.... someone must know something ...

cant help ya mate...maybe call in to one of the local tackle shops and pick their brains...from what you have posted as inventory, seems pretty good...

sorry i cant help you

luke

fish for fun, the future, and the belly!!!

He will know   Plus tapout too

steve

Born to fish forced to work

First of all you need the right wind, but I guess that is obvious.

At Steep Point this is what I have used
Rod and Reel ( I use my Bottom bouncing setup with 30lb )
Flying Gaff (long handle would depend on the height you are fishing from)
Balloon Gas (Hire from Boc, not cheap but I have been told you can keep it for a year at the same price)
Balloons and Balloon Clips. ( Remember that the balloon is usually lost in the battle so take a few)
Gimble belt (I have never used a harness but like the idea)
Bait, Skipping Garfish rigged up with wire and a hook out the bum. But I did catch a cobia on a Tailor (ps: you can't skip a tailor he he )

Have fun.

_________________
Its Sambo Time !!

A short rod you would normaly uses off a boat will do the job mate.

 Just a correction on NoWorries post, If you have your rig so your balloon line is running you wont loose your balloon when you hook a fish. You dont want to be loosing around $15 of gear each time you hook a fish.

Cheers

Rob 

Yep a running ballon clip is a must
but I found that I still lost my balloon most times. :-(

_________________
Its Sambo Time !!

There is quite a bit of discussion at steeppoint.com.au that deal with Balloning you might want to take a look at.

Excellent info guys...

really appreciate it...

are those land based game rods a waste of time then, or are they more effective than boat rods for this sort of thing

do you ever use hb lures or soft plastics?

is it always the idea to skip the bait along the surface?

cheers,
damo

No I would say they are a waste of time

I have allways taken a couple of other outfits
1 being a 8ft BWS ugly stick with a speedmaster reel for chucking lures.
I would change that to a Lighter graphite rod and a better reel next time though.

I found that the Mackies would not strike if the garfish wasn't skipping but the Cobia did take the Tailor and that was not skipping at all (more like sinking but stopped by the balloon).
But if that isn't working try something different.

Quick tip with the ballooning,
Let out a heap of line out before letting go of the balloon
it gets the bait out to the strike zone heaps quicker.

_________________
Its Sambo Time !!

The longer rod helps you guide your line arround the rocks at the base of the cliff or keeping the line up high out of trouble so it has an advantage. I did have a custom built 24 kilo 10 foot LBG rod but I made a mistake in lending it to my brother.

I never saw it again.

Only get the big balloons and party gas is cheaper than helium and comes with a balloon filling attachment. You will use more balloons and gas  than you thought you would.

.
.
No Orange Hats Allowed

thanks for all the info guys...

damo

This pic above is off www.steeppoint.com.au

I use above rig but i prefer a normal swivel instead or a 3 way then run a running snap swivel that the baloon line is attached to.
Advantage is that it helps getting balloon out off the cliff easyer.

What i do is hold onto the bait and let baloon out off the cliff. Let baloon out 60 meters then throw you bait off and it should skip out to meet your balloon!

I have had many strikes while its acually skipping out to the balloon!

I have been told to use a very light mono line (0.5) kilos to attach your balloon to the main line. When the fish grabs the bait you can then reel your balloon in on a light roid and reel after you have landed the fish. That way you don't lose your balloon which costs a fair bit to buy and to fill with helium
All the best Colin Hay

I allways use light line ...about 10pound max. When the fish runs or goes deep 90% of the time the balloon will pop.
Thats the first sign there is something happining around your balloon.

Best to loose your balloon i think. It only makes gaffing or cliff gaff tangled etc

I only use 2kg to hold the balloon.
I do use a running balloon clip that runs between the swivel and the Rod, Cleggie showed me this setup and it worked so I have never used any other method.

ps: I want to go back to Steep Point now we have been talking about ballooning :-(

_________________
Its Sambo Time !!

"no worries" I know what ya mean! Love steeppoint!

Just got to get another 4wd and im there, Maybe Jan next year.

_________________
Its Sambo Time !!

I am planning on a trip to Steep around April 09

1 week exmouth
1 week steep
1 week Kalbari

Dam I wish I could time travel :)

balloning:
30 size overhead reel minimum,
50 lb line class min as 30 snaps too easy when it touches rocks,
i use a 10 ft cutom live fibre rod wouldnt recomend anything less than 7ft .
harness to bolt you onto the cliff ok but harness to clip you to the reel definately not cause if your reel locks up your goin over with the fish,
90 cm balloons,
135lb multistrand wire (not heat shrink wire),
9/0 7766d mustad hooks ganged in a set of 4 or five depending on gardie size riged with trebble on second and last hook,
180 lb ballbearing swivels ,
skirts,
gimble belt,
the way you make your rig for ballooning is very simple 2 meters of wire trace onto your gang(crimped) with a skirt over the top and a ball beaRING swivel on top. to attach your balloon have a clip swivel running up and down your main line with aleast 10 meters of 30lb mono conected to your balloon this means when you hook your fish the balloon comes up to your rod tip you unclip your balloon of the main line so you can keep your balloon for the next bait (also means you can carry less gas)
cheers brenz

you guys are serious legends...

would be lost without ya's...

cheers

I used a 20lb balloon line about 20 meters long and didnt loose my balloon once when hooked a fish, I dont want to be loosing a $6 balloon and $10 or so worth of gas everytime i hook a fish.

Make sure you buy those big 90cm balloons not the cheapest but well worth it.

Cheers

crikey rob 6 bucks for a baloon you have been "robed" lol
got the good ansell 1s for $3.50 down here at tackle shack :):):):)
cheers brenz
supported by:THE TACKLE SHACK: 9248 3800
                    BOAT CITY 9345 4311

What size balloons are these?

I use the 90cm duratech ones. These are realy big balloons have heaps of lift.

Cheers

Rob