Targeting Tubs?

Do any of you have any ideas on how to specifically target tub gurnard? Our normal league trips usually consist of a few hours over reefs, and a few over sand. Reds are so plentiful up here that you never have any trouble catching your quota. I normally fish a very short three down rig with size 4 or 6 baitholder style hooks with small pieces of mack. This rig works great for reds and greys but I have never caught a tub. I know they are down there as others on the boat have landed them. What am I doing wrong?

baited feathers / hokkai rigs work well for them they are a predator and they like a bit of colour. dont be afraid to use bigger baits for them they are quite happy to snaffle a half side of mackeral if they come accross it i have caught plenty of them with big animal baits

[PaddyB]

baited feathers / hokkai rigs work well for them they are a predator and they like a bit of colour. dont be afraid to use bigger baits for them they are quite happy to snaffle a half side of mackeral if they come accross it i have caught plenty of them with big animal baits

Cheers John, I used to butcher hokkais rigs to make a two up, one down, or one up, two down, but found that the hooks on the bottom caught the most fish, I also find the the hook size on most hokkai rigs 3/0 or 4/0 to be too big.
I use a rig similiar to this with blades on every snood and size 4 to 6 hooks:

Sounds like my mack peices are probably too small to attract the tubs?

Last edited by PaddyB on Mon Oct 19, 2009 10:54 am, edited 1 time in total.

I found the Kilmore Killer rig in red (not too fond of the chartreuse one) from Shamrock Tackle very good for Gurnards, baited with a nice chunk of mack they caught me a decent selection of fish in addition to the only Tub Gurnard I've got this year like Ling, Haddock, Pollock, Coalies, Whiting, Wrasse, Pouting, Huss, Doggies etc.

Kilmore killers red.PNG

review here: http://www.worldseafishing.com/reviews/ ... ackle.html

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A one hook ledger about 3' long with a 3/0 to 6/0 hook, use a whole side of mackrel sliced lengthways to give you 2 baits, just hook the bait once through the pointed end, and drift away.
if you are catching reds the bait is still too small, increase the size up to a whole fillet if needed, until the reds stop biting, then you will catch your tub.

Cheers Guys, what about alternative baits, squid, mussel, sand eel, lug or rag, would any of these be more likely to tempt a rogue tub?

i think you should stick to the fish baits better chance imo first choice would be macks you could try launce if you can get them and herring might be worth a try.

Only targeted the tubs in north wales and they loved big mackerel baits.

Cracking rig drawing above, just as well the artist doesn't mind to much about copyright

Sorry bigman, I was going to say you posted that pic yourself on a different thread, but now realise that you posted a link to a different site, not the pic itself. Apologies again, I will remove it.

Your right it is a cracker of a rig tho, it won me the Greencastle open boat taking 10 wrasse in less than an hour. I used it in the Bundoran open too and it took Cuckoo, Ballan, Corkwing, Pout and poor cod, in numbers untill I ran out of traces Also works great for Red and Grey gurnard.

No harm linking to the PSF rigs page. Some fine diagrams here for both boat and shore.

http://www.planetseafishing.com/rigs/

Double sorry back, my reply was meant to be tongue in cheek as I've no probs with the drawings being posted as long as the copyright text is still there.

Happy to do any specific ones for here as well if there are any missing from the link that Jim posted.

You guys have always answered my stuff on here so happy to reciprocate.