salokcinnodrog

I have sat watching carp on various waters pick up and eject goodness knows how many rigs. I have not yet found a single rig that is totally anti-eject, pop-up, bottom bait, or critically balanced. Pop-up rigs can be taken or ignored, if the pop-up is tested that rig is often totally blown, it just won't catch from the fish that tested it, or sometimes any companion fish in that group. A blow back rig will behave differently from whether it is a bottom bait or a pop-up; a pop-up will usually reset, where a bottom bait is stuffed. The strange thing is that bottom bait rigs can be forcibly ejected and blown out, or just 'fall out', where I have seen, personally, pop-up rigs tend to get blown out more. That may be different for others. Also rigs work differently on different fish, waters, lakebeds, even different areas in a lake. I think it was Danny Fairbrass who said (a fair few years ago, so it is possible his views have changed), that curved shank hooks don't need any tubing as the 'Kurve' itself that stopped the rig being ejected, however after watching my own plain straight knotless knotted curve shank rigs being ejected with ease by a couple of fish (not even big fish) I found that a line aligner does help. Extending the shank length on many hook patterns really improves hook-ups and reduces the chances of a rig being ejected, that is straight shank and curved shank hooks. This extending the hook shank lead to things like The Savay Looney rig, the longshank hook patterns, line aligners, even kickers as longshank Bent hook rigs were banned.

Jealous! That is one heck of a place. I've read about Tim Paisley sessions on there and the website is awesome.

The thing I have found with 'pure' fluorocarbon lines is that you have to stretch them out before use, which can be a right pain. Take your rod and reel and tie the end of the fluorocarbon to a firmly fixed point, then walk the line off the reel keeping it tight. When you get to the end pull it as tight as you can preferably walking back even further, then wind it back onto the reel. It still doesn't cast as far as mono, but hopefully you have sorted out the problems of coiling. I found the best compromise was a fluorocarbon coated mono or co-polymer line, P-Line Floroclear. It is still not the best casting line compared to mono, but it is OK

I have found that putty on mono or fluorocarbon hooklink materials can be a pain to make stick, especially bigger lumps. It will stick to braid, as long as you work it into the material, and it will hold around any knot or on tubing or around a swivel. It is ok to mould around shrink or silicon tubing over the eye of a hook, like on a Ronnie rig. I used mouse dropping pieces on a black Amnesia boom to keep it flat, even after a year or two in the rig bin (I have a few booms still tied), it would slide quite easily. As much as I like putty for exact balancing or overweighting, it has limitations; especially since you can't use it in waters with crayfish in as the little gits actually sit picking it off. My preferences are for weighting down are tungsten beads, olivettes or if it won't damage the line, split shot.

The other thing is it does also work like a Withy pool rig, with the excessive curve, the hard part is making sure you don't use overbuoyant pop-ups. You do really have to trim them down to get it right.

It does actually spin like a 360 rig in the water, better than a mini ring swivel and fish that close their mouth over the pop-up get hooked dead set. It doesn't work on 'suckers and blowers'. I think John Claridge was playing with something similar.

Suddenly got a bit of signal. Under the hook are 2 tungsten beads below a mini swivel. The Gardner Tripwire is overhand looped and lighter bobbed to prevent pulling through. It definitely works😉

I have a very sneaky variation on that that gives a bit of extra movement😉 I'll sort pics when I get home

The carp can do it again and again, I've seen them go back for more as late as the end of August. They spawn, start building eggs again and if it is warm enough go spawn some more.

Long time since I've been there, but that would be the area I would be looking. At least you could hide around the waterworks, where Dolphin Bridge area you are in plain sight.

Not sure I mentioned this earlier in the thread: Something I have found is that it can take 2 days for carp to get onto your bait. Whether it is they aren't in the area, or are wary, I don't know. Last week I put bait in every day, a few boilies by throwing stick after an initial day one bucket of hemp, and blanked for 3 days. This week I did my initial hemp spombing, and on 2nd night had 2 carp. The only top up is a fresh stringer when I recast after giving Sky her walk. Almost every session I have caught on Alton is the same, blank first night, although the first fish back is the exception that proves the rule

I think all the supermarkets 5l bottles of water are around £1, for the money of a good few uses until the handles break, decent value. I really don't see the need to be buying specific camping or fishing water containers.💦

Enjoy, hope you have a good one.

Plenty more walking and looking. It can be worth just sitting watching a spot for a while rather than just walking and looking. The sunken trees are a good starting point, as will be weedy areas. As for bait, sweetcorn, particles, with maybe a few boilies thrown in. As an aside, I had a look at the City of London Hampstead Heath fishing page, that is good value for money!

I use old screen wash containers or the like. A mate who ran a car valet business gets 5l of screen wash for around £2.50. It comes with a free 5litre container that just needs a wash and dry. To heck with paying for camping containers.

I had a couple of big bream during a carp session, both 9's. It prompted me to go to tackle more suited for them and target them. Two doubles was the result, a 10.4 and a 12.

A proper sized bronze bream, abramis brama is the latin name. If you think that 6lb is probably the average size, that is definitely a good fish.😉

The best indicators grips I found were on the original Fox Mk.1 Swingers. I loved those indicators, used them for years. The Mk.2's were not a patch on them, the line gate was awful although the increased weight was better. In fact I think it was having to replace my Swingers when they were stolen is why I went to Solar indicator heads

Another option being as I got mine cheap is the Rod Hutchinson Hybrid Cabrio Brolly System. I have used it for 4 sessions now, in two formats. The first overnighter session, boiling hot after lockdown, I just set it up with storm sticks and used it as shade from the sun. The next sessions as I was fishing for a few nights I added the porch extension to increase storage space inside. The brolly itself comes with stormsides as standard, a clip in groundsheet and a proper zip in door, which I haven't used yet, preferring the open front. In the brolly alone I can get my bedchair with a Korum ruck bag behind that holds my food, rucksack by the foot of the bed, tackle box by my bed head. The only reason I changed is I simply fancied a new bivvy, not because I had to.

I recently bought one of the RH Cabrio beasties, not used it yet though, was going to bring it today, but got the 'new gear blank syndrome' in mind. It is a beast of a mat seriously deep, outside pockets and comes in a decent carry bag https://rodhutchinson.co.uk/product/cabrio-monster-unhooking-mat/

I know a number of anglers who use a piece of yellow foam as the topper or to lift the bait up to critically balance or pop it up. It looks like large pieces of sweetcorn or maize

The only thing is that in my case, so I presume on other reservoirs, is that most of the weed tends to be marginal. There is a weedline that goes out to about 10metres, the next drop-off or ledge before it gets weed free. On Ardleigh and Alton I found the depth was more important than weed free or not, the takes came between 6 and 12 feet.

I had another walk around today as I'm planning to fish from tomorrow for a few days. I found some pics I took of the culvert area last year, compared to one I took today, hard to believe it is taken from almost the same spot. I said I don't often prebait, I did put a bit in today, although I do know the carp already like KMG, but I have checked the weather and the wind is due to change. That walking around, even if not on the day you fish, gives you an insight into the water. Puts little clues your way.

You need something more buoyant than the one on there at the moment. My homemade 15mm pop-ups will actually take extra putty moulded around the tubing on a size 4 hook on a Ronnie rig, not that I use them very often.

I don't think that a lead clip offers the 'best' self hooking properties anyway, and a running lead with slack line or run ring with a tight line is different to what most anglers fish. Lead clips allow the fish to use the lead to get rid of the rig. If they are used to being hooked on (as an example) 6 inch hooklengths, then I have seen fish move no more than 6 inches and suck and blow until the hook is ejected. With the run ring, the lead slides back up the line not giving the fish anything to use.