SURF RODS, METALS, GANGS, HARDBODIES & WIRE
Tailor Gear
Tailor are the fish most Perth anglers cut their teeth on, and they never stop being fun. From the beach and rocks, it's a ganged mulie or a metal slug cast into a gutter at dawn, from Leighton and Cottesloe up through Scarborough, Trigg and the northern beaches, with the bigger fish showing on the reefy ledges. In the Swan and Canning, it's a completely different game: light spin gear, small metals and hardbodies cast at schools chopping bait around Blackwall Reach, the Narrows and the Canning Bridge, sometimes in the middle of the city.
Compleat Angler Nedlands has both setups covered. Surf and rock rods from Daiwa, Shimano, Assassin and Ocean's Legacy, light river rods, reels from 3000 to 6000, metals from 20 to 60g, gang hooks and tailor rigs, hardbodies and stickbaits, and the wire and mono to survive the teeth. Browse below.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the best rig for tailor off the beach?
A whole mulie on a gang of three or four 4/0 hooks, fished on a running sinker or a paternoster in the gutter. Halco Linked Gangs, BKK HD Ganged Hooks and Vexed Gangable Tarpons are the ones we sell most. Use a short mono or light wire trace above the gang; tailor teeth will find braid or light leader.
Which metal lures work for tailor?
A 30 to 60g Halco Twisty, Malosi Marksman or Richter Sea Iron cast as far as you can and retrieved fast, sometimes skipping across the surface. Off the beach, weight matters more than colour: pick the slug that reaches the gutter in the wind. In the river, drop to 10 to 25g and a lighter rod.
What rod and reel for beach tailor?
A 10 to 12 foot surf rod rated 6 to 10kg with a 4000 to 6000 reel and 20 to 30lb braid casts a gang or a 40g metal to the back of the gutter. Daiwa Sensor Sandstorm, Shimano Raider and Assassin Slayer Surf are the go-to beach rods; a Yamaga Early or BlueSniper Shore Casting if you want to chase big fish off the rocks with lures.
How do I catch tailor in the Swan River?
Look for birds and surface chop from Blackwall Reach up to the Narrows on dawn and dusk, especially on a run-out tide. Cast a 15 to 25g metal or a 90 to 120mm hardbody past the school and retrieve fast. A 7' to 8' 2–5kg rod, 2500 to 3000 reel, 10 to 15lb braid and a 20lb mono leader. Change the leader often; the teeth shred it.
When is tailor season in Perth?
Tailor are around all year but the metro beaches fire from late spring through autumn, with the biggest fish on the reefs and ledges in autumn. Dawn is the best hour of the day, a rising tide into dusk the second best, and a bit of surf and dirty water helps rather than hurts.