7" Soft plastics on 3/0 TT Jigheads and 20lb Flouro leader, is what seems to work for me. (usually have a range of colours, pink ones being my favourite)
See now I have to do some calculations. ... sheesh! 30lb or 15kg is about equal to pe3 ??? Pe0.8 is equal to about ????? lb ?? I am thinking the pe0.8 would be more fun :-)
The 30lb is a bit of overkill for dollies, but can't be bothered to have a second spool when on the off chance of hitting up some larger pelagics. I did try some 10lb gear on 3-6kg rod but found out I lost 5 out of 5 dollies due to the rod not being stiff enough to get adequate hook penetration into their bony heads.
Richter Jelly babes and Silstar Xmas trees. When the dollies shy away or go a bit deeper then the soft placcies and then finish off with livies. Happy days.
Stickbaits work really well on dollys , tuna or if ya trolling richter jellybean or small skirts christmas trees some of the smaller pakula lures work well
If casting plastics or surface lures I always had most luck with Fluro pink or white colors. Most fun on max 4000 size reel with 20lb braid and 30 lb leader.
They become bored pretty quickly if you keep throwing the same thing at them...the trolled pink skirt is probably the most popular offering but casting softies, hardbodies, poppers/stickbaits, metals and flies will also work...but you gotta be ready to constantly change.
And yes, we also use 20 lb FC leader...any heavier and it can impair lure action, any lighter and they can wear through it with their raspy little teeth. Oh, as long as your drag is sweet, your knots are schmick, and you are patient, don't be afraid to go down to bream gear/4 lb braid!
Another tip which used to work for us in the Middle East, pull up 100m before the fad and have a few casts towards the fad. A lot of the time we found they would be sitting away from it sunning themselves. Then slowly put over and keep the casts leapfrogging towards it. Lesson learnt was that quite often we had scared them off with just the approach. A bit of burley in the water can also turn them ferrel!
...you don't need to be right on top of it...in fact, it pays to leave a bit of room...saves getting hung up on the thing or having a fish bust you off on it.
The most important thing is to work in with other boats...the proper thing to do is get in the "drift queue", behind one boat, in front of another. If you're gonna troll, do big circles on the perimeter, away from the pack. I've also seen some people idling in and out of gear, holding their position on the fad. That's fine if no one else is around, but not looked at fondly when you've got multiple punters trying to do the right thing!
...there is no fish more mental than a dolly when you bring it into the boat! Doesn't matter if you winch them in green or fight them for 15 minutes on light tackle, they go NUTS!
Best advice, keep your deck clear and be especially careful if using trebles...yes, you can give them a wallop over the head, and that solves the problem, but they will quickly lose those amazing colours they're known for which means everything if you want a photo!
Hit the fads on Saturday morning and landed 7. Half on pushers and the others on minnows/ plastics when they took the pushers. Was another boat on the fad using livies that were hooking up as well. Sometimes they take anything, other times they are picky as hell
i did really well on sinking slim profile stickbaits and 5 inch pink snapbacks which no longer exist but zman have the same sort of thing. Iv watched trolling do well also but never done it. Light line light gear gooooooood funnnn
randall df223
Posts: 6454
Date Joined: 08/08/11
Good question. I will
Good question. I will follow this thread with interest. :)
Fish! HARD!
Jason P
Posts: 521
Date Joined: 16/02/13
7" Soft plastics on 3/0 TT
7" Soft plastics on 3/0 TT Jigheads and 20lb Flouro leader, is what seems to work for me. (usually have a range of colours, pink ones being my favourite)
DM306
randall df223
Posts: 6454
Date Joined: 08/08/11
20lb leader? What pe are
20lb leader? What pe are you running as main line? I have a 3pe outfit and a 0.8pe outfit. 20lb leader suggests the latter would be best?
Fish! HARD!
Jason P
Posts: 521
Date Joined: 16/02/13
Anywhere from 15lb to 30lb
Anywhere from 15lb to 30lb main line, the 20lb is needed as the dollies can be very skittish at times. I did get busted off once using 20lb.
DM306
randall df223
Posts: 6454
Date Joined: 08/08/11
See now I have to do some
See now I have to do some calculations. ... sheesh! 30lb or 15kg is about equal to pe3 ??? Pe0.8 is equal to about ????? lb ?? I am thinking the pe0.8 would be more fun :-)
Fish! HARD!
Jason P
Posts: 521
Date Joined: 16/02/13
The 30lb is a bit of
The 30lb is a bit of overkill for dollies, but can't be bothered to have a second spool when on the off chance of hitting up some larger pelagics. I did try some 10lb gear on 3-6kg rod but found out I lost 5 out of 5 dollies due to the rod not being stiff enough to get adequate hook penetration into their bony heads.
DM306
JPARA
Posts: 52
Date Joined: 22/03/11
Thanks mate
Thanks mate
Ashram
Posts: 134
Date Joined: 23/10/09
Lures
Richter Jelly babes and Silstar Xmas trees. When the dollies shy away or go a bit deeper then the soft placcies and then finish off with livies. Happy days.
fishcrazy
Posts: 1235
Date Joined: 27/01/07
stickbaits
Stickbaits work really well on dollys , tuna or if ya trolling richter jellybean or small skirts christmas trees some of the smaller pakula lures work well
Adam Gallash
Posts: 15610
Date Joined: 29/11/05
Jellybeans
Jelllybeans and hokzheads are pretty good, bright colours work well.
Site Admin - Just ask if you need assistance
JPARA
Posts: 52
Date Joined: 22/03/11
Do you troll them or cast
Do you troll them or cast and retrieve
Ben85
Posts: 442
Date Joined: 20/11/11
If casting plastics or
If casting plastics or surface lures I always had most luck with Fluro pink or white colors. Most fun on max 4000 size reel with 20lb braid and 30 lb leader.
Auslobster
Posts: 1901
Date Joined: 03/05/08
Mix it up!
They become bored pretty quickly if you keep throwing the same thing at them...the trolled pink skirt is probably the most popular offering but casting softies, hardbodies, poppers/stickbaits, metals and flies will also work...but you gotta be ready to constantly change.
And yes, we also use 20 lb FC leader...any heavier and it can impair lure action, any lighter and they can wear through it with their raspy little teeth. Oh, as long as your drag is sweet, your knots are schmick, and you are patient, don't be afraid to go down to bream gear/4 lb braid!
JPARA
Posts: 52
Date Joined: 22/03/11
Cheers for the info guyshow
Cheers for the info guys
how far away is the boat from the fad usualy
Ben85
Posts: 442
Date Joined: 20/11/11
Another tip which used to
Another tip which used to work for us in the Middle East, pull up 100m before the fad and have a few casts towards the fad. A lot of the time we found they would be sitting away from it sunning themselves. Then slowly put over and keep the casts leapfrogging towards it. Lesson learnt was that quite often we had scared them off with just the approach. A bit of burley in the water can also turn them ferrel!
Auslobster
Posts: 1901
Date Joined: 03/05/08
Within a hundred meters or so...
...you don't need to be right on top of it...in fact, it pays to leave a bit of room...saves getting hung up on the thing or having a fish bust you off on it.
The most important thing is to work in with other boats...the proper thing to do is get in the "drift queue", behind one boat, in front of another. If you're gonna troll, do big circles on the perimeter, away from the pack. I've also seen some people idling in and out of gear, holding their position on the fad. That's fine if no one else is around, but not looked at fondly when you've got multiple punters trying to do the right thing!
Auslobster
Posts: 1901
Date Joined: 03/05/08
One more thing...
...there is no fish more mental than a dolly when you bring it into the boat! Doesn't matter if you winch them in green or fight them for 15 minutes on light tackle, they go NUTS!
Best advice, keep your deck clear and be especially careful if using trebles...yes, you can give them a wallop over the head, and that solves the problem, but they will quickly lose those amazing colours they're known for which means everything if you want a photo!
macca85
Posts: 46
Date Joined: 05/06/11
Hit the fads on Saturday
Hit the fads on Saturday morning and landed 7. Half on pushers and the others on minnows/ plastics when they took the pushers. Was another boat on the fad using livies that were hooking up as well. Sometimes they take anything, other times they are picky as hell
randall df223
Posts: 6454
Date Joined: 08/08/11
Great input from everyone !
Great input from everyone ! Always learning on this site.
Fish! HARD!
Ryan Thipthorp (not verified)
Posts: 23
Date Joined: 01/01/70
Dolly Lures!!
Hey guys
any suggestions on what lures or rigs to use for fishing for dollies at the fads
Depends on the day I will say and I filmed out there for this series and when they were finicky I had to " mix it up"
I used stickbaits, shallow running minnows, softplastics (SP) and trolling Richter jelly babes etc!
The key is to mix it up and soon they will trigger on the offering but " speed and/or retrieve " of the lure is paramount!
PM Oceanside Tackle account if you need more info!
JPARA
Posts: 52
Date Joined: 22/03/11
Thanks for all the info guys
Thanks for all the info guys
Markie
Posts: 2141
Date Joined: 06/08/10
i did really well on sinking
i did really well on sinking slim profile stickbaits and 5 inch pink snapbacks which no longer exist but zman have the same sort of thing. Iv watched trolling do well also but never done it. Light line light gear gooooooood funnnn
kamo king
Posts: 190
Date Joined: 30/08/09
12" marlin lures when they
12" marlin lures when they are on, when the fads were in Jurien last year we had all 3 to ourselves after marlin, they would
climp all over the big lures then get skull dragged on the 37kg gear, but yeah when they arnt on the chew you have to throw the tackle box at them
Callum24
Posts: 1015
Date Joined: 24/06/12
pakula micro uzi deadly on
pakula micro uzi deadly on everything includin dollies
Qualified carpet layer available for jobs big and small
JohnF
Posts: 2836
Date Joined: 07/07/10
Appears a 5 ft long stainless
Appears a 5 ft long stainless steel lure with one sharp end works best....
Boston Whaler 235 Conquest......getting the flogging it was built for.