salokcinnodrog

It was Rod Hutchinson who said "test a knot by hammering it". I presume he meant give it a good pull, yank it, put it under pressure. Every knot I tie, I test it, every crimp trace, whether for pike or sea fishing I test it. I don't like crimped rigs for carp fishing.

The 2 bottom fish were the same night, 22nd October 2019. I had a few nights with multiple catches, and mostly 20lb plus fish, I think that I only had one fish below 20lb. As I said, I was walking around almost every day before work, picking a section so over 5 days I would pretty much cover the whole way round, including the bays. Definitely Holbrook fish, that common above; the 'owner' of the Holbrook syndicate took out some of the slow growth fish and put them in Alton, you also have some escaped pike live baits, there is or was a big common with a nick front of the dorsal fin from a treble hook I think. There are no originals left from when the reservoir was formed, somewhere at the bottom is a road, some houses, and the farm pond that had Alton Waters original carp and rudd.

I'm sure that none of them are quite as good, and I am positive that you don't need them as the phone camera already has a voice app. I was goggling around when I found this, it's not explained in my Samsung 'destructions', but after a couple of colour differences between Selfie voice app and self timer with flash I started to look further.

Pictures of carp from Alton Water? I can also give a bit of info, but it does involve a lot of walking. I live on the edge of the town, about 10mins away, so before work I would take my dog for a walk around a section. As for syndicates around Holbrook, one person seems to have his finger in every pie.

Hmm! A 'soft' through action rod can put more pressure on than a high test curve rod. As for pulling for a break or retrieving gear on snagged rigs, I frequently wrap a towel around my hand and pull the line, quite often you can pull it out of the weed without breaking. If it's a snag, then not so easy, although I have pulled in many a branch festooned with rigs and leads with the wrapped towel.

It always happens, just when you think you are sorted. The folding camping chairs are pretty handy, I use one on the beach rather than my Solar chair.

The syndicates around there are all pretty tied in together, along with Alton Water. The only difference is that Alton you can get day tickets for.

Fluorocarbon is funny stuff. On the stuff i have tested it has around the same stretch as mono, but as it gets to the stretch 'point' it doesn't go back, it breaks, it is not elastic like mono. It is also different for knots. I have had uni knots give way, but never a blood knot.

No, that's where he puts his ink to dip his feather quill...

Seriously I find taking line off relaxing, I can slow down and actually watch something on television, usually natural history or a documentary, or even Whitehouse and Mortimer. I must admit I do try to put the job off for as long as possible but partly because I know that I've got 300metres on each spool... With my health problems maybe I have learnt to enjoy everything that I can do.

I remember using SBS Ace Worm Extract and the smell of that was foul. I can't really smell cut up worms as anything other than mud, but this liquid was like that and rotten compost heap mould a million times over.

Don't forget you will have to seal the bottom yourself, either a knot or heat treatment. You could well be better going to a PVA mesh. If you put everything inside, then you will need a rigid filler, but with a split down the length of the tube. Even then you will be cutting the length you want, putting onto the split tube, and then putting rig and line in etc.

Cheeky, he's on it...

Taking it off by hand is therapeutic. Old line spool and put it on that, and easy to return to Tackle shops in Anglers National Line Recycling Scheme. https://www.anglers-nlrs.co.uk/ I tried using a drill, and various ways and things to wind it onto, and with the stop start and constant having to untangle or untwist it went back to by hand

I was mooching and found this: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/CtSFibru45ifMqBD/

Years ago Gardner Tackle did PVA mesh bags, I think 10 in a pack. They were joined together top to bottom, the tying handles being joined to the base of the bag above. I presume as @yonny says the forming was done in a continuous press and cut.

12ft rods can do it, so no 13ft is not an essential. A lot of 15lb lines rated at 15lb have a diameter of 0.38-0.40mm, in reality they are actually 18 or even 20lb lines. Look at lines with a 0.35mm diameter or finer. I'm comfortable giving Gardner Pro 15lb the big chuck as it stands, whereas with 15lb Daiwa Sensor I have a shockleader, it doesn't take a big chuck as well, however to get 110metres I would look and practice with and without a shockleader until you are comfortable knowing whether you need it or not. As much as I prefer the local Tackle shops, I had to get Gardner Pro online a few weeks ago, with carriage I paid £13.50

You have to live in Holbrook to fish it.

Sounds interesting, how much? and I already know that they allow dogs as long as they are kept on a lead... Got a bit of juggling to do as I have NFL London tickets to pay for but very interested, so when does money need to be paid?

Then we'll fish somewhere where it doesn't work... Thinking about it, years ago in winter on Thwaite, the best colour was lime green, Dynamite baits Green Zing, and Nutrabaits Pineapple/N-butyric in yellow, the pink flavours other than Squid and Octopus and my reddish Garlic Spice didn't work. The other colour that worked was a Dynamite orange Monster Crab. I think flavours had some play in this as well as pink Strawberry Ice Cream was a bust. The Garlic spice picked up fish for 2 days in a 5day session between Christmas and New Year, then the red Smokey Mackeral food bait started working. Even on my syndicate now I look on pink as a bonus fish provider as I have had fish on everything in summer, pink, black, purple, brown and yellow (when fishing with sweetcorn in the parti-mix). The pink has produced occasionally fish in winter and wake-up time in April when other baits haven't.

Funny thing is my mate @brucelait and I will use each other's rigs, or trust knots the other has tied, but we have fished together for 30years so maybe that is the exception to the rule. As for NGT, some items are good, some are not. The items I've used, the neoprene rod bands have lasted longer than other makes and an NGT landing net and two piece handle is in with my specialist gear. I also bought a spreader block for my rubberised pike landing net.

I really ought to bring my stalking rod with me in the warmer months to see if I can stalk or get the fish up on dog biscuits, instead too frequently I end up behind 3 rods again. I used to take my floater rod to Taverham, Earith and even Brackens for that very reason, picking up a lot of 'bonus' fish during the day and then being busy with the static rods at night. When I moved onto the Nazeing Lagoons I stopped bringing it.

I can add still more and from this year on the syndicate a 4 day session. It started off well with a 22lb fish the first night, then I had a 27, 24, a 21, 29, and a 26 over the trip. Then another session where I equalled my largest carp with a 33, and on the same trip an 18lb Linear, which went in this year at 10.8.

My floater fishing and stalking rod for years was a 9ft Browning spinning rod, and I found it brilliant. Seems weird as it had no test curve rating, I think it was 30-50grams casting weight, sadly it was stolen. Most of my fishing is on big waters, where long casts may be required and I know that I can cast a lot further with a 12ft than a 10ft rod. In fact I don't think that I have fished a water less than 45acres since 2010, other than occasional day trips to Bromeswell, and there I prefer to use my specialist rods as I'm not going to fish for carp just reaching double figures with 2.75 or 3.25lb rods. Even feeder fishing with a 10ft specialist rod, I am casting shorter than the exact same make in 12ft, although to be fair on the river that's not a problem.