About Us
Who are we?
Fairwater Fishing is a family run business created back in 2005 by Edd Russell.
It all started with a box of hooks, some plastic tube and spool of line.
There was a demand for sets of Mackerel hooks from local boats, so it looked like a way to earn some extra money while working at sea fishing full time.
Before too long the demand for Mackerel traces had grown to include other fishermen working their boats from nearby ports.
As things grew Alan Russell jumped aboard and took charge of all the administration and kept things organised and running as it should.
A new boat was being built so it was decided to set up website to supply Mackerel traces and associated equipment as a way to help pay off the loans and provide work over the poor weather periods.
Alan Russell built our first website from scratch, with the online shopping cart facility which provided a huge boost to the company.
The website was completed and launched shortly before our new boat; ‘Halcyon’ was launched.
Over the years Fairwater has continued to grow, meaning we have moved from home to a small quayside workshop and onto the Net Loft where we are today.
After using the Belitronic jigging machines for a few years we began to supply them to other fishermen. None of the other suppliers had practical experience of using the Belitronic machines so that put us at an advantage when advising customers on how to get started and get the most from their machines after that.
The Belitronic machines have improved a great deal since then, along with our own knowledge and experience. Fairwater Fishing is known as one of the main Belitronic suppliers worldwide. We have helped countless commercial fishermen all over the world, and government agencies here in the UK and EU with set up and programming guidance.
Operating our own boat also gave us the opportunity to try new methods and equipment before adding the best and most successful things to the range of products we supply.
These days Edd still overseas the Fairwater workshop, and with the help of others working in our workshop, or off site in their own homes, they make all of the ready to fish gear we supply.
Alan Russell now takes things a lot easier, just keeping an eye on the running of the business and leaving the day to day office and admin work to our office manager Bryony Crabb.
Bryony runs the Fairwater Fishing office, answering phone and email enquiries, managing stocks and generally keeping everyone in check.
Our aims
Our primary aims at Fairwater are to promote hook line fishing, and more importantly; to improve the catches of our customers.
We have successfully run our own commercial fishing boats for over 15 years.
This enables us not only to develop and test all the products we supply on this website, but also to offer advice and assistance on the selection and use of the products we supply as required.
Our boat ‘Halcyon’
Halcyon was one of the last Kingfisher 26 (K26) hulls to be built at the yard in Falmouth, Cornwall.
She was fitted out from a complete hull, whaleback and wheelhouse mould kit to a very high standard by local shipwright Robert Chudleigh. Halcyon was complete and launched in October 2007 and has been fishing on a full-time basis ever since.
Halcyon has a Perkins Sabre M130c and PRM 750d gearbox turning a 27’ 5-bladed propeller. Its maximum speed is just over 8 knots. Cruising speed between 6.5 and 7 knots. It is also fitted with a top end electronics package including MaxSea 2d/3d plotter. Halcyon is now well known locally for landing some very good catches of high-quality line caught fish.
Throughout the summer months Halcyon is either jigging or trolling for Pollack and Bass during fine weather and fishing for Mackerel inshore when weather is not suitable further off. Towards the end of the summer and into autumn, Halcyon tends to target Mackerel more often.
Fairwater R&D
Here at Fairwater, we have a department devoted to research and development. We are constantly on the lookout for new materials and new products, and trialling new methods and tactics so that we might be better placed to increase our own catches, and those of our customers.
Through R&D, Fairwater will continue to introduce new products to our customers. If you have any suggestions or questions regarding our equipment, get in touch!
Halcyon carried all the equipment for all relevant hook and fine fisheries aboard at all times, allowing all opportunities to be exploited. She was rigged with outriggers for trolling for Bass and Pollack. She also had three Belitronic BJ5000 EX fitted for jigging and trolling for Mackerel, Pollack and Bass.
We have extensive experience using the Belitronic BJ5000 EX and so we are able to best advise our customers with set up and programming of these machines.
