Tips & Hints

How often should I change my oil on my boat engine or outboard?

Normally for mineral grade, the recommended oil change interval is less than synthetic oil.  Synthetic oil can normally last twice as long.

Synthetic oils are man made and have more of the ‘ester’ connectors which bond the molecules together.

The reason you need to change your oil in any vehicle is that it breaks down and becomes thinner over time and use.

For an outboard (after the initial 20 hours service) the recommended period is every 100 hours or 12 months of use.

The additional requirement of internal corrosion protection in outboards is conditional on regular maintenance.

What is the difference between mineral and synthetic oils for boat engines & outboards?

The difference between different groups of base oils is governed by the stability and resistance of oil break down during its application.  Carbon will start to form when oil breaks down and oxidizes.  Carbon will start to build up in your piston and valves when the oils breakdown. This will lead to higher wear rate and reduce engine life. The specially designed Suzuki Motul is blended to resist breakdown.

For more information go to - www.worldsbest4stroke.com

LIVE BAITING

Baiting Up for Success

When it comes to catching Sydney kings, especially big ones live bait is undoubtedly the most effective technique. My favourite baits are slimy mackerel, yakkas and squid. Having said that kings are opportunistic feeders and at the end of the day they will eat just about anything. In fact I have heard of some blokes doing really well with small snapper and bream!

Size is important and from my experience the size of the bait varies according to the species you use. For example I have never done well with big live squid instead smaller it is the smaller ones have always produced the most bites for me. It is a similar situation with yakkas (yellowtail) the smaller ones get nailed like lollies while the larger ones are usually ignored.

Slimies, on the other hand, get scoffed irrespective of size. While filming the latest in the Strikezone series – Yellowtail Kingfish I caught a number of fish that were barely a couple of kilos in weight and yet they ate baits almost a third of their size without hesitation. Slimies are definitely on the special board!

Naturally big baits like tuna and kahawai are best used to target big kings. A classic example of this happened when a mate Vic Levitt was fishing one of his favourite kingy haunts. He was catching some nice fish to about 8kg on slimies, but convinced there were bigger fish around he went in search of larger baits. Seeing some tuna blowing up nearby he raced over and caught two on Halco slices, then raced back and dropped them on the spot. Two tuna equaled two 50-pound kings – big baits equal big fish you bet!

I should also add if you can get your hands on frigate mackerel (a small tuna similar to mackerel tuna) then towing them around known kingy haunts will always pull the biggest king in the area. Kings love them and will swim a mile to eat one.

Slow Troll to Success

Live baiting is deadly but you still need to cover the ground to find the kings and slow trolling the livies is the best approach. The bigger the bait the faster it can be trolled, however some baits like garfish simply won’t survive.

Living in Sydney the best baits for trolling are undoubtedly slimies, however the problem is that they can be extremely difficult to find at times. Yakkas on the other hand are extremely common and easy to catch, but unlike slimies they tire relatively quickly. As a result they need to be replaced regularly so you need to stock up on more baits.

Squid are another common bait but they die very quickly when trolled, however unlike the other baits they still work well when freshly dead. Tuna and troll really well but won’t survive in a live bait tank so unless you have purpose built tuna tubes you will have to catch them on the grounds.

Kings traverse the water column and can be caught anywhere from the surface to the bottom, especially in coastal waters. When fishing in water less than 30 metres I like to run two rigs which allow me to cover a majority of the water column.

The surface bait is unweighted and is run well back. The second bait is the same except for the addition of a barrel sinker which helps to sink the rig down. The size of the sinker depends on the depth you are working, but as a general rule I like to run 6 to 8 ounces.

The technique I employ is to troll with the Honda four stroke just in gear working strategically over know kingy haunts. At the same time I play close attention to the Furuno sounder intently looking for signs of bait or more importantly schools of kings. Kings have big swim bladders so they show up really well on the sounder, when the unit is tuned correctly.

Bait isn’t just food sources but can also be species like sweep. I don’t think kings natural predate on sweep but since employing Strikecam I have discovered they both seem to like that the same conditions. The best news is that sweep show up very distinctly making them easy to detect on the sounder.

The moment I pick up kings on the sounder I pull the boat out of gear allowing the deep bait to sink down into the strikezone. I also like to get my anglers to hold the rods while trolling, with their fingers on the line. This way it is possible to feel the bait panicking the moment a king appears on the scene, the fact I use braid only makes it easier.

Even if I don’t mark any fish if the anglers start feeling their baits panicking then I always pull the boat out of gear allowing the baits to stay in the strikezone for as long as possible. As we have seen through using Strikecam a lot of fish like to follow the baits for a while before striking so the trick is to pull up the moment your baits get nervous.

Drifting

Slow trolling or downrigging livies will certainly help you find fish but once you locate a concentration then the best option is to drift. Drifting allows you to stay right over the fish and thus keep your baits in the strikezone for as long as possible and that really is the key to catching kings. Even if the fish aren’t really hunger the fact that the bait is sitting right under their nose is simply to tempting.

The key to successful drifting is to position the boat so that it goes directly over the school and for this to happen you need to play close attention to the sounder and GPS. After marking the fish I often pull the boat out of gear and drift overt them allowing the deep bait to sink down. Continuing the drift I monitor the sounder to see when I am off the school. Once I am off the fish I then slow troll the baits back up and reposition the boat so I drift exactly over the same area again. At this point I zoom in on the plotter page of the GPS so I can see what my precise line of drift is so I go directly over the school again. I continue repeating the process until the fish shut down or I run out of lives.

Drifting is also the best way to fish isolated structure in deep water such as a wreck. A good understanding of the wreck’s shape is paramount and it should be marked up with a series of waypoints outlining. Before I even start fishing I always pull up nearby and determine my line of drift and speed. In deeper water current can play a bigger role than the wind in your drift so it is important to work it all before you start fishing.

With everything set up I position the boat to drift directly over the wreck and then reverse up to hold over the strikezone for as long as possible. Once the current pushes us off we simple repeat the process. Of course constant monitoring of the sounder is also paramount and often you will see the fish holding at a particular end of the structure. It can be a frustrating fishing but the rewards are still high if you do it right

Live baiting is deadly but you have to focus around the structure. So use your electronics find the fish and then drop a livey on their nose – I guarantee the responses will be explosive!

Fact box – Strikecam

Since developing Strikecam three years ago I have been amazed at what we have learnt. In particular it has been very interesting with what we have discovered with kingfish. In past issues of Go Fishing I have highlighted many of the amazing things we have discovered about fish behaviour but there are a couple of interesting points about kingies that are pertinent to this feature.

Firstly the baits even though they can’t see the approaching predators they certainly know when danger is approaching. They transmit their fear by shaking which is transmitted up the line, particularly braid. By keeping your finger on the line you will be able pick up any changes in the baits behaviour. This can be vital because you don’t always see the fish on the sounder and sometimes it is the bait that will inform you of impending action. Keeping in touch with your bait will pay dividends!

The other thing that Strikecam highlighted was how hesitant kings are when it actually comes to striking the bait. Having seen this repeatedly we now always allow the fish ample time to swallow the bait before striking. On the same note we always use smaller J hooks and pin the bait through the nose. The reason behind this is because as Strikecam has shown the fish nearly always eat the bait head first so the hook is the first thing down the throat.

Strikezone Yellowtail Kingfish

The latest in the Strikezone series Yellowtail Kingfish is set to be a classic with some amazing action of kings everywhere from deepwater reefs to right under the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Most importantly there is a whole chapter dedicated to catching kings on live bait. Covering all the techniques mentioned in this article it is sure to help you improve your kingy fishing. For your copy check out www.strikezonemedia.com.au