moorsey

Strange that isn't it, I doubt that I have used a bloodknot for over 30 years in my general carp fishing. I started to discover stronger knots that were easier to tie back in the seventies and haven't used one since except for a brief spell when Terry invented the hinge rig. With the short length of bristle filament the blood knot was the only option but the thicknes and strength of the filament allowed it.

Hi Nick I do always make sure that I start the "whip" of the knotless knot away from the "cut" in the eye but I do remember Adam Penning telling me that while he was with ESP they did loads of tests on lines and fluoros and found the same. In fact he was of the opinion that the knotless knot was probably the weak link. I am now so paranoid about knots that I rarely use the kk and have now reverted to my own version of the "Dumhoff" which is a pain to get used to tying but is a good knot when finished and doesn't "relax" like the kk when you slacken the tension. (I am concerned that it could be this relaxing and re-tightening that causes the problem with the kk.) If I was granted one wish that I could fish without one of the normal items that we now use I would choose line every time. Keith

Funnily enough you could be wrong. I did a lot of tests with the palomar knot and even tied quickly (it's never going to be the neatest knot) I found that the hook link broke at the knotless knot more often than at the palomar.

I don't know why but I still think that the "keith moors knot" is better then the needle knot.

Hi Jez. That's what I was trying to underline. With the strain from a big fit fish the bloodknot can become the weakest point in the line.

For main line or hook link to swivel "palomar knot" For tying hook with hair rig "knotless knot" or "dumhoff knot" For tying shock leader to main line "albright knot" If you must use lead core for heli rigs "keith moors knot" The blood knot can strangle itself and thereby weaken the line so is best avoided.

When you buy your licenses you will also receive a sheet which will detail the "night zones" and the dates that night fishing is allowed. My experience is limited to the Saone and I have not found the official night zones to be worth fishing but I would not suggest that you night fish illegally unless you want your tackle conviscated and you don't mind a night in the cells. I think you will struggle to get much information about good spots on any public waters because of the effort people have to put in to find them for their own use. There have been too many waters "plundered" in the past.

I can also remember the seventies on Darenth with my bed alongside the rods so that I could strike hard before getting out of bed but that was mainly because of the bait being wrapped around the hook and a piece of hard spaghetti across the bend to keep it there. I honestly have found that with an effective rig and a sharp hook the resistance of the line laying across the lake bed sets the hook without the need to strike.

With a running rig there is absolutely no advantage of using tubing nor flying back leads. The less bits and pieces hanging from your line allows the bites to be transmitted to your alarm more efficiently. Mono main line straight through with a fluoro hook link is very unlikely to tangle and, contrary to some suggestions, it is not necessary to strike in order to set the hook. I have now used this set up, with light leads at all ranges, for in excess of 10 years and the bites are normally screamers and well hooked and I am now convinced that the weight of the lead has very little to do with hooking the fish.

We have had to ban uncoated braided hook lengths because of the damage that it started to cause and it seemed that the quicker the fish were landed the more damage was caused.

i wouldnt even bother trying to tie that, to many swivels and beads. i think its one of those rigs to make you buy more tackle. If you could build in another ten swivels you probably wouldn't need any line at all. Problem solved. lol.

It does work. I haven't used it with quite that amount of food available to the carp but the "multiple hair rig" has been very succesful for me on waters where people often use stringers or bags. My only advice would be to make sure that the amount of food is a "one mouthful" snack and it will catch. Be lucky

I was going to ask what was the advantage of tying it behind your back. lol.

We have 50 catfish up to 100 lb plus and have just emptied the lake to remove all of the small unwanted fish so I am expecting even more cats to be caught this year. Pm me if I can help.

I think the one you're after Nick might be the drop down rig. I totally agree with your comments about the 360 and I should have been clearer about the withy pool rig. I think because the latter is formed using tubing it shouldn't do any damage but i agree that there are simpler rigs that work just as well if not better.

I haven't seen the publication so I shouldn't comment but I will. I used to be a bailiff with Linear and a field tester fo Richworth but unless the publication has a "health warning" for the rig I think that it is disgusting.

I agree with all of the above and would just add that, if the fish aren't really "having it" and could be feeding fairly delicately, I wouldn't be offering them a hook with the additional weight of a swivel to make the bait act even more unnaturally.