The Bream Techniques Thread

[echo1]

Hey all.

Wasn't quite sure where this thread belongs so mods please feel free to move it.

I read an article recently which stated that people new to lure fishing (and not so new ) tend to focus too much on TACKLE, rather than WHEN, WHERE and HOW bream are caught. The HOW is the techniques part.

When breaming with lures it is no good having all the right tackle and being in the right place at the right time if you don't know how to use your lures and tackle. Sure you might get lucky but you probably won't get that many or quality fish.

So for this thread I'd like people to answer these questions, preferably in this format, kind of like a Bream Almanac.

WHEN: Time, Date, Tide Phase, and other environmental conditions.

WHERE: Doesn't need to name locations (you can if you want/well known spots). Just the type of fishing (Land/Boat) and type of structure ie. Natural snags, Bridge, Rockwall, Flats, Drop-off, Racks etc.

HOW: Technique/s used ie. Cast proximity to structure/fish, slow wind with steady rod tip, but lure action felt through rod (Slow roll), strike/no strike on hit, fight techniques etc.

TACKLE: Lure, Jighead, Line, Rod, Reel, Leader, any terminal tackle etc.

Photos of the end result would be great too.

[echo1]

I'll kick it off with the techniques used to get my PB bream.

WHEN: Mid-morning to early afternoon, April 2008, rising tide, moderate wind, tannin stained water.

WHERE: Swan River (Perth) above Causway, land based, flats interspersed with rocks and a prominent drop-off within casting distance.

HOW: Blind cast as far out as possible/past drop-off, allow lure to sink to the bottom while keeping contact with the lure, raise the rod tip fairly quickly (not as fast as a 'flick') so that you can feel the lure vibrating off the bottom then let it sink back down. Repeat, always keeping contact with the lure (minimal slack line). Strike at the smallest indication ie. 'ticks' of the line, bumps etc. Once fish is hooked use moderate drag pressure and a fairly high rod tip (not more than 50 degrees). Let the fish take drag but keep it away from any structure you can see.

TACKLE: R2S Baby Vibe 35/43 (can use similar), 6lb braid, 6lb leader, graphite rod - 6'10" - 2-4kg, Penn Applause 1000, remove split ring on tow point and use loop knot or quality small snap/clip like the decoy round 00.

OBSERVATIONS: Moderate cross-wind was distubing water surface. Tannin stained water but still decent visibility (0.5-1m). Wind-chop and water visibility may have given bream more confidence to feed onto flats as well as rising tide

[Bear]

WHEN: Time, Date, Tide Phase, and other environmental conditions.


Don't ever worry about when if you want to learn about any place you fish. Just head out with an open mind and eyes open. See what is exposed at low tide, see what hiding places there are. Try different techniques to see where the fish move with water levels. Bring all of this together and you 'will' see your catch rates increase.

[echo1]

Originally Posted by Bear

WHEN: Time, Date, Tide Phase, and other environmental conditions.


Don't ever worry about when if you want to learn about any place you fish. Just head out with an open mind and eyes open. See what is exposed at low tide, see what hiding places there are. Try different techniques to see where the fish move with water levels. Bring all of this together and you 'will' see your catch rates increase.

This is true Bear. The "when" is only a very rough guide. Just because I caught a few fish under those conditions doesn't mean that the fish will be there under the same conditions every time. You need to have a look around.

On that day I got lucky as I had never fished the area before, didn't check the tides, didn't pick that day etc. I just prospected and ended up meeting a fellow breamer who was catching and willing to share .

[Ca11um]

Great idea echo!! Definitely keeping an eye on this thread. Kind of like a Fishing diary of everyone Bream catches!!

Heres my PB....

WHEN-Mid-morning, April 17 2011, outgoing tide ( i think ), low wind, clear water, overcast and nearly full moon.

WHERE-Mandurah, foreshore, Land-based, very sandy bottom around lots of man made structure such as jettys, bridges, pylons etc.

HOW-Flicking my Damiki Vault 35 in tight to structure and working it back erratically through the structure. Fairly tight drag to muscle the bream out of the heavy structure.

TACKLE-Damiki Vault 35 and similar Blades/Vibes, 4lb Fireline, 6lb Black Magic Fluro, Shimano Raider 2-4kg, 7'2", Daiwa Regal 2000.

( Thought that i would this in, OBSERVATIONS-Conditions, Bait, Fish activity and anything that stood out )
OBSERVATIONS-Large amount of Baitfish in the area, Bream were aggressive and came back multiple times to hit my lure. I think the Overcast conditions helped.

Look forward to more posts in this section!!

[echo1]

Originally Posted by Born to FISH!!!

HOW-Flicking my Damiki Vault 35 in tight to structure and working it back erratically through the structure. Fairly tight drag to muscle the bream out of the heavy structure.

Gotta love jigging blades around vertical structure. Great technique and a nice catch. Very good idea with the Observations bit as well, will be good for those small critical details.

[Ca11um]

Thanks mate and yeah most exciting fishing and quite visual style for breaming!! Watching those big bruisers come from under the jetty or pontoon and seeing it crunch on your lure with incredible speed really gets the heart going!!! Even the bust-off's are worth it when you watch them do that!! Went 34cm. Just out of curiosity, how big was yours? Looks around 38-39cm.

[echo1]

Originally Posted by Born to FISH!!!

Thanks mate and yeah most exciting fishing and quite visual style for breaming!! Watching those big bruisers come from under the jetty or pontoon and seeing it crunch on your lure with incredible speed really gets the heart going!!! Even the bust-off's are worth it when you watch them do that!! Went 34cm. Just out of curiosity, how big was yours? Looks around 38-39cm.

Amen to sight fishing!

This was actually one of my first bream on lure and I was pretty excited. Combine that with unprepared and I didn't have a measuring implement
The pictures don't do it justice but one of our south coast guys who regularly catches big bream estimated it at 40-45cm
http://www.breammaster.com/forum/sho...+member+league

[Ca11um]

Actually having a closer look at it now, it does look around that size!! Beats my PB by a long shot!!

[echo1]

WHEN: Mid-afternoon to dusk, late October 2010, very little/no wind, light brown water colour with moderate visibility.

WHERE: Upper sections of Murray River (W.A), kayaking, trees and other vegetation which is submerged.

HOW: Cast tight to structure or onto sandy bank, Allow the lure to sit for a second or two, crank the lure down to desired depth before commencing a twitchy retrieve. While winding use short 'sharp' flicks of the rod tip multiple times. Use pauses between combinations of flicks and moderately paced winding while keeping contact with the lure. Do this all the way to the kayak/boat. Strike if a strong hit is felt, otherwise pause the lure then give it a very small twitch. Once fish is hooked use moderate to high drag pressure and get the fish away from structure. Once fought into open water let the fish take some drag but continue to keep it away from structure. Back the drag off slightly once the fish nears the kayak/boat and land the fish using a fish-friendly landing net if needed.

TACKLE: Ecogear SX40 in 301 colour (can use any small variation of the bibbed minnow), 4lb braid, 6lb yamatoyo leader, Team Daiwa Battler Taurus - 6" - 2-4kg, Daiwa Luvias 1003 (most quality 1000-2500 reels will work), remove split ring on tow point of lure and use loop knot or quality small snap/clip (ie. decoy round 00).

OBSERVATIONS: light brown water colour with moderate visibility - gold lure with flash and rattle may have aided fish in finding lure. Very shallow - use lures that dive to correct depth. Long accurate casts needed. Lots of insects (keep repellent handy). That Quicksilver hat and black sunnies have all my mojo .

[echo1]

Anyone else wanna share some tactics?
You don't need to give away all/any of your 'secrets'.
I just think this will help out a lot of aspiring new bream anglers.

[Breamobsession]

When: Sometime this year, i think Blowing its arse off and pissing with rain, hail and even a bit of snow

Where Somewhere in Gippy, i think Had a big night before i went out the next afternoon

How Had a rod, some leader, braid and a few lures, just couldn't work out how it all went together and what i was suppossed to do from there

Tackle Yeah the bloke who's boat i hit while casting heavy weighted plastics, was freezing my butt of after that to say the least

Observations A lot of boats passing by and not one bastard willing to rescue me from the depths

Hope some of you learnt something