FISHING & GEAR GUIDES

The rod, reel, braid, softbaits and jigheads that catch snapper in New Zealand, from a first setup to a technical one, rods and reels by budget, and how to fish them.

Mechanical jigging for kingfish: the knife jigs, short powerful rods, overhead and spin reels by budget, assist hooks, braid and the lift-and-wind rhythm.

The easy way into slow pitch: three Hayabusa jigs that catch everything, two starter kits, the 2g-per-metre rule and your first drop, step by step.

Braid, rods, reels, kingfish-sized stickbaits, poppers and minnows, and the terminal tackle in between.

Livebaiting kingfish on the downrigger: downriggers, mounts, weights, release clips, livebait hooks, leader, rods and reels, step by step, with two Adam Clancey videos.

Downrigger trolling for lake trout on the Rotorua lakes, Taupō and the South Island lakes: the Scotty setup, finding depth, speed and set-back, lures and the rules.

Kabura and tai rubber for NZ snapper: Ocean Angler and Hayabusa Free Slide, the neckties, the rods and X-Braid, and a depth-to-weight chart.

Eging for NZ squid: egi sizes, sink rates and colours, the rods, reels, braid and leader, and when and where to find squid, with live prices and stock.

Which softbait rod for harbour, shallow reef, workups and deep water, with lengths, line and lure ratings explained and every Assassin, Atomic and Samurai series we stock.

Entry-level to elite slow pitch rods from Assassin, Yamaga Blanks, Palms, Olympic and Zenaq, every spec from the product, with a link to the matching jig guide.

Casting rods for the topwater rush and jigging rods for the grind, from Zenaq, Ripple Fisher and Yamaga Blanks, with the PE classes decoded.

Assassin's Slayer, Surfmaster, Bluefish, EVO Zero and Horizon Zero series matched to snapper, kingfish, kahawai and sharks, with casting tips.

Why braided PE line beats monofilament for lure fishing, what a PE rating means, and the braid and leaders for every style.

XBraid and Black Magic braid compared on each maker's published figures: up to twice the rated strength at the same PE, and which XBraid suits your fishing.

XBraid vs Black Magic leaders strength for strength, fluoro vs nylon, which leader and length for each fishing, and the braid-to-leader knots.

Laketroller, Depthmaster, Strongarm, Depthpower and High-Performance tiers matched to your boat, steel versus braid, and the rigging hardware.

Four ready-made rod holder setups with live totals, diagrams of where the holders go, which mount for your gunwale and which holder for softbaiting, livebait, jigging, trolling and game.

Eight Versus Meiho boxes compared, accessories by job, four ready-made builds with one-click cart links, a compatibility matrix from Meiho's own fit lists and a system builder.

Iki, bleed, wire and ice snapper and kingfish for better eating, step by step, with the slurry recipe, the gear and the rules.

Technical Helios and SolarDry sun protection, heavyweight Supply Co. hoodies, the signature caps and the Fathom Proteus bib.