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Thread: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

  1. #1
    dorado
    Guest

    Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Hi all

    Was wondering what are some of the best live/dead baits/lures to use for catching Mangrove Jacks? I'm planning a trip to Noosa in a month's time and I'll have 4 days to explore the region, especially in the stretch of river between the two lakes where I'll be camped out. I've never successfully caught one of these guys and am more determined than ever to finally do so. Any help or suggestions appreciated.
    Thanks

    dorado

  2. #2

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Hi Dorado

    For live baits I recommend whiting. They will naturally head for the bottom and I've never put one out without a hit, Poddy mullet & herring do well also.

    If using dead baits use mullet or bonito strips.

    Any deep diving hard body lure will work especially in pink;

    Prawnstars come highly reccomended for jacks also.

    Hope this helps.
    PK

  3. #3
    dorado
    Guest

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Hey Girella, thanks for replying. Really appreciate your advice! A few more questions plz? With whiting what would be the best size to use or would it not really matter as I've read that Jacks will often take oversized live baits? What type of herring do you use and is a poddy mullet just a small and/or juvenile mullet? I've read somewhere that live 'Silver Biddies' are a top bait too. Seems like I'm gonna need to buy and learn to use a cast net.

    I've also read that Jacks are more active and out hunting throughout the night? With lures could you tell me if any particular colours work best at night?

    Cheers

    dorado

  4. #4

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Have been very succsessful with salted bonito strips, save the juice that comes out and dribble a bit in the water every now and then. A bonus is you don't need to freeze the bait just keep it in the cool and it is good for weeks. Seems to work best on a single hook such as the msutad 4190 or 540. [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

  5. #5

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Quote Originally Posted by Dorado
    Hey Girella, thanks for replying. Really appreciate your advice! A few more questions plz? With whiting what would be the best size to use or would it not really matter as I've read that Jacks will often take oversized live baits?
    Cheers

    dorado
    G'day Dorado
    Just make sure your whiting are over the legal size limit of 23cm or it could get embarrassing if fisheries are around don't worry to much about them being to big,my first jack ate an oversize live whiting.
    cheers
    Glenn

  6. #6
    dorado
    Guest

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Hey, Great tips and advice Guys, tyvm Yeah I forgot about the legal size limits for whiting though I s'pose with winter whiting it'd be okay if they were on the small side. Anybody ever have much success using live or filleted Gar? How about using soft plastics or 'Jellies' on Jacks? Would live prawns be anygood?

    Thanks & Keep it coming!

  7. #7

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    If its live and in their territory they will eat it. My favourite bait is definately live mullet or whiting. My three best jacks are 55, 53 and 50cm all caught on live mullet. I caught these in the causeway lake just south of Yeppoon, near Rockhampton. These fish were caught during the night, within a week of the full moon.

  8. #8

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Dorado

    Poddy mullet are just juveniles. Make sure all live baits are legal.

    Soft plastics will work with jacks.

    The challenge with all jack lures is to get them in close to the snags without getting snagged too often.

    PK

  9. #9
    gogecko
    Guest

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Is anyone getting jacks on adult mullet? I caught a mulllet in the cast net, and then cut him into strips, cause I figured 30-40cm of mullet is too large for a jack.
    Jacks do seem to be taking large live baits from what I can see on the reports.

  10. #10

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Snapbacks in texas red color!!
    This is the best softy I have tried.
    Snapbacks are bouyant, by using "sticky weight" and pro select style hooks, you can weight them to neutral or slightly negative bouyancy and really work the snags. For night time lures, try night crawlers, bloopers and poppers, or shallow divers in white/lumo colors, or black on well moonlit nights.

    Favorite baits are slabs of mullet, watsons bonito or squid heads
    Livies.. mullet and whiting or large herring and biddies.

    Regards, Tony

  11. #11

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    2 live prawns back to back, just enough to let em still kick

    [smiley=jester.gif] [smiley=jester.gif] [smiley=jester.gif]

  12. #12

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Zedjack

    SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!


    Or 2 poddies about 2-3 inches long, both hooked thru tail

  13. #13

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    gday,

    thanks all, some great tips there. believe it or not, i nailed one in the nerang last year on bloody ox kidney! i met a bloke who swore by it, so i gave it a whirl, and whammo!!! unreal. used quite a large chunk on a 4/0 and he took it with gusto! the livies were untouched but they smacked the kidney. other than that, just all the other usuals already mantioned work really well. i find too that some locations biddies work better than poddies, and vice versa. ah, just have to keep fishen and get a definitive answer maybe by the time i'm 80!

    cheers,

    cuzza

  14. #14

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    Mate the last time i fished for jacks was with a few old MR Twisters i had at the bottom of the old fishing bag. They loved the yellow ones the best.

  15. #15

    Re: Best Baits for Mangrove Jacks?

    I USE DEAD PODDIES AND "BUTTERFLY" FILLET THEM, ANCHOR UPSTEAM AND LET THE BAIT HANG JUST OUT FROM THE SNAGS

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