# Barra Tackle



## RJC (Jan 25, 2009)

Hi All,

Well I'm venturing out to lake Awoonga for my first Barra expedition. My current gear is pretty light, generally used for basic bay fishing and I am looking to buy an entry level Rod and Real suitable for Barra. I was wondering if anyone can offer a recommendations.


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## polylureosis (Jul 24, 2006)

Are you comfortable using a baitcaster?


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## Feral (Oct 18, 2008)

5 to 8 kilo.
Have a look in your local Kmart - the Jarvis Walker Graphite range. They do a graphite baitcaster rod called a tsunami which I have caught 1m barra on quite well for around 70 or 80 dollars and casts quite well.

otherwise if trolling get on to Mo Tackle 
Get a wilson barra rod $39 delivered (6kg, very good rod for the price) (casts alright, but the tsunami above is better for casting)
http://www.motackle.com.au/index.cfm?pr=product&product_id=3555

Then match it up with a shimano Coriolis reel from Mo Tackle as well - $51 plus freight - best cheep baitcaster to be had. Very little difference from my Curado to cast. (Curado parts fit it, mate has replaced all the bushes in his with curado bearings)
http://www.motackle.com.au/index.cfm?pr=product&product_id=75

and 40 lb braid of your choice, I'd recommend cajun leader, its my favourite.


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## redman (Jun 5, 2008)

Definitely go a Baitcaster mate - if all else fails the thumb drag always works a treat


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## dolphinheads (Jun 19, 2008)

Make sure you get some good braid about 30lb and leader material of approx 40-50lb.
I am operating with 30lb Fins and 50lb leader tied together with an albright knot and Loop knot on the lure.


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## RJC (Jan 25, 2009)

Many thanks to all for the info,

I have no issue with a bait caster so will give this some thought as it has been recommended to me by other mates who do a bit of Barra fishing.

In relation to MO tackle one other recommendation was to look at a Snapper Raider 762 $139.00 (link below) with a Diawa Spinstar Z3500 $75.00. The idea being that this would be suitable for Barra fishing but also flexible enough for heavier bay fishing.

http://www.motackle.com.au/index.cfm?pr ... ct_id=4089

Any thoughts?


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## Feral (Oct 18, 2008)

Dont know either rod or reel, but the sizes are certainly in the right ball park.

I have heard raiders tend towards smaller eyes on the runners, definitely not something you want when tying albrights onto 40 or 50 lb leader! But dont take my second hand info as gospel!


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## dru (Dec 13, 2008)

RJC

Sorry to drag up and old post - but how did you go with this. I have been chasing exactly the same thing - a snapper rig that will double up for barra. $150 budget and I am a bit of a fan for Shimano. Strangely enough I came up with exactly the rod suggestion. That could make us two dopes :? ... or similarly clever 

Feral [hasty edit] says says the Raider is in the right ballpark but caution on the guide sizes? What did you end up doing?

Dru


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## jaredluke (Nov 23, 2007)

Haven't you heard of the raider barra spin? It is a 10kg rod and is 2 piece and it is made specifically for casting lures at barra and will double as heavier bay outfit. Match this rod to a shimano reel, sedona or something like that.


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## milhouse (Jan 28, 2007)

The Penn Pinpoints are an excellent baitcast rod for the price tag of around $110. My mate uses them in the barra impoundments with great success. His reels are the big curado baitcasters but they are a bit exy. I'll be testing out my Daiwa HRF on them in a few weeks. 
First time I chased them I took a Stradic4000 on a Shimano X-Cel Weapon 702 rod. Didnt get any monsters but handled everything I got and this is now my snapper outfit. Pain the bum casting spinning reels all day compared to baitcasters though.


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## dru (Dec 13, 2008)

jaredluke said:


> Haven't you heard of the raider barra spin? It is a 10kg rod and is 2 piece and it is made specifically for casting lures at barra and will double as heavier bay outfit. Match this rod to a shimano reel, sedona or something like that.


Hey, that's a great - but a subtle twist - on the rod brief here.  Primary role for the rod will be snapper, but the snapper rig needs to double for rare forays into impoundment barra [not a barra rod doubling for snapper]. I imagine the rod would ideally be 2 piece, and rated up to 8 or 10 kg, carbon, casting 10 to 40g lures? Seemes to match your suggestion re raider barra?

So, which fits better, the raider barra or the raider snapper? Also note feral's point regarding eye sizes - I usually tie my leader so it isnt long enough for the braid-leader knot to feed through the tippet. If I should be using longer leader then the eyes will ned to allow the knot to feed through. I assume the raider barra is ok?

Feral's initial rod suggestions are great, but I can stretch to a better budget for the rod.

Dru


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## HAWKEYE3 (Jan 8, 2009)

> MATE, DON'T FALL INTO THE TRAP OF BUYING A HEAVY DUTY OUTFIT UNTIL YOU CAN CAST AND LAND THE LURE WHERE YOU WANT IT. WHEN ANY ONE ASKS ME FOR ADVICE ON THIS I TELL THEM TO GO A BIT LIGHTER THAN YOU PERCEIVE THE NEED. I KNOW OF MATES WHOM I'VE TAKEN LURE FISHING FOR THE FIRST TIME, AND THEN THEY RACE IN AND BUY WHAT THE SALESMAN OFFERS. FULL OF TESTOSTERONE THEY TELL THE SALESMAN THEY'RE GOING FISHING FOR BARRAS AND JACKS. THEY FORGET TO TELL HIM THAT THEY WILL BE USING LURES. THEY END UP WITH SOMETHING FROM CAMELOT AND JUST AS STIFF.
> 
> THINK ABOUT WHO ELSE WHO MAY USE THE ROD. iF YOUNGSTERS USE IT THEY MAY NOT BE STRONG ENOUGH IN THE WRIST AREA TO BE COMFORTABLE WITH IT.
> 
> ...


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## RJC (Jan 25, 2009)

Dru,

Still on the hunt for the right gear but progressing. I have (as normal) elected to break the budget and have settled on the Diawa Exceler Plus 4000 reel for $149. Seems to be getting good reviews everywhere I look for both salt and fresh water. For the money I figure it will serve me well on this trip and when next on the bay.

Not sure about the rod yet but I have also been advised by many to be wary of the eyelets for the barra rig regardless of which one I choose. From what I can see I expect to get a matched rod for the real I have chosen for between $85 - $130 so the combo should set me back about $250-$275. If I can come back with a photo of one good barra catch it will be worth every cent.

I will let you know what the final call is on the rod.


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## Feral (Oct 18, 2008)

Dont be disappointed if you dont get the bigun first trip, whilst some people certainly do, some like me have to sweat for a few trips before landing one!


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## dru (Dec 13, 2008)

quote="HAWKEYE3"]


> MATE, DON'T FALL INTO THE TRAP OF BUYING A HEAVY DUTY OUTFIT UNTIL YOU CAN CAST AND LAND THE LURE WHERE YOU WANT IT. WHEN ANY ONE ASKS ME FOR ADVICE ON THIS I TELL THEM TO GO A BIT LIGHTER THAN YOU PERCEIVE THE NEED. I KNOW OF MATES WHOM I'VE TAKEN LURE FISHING FOR THE FIRST TIME, AND THEN THEY RACE IN AND BUY WHAT THE SALESMAN OFFERS. FULL OF TESTOSTERONE THEY TELL THE SALESMAN THEY'RE GOING FISHING FOR BARRAS AND JACKS. THEY FORGET TO TELL HIM THAT THEY WILL BE USING LURES. THEY END UP WITH SOMETHING FROM CAMELOT AND JUST AS STIFF.
> 
> ---
> 
> ...


[/quote]

Now there is some advice that could be locked-in somewhere where newbies are going to find it. My first rig - estuary - I based on bream recommendations but increased from "light" to "mid" spin to give me some extra vavavoom. As predicted by Hawkeye3 it is a bitch to cast the lighter bream lures and SPs.

otoh That rod is 3-6 kg which might serve for barra on the basis of going lighter (than recommended 5-8 kg)? Mind you it is probabaly a bit "fast", second rod out for trolling maybe. I will have have a look at the various snapper/barra options.

Definitely keep you informed - damn nice to have have such a large group of mentors, And I may just provide some entertainment.

Feral - at the moment buddy, I get excited if something bumps my lure (mangroves and river bottom included). If I actually hook something you will probably hear my yell from anywhere in Australia. Absolutely anything is a PB!

RJC - I definitely interested in your choices here. I opted for the Coriolis reel - for $50 wtf - but I will go for a better rod IF it will double up for snapper. I have no familiarity at all with baitcasters, but then 6 weeks ago I didnt know anything about spinning reels either.  I had no idea fishing would be so technical.

Lots of toys and fun but.

Dru


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## diabolical (Mar 30, 2008)

The rod I went for with the same snapper barra thing in mind was a Tcurve Powerspin 5-10kg 10-45gr 2 piece 6'7". May be more than budget at twice the price of raiders which have a few different models that would work fine.


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## tomca (Dec 1, 2007)

Feral said:


> Dont be disappointed if you dont get the bigun first trip, whilst some people certainly do, some like me have to sweat for a few trips before landing one!


its coz you haven't been doing it from a kayak :lol:


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## dru (Dec 13, 2008)

diabolical said:


> The rod I went for with the same snapper barra thing in mind was a Tcurve Powerspin 5-10kg 10-45gr 2 piece 6'7". May be more than budget at twice the price of raiders which have a few different models that would work fine.


Yep, budget keeps me away from the T-curves.

I had a good look at the raider barra, lt and heavy snapper. While it doesnt follow the "if in doubt go lighter" philosophy I choose the heavy snapper. The weights and lure size seemed to match-in with my existing kit better. And I have my starlo pro 3-6 kg to fall back if I end more than usually clumsy with casting.

The kit looks the part, now to find a better idiot for the end of the stick...

Dru.


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## dru (Dec 13, 2008)

HAWKEYE3 said:


> > i WOULD LIKE TO HEAR HOW YOU GET ON
> >
> > REGARDS
> >
> > HAWKEYE3


So on the basis that others will also be interested...

The Coriolis was perfect. Great starting reel, with the necessary power for barra.
Being "comfortable with a baitcaster" re-sounded in my head when it was delivered. I puzzled over this reel, confused that MO tackle would send a lefthander. 60 mins of confusion ... then Brain wave - it becomes right handed IF you mount it on the rod UPSIDE-DOWN! :roll: 
None of you miserable b#st*%ds warned me about overcasting knots. Learned the hard way. And repeatedly! Oh OK, that would have happened anyway, so have your chuckles at my expense. 
My casting was working very well by the of the trip. You do have to work harder with a baitcater and carbon rod but ultimately I was happy with the choice.
Both BJM and my own kit selection worked fine. Though I was plenty glad of the heavier rod on my one hook up. 8) If a very large snapper pulls anything like a medium Barra, I'm very happy to have the extra rod oomph. :twisted:

Back to flathead and bream for a few weeks. Then maybe some snapper. Then maybe even, the target - Brissy river threadies.

Cheers Everyone. All advice was appreciated and I hoped put to reasonable use.

Dru


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## BJM (Oct 5, 2008)

Was I there ? Damn, I missed it....
Think you might have someone else in mind 

I would like to get out there and have a go though !!! Next time I guess


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## dru (Dec 13, 2008)

BJM said:


> Was I there ? Damn, I missed it....
> Think you might have someone else in mind
> 
> I would like to get out there and have a go though !!! Next time I guess


Try AJM?

Dru


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