Flathead Help & Tips Please!

[breakthelines]

Got back into fishing about 18 months ago, using soft plastics and lures and am catching flathead consistantly every week (sundays).

I went out this morning, as I do every sunday (with a mate) and managed 3 flathead in 5 hours.

Sizes were 30cm, 33cm & 45cm. Dropped 3 as well.

Fished weed beds and drop offs but would like some tips and ideas of what type of structure, depth and areas (not fishing spots) to fish and what sort of tides are best.

I don't mind catching the mid sized ones just want to catch a greater number.
Fish the broadwater down the Gold coast.

Cheers, Breakthelines

[mull dog]

there are many more qualified people on here to offer you advice than me, but what i have found is that they sit behind a peice of structure, be it a bank or rock or weed, and wait for bait fish to come to them. so the aim is to cast ahead of this and to bounce back over where you think they may be sitting. i prefer to use plastics that have a bit of tail movement like the wrigglers or the paddle tails. experience will be the best thing for you to improve your catch, keep trying different things. a friend of mine really only trolls bibbed minnows and does very well. good luck.

[ockoman]

hey mate from my experience iv caught a lot of flathead in my today i used to have a spot where i would get 20 flathead on trolled lures in 1 session if ur gunna troll use the micro mullet and with squidgying just pull up just before a drop off and drift over the top of it squidgying doing that got me a 76cm flathead hit me on the drop and alot of others but i would seriously recomend trolling micro mullets really done the deed for me
ockoman

[breakthelines]

Thanks for the advice, i'll soon have my new boat (don't have one yet) with minn kota so i'll be able to stay near the drop offs longer and hopefully increase of catch rate.

[breambandit]

If you target weedbeds and steep sandie drop offs 2 hr before and after low tide you will produce the goods.

I seldom travel further that 800 metres from the boat ramp to the first Weedbank I find, and drift that area casting plastics to the weed areas from ankle deep to 1.5 metres.

If all fails, troll a hardbody 10 metres behind the boat through the edge of the channel and you will also get Bream, Trevally Etc Etc

[breambandit]

If you target weedbeds and steep sandie drop offs 2 hr before and after low tide you will produce the goods.

I seldom travel further that 800 metres from the boat ramp to the first Weedbank I find, and drift that area casting plastics to the weed areas from ankle deep to 1.5 metres.

If all fails, troll a hardbody 10 metres behind the boat through the edge of the channel and you will also get Bream, Trevally Etc Etc