 

Nice to see the Bream still showing. I can give you a set of numbers for the reef we've been fishing if you want,  between mine and Ray's boat we have caught over 200 on this reef in the last month and a half. 

15 minutes ago, Andy135 said:

That is a top fish! Very envious. I can't find any pollack inshore at all so I'm guessing you went mid-channel for that. Well done 👍

32 miles out for this one,  bit closer than the last trip thankfully as it was proper rough coming back in

27 minutes ago, Saintly Fish said:

Not so great if you don’t have a mid cleat though! Like me.

I tied it round the base of my pulpit rail. 

1 hour ago, Odyssey said:

Glad you managed it all ok. Being prepared is the main part! 
 

I always tie centre cleat first. One that is on boat can’t move much. Can then take your time setting stern then bow lines. 🙂 

That's exactly how I did it,  thanks for your tips on it

8 hours ago, JonC said:

The tope do run to decent size but the problem is always getting the mackerel for them. 
I have considered going back to the eel sections though, which can be bought live at the fish market. 
The shore smoothound record also stood for years off St. Peter’s flats, but now been surpassed. 

Dab is also another good bait for the Tope but getting hold off them is like trying to source hens teeth

55 minutes ago, GPSguru said:

 

Very well done Scott, going out solo is easy once you have sussed out a plan and have everything you might need to hand 👍

A plan made it a lot easier,  thanks for the tips you gave they all helped. 

51 minutes ago, JonC said:

 

Crikey we don't see numbers like that in the solent

1 hour ago, Andy135 said:

Good work Scott. Very productive session. 👍

I'm planning a solo session early Sunday morning. Where did you berth? Alongside the launch pontoon or further up nearer the entry/exit ramp?

Luckily as it was a weekday marina was pretty quiet.  I put her on the holding pontoon. They were retrieving 3 boats so I just stuck her in front of them, hosed off and flushed the engine. They lifted her straight after. 

I got everything (warps etc) in place before I pulled the anchor so it was all to hand when I came alongside. 

One tip Ray gave me as he does a lot of solo trips was to have a rope on a centre cleat ready so when you pull on it the whole boat comes in parallel to the pontoon rather than fighting with a bow and stern rope.  I used one today and it worked a treat, I stepped off and tied that rope off whilst I sorted the bow and stern. 

Bumblefish has a nasty habit of sitting with the stern moving away from the pontoon when alongside I have to use a spring to keep her parallel but the centre rope sorted that. 

As mentioned on the other post I came in very slow with a short burst of power when needed. Couldn't have done it better to be honest no need for the boat hook just stepped off. 

2 minutes ago, Saintly Fish said:

Well done Scott. I bet your wondering what all the solo boating fuss was all about now!! 
Where was the rocky mark, on the edge of the spit? 

You're dead right all the fuss and it was fairly straight forward. Couple of screen shots added showing the spot,  I'll fish further off it next time I reckon that's where the rays will be,  might be worth a shot nearer the bank showing in between the 2 yellow bouy.  Very little weed 18ft deep.  I was fishing really light (Bream gear) and they really put up a great scrap

2 hours ago, mike farrants said:

i was down the boat last night and the mullet were thick - im going to try for them from the boat some evenings - there were others there float fishing with peas? i'll try bread on the surface first.

 

 

They'll take all sorts if it is something they will come across to eat. 

The Weymouth mullet can be particularly cagey so good luck.  Keep your gear light and keep all the hook covered in your bait, the minute they see or feel it they tend to eject the bait.

If you can get them close to your boat just freeline a flake for them dispense with float etc

1 hour ago, GPSguru said:

Well done, that is a seriously good fish, now you just have to break the double barrier, and TBH that would be the fish of a lifetime !

I do fish for both thick lips and thinlips, but I find the thicklips are bloody infuriating 🙂

Before I got back into the boat fishing I spent 2013-2017 solely targetting them.  A bloody harsh learning curve at the start but they have taught me alot especially patience.  

I don't fish for thins 🤔,  I don't like using spinners. I have had 1 or 2 on float fished bread though and they don't fight anywhere near as well as Thick lips. 

My favourite method is taking them off the top, there is nothing like watching a bow wave head for your surface flake, slow down and then you see the mouth engulf your flake. Set the hook and wait for the fireworks. 

Just a shame numbers have dwindled round here, 2014 saw me catch 76 from the Hamble between March and October. Biggest was 6lb 11oz, I had 6 fish over 5lb the rest were in the 3 - 4lb range.

I put the same amount of trips in 2015 & 2016.  2015 was shocking in comparison. Swims that produced before were now devoid of fish,  locally numbers are still well down on 2013 & 2014.  The average size is down and the number of 5lb fish caught has reduced. 

I am an active member of the NMC and we record all catches and report them to a recording officer the trends from lots of people inputting data are very clear,  something happened to the fish on the south coast between Poole and Shoreham as everyone is reporting the same, numbers and sizes are no longer what they were pre 2015

1 hour ago, Andy135 said:

Nice fish! They're on my wish list to catch. What technique did it fall to? Bait or fly?

This one fell to a legered popped up bread flake, I don't do fly they are hard enough at times I haven't enough patience for that method 😁

14 hours ago, Saintly Fish said:

Where will you go Scott.? I’m thinking south of the needles, but will be punching against the tide to get there. 

I'll be heading Pullar way.  Was keeping an eye to see if weather was going to be good enough to head to the Overfalls but I'm not too keen on the Easterly 16mph gusts