First pop.

[Rodney Collings]

Hi all.
Being new to Gt popping, I have only just found you guys and am well pleased with what I have learnt on this site. Thanks

I went out on my first popping sesion this weekend and had great results. A trip was planned to a local Island where I had seen good GT's before so I had to get some gear together and have a go. I have some cheap gear (Stradic 6000 loaded with 30lb and a Kamikaze Jig stick) that I bought for Jigging and thought what the hell, Ill give it a go. Went out and bought some cheap poppers (before learning better from this site) and I knew it would only be good to try it out and see if I was into it. Well Im hooked!! 

Got there just after sun up, set up just on the pressure side of the coral reef and out went the popper. I was managing good distance and I was confident that I could raise a fish. Third cast and the almighty explosion happened and I was onto a hefty fish. The gear only just did the gob and I managed to get this brute next to the boat with a bit of a struggle.

Im thinking this fish was about 20kg more ore less, It was 1.1m long, not bad I thought for a first popped GT. Anyone have an estimate on weight?


I was stoked and the rest of the day I was popping mad! I managed a cracka of a Cuda 1.5m long and another smaller GT.




Since the weekend I have been searching and learning about the right gear to have. The gear I had did the job but it was very hard work.
Its all over I recon. Im hooked!

Thanks for the wealth of information guys.


Rod

[Mark Harris]

Welcome to the world of popping for GTs Rodney! 

Very good to read that you enjoyed your first experience so much.

I think your estimate is pretty good - I would put that first 110 cm GT at 18-20 kgs.

[Andrew Susani]

Great start Rod... I wonder if you will find this more addictive than the fly 

[Travis Heaps]

Nice one Rod!  Love it when a plan comes together.  I reckon you're pretty close with your estimate as well, i'd give 18kg.

And you know what - i think there is a place for longer, heavy duty jig rods in the world of popping.  It's suprising how much distance you can get with some effort plus there are places that you can fish successfully with say a 40-50m cast.  Add some smaller cup poppers and at least once you're hooked up the fight will be a hell of a lot easier  .  Hmm, now i think about it maybe it's not a big place in the world of popping but they might have some practicalities...

[Geoff Volter]

Nice one Rod!! I was spewing when I got that SMS on the weekend of that GT, I'd been doing wife-al stuff all weekend. That 'cuda is tops.... Big teeth on it.

PS-You are ugly on this forum too!!

[Peter Heinke]

Good job

[Rodney Collings]

Cheers guys. Its great looking into all the gear and sorting out whats what in the world of Gt popping.

Im heading out tomorrow for round two. Got another keen newby popper on board aswell. I can just picture it now, drifting in and two poppers blasting out over the reef!!

Cant wait. 

Catch ya's
Rod

[Andrew Susani]

Yeah, you know you are in a good forum when you do google searches for gear or ideas and the first set of answers are links to threads on here 

[Chris Young]

Good stuff Rod

Got to agree with Voltzy tho

[Rodney Collings]

Good stuff Rod

Got to agree with Voltzy tho

Cheers guys.
We tried to venture out on the weekend just gone but the summer storms kept us inside the creeks. 

Catch ya
Rod
P.S. Youngy , Geoff and yourself arent any nicer here either