cd07 wrote:That was me planning to try for porbeagles off dursey. Never materialised unfortunately although I'm convinced given the time it would be possible. Gareth could you explain in detail the process involved with the sliding method? Cheers
For sliding we would typically be targeting large edible game fish or the large non-edibles - all manner of sharks and rays. We have a wide assortment that will stretch your arms and give you back-ache for days!
Generally speaking we are using 14-15ft high compression carbon fibre surf casting rods - usually with high-end level wind reels - Saltiga's etc, but with the massive improvement in technology and brake/disc and gear design, there are some incredible high-capacity, super-powerful grinders on the market that will carry 600m of 50-80lbs braid. There's some argument over which line works better for sliding, some will argue mono and others braid. Choose your poison. Then you basically identify a likely looking deepwater spot, hole or reef, tie on a 6-9oz sinker (wire grapnel if over sandy bottom), and give it the mother of all casts to the horizon - correct - just the sinker. (you would have attached a solid welded ring (about 1cm diameter) about 1-2m above the sinker). I'll explain and try send a diagram. Then you would take a separately made up trace - usually a combination of heavy flouro connected to a significant bite trace (wire if you are intentionally going after the toothy critters), ending with one or two substantial hooks - typically size 7-10 Extra-Heavy circles. Most of the top brands are excellent quality these days. This slide trace is usually about 2-3m long with the hooks on the terminal end, and a special springsteel wire slide (just google "non-return slide clip" to see images and examples of rigging).
You would either then attach your dead-bait, say a fishhead, nice and juicily wrapped up with cotton of some oily fishguts etc, or alternativey a fresh and lively live-bait. You attach the slide clip to your mainline (lower the rod to do this) and then once correctly connected, you raise the rod as high as possible and begin a series of slow upward and downward movements of the rod. It obviously helps if you are angling off some high ground where gravity assists greatly, but generally speaking, the continuous up/down movements of the rod - generally do this at least 100 times - will result in the slide shifting down the line, to the point where eventually the slide clip runs up against the ring above the sinker.
From what I have watched on youtube, some of your beaches look fantastic for sliding live baits for large bass out past the backline. We have a similar fish here - Kabeljou (the aussies also have a similar species), which also actively hunts for mullet in the surf - so i'm hoping to give that a couple of tries once all my kit arrives.