kevtaylor

Recasting is a tough one, for a long time now I've tried to get the rods set and baited long before evening bite time - it feels like the big fish way, I wont touch them until late the following morning after bite time has finished, however if I'm getting occurances I'll check and recast at anytime. It does feel wrong watching people re-baiting and recasting late evening when they've had all afternoon to do this? I do find it very odd that on so many occasions I've reeled a cast in that was pretty much bang on, certainly good enough but something tells you to re-do it and bingo it was tangled or something not quite right - sixth sense? I think there are times I should recast definately, but probably too set in my ways, depends on the water to a degree I think. Reading other comments, at first light I really dont want to recast which is mental torture if you think you may have been done, but very unlikely to reel it in until much later, sometimes too late.

They caught 3 on Bluebell Lakes without licences last week. They've also requested and been given the access codes to my current syndicate complex - which is a first according to the manager.

If what you're doing now works just start with that on any new venue. Method feeder has gotta be one of the most under used tactics today, yet it works a treat, don't fix what isn't broken as they say. Take that elsewhere I can see it being an edge! Change things when you see a problem not to follow a trend or for the sake of it and enjoy learning it's a journey (never ending). 👍

This side looks knarly already lol Some lake ❤️

New swim, more work done, a fish but overall frustrating 48hrs. The quicker they spawn the better imo.

Mind boggling session on the syndi, arrived 6am Friday to beat the crowds and more importantly beat the long awaited weather change to westerlies. Whilst the lake was fairly busy noone was at the East end of the lake and I got the swim I had hoped for. The Easterly wind had died off and it was nice and calm whilst I quickly found some spots with the boat as you can't cast left with the overhangs. It was very weedy at 5ft to half way across but then when it dropped into an 8ft gulley the weed became more clumps with clean holes dotted about. I got 2 rods out and was baiting the last when the first was away after 10 mins and I landed my first of the year - a cracking little stocky, already looking nice and dark. The wind started up soon after and to cut a long story short I spent the next 48 hours watching the most banging conditions of the spring come to absolutely nothing, they just didn't turn up as expected. Plans to do an extra night were ditched Sunday lunchtime. I can only assume they are waiting to spawn somewhere out of sight, come Sunday afternoon the lake was almost empty.

Yes I got some after my mate did, rods are lovely but you have to expect a decent wait. Got blanked after when I asked him to do me a matching landing net handle. I'm having these re-built at The Tackle Box, changing reel seats, new rings, the lacquer has gone so the whipping is clouding up overnight. A lot of love for the Torrix TE Specials so they're getting a makeover. ❤️

48 hour social at Bluebell lakes. Sandmartin Lake. Managed one on the first evening but despite looking good for more the following day no more bites.

` Sounds just like the Chris Orme experience

So far my plans have gone totally the wrong way, trying to complete a side job through March - April with fishing in May at the forefront of my mind, it's turned out I should have fished then and put the job off till May - June with the hot-still weather and now new members and other lake members on top it feels like a bit of a disaster at such an early stage. Really think the bulk of my syndi fishing has to be Sept - April, hardcore through early spring when it's nice and quiet. This place is busy May until whenever the weed gets up lol

I was back home by 9.15 pm, lap of 2 lakes, swims I wanted gone, could have stayed and fitted in but thought better of it, going Bluebell Sunday anyway. Wrong attitude but bit fed up with members from other lakes being allowed to fish ours coz theirs is flooded. I can see why a mate fishes a nature reserve with 5 fish in it now, seems crazy but its you verses them nobody treading on your toes 🤷‍♂️

This is what I've realised 👍 Must be an age thing coz it seems that every year I forget what my main meals were on the bank in the previous years, suddenly I haven't got a clue what to take. Going late tonight and it's steak, new potatoes and peas Friday night, then back home Saturday and planning the meals for a 2 night social at Bluebell Sun - Weds. Weathers looking good for the following weekend down the syndi again, westerlies and rain - fingers and toes crossed for that one, gonna be there Thurs night for first dibs on swims for the long weekend 😎

Sorry but 6 for £2.37, looks like an essential tackle purchase to me:

If you ever decide to buy the front bars with bucket holder or just the front bars with shelf to take the weight of a heavy front bag - you're looking for the bigger sized bars as it's the Mk2 👍 Also got wider wheel forks if you need a replacement wheel

Yes I'm well impressed mate, I'd have a set for fishing - deffo good enough, look great too 😎 You could buy a set of 4 of these for less than one Basia! The new Basia I've got look very similar and both reels have the new cross wrap technology, it's almost like they are supposed to go together as a set 👍

I'll take it 🙃😎👍

Sorry it's Fatboy isn't it not wideboy so it's a (Mk2 Fatboy Version 1) - final answer! What do I win? 😎

Sorry mate but quoting you to point out you got this wrong - see my post above and yes you need the smaller side bags and you might find one of the old under bags second hand maybe 👍 I think the Mk2 thing started with thinker bars on the barrow itself, there's a MK2 Wideboy Version 1 and 2 from a particular date. With my recent barrow troubles I had to find this out 👍 I've got some mint front panier bags unused if you want to buy 👍🤣

IMO that IS a MK2 Wideboy, I've got one. I found out there are 2 versions with the later version accepting the drop in bag 👍 They came with velcro on - under barrow bags - which I've still got in the garage, still got the barrow as a spare

I'm now happy to recommend this reel (Daiwa Spod) - spotted currently at £115 as I've been using as the main casting reel - spot finding and baiting for maybe a year or more now. Compact, lightweight, smooth and reliable - a bargain IMO. Bought the same thing, same price range (150 - 200) from Shimano and it ceases up overnight if there's any moisture about let alone rain. Daiwa 18 Emblem Spod 35 SCW QD Big Pit Spod Reel

Never ever bought a ready tied, I've been using a stiff end section multi rig for the hinge rig, the 2 doubled over strands hold the hook well and you can change hook as and when. A little more faffy to put the required bend in with 2 strands but finished rig looks just as good IMO. Some of the pro anglers use pre-tied chods so must be OK - but it's hardly a technically difficult one to tie anyway. 👍

Also switched over to Daiwa reels from Shimano as not happy with their recent offerings, again reliability the issue.

Favourite bit of kit is deffo my Jag 2+1 buzz bars and Fox RX+ alarms 👍 Reliability and carpyness all in one package 😂

I love tying my own rigs, the attention to detail of getting it just right, the little adjustments you make to length and pop-up height for instance - it's all using the grey matter. I will always remember sitting in my bivvy all day trying to work out why my non tangle rigs were suddenly tangling every cast, chucking fast and low under pylons, did my head in completely. That day I came up with huge loops over half the length of the boom effectively lengthening the anti tangle sleeves properties if you like, and giving you a set place to mould the rig putty stopping that ever slipping. By the end of that day I'd come up with better anti tangle properties and more importantly realised that if I tied the hook end section almost in reverse order I had total control of how much stripped braid was left exposed, instead of ending up with whatever you got after tightening the knot. So I tie the hair last if that makes any sense at all - hard to put in words. So one problem ended up improving all elements of the rig I'd been tying for years and years. I thought about tying rigs many years ago for those who struggled to do it themselves, like a complete custom set-up, was a good idea, couldn't be arsed in the end lol same as all my other great ideas 🙃🤣

We all need joggers and hoodies got no issue with that but we also wanted technical options, thankfully we are starting to get some. I do feel partly responsible tbh thank me later lol