Dunno bout warming up.. normally october is the start of the flathead frenzie, I think we're still waiting for the water temps to get down some more for the snapper to start spawning(thus the ban obviously)... anyway... If ya gonna have a go for them, its most productive with a rising tide mate, which means maybe more evenings/nights atm, might be worth a try
whats sort of rig do you use to catch flathead, what bait and what sort of technique do you use, just let it sit on the bottem and wait? i've seen some shows on youtube but they are all using plastics. i think soft plastics and lures are a bit out of my price range. can you get bream on the same bait as flatties. i'm intending to fish the swan or canning
You have to keep buying bait everytime you go fishing & in the river during the day (when flathead are usually most active) it will mostly get fed to the blowies. Once you buy a lure you keep it until you lose it & the blowies don't do any harm to hardbodies. By the time you add in lost bait rigs I reckon hardbody lures work out cheaper & they are certainly more effective for targeting flathead specifically.
If you really want to go down the bait path though then I would go with the smallest ball sinker you can get away with running on the mainline down to a swivel, then about 40cm of 15lb trace with a gang to suit the bait your using. I like whitebait in the river so a #4 gang is ideal for that but flathead have no problem swallowing larger baits so you could go right up to a gang of 4/0 & mulies if you wanted to, though I think you will do better with whitebait or baby mulies. Flathead will also eat prawns but generally you will do better using fish baits. Technique is simple enough, find a likely spot (flats with weed beds & scattered rocks is good) cast out, allow the rig to sink to the bottom & then very slowly wind it back allowing it to bump it's way along the bottom with occasional pauses.
It won't take long for you to get sick of feeding bait to blowies though so my advice is build up a lure collection. You don't need many, just enough to cover a few different situations & conditions. If you choose wisely half a dozen lures will do the trick.
what about using hardbodies around the point walter spit area, i've pretty much fished everywhere in the swan and canning except there for some reason...can i expect to find anything decent there??
Flathead definitely get in & around the Point Walter sandbar & plenty of people do catch them there but personally I've always found it slow going there & the green stringy weed in the area can be a real pain so I hardly ever go there anymore. There's plenty of better places.
Flathead definitely get in & around the Point Walter sandbar & plenty of people do catch them there but personally I've always found it slow going there & the green stringy weed in the area can be a real pain so I hardly ever go there anymore. There's plenty of better places.
wow fossil thanks for all the info hey, i think i might get a few lures, never really fished with lures it should be fun. thanks. what sized line would be good i got 6pound on a small rod. from what i've seen flatties are prety small in the swan
No probs mate. Like Scottland said 6lb is pretty much perfect. Flathead have very abrasive lips & can wear through the line if they have swallowed the whole lure. Some people like to use a heavier leader (10-20lb) to help protect against this. I only use 4lb leader & prefer to keep the rod tip low down or even submerged during the fight to reduce the angle between the fishes mouth & the line to reduce the rubbing of line on lips.
Diving minnows between 35mm & 50mm are my usual choice for flathead. Try to pick suspending models when possible as some floating lures tend to float quiet quickly & that can put the fish off them sometimes. RMG Scorpions in the 35mm & 55mm sizes are excellent lures but if you choose these check the box to make sure you get suspending models as the floating ones pop to the top very quickly. My all time favourite is the Atomic Hardz Shad 50 in the deep diver. These are a slow floating lure but the float is very slow so it doesn't look unnatural to a stalking flattie. StrikePro Pygmy is another top choice. Each of these lures should cost you less than $15 a piece so buying one or two each week shouldn't break the bank. A very under used lure for flathead is the plain white bucktail jig. There's not many fish that these beauties won't catch & they only cost $3 for a pack of two.
I like to use fairly natural colours for the most part but sometimes if the fish are shut down or the water is really dirty choosing something really bright & unnatural like all orange or hot pink can get you the results by provoking an aggression response rather than a hunger response. Even though flathead are not usually very fussy it's a good idea to have a few different colours so you have options if your finding the fishing slow.
So pick yourself 6 or so lures of varying size & colour & get out there. Once you have got the hang of it & start landing the fish you'll be hooked on lure fishing & before you know it you'll have dozens of lures for all sorts of scenarios.
I caught a 67cm just last week at causeway and a 59cm just a few days before that... on 3lb braid and 4lb leader with Z-Man Grubz when i was chasing bream.
Flatties will take almost any bream lure.. grab some blades or vibes aswell as what was mentioned above
caught about 4 or 5 on the bull creek side of the mt henry. Biggest would have been about 45cm the rest about 25cm. zman grubz in motor oil did the damage.
my name is Sebastian. I am a 25 yo passionate german angler. Yesterday i was at the swan river to catch some flattis, but i was not succesfull. I used some different minnows and softlures (between 5 and 10 cm). Couldnt catch a fish beside the damned bellys. If anybody has the will to show me how it works to catch some flattis or is going for a trip and can pick me up- i would be very glad!!! My tackle could be a bit heavy but i used a thin fluocarbon hooklink, so this couldnt be the reason... my gear is a penn overseas travel rod 2,7m with heavy line (for the case to fish for bigger fish). i fished the whole way along the riverside drive up to the brewery. Hopefully i did hit the right theme. Thanks for every hint! Tight lines! Sebastian
wrong season mate. wait till the start of summer next year. if you must persist in trying for a flatty try further down the river past mosman bay towards freo
ok thanks, good to know. i prefer fishing with artificial lures on my spin fishing rod. but got no idea how to use it right in australia. if i got a day off from work the next weeks i will have an other try with my plastics.. maybe i am lucky. east perth means in the swan river?
Troy Summers
Posts: 408
Date Joined: 14/08/11
Dunno bout warming up..
Dunno bout warming up.. normally october is the start of the flathead frenzie, I think we're still waiting for the water temps to get down some more for the snapper to start spawning(thus the ban obviously)... anyway... If ya gonna have a go for them, its most productive with a rising tide mate, which means maybe more evenings/nights atm, might be worth a try
aussie_breamer
Posts: 359
Date Joined: 24/08/10
picked up a few recently, but
picked up a few recently, but not in numbers yet.
bream slayer
kfish
Posts: 82
Date Joined: 29/05/11
I think there should be
I think there should be plenty about now, caught 7 in the canning today, biggest being 47cm
Darth_Fish
Posts: 10
Date Joined: 10/10/12
whats sort of rig do you use
whats sort of rig do you use to catch flathead, what bait and what sort of technique do you use, just let it sit on the bottem and wait? i've seen some shows on youtube but they are all using plastics. i think soft plastics and lures are a bit out of my price range. can you get bream on the same bait as flatties. i'm intending to fish the swan or canning
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ah yeah
Fossil
Posts: 215
Date Joined: 10/06/12
You have to keep buying bait
You have to keep buying bait everytime you go fishing & in the river during the day (when flathead are usually most active) it will mostly get fed to the blowies. Once you buy a lure you keep it until you lose it & the blowies don't do any harm to hardbodies. By the time you add in lost bait rigs I reckon hardbody lures work out cheaper & they are certainly more effective for targeting flathead specifically.
If you really want to go down the bait path though then I would go with the smallest ball sinker you can get away with running on the mainline down to a swivel, then about 40cm of 15lb trace with a gang to suit the bait your using. I like whitebait in the river so a #4 gang is ideal for that but flathead have no problem swallowing larger baits so you could go right up to a gang of 4/0 & mulies if you wanted to, though I think you will do better with whitebait or baby mulies. Flathead will also eat prawns but generally you will do better using fish baits. Technique is simple enough, find a likely spot (flats with weed beds & scattered rocks is good) cast out, allow the rig to sink to the bottom & then very slowly wind it back allowing it to bump it's way along the bottom with occasional pauses.
It won't take long for you to get sick of feeding bait to blowies though so my advice is build up a lure collection. You don't need many, just enough to cover a few different situations & conditions. If you choose wisely half a dozen lures will do the trick.
catchalittle
Posts: 1875
Date Joined: 04/09/08
Caught a couple of monsters a
Caught a couple of monsters a week ago near Carnac
Nathan
NickJetpilot1
Posts: 24
Date Joined: 03/10/10
what about using hardbodies
what about using hardbodies around the point walter spit area, i've pretty much fished everywhere in the swan and canning except there for some reason...can i expect to find anything decent there??
Fossil
Posts: 215
Date Joined: 10/06/12
Flathead definitely get in &
Flathead definitely get in & around the Point Walter sandbar & plenty of people do catch them there but personally I've always found it slow going there & the green stringy weed in the area can be a real pain so I hardly ever go there anymore. There's plenty of better places.
Fossil
Posts: 215
Date Joined: 10/06/12
Flathead definitely get in &
Flathead definitely get in & around the Point Walter sandbar & plenty of people do catch them there but personally I've always found it slow going there & the green stringy weed in the area can be a real pain so I hardly ever go there anymore. There's plenty of better places.
Darth_Fish
Posts: 10
Date Joined: 10/10/12
wow fossil thanks for all the
wow fossil thanks for all the info hey, i think i might get a few lures, never really fished with lures it should be fun. thanks. what sized line would be good i got 6pound on a small rod. from what i've seen flatties are prety small in the swan
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ah yeah
scottland
Posts: 3031
Date Joined: 10/05/10
6 lb perfect
It's what I run
i support two teams eagles and whoever is playing the dockers
Fossil
Posts: 215
Date Joined: 10/06/12
No probs mate. Like
No probs mate. Like Scottland said 6lb is pretty much perfect. Flathead have very abrasive lips & can wear through the line if they have swallowed the whole lure. Some people like to use a heavier leader (10-20lb) to help protect against this. I only use 4lb leader & prefer to keep the rod tip low down or even submerged during the fight to reduce the angle between the fishes mouth & the line to reduce the rubbing of line on lips.
Darth_Fish
Posts: 10
Date Joined: 10/10/12
sweeet
sweeet
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ah yeah
Darth_Fish
Posts: 10
Date Joined: 10/10/12
what type of hard body
what type of hard body lure and what size would be good to get for the swan river flathead
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ah yeah
Fossil
Posts: 215
Date Joined: 10/06/12
Diving minnows between 35mm &
Diving minnows between 35mm & 50mm are my usual choice for flathead. Try to pick suspending models when possible as some floating lures tend to float quiet quickly & that can put the fish off them sometimes. RMG Scorpions in the 35mm & 55mm sizes are excellent lures but if you choose these check the box to make sure you get suspending models as the floating ones pop to the top very quickly. My all time favourite is the Atomic Hardz Shad 50 in the deep diver. These are a slow floating lure but the float is very slow so it doesn't look unnatural to a stalking flattie. StrikePro Pygmy is another top choice. Each of these lures should cost you less than $15 a piece so buying one or two each week shouldn't break the bank. A very under used lure for flathead is the plain white bucktail jig. There's not many fish that these beauties won't catch & they only cost $3 for a pack of two.
I like to use fairly natural colours for the most part but sometimes if the fish are shut down or the water is really dirty choosing something really bright & unnatural like all orange or hot pink can get you the results by provoking an aggression response rather than a hunger response. Even though flathead are not usually very fussy it's a good idea to have a few different colours so you have options if your finding the fishing slow.
So pick yourself 6 or so lures of varying size & colour & get out there. Once you have got the hang of it & start landing the fish you'll be hooked on lure fishing & before you know it you'll have dozens of lures for all sorts of scenarios.
Darth_Fish
Posts: 10
Date Joined: 10/10/12
thanks man, it's really good
thanks man, it's really good to have such helpful answers. so thanx
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ah yeah
kfish
Posts: 82
Date Joined: 29/05/11
I caught a 67cm just last
I caught a 67cm just last week at causeway and a 59cm just a few days before that... on 3lb braid and 4lb leader with Z-Man Grubz when i was chasing bream.
Flatties will take almost any bream lure.. grab some blades or vibes aswell as what was mentioned above
Travis Br
Posts: 45
Date Joined: 07/05/09
flatties
caught about 4 or 5 on the bull creek side of the mt henry. Biggest would have been about 45cm the rest about 25cm. zman grubz in motor oil did the damage.
Choppers on poppers
CraigSpedding
Posts: 64
Date Joined: 22/10/12
Nailed a few this afternoon
Nailed a few this afternoon on small hardbodies near point walter flats, great fun on light gear
dj dvd
Posts: 235
Date Joined: 27/03/12
Flatty
i1278.photobucket.com/albums/y505/Daniel_Deelstra/Dec2012Flatty.jpg
meant to go out the boat today but had to cancel. Found the time to head down the road for quick flick and got this nice flatty
Born to Fish/Forced to Work. www.eatsleepfishrepeat.com.au/
NorthernPike
Posts: 3
Date Joined: 18/04/13
Good day guys,my name is
Good day guys,
my name is Sebastian. I am a 25 yo passionate german angler. Yesterday i was at the swan river to catch some flattis, but i was not succesfull. I used some different minnows and softlures (between 5 and 10 cm). Couldnt catch a fish beside the damned bellys. If anybody has the will to show me how it works to catch some flattis or is going for a trip and can pick me up- i would be very glad!!! My tackle could be a bit heavy but i used a thin fluocarbon hooklink, so this couldnt be the reason... my gear is a penn overseas travel rod 2,7m with heavy line (for the case to fish for bigger fish). i fished the whole way along the riverside drive up to the brewery. Hopefully i did hit the right theme. Thanks for every hint! Tight lines!
Sebastian
just on a fishing adventure...
brayds
Posts: 78
Date Joined: 25/08/12
wrong season mate. wait till
wrong season mate. wait till the start of summer next year. if you must persist in trying for a flatty try further down the river past mosman bay towards freo
Callum24
Posts: 1015
Date Joined: 24/06/12
my mates squid jig got
my mates squid jig got smashed by a flatty twice at east freo yesterday so there still aroud
Qualified carpet layer available for jobs big and small
NorthernPike
Posts: 3
Date Joined: 18/04/13
ok thanks, good to know. i
ok thanks, good to know. i prefer fishing with artificial lures on my spin fishing rod. but got no idea how to use it right in australia. if i got a day off from work the next weeks i will have an other try with my plastics.. maybe i am lucky.
east perth means in the swan river?
just on a fishing adventure...