This site is all about angling at its zenith. At Tackle Source you'll find the best equipment to enhance the thrill of fooling that next big fish. Artificials are our forte and with this site we aim to promote the sport we love by sharing knowledge on products and on-water experiences. Tackle Source is proud to represent various top-notch brands in our market, so there is no where else one will find the abundance of quality and leading edge fishing tackle. Only at the Source.
In a recent survey by Lure Magazine (below) on the Best 50 Lures the Level Vibe by new comer RAID placed 1st in the hard lure section, while the Jackall Bros Inch Whacky nailed the soft lure list. Other notable mentions in the Top 10 places that are brought in by Tackle Source in both sections include Griffon SR-X & Pop-X by Megabass, Evergreen D-Zone spinnerbait plus Wildhunch and Kicker Bug, Jackall Soul Shad & TN vibes and lastly a great showing by OSP with the High Pitcher spinnerbait and a whole host of soft plastics in the list.
Back three weeks after the last trip which failed to produce the usual GT action, with usual enthusiasm, we were ready to do battle again with some fierce pelagics. A great weekend getaway for all, this trip would produce the goods and all aboard were happy campers despite a glitch in the weather which limited fishing time and had us packing early...
Armed with some new fantastic Xesta jigs, we were on a mission...
First blood: a tasty Estuary Cod on the Shout! Flash jig to get things going...
Action kicked off right away within the first few drops. Here the Majorcraft Alexander jig rod tackles an adversary...
A nice Spanish Mackeral which got pinned outside its toothy mouth. The new Xesta After Burner jig scores...
Armed with trebles for Macks, here the Xesta Nitro jig nails a greedy Snapper...
More Mack action with another fish on the Shout! Flash jig worked with a Majorcraft Giant Killing rod...
Giant Killing Long Fall rod is the perfect tool for working the fluttering Xesta After Burner jig...
The longer profile Xesta Nitro jig shows it's potency with a nice Estuary Cod...
Another Estuary Cod hits the deck courtesy of the Bassday Bottom Contact jig...
Golden Snappers display typical demersal tendencies and are inclined towards a well-placed Bassday Nin Raba madai jig...
Meanwhile the Bassday Bottom Contact does it's part by fooling a nice GT from the depths. The Majorcraft Alexander gets a thorough work out...
The Bottom Contact jig has become in important addition to every jig bag...
Not long after, the Majorcraft Alexander is in action once again...
Yet another nice Giant Trev on the same Bottom Contact jig by Bassday...
Flutter fall and lots of hang time is the name of the game. Bottom Contact does it best!
Golden Snapper are always welcome on deck. This one fell for the effective new Xesta Nitro...
Triple treat with Snappers and a Grouper on Bassday Nin Raba, Shout! Flash and Bassday Bottom Contact accordingly...
Next up a school of Mack Tuna show up and this one doesn't hesitate with the yummy Sevenseas Hooker jig danced through the water column...
A double of Tuna on Bassday Nin Raba and Shout! Flash jigs, illustrating their nonchalance when it comes to feeding...
On light gear this nice GT is a great thrill for this lady angler with the Hooker jig tied on...
Taken near the bottom, this Estuary Cod was fooled with the CB One Zero jig and Evergreen Poseidon Spin Jerker rod combo...
Another greedy Snapper takes a liking to the big Bassday Nin Raba...
GTs are a handful from the deep but are absolute fun for the angler, with long, fast and hard runs. This one crunched on the Shout! Flash jig and regretted it for sure...
Goldies are pretty gregarious feeders to, this one went for a big Shout! Stay jig despite it's small size...
Next morning the popping action was a reward for those who rose early. This GT was fooled by a life-like FCL Labo SPP Slim prototype..
On the FCL Labo UC74 rod, it was short work...
We didn't have to wait long for another Gee to come onboard. This was also despatched quickly with the heavier FCL Labo EXT 81MH rod...
There was no shortage of action. Despite some heart-breaking misses some stayed connected and some good fish were boated...
The FCL Labo Squidpen is a special lure which scores like nothing else in these waters...
Putting the new Majorcraft Crostage heavy casting outfit to test, this GT proved to be an easy capture...
The El Toro chugger did well to fool this fish...
Another drift and another nice GT, fish of this size coupled with the surging currents can be a handful but are great fun...
FCL Labo Squidpen does it again...
Once last GT for the day, on another FCL Squidpen, solidifying their stature as number one lure for GTs over here...
To round off the trip we spent some time chasing the Hard Tail Scad that were running this time of year. On the ultralight Evergreen 'Spider' rods and IMA Gunpeki mini jigs they provided hours of unending joy. The weather would cancel any further jigging in the deeper locales so this would be how we ended another fun and successful trip...
First words that come to mind when you pick one up. The Giant Killing Long Fall is a curious thing, as far as jig rods are concerned. First thing one notices is the extreme length. Seven foot eight inches for a jig rod? There's a reason for this. And how it has caught on in its native Japan. We've been fishing this style for some time and its effectiveness is to be believed.
Originally conceived as an extension of the popular slow pitch technique so effective for demersals and inshore Seriolas alike, the Long Fall goes against all traditions in terms of rod design. Before anything, some background on the slow pitch style of jigging. With enthusiasts making the most of new styled jigs mainly for Madai (Pink Snapper), the advent of super slow-actioned jig rods allowed anglers to work these jigs at or near the seabed with finesse. The slow action is essential to getting the best out of these jigs, made to mimic prey on the often mucky bottom. For the usually passive Snapper it worked a treat, and a whole new culture was born.
Today the Long Fall technique takes those values and stretches the possibilities. Flutter style jigs are just as essential as the lengthy rod. Together, with the right sweeps and pitches, the effect on bottom hugging fish is explosive. Not only that, but they've found it to be as deadly for Amberjack and Yellowtail Kings as well.
The Giant Killing Long Fall offerings cover a range of weights to handle different depths and jig weights. All are seven foot eight though, and have spiral wrapped Fuji K guides that prevent a tangled mess between sweeps and falls. Because we fish greater depths and have tougher opponents, we choose the heaviest rated of the bunch. Coupled with an overhead reel spooled with PE-3 line, the PE 2-4 rated 78/5LF rod creates a perfectly balanced outfit.
With a rating to 240g jigs, the rod will handle anything below that with ease, well in the range of the usual 120-200g jigs normally used in our waters. The rods have a parabolic action following its nimble tip down to the butt. Like it's Slow Pitch cousin, this is essential for getting the best out of the jigs used. The butts though, do have plenty of grunt and do come in handy when you do hook something more substantial.
The trick of the game is to have adequate hang-time for the jig to flash and flutter. The long rod makes up-sweeps a breeze and hand movement is multiplied when transmitted through the rod. Long sweeps have the jig darting off the seabed, only to have it suspend and slowly flutter back down. This is where most takes are experienced. They can be interspersed with short pitches with quarter, half or full cranks of the reel. The video below exemplifies the techniques mentioned.
In the local context this technique has proven highly successful with bottom dwelling Snappers, Groupers and even certain pelagics. For avid saltwater anglers it is fresh approach which will open up a new can of worms. Many are already experiencing the new found effectiveness first hand. When will you?
East Malaysia. A place which keeps beckoning. The relaxed ambience, the great food and some enthusiastic fisho friends combine to make trips like this an excellent getaway. The fishing though, isn't a given, and as always hard work and perseverence is needed, not to mention the help of the weather gods as we would discover...
Rods by Dobyns, Majorcraft & Megabass rigged for the day on the water...
Spanking new DUO Realis Crank all set for action. An angry Mangrove Jack would take one home as a souvenir shortly after...
The battle scars left on the new DUO Realis Jerkbait 100SP tell the tale of a Mangrove Jack that got away. Another 100SP would be lost completely as the Jack found home and busted off...
After bruised egos courtesy of the mighty Jacks we went after fish we could bully, like this Archerfish on the Realis Jerkbait...
Was to be a slow and frustrating day on the river until we found a snag with some residents. First in the boat was a hungry Jack which didn't think twice about hitting the DUO Deep Feat diver...
It was joined almost immediately by another mate on another DUO Deep Feat, to make it a great photo op...
Fish released and another cast in found another taker. The bigger ones were out to play and they loved the Deep Feat too, this one taking it deep...
The Jacks were lining up to get in the boat. Another DUO Deep Feat victim. This lure has produced the goods time and again in this river and is a must have for many...
Another tandem of hungry Mangrove Jacks, it was a visual feast as we witnessed them racing out of the snag to belt our lures. DUO Deep Feats at work again...
No complains as the procession continued with the Deep Feat working its magic. The fish were getting bigger too!
It was only after the faster Jacks had been cleared from the snag did slower fish like the Barra get a chance at the lures. This one liked the hot Evergreen Super Predator crank...
Meanwhile the Deep Feat keeps the Jacks thirsty for more...
Yet another, small but still plenty of fun on the DUO Deep Feat...
A switch to the deeper Zipbaits B-Switcher crank revealed more Barramundi holding deeper...
The slinky Jackall Squad Shad is a killer when twitched and worked when the fish were well and truly spooked by our onslaught...
Going deep with an IMA Melty Nymph rubber sunk down paid dividends with this Fingermark Bream...
One last Barra on the Jackall Squad Shad before the bite shut down and we called it a day. And quite a day it was...
Next day we boarded a boat that would take us offshore to some great fishing but it was not to be. All we had to show for a few hours jigging were some Spanish Mackeral like this one on the Evergreen Caprice jig. The wind had picked up almost as we arrived at the spot and wouldn't let up till day break. A call was then made to cut the trip short and trek back to shore, a decision supported by all onboard...
A pesky Remora on the Caprice jig. Pretty much summed up the sub-par trip...
