a double figure bass in heavy current.
A very small and simple design but one
which makes the world of difference,
allowing you to speedily change lures
in the heat of battle.
GREYS RUBBER MESH NET: A landing net
doesn’t seem like an obvious choice for
this section but I have been using the
Greys rubber meshed landing net now
for two seasons and, in conjunction
with barbless hooks, I love it. I find it
gives suitable protection from the rocks
and also allows me to keep the fish
safely in the water while I get my
camera gear ready to take a few snaps.
The wellbeing of the fish is paramount
and I never put the fish at risk for the
sake of a photograph, but with this net
it allows me to do both.
A LOOK BACK AT RODS, REELS AND
LURES USED LAST SEASON: I have
laid out my two fundamental lure set
ups used during the course of last year
- things are likely to change this season
as new kit comes out, but these specific
set ups served me well and landed a
serious amount of fish from double
figure bass in estuaries to 5lb wrasse
off the west coast of Ireland.
2014 BASS SET UP
Q Custom built DFR 9’6”, T-Russell
Blank, 7-28g built by Richard Cake
http://www.doresetfishingrods.co.uk
Q 2013 Model, 3000 Daiwa Certate
Q YGK, WX8 20 lb Braid
Q YGK Nitlon FC, 20lb2014 HARD ROCK FISHING SET UP
Q Illex Element Rider, S 210 M Stalking
Special, 5-21g
Q Daiwa 3000 EX Ballistic
Q YGK G-Soul X3, 20lb
Q YGK Nitlon FC, 20lbLURES: In terms of lures, I have
gradually thinned my boxes down to a
core set which I know will cover most
scenarios on any given mark. For bass
fishing I tend to carry one double sided
lure box filled with hard plugs and
another with assorted soft plastics. In
the car I keep a huge spill
over box which I then
select from to suit the
marks I am about to fish.
As a general rule of
thumb I will carry at
least one of each of these
hard lures below in a
variety of colours:
Q IMA Komomo SF 125
Q IMA Komomo 2
Q IMA Salt Skimmer
Q Megabass X-
Q Megabass Zonk (
Yoro-Yoro)
Q Tackle House Feed
Shallow 128
Q Maria Chase BW
Q Xorus Patchinko
Q Illex Bonnie 95
The reason why all these
lures make it into the box
is simple - confidence! I
feel comfortable that if
the bass are there and
feeding, these lures will
do the business.
The soft plastic list is
smaller despite most of
my fish last season
falling to soft lures:
Q Fiiish Black Minnow
120, 12g Shore Combo
Q Fiiish Crazy Sand Eel
150, 20g Off Shore Combo
Q Illex Nitro LightningFinesse 110
Q Illex 4.8” I Shad Tail
Q Wave Fishing
Bamboo Stick
The same soft plastics
all apply for my pollack
fishing as well and for
wrasse I can narrow it
down to five models
mostly in dark green or black:
Q Illex 3” Ammonite Shad
Q Molix Sligozzo 4”
Q Z Man Punch Craw Z
Q Keitech Hog Impact
Q Fiiish Black Minnow 90, 5g
Shore ComboSo what does 2015
hold in store for me?
As an online lure shop owner (Fish On
Lures), a new year always brings
exciting kit and products which burst
onto the market - some of these will
simply be gimmicks but I’ve the benefit
of a sneak look at some real top quality
kit which will be game changers on the
lure scene. I have already secured a
number of shiny new lures to be
stocked on my website (www.
fishonlures.co.uk) and am constantly
pushing to ensure the best kit is
available to all my clients.
Aside from the business, I have
some pretty adventurous plans lined
up: including some kayaking for big
Atlantic pollack and wrasse, more
pursuits of big bass around the
south coast of Ireland and some
angling adventures around the island
of Alderney.
I make a point of trying to set some
goals and challenges to keep my angling
interesting and always push myself that
little bit to see what is possible. This
season I have set myself 5 goals:
Q Catch a wrasse larger than 5lb on
a lure.
Q Work more with un-weighted, soft
lures for bass.
Q Attempt more sessions in the kayak.
Q Catch my first squid on an Egi lure.
Q Capture more underwater footage
when lure fishing.
Now it’s just a waiting game for the
weather to start picking up, the water
temperatures to lift and I can start
planning my lure assaults for the rest
of the season. I have already marked
several killer new spots on the
ordinance survey maps using
satellite imagery, so who knows what
lies ahead. If you want to follow my
adventures, keep an eye on my blog at
http://www.rookiebassangler.com.
Tight Lines for 2015.A Z-Man
caught pollock