Fishing: Look after the tackle

Of all the species of fish that I target only a few, such as john dory and trevally, have soft flexible mouths, the rest have jaws that are used for smashing up food such as kina, mussels and the like.

Many a time I have had a mate fishing alongside me and, despite getting good bites, he consistently fails to hook up on the strike. Only after they have gone from grumpy to septic do I tell them I will bet my last bottle of rum that his hook is either blunt or rusty.

Rusty, blunt hooks do not catch fish and make your fishing harder as they will make rigging your bait difficult and messy. Bait presentation is one of the key elements for consistent successful fishing and you will find that a rusty, blunt hook is not only hard to force through the bait but it will also leave flakes of rust. When fish are bait-shy due to a bad moon phase or cold water temperature they will mouth the bait before swallowing it and, if they detect anything foreign, they will spit it out.

Rusty hooks are greatly weakened and many a fish of a lifetime have been lost for the sake of a few cents. Over the years I have had a few big fish scream off with a bait and fail to hook up. On inspecting the hooks they have been crushed flat. These are brand new hooks so any rusty weak hooks would never have lasted the distance.

I always buy my hooks in small bulk packs and give them a spray with Tackle Guard which not only protects them but, unlike most other products, will not taint your bait.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY