What is with the fascination with Bangers?

[Lovey80]

As it’s now know on socials now days. Bangers = Giant Trevally.

I know from more than 10 years ago, maybe 15. I saw the vids of people catching these monsters and thought I’d like to have a red hot crack at these things. I ended up doing a trip to Fiji, I think back in 2009 and managed to bag a few of them. A few more pulled my arms off even with the best gear money could buy. But at the end of that rip, As fun as that was, I felt like I’d been there and done that and had no desire to throw poppers at bomies for GT’s anymore to have my muppet arms pulled off.

thinking about it today, I thought maybe it’s because I mostly chase edible fish for the esky. But then the desire to chase and release speedsters like Marlin still remains. That chase and possible fight still stirs the juices to go out and troll skirts or big live baits. The possible bye-catch may have something to do with it.

But if someone asked me right now, you have the choice of trolling for marlin on prime ground or throwing huge poppers over prime coral reef for GT’s. I’ll pick the Marlin fishing every time. Once you’ve bagged a few decent GT’s I don’t see the fascination anymore.

Once or twice yeh. But what’s fascination of every second YouTube fishing channel chasing GT’s? Is it just about “content” on a serious sport fish? If there was no camera, are these blokes throwing $50 poppers at fish they won’t eat for the fun of it every other weekend?

[NAGG]

If you are a sportfisherman - it's pretty obvious what the attraction is ......

An aggressive fish - a real mongrel

Most people surface fish for them - so the visual aspect is second to none ...... If that doesn't get your blood racing , you're probably dead .
Then that first minute of the fight is pretty hectic before you settle down for the slog fest where you & your gear is tested to the limit.
50kg fish are on the cards - they can & do appear at any time. ....... so you never know.

As a catch & release fish .... they release well.

Add to it some pretty amazing places you fish - particularly on the reefs & it all becomes pretty clear.

Yes there is certainly a lot of content on youtube ...... but only a few do it well & the popularity exists because of how this stuff is often filmed (drones) & some of it is pretty amazing . It's pretty obvious why it attracts youngsters as it's a very active & demanding form of fishing.


Comparing GT fishing & Marlin .....I 'd take a GT session on the reef every time & IMHO the only time any form of billfishing compares is when sight casting to sailfish. Marlin fishing is generally 90-99% boredom.

Chris

[Dignity]

I kinda agree with Lovely, I'm not into chasing fish specifically for the sport of catching and releasing, why stress fish out but that's another argument and thread.
In the late 80's and early 90's we'd be chasing reefies in the Bunker group and we had a few red emperor sites where we'd get hammered by big GT's. Lots of cursing 🤬 occurred as it was just not what we wanted. They weren't even good for bait so we tried to avoid them.

Yes Chris, it is thrilling when you see a fish take a lure especially when it is a good table fish, and yes chasing marlin can be as boring as bat shit although watching them in 1 metre of water is off the top of Fraser Island is fascinating to watch, have I been tempted to throw a lure at them, no, it was more enjoyable just watching nature at it's best. I've caught marlin as incidental to chasing other fish.

[NAGG]

I kinda agree with Lovely, I'm not into chasing fish specifically for the sport of catching and releasing, why stress fish out but that's another argument and thread.
In the late 80's and early 90's we'd be chasing reefies in the Bunker group and we had a few red emperor sites where we'd get hammered by big GT's. Lots of cursing 郎 occurred as it was just not what we wanted. They weren't even good for bait so we tried to avoid them.

Yes Chris, it is thrilling when you see a fish take a lure especially when it is a good table fish, and yes chasing marlin can be as boring as bat shit although watching them in 1 metre of water is off the top of Fraser Island is fascinating to watch, have I been tempted to throw a lure at them, no, it was more enjoyable just watching nature at it's best. I've caught marlin as incidental to chasing other fish.

I love it

It's the kind of response that would be hard to pen ...... not being into stressing a fish but ok to kill them I'd take stress over death every time .

But you are right - not the place or thread to go down that rabbit hole .

Chris

[Volvo]

I Kind of agree with Dig, mainly because im a Bread n Butter Fisherman and The Sprt of it for comes when i hook into a good sized mackeral for the table.
Theres a Wreck not too farout of here wrote an article on some time back and dropped some Greenback herring down and the GT's that would come up and snout them was frightening after the third/fouth/or fifth Fish lol.
catch them accidently then i like to get my tackle back so get my back out of joint fighting them ..

[Volvo]

I Kind of agree with Dig, mainly because im a Bread n Butter Fisherman and The Sprt of it for comes when i hook into a good sized mackeral for the table.
Theres a Wreck not too farout of here wrote an article on some time back and dropped some Greenback herring down and the GT's that would come up and snout them was frightening after the third/fouth/or fifth Fish lol.
catch them accidently then i like to get my tackle back so get my back out of joint fighting them ..

Apart from that "Each to their own ) ..

[chris69]

$50 for a popper for GT thats a lot of broom sticks and lots of poppers to catch a dumb fish they will eat anything that falls over the side of the boat.

Im thinking that there easy to catch and pull harder than other fish,but a rubber ring and some VB cord stops them cold when tied the the boat.

[NAGG]

$50 for a popper for GT thats a lot of broom sticks and lots of poppers to catch a dumb fish they will eat anything that falls over the side of the boat.

Im thinking that there easy to catch and pull harder than other fish,but a rubber ring and some VB cord stops them cold when tied the the boat.

$50 would be a cheapee - you can double or triple that .

Buy a good cod swimbait & you'll pay more than that ........

that's the thing with lure fishing .... you can spend a bomb & then some ......... $30 to catch a bream or bass & have a tackle tray with a grands worth of lures in it .

dumb fish or dumb fishoes ?

Chris

[Dignity]

$50 would be a cheapee - you can double or triple that .

Buy a good cod swimbait & you'll pay more than that ........

that's the thing with lure fishing .... you can spend a bomb & then some ......... $30 to catch a bream or bass & have a tackle tray with a grands worth of lures in it .

dumb fish or dumb fishoes ?

Chris

Dumb fishoes I would say. Chased barra with some of the cheapest lures, just upgraded the trebles and split rings. Many a soft plastic repared with some super glue. Made my own hex head lures(dental plaster molds work well) about 1/4 the price or even less. Used to make a lead weighted spinner for chasing mackerel, all my mates loved them but kept losing them to big fish. Cost me about $5 to make them but couldn't be bothered now as sourcing all the materials is an ongoing thing. Trying to prioritise my life a bit better. Most I've ever paid for a lure is $24 and it didn't perform ascwell as any home made lure I've produced.
Even where I chade flatties, they've all seen most lures but sometimes just a slight change in them and their presentation can make the difference. So many are presented as the newest and greatest only to jave it replaced soon after.

[tunaticer]

I do my best to avoid them at any size....nothing but time wasters to me.
Caught enough to learn they are of no value to me.

[Corry]

We love having a go when out, we normally start with our bottom bashing, either jigging or bait, then we'll go and do some top water stuff for a while, then head off for a snorkel and a swim around a sand cay and have some lunch. Then repeat for the afternoon. Having the reef as our back yard helps

[nautilus]

Easy. The challenge.

There are many categories of fishermen, some who catch simply to eat (bottom bouncing with bait), some are aficionados for whom the craft and gear is equally important (fly-fishermen) and some who are in it to find the limits of their gear, skill and strength (GT hunters). I prefer a decent steak over a piece of fish any day, so the eating part for me is neither here nor there. I don’t like killing fish and would love to see much more catch and release and far more strict bag limits, but I love fishing and the fact that GT’s release well eases my conscience. Despite what others in the thread have said, I don’t think they are that easy to catch and it is rare that you will get a GT without really trying for one. I have caught a lot of bangers (50+) and it is very rare that I find another fish that comes close.

5kg bangers fight hard and you are constantly wondering whether you will get busted off on the coral?, did I tie my knots right?, will the hooks pull?, will the rod snap? (did happen once, though I accept there was probably a defect in the blank or a nick out of it somewhere) a 40kg banger which I have also caught was next level. I was wondering how it will ever be possible to land this monster!

I have hooked, but never caught, a marlin and it was great while fighting it, but still, nothing comes close to a banger. The only concern was weather the hooks would pull (they did). Also, trolling around for hours on end is what I do when I need a rest from catching bangers!

If I really wanted to stir the pot, I would ask why anyone chases barra? I have caught plenty of them too with my biggest at 82cm and I thought I had hooked weed until it was next to the boat. One or two jumps if you are lucky, then just pulling dead weight to the boat. Boring.

[Corry]

5kg bangers fight hard and you are constantly wondering whether you will get busted off on the coral?, did I tie my knots right?, will the hooks pull?, will the rod snap? (did happen once, though I accept there was probably a defect in the blank or a nick out of it somewhere) a 40kg banger which I have also caught was next level. I was wondering how it will ever be possible to land this monster!

Gotta agree with you here, I've had some fights that have gone for over 20 mins, and I've had to sit and rest a few times along the way. The pain in the arms and back is next level when it's all on, along with the worry of keeping it away from the reef at the same time. They will definitely sort out average gear (hence the $80-$100 stick baits), and test every knot you've tied.

If I really wanted to stir the pot, I would ask why anyone chases barra? I have caught plenty of them too with my biggest at 82cm and I thought I had hooked weed until it was next to the boat. One or two jumps if you are lucky, then just pulling dead weight to the boat. Boring.

OK, pot stirred Not many Barra we get are like pulling dead weight to the boat, except the big dam Barra, but we don't fish dams anymore. The most exciting are the table sized, and there's the challenge of getting them out of the snag on hookup. Last week up at Daintree River they were putting on brilliant fights, and all averaged that 75-85cms. It is another one of those 'genres' of fishing that isn't for everyone though.

[Volvo]

Mate thers a Wreck with your Namesake up this way which hold some huge GT's , actually more than one can ask for when fishing this Wreck chasing other species that they become a nuicence .
But!! a metery Mother IN Law doesnt pull all that bad either if you want fun and a feed at the same time especially if you bleed the buuger straight up..

[Volvo]

Mate thers a Wreck with your Namesake up this way which hold some huge GT's , actually more than one can ask for when fishing this Wreck chasing other species that they become a nuicence .
But!! a metery Mother IN Law doesnt pull all that bad either if you want fun and a feed at the same time especially if you bleed the buuger straight up..

this reply was meant for Nautilus