Most Victorian fishing can be done with a light spin outfit, but there is plenty of scope to specialise.
A 3kg spin outfit is ideal for gar, whiting, mullet, trout, redfin and bream. See eBay listings here.
A 6kg spin outfit is ideal for general Victorian saltwater and freshwater fishing. See eBay listings here.
A heavy-duty surf rod is needed for surf mulloway, snapper, kingfish and gummy shark fishing from the ocean beaches and the rocks, see eBay listings here. A lighter surf rod is otherwise better for chasing tailor, salmon, flathead and whiting in the surf.
For boat fishing, a shorter, stouter rod/spinning reel combo loaded with 10kg line is ideal for general reef fishing in water to around 20m deep, and can also be used to cast lures to pelagic fish. See eBay listing here. Rods around 7′ long are ideal for boat fishing.
Metal slice lures are ideal for Victorian salmon, tailor, kingfish, flathead and silver trevally. There are many types but the simple chrome styles are as good as any. See eBay listing here.
Soft plastic paddle tail lures are popular and effective all-round lures for Victorian estuary species, and these lures also work in freshwater locations. See eBay listings here.
Weighted jig heads are needed to rig most soft plastic paddle tail lures, although some have the jig head built in. See eBay listings here. It pays to use the lightest jig head possible, and light resin jig heads allow an angler to present a more realistic suspending lure action.
Sabiki bait jigs are great for catching yakkas and slimy mackerel, buy them on eBay here. Remove droppers if required to stay legally compliant, cutting a complete rig in half will usually make two legal sets.
For Victorian squidding, standard unbaited jigs are effective, see listings here.
Baited ‘spike jigs’ work well on large calamari squid. These jigs are cast under a float and left out until a squid takes the bait. Bait the jig with a small fish such as tommy ruff or mullet. These large baited jigs look clumsy compared with the smaller jigs more commonly seen, but they are effective … see listings here. The barbed version is even better if you can find them for sale.
Smaller squid can be targeted with baited spike jigs such as these … see eBay listings here.
The secret for successful squid fishing is to fish dusk, darkness and dawn, when the water is clear. Summer is usually best.
Star sinkers or snapper leads are generally used on a paternoster rig for surf and boat fishing. For most other fishing, ball sinkers are used, as part of a running sinker rig where the sinker slides along the line, allowing a fish to easily run with a baited hook. See eBay listings for ball sinkers here, see listings for star sinkers here and for snapper leads here.
Hooks in mixed sizes (suggest 1# or #2 for whiting, 6# or #8 for garfish, 4/0 for salmon and flathead, 11/0 for large mulloway). See eBay listing here.
Ganged hooks (joined chains of hooks) are often used when fishing pilchard or garfish baits for salmon, tailor, mulloway and snapper. Listing on eBay here.
Flounder spearing is popular in Victoria. A submerged light is generally used to find the fish, see eBay listing here.
Shrimp and yabbies are great baits for Victorian freshwater fishing. Strict regulations apply to the type of gear used to catch them. Ebay sellers have a variety of yabby and shrimp traps, be sure to buy one that complies with local regulations.
Worms are also an excellent bait, see worm farm listings on eBay here.
Other items you may need are wire trace to stop fish such as barracoutta or sharks biting through your line, see eBay listings here, swivels to stop line twist when using spinning lures here, a filleting knife to clean your fish here, a burley bucket to attract fish to your area here, a waterproof torch here, a sharpening stone for knives and hooks here, bait jigs to catch baitfish such as slimy mackerel or yakkas for bait here, a sharpening stone for knives and hooks here, and of course a tackle box here.
Lastly, if don’t want to use traditional smelly baits, you can try a commercial bait product such as this.
BOATS FOR SALE in Victoria – see current eBay listings here.
