Customising a sportfishing rig – Part 2

In the second part of his series, Al McGlashan details the other mods and fittings he added to make his cutting-edge rig even more effective

My Northbank 650HT has just rolled over 700 hours in the first year. Now this may seem high, but would you believe I normally average around 1000 hours a year, so we are actually down. Sadly, COVID caned us, as it did many anglers, but the good news is, it did allow me to spend more time tinkering and refining my boat to make it closer to the perfect sportfisher. It’s not finished yet, but it’s definitely the best set-up I have ever used, and we’re maximising the functionality of all available space.

Last issue I covered some of the bigger challenges, such as extending the fuel range with a DIY tank, improving access to the bilge, and refining the extensive Furuno electronics package. It covered details right down to simple things like alarming the water separator, which should be mandatory on all boats. In this article I’ll take a more direct focus on the smaller things that help improve the boat as a functional big fish weapon.

SLIMY TUBES

Livebaiting is a massive part of what we do these days, not just fishing for marlin, but also when chasing other species like tuna, and yellowtail kingfish in coastal waters. Slimy tubes were originally designed for switch-baiting, so we could store a pre-prepared livebait without having it invariably tangle up the leader in the livebait tank, but I have since found they are just as handy for traveling between spots too. 

This is particularly so when I am livebaiting inshore for species, like kingfish, where we cover a lot of ground running from reef to reef to find the fish. On days where bait is sparse, being able to keep rigged lives fit and healthy in the tubes between spots is invaluable, on top of this, with a pre-prepared livebait in a tube there is no rigging required when you want to present them — you simply pull up and drop the baits in.

In the past I mounted the tubes on the outside in the motor well, which is hassle-free, but they are an eyesore. With my fancy new Northbank I had a huge unused cavity in the back port corner opposite the livebait tank. Initially I was going to run a second livebait tank, but since there is a joining seam this wouldn’t work so I purchased a pair of built-in Slimy Tubes from Hook’Em Tackle (hookem.com.au). 

Using a hole saw on your boat is always disconcerting, but once you start there is no looking back. Just as a hint, always tape up the area so that you don’t chip the gelcoat before you start cutting. A pair of the larger 4in Slimy Tubes fitted perfectly, and with everything being out of sight, it preserved the aesthetics of the boat. 

I can do 43 knots when running at speed with the Merc, so with a force-fed seawater pick-up, the tubes will fill even if the pump isn’t running. However, there was one problem that arose and that was the overflow. The two livebait tubes overflowed straight over the top of the engine breathers, and at certain speeds the breathers would suck in the water. This initially resulted in a bit of water getting into the fuel, but the problem was easily rectified by installing a tap in the pick-up line to restrict the flow. 

The end result was a clean and neat looking transom and much better utilisation of an otherwise wasted space. Most importantly, the two livebait tubes are perfectly positioned to pitch a bait to a gamefish within seconds.

LIGHTEN-UP THE OUTRIGGERS

Outriggers are often overlooked by many anglers. They are expensive for what they are and as a result many boat owners skimp on cost and settle for the cheaper and shorter options. However, I consider it important to get the longest set I can that is still practical, because I can keep my lures in the clean water away from the boat’s wake. Height is also important as it helps keep the leader out of the water, which means it is less visible and leads to more bites from shy tuna.

With the cabin running the full width of the boat, there is ample room for a heavy-duty and serious set of outrigger bases, so I opted for a set of Reelax 600 bases. Although expensive, they are much easier to use than gunnel- or wishbone-mounted versions. The ease with which you can set your outriggers for fishing in rough seas makes them well worth the money, that’s for sure. 

When it came to poles, I went for the Hook’Em carbon fibre options. These are, again, hideously expensive but being super-light they not only help keep the centre of gravity on the boat down but also make it much easier to slide them into the bases — sitting high on the outside of the cabin wall, and being 20ft long, means they can be awkward to put in. Had I bought the cheaper but much heavier glass poles it would have been a nightmare. 

With these poles we can now fully maximise every inch of height available for a 6.5m boat, as well as the reach to extend well out past the boat wash where our lures and baits are more visible and so catch us more fish.

RIGGING STATION

I hate fixed baitboards on boats. Sitting high on the stern in front of the outboard ensures it hinders fighting any big fish. It is hard enough battle a big fish out of a small boat but adding a bait board to juggle around just adds a new level of hard. Of course, if bait fishing for reef species is your thing then they are great, but if you want to seriously chase big gamefish they’re an unwelcome hinderance.

Having said that, I still need somewhere for all my rigging gear — be it dacron, waxed thread and needles for livebaits and skipping baits — that is still convenient. Where to put it all has long been an issue — that is until my better half, Audi, came up with a brilliant idea. In the side door there is a cavity that invariably gets filled with crap, but as it is on the same side as the bait tank means its ideally situated. So instead of spending up big we bought a cheap cutting board from the supermarket that fitted perfectly on to the back wall of the side door.

An old radio mount instantly became a cheap waxed thread dispenser, while some PVC tubes were easily turned into bait and rigging needle holders. Finally, a snap clip from the hardware made the perfect holder for dacron loops. And it’s all easily accessible. I also added sponges and cleaning equipment in there as well.

ROD STORAGE

Another advantage is that without the baitboard you have space to add two vertical rodholders, which can be used for carrying bent-butt 37kg outfits. Boats always come with the angled rodholders these days, which drives me mad because, like many game anglers, I prefer rods with bent-butts. Although I added additional rodholders, having these two straight up is handy.

While on the subject, I should also add that Andrew and the boys from Melbourne Marine installed a 6-piece side rack which runs on the port side. With the rods protected from the spray under the gunnel, this is a much better option than getting the outfits pounded in the gunnels, and it doesn’t impede much on deck space at all.

The Northbank comes with a double row heavy-duty rocketlauncher rod rack, which makes the ideal place to store your other rods while fighting a fish.

The only rod I have ever lost over the side happened when a rocketlauncher snapped on a poorly-made boat. Consequently, although the build quality on the Northbank is miles ahead, I still prefer to travel with my game rods in the side rack while running fast to and from the grounds.

AUDI STORAGE

Storage is always a headache on small boats and finding places for some things like dredge teasers is a real issue. Luckily, Audi came to the rescue again with a solution that was ingenious as it was simple. Buying a length of shade cloth, she simply cut it to size to fit the dredge perfectly. She then added Velcro strips so that it wraps on the side rails while still being removable. When a fish is being fought, the dredge is simply retrieved and stored in a matter seconds, which is so much better than leaving it lying on the deck in a tangled mess as I used to do.

Audi didn’t stop there — she also built another one for inside the cabin walls to fit all the screen covers. Anyone who fishes offshore knows how many protective screen covers we run these days and how they always just get slung in the cabin. Not on Strikezone! Instead, they all fit perfectly into the sleeve out of the way and never end up on the floor. 

It seems that many gamefishing boats in Australia don’t seem to give their girls much of a chance to fish, which is sad. Perhaps for some it’s still a male-dominated and testosterone-driven sport, which is very different from other countries like the US where heaps of girls and ladies fish. As you can see from Audi, her contributions have not only been invaluable to fishing but also in setting up the boat to run even more efficiently — so make sure you take the ladies fishing!

YETI STYLE

The Northbank came with a seat box with built in tackle trays on the starboard side while the opposite seat is designed to fit a cooler. There is nothing new about this but when you fish for a wide range of species your cooler requirements vary greatly. 

One issue I have had is when I am chasing tuna, especially bluefin, I carry a lot of pilchards because if we get the fish up on the troll, we then toss handfuls of bait to try and get the school up to the boat. This is not just for fishing but also so we can get in and film them underwater. It doesn’t always work but when it does it’s like shooting fish in a barrel. To carry all this bait, I need a bigger cooler, however, this is a far cry from marlin fishing when I only need a really small one to hold a few skip-baits.

In the past I have carried fish bags, but then you have to put the fish in with the bait which is far from ideal, or I have to carry extra coolers which takes up more deck space. Enter Yeti, a relatively new player in the Aussie market. They make the best coolers I have ever used but more importantly they come in a variety of sizes that all fit under the seat. I have a 60L for marlin fishing, 125L for kingy fishing, and a 160L for tuna fishing. The only downside is that I have to pull them out to open them, which is fine on the 60L but not so easy when the 160 is full of bait!

The ability to chop and change the size to suit the fishing needs is a massive plus and while there is an added expense in coolers it does allow us to maximise of space which is essential for all trailerboats.

NOT FINISHED YET

A year on and we have tallied some of the best fish to date and, of course, capturing it all on film as well. The boat has been modified and improved heaps but there is still more things to be done from mounting the pie oven to modifying the side door. There is no such thing as the perfect trailerboat, but I am getting closer with this Northbank.