Hi mate

In terms of trolling it really comes down to what you want to target? Are you after Mackies or more along the lines of Marlin and Wahoo? Also what outfits including line class do you plan on using?

With this info we can give you a better indication as to what, when and where to help you get onto fish.

 A lot of what you need to know you will find in here http://www.pakula.com.au/index.php/general-articles32 this goes into great detail but will be able to pull what you need off it. In regards to speed for marlin and sailfish going abound 7-8 knots has worked for me up there. Try not to rely so much on a speed figure more when every 3-5 seconds the lures breach the waters surface

my advise would keep going past Exmouth and go to onslow brilliant bottom and surface fishing there and not so tourist orientated just make sure you buy your cartons of beer and tucker before you go there as the local grocery store will sting you (but they have to charge for the cost of getting it there )

first advise would be to strip the (unknown) mono off your reel and put new quality (trusted) and know breaking strain on your reel.

if you are serious and are going deep trolling do you really want to hook onto a Marlin or a big sail and not be sure what drag you can apply ?   in perth this doesn't matter so much troling for small tuna and macks but north is a whole different ball game.

good luck you'll have a ball !

 For the mackies trolling speeds of 6-8 knots works well. Some believe 8 knots is too fast though it can sometimes get lazy fish to strike. Be sure to use a mirror teaser when trolling for mackies as its what helps bring them to the boat and then to your lures. First lure should be set just behind the mirror teaser. Halco Laser pros and Rapala X-rap Mags are killer for this. The second lure should be set on the opposite corner a touch further back (15-20m). Dont run your lures too far back.

As for Marlin and Sailfish it can get a little trickier. Typical speed would be 7-10 knots. Once again a teaser is neccessary to get good results for this form of fishing. You will need a surface teaser though. Feel free to bring in any lures and outfits you have and we are happy to show you what to use and where and if you do need something im sure we will have it to help you get onto billfish.

Cheers

 cheer for all the advice guys. we head off tomorrow. keen as. with the teaser i have heard of poeple making makeshift teasers. for example one had cds tied together in a row. how succesful do you think something like this would be???

But that works better for Billies and faster fish IMO compared to a Mirror teaser. A Pakula type mirror towed behind the boat works very well for mackies. I have a daisy chain of flashing and splashing objects tied together creating, you guessed it splash and flash. I have skirts without hooks, some squid imitations, and some daisy-chain splashers that you can buy from a tackle store in mine. I have been tempted to put a hook in the last pusher but then its not fishing. The chain has been hit or launched at numerous times and since it is tied together with 200lb mono I have only lost the pusher once.

Mackies are "lazier" fish and I find about 5-7knots perfect. If you happen to travel over reef sometimes at this speed dont be surprised at bycatch of trout and Rankins. Up here in Dampier I used to troll just off reef adges in about 20-30m, but often ventured onto the reef itself hoping  (and getting) the others.

For others on the troll speed up. When using only pushers and skirts I have been up to 12k, but I find that if you run pushers and minnows the latter "blow" out. Since I prefer to run both I normally run at 8-10k max. You still get mackies at this speed but fewer. More likely to get Tuna, wahoo and hopefully bilies. Laser Pros (esp Crazy deep) in all colours IMO, but Red head and the Brown one (name escapes me) standout, and I like F18s aswell, but find they often blow out. Xraps are another standout.

sweet. i have a lure obsession and have most of the ones you mentioned. shall be hitting the tackle store up again tonight.