Surf Fishing question

[tikelz]

Hi,

I have a couple of questions..

Firstly, i am planning on going to the beach to fish in the next week or so.. is there a website to check to find out what the current would be like? i dont think its that comfortable fishing when your bait just keeps getting dragged to the site..

Also, what type of sinker should i use when fishing from the beach and what size please?

[death_adder]

don't know if this is right or not but its what i do, i look at the beach in question on google earth then i check surfing website eg seabreeze for swell direction/size and period. bigger the swell and shorter the period between swell adds to the volume of sideways current, but the biggest factor seems to be swell direction. If the swell is running anywhere near the same direction as the beach then there will be alot of current running along the beach. If the swell direction is head on to the beach then it should be less except for usual sidewash into rips channels ect. My theory not proved by science but seems to make sense been to 90mile and had waves of less than 1 meter but running along the beach and the side current was unfishable. Other times 2 meter waves but head on and not to much side current.

[death_adder]

also longer the beach the more side current...

[Captain Caveman]

Mate you will need more than one sinker and size, get a few sizes and use what best suits the condition on the day. On a proper surf beach with a good swell running you will need 4+++ ounces of lead or a grip sinker. Then you will need an outfit that can cast 4+++ ounces and a bait.

The nature of a surf beach is that all displaced water needs to find a way back out to sea. This makes rips and channels and water will flow left and right to a rip. Side drift is displaced water making its way back to the ocean.

[Captain Caveman]

To be more specific take some lead from 3-6 oz, start with the lower weight and move up as required. Shapes you would use could be bomb types to star types, bombs will roll more than a star.

[craigmack]

I use grapnel sinkers, generally 3-4oz but this is heavy surf and big baits that I like to sit, not roll. Always have lighter line to the sinker as a big fish will often hit so hard the sinker breaks off, better to lose sinker than a good fish. You will also find these sinkers dig in hard, to retrieve when checking bait etc you need to load the rod up and just constant pressure will pop it out of the sand but can take 10-30 seconds if buried hard.

I know others will say the moving bait catches more fish but I like the bait in the strike zone more
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Cheers
Craig
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You won't catch fish in your lounge room!

[Captain Caveman]

[seacarp 1]

give up surf fishings crap weed rays current and sand blowing in ya face
only joking keep at it surf fishing is can be super rewarding
source gear rigs etc from south africa they came over here and kicked our arse in wa a few years ago THEY HAVE Some really good applications

[Story Teller]

Side drift can be used to your advantage. In a hole that leads out to the sea use a bomb sinker and let it be dragged out but keep moving with it along the beach. Often you will get hits as fish pick off bits of food moving out of a hole.

If you want to fish in one spot I suggest using braid and star sinker 3 to 4 oz.

[BorisK]

Use breakaway sinkers and dont even think about any other types. you wont need to use as heavy sinker this way but they grip well and they only need one firm pull to release. Use a running sinker rig on a short leader though .
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