Tackle Tactics » Rigging-Guides » Soft-Plastics-101 » 26. Mulloway Soft Plastics Kit
26. Mulloway Soft Plastics Kit
The mighty mulloway or jewfish is a highly regarded sport fishing target that for many can be a trickier species to capture on a regular basis, also earning it the name 'The Silver Ghost'.
Readily available in many systems, there's a few things you can look for that will assist you in locating jewfish and these include deeper holes, rock walls and rock bars, flats in close proximity to water and bridges, especially those that are lit at night.
All of this structure attracts bait and bait is often the key to locating mulloway, along with the assistance of a good sounder to locate fish when targeting them in deeper water.
Favourite plastics include paddle tails such as the ZMan 3" MinnowZ, 3.5" Trick SwimZ, 4" DieZel MinnowZ, 4 & 6" SwimmerZ and 8" Mag SwimZ, along with curl tails, such as the ZMan 4 & 5" StreakZ Curly TailZ and 9" GrubZ. Another popular option is a jerk bait style plastic, especially when you need to get your presentation down in deeper water and faster currents, where the 4, 5 & 7" Scented Jerk ShadZ come into their own, along with the 8" StreakZ XL. When the rivers fill with prawns at different times of year it can also be an opportunity to utilise the realistic ZMan 3.5" EZ ShrimpZ to match the hatch.
Jigheads will vary depending on the environment you're fishing, however the stopping power and strength of the TT Lures HeadlockZ HD jigheads has made them the go-to for chasing mulloway. Weights will range from a 1/8oz on the flats, to the more commonly used 1/4, 3/8 and 1/2oz, stepping to 5/8, 3/4 and even 1oz in deep water, faster currents and when making long casts and controlling plastics from the rocks or beach. Common jighead hook sizes include 3/0 in 3" plastics, 4/0 in 4", 5/0 in 5", 6/0 in 6", 7/0 in 7" and 8/0-10/0 in 8", just as a basic starting guide.
It's also important to note that in many southern systems where there are high numbers of smaller school mulloway, anglers have great success chasing mulloway, while primarily targeting bream and estuary perch with plastics such as ZMan's 2.5" GrubZ and 2.5" Slim SwimZ, generally rigged on 1/16, 1/12 and 1/8oz #1 HeadlockZ Finesse jigheads. This can be heart stopping stuff when a larger fish takes the lure, with many larger fish landed on this light 'bream' tackle by experienced anglers.
All the best with the search for the grey ghost... the rewards can be well worth the effort.