ouchthathurt

I would prefer the larger of the two reels, I find them more versatile. You can use large reels in the margins yet smaller reels are less suited to long range work. I’ve got fox 12000 reels that I can use from 0-130yrds without any issues.

Gotta get a snow carp pic mate!

Tight lines mate

I’ve just spent a few (blank) hours on the local pond, I was using soft unvisited braid as hooklinks but after they came back tangled on two casts in a row, (I luckily reeled them straight back in as I wasn’t happy with the casts) I switched over to fluro hooklinks, fished combi rig style (using the soft braid hooklinks cut down and tied to the fluro) no bites, yet no tangles either. Checking them in the edge they looked good too, although it probably doesn’t really emulate what it was doing over in the actual spots!

I’ve not actually used my marker rod for quite a while, I took the handle off the reel so it doesn’t get damaged in the hold-all. (The spod rod comes out even less!) I will get them out if I feel the need too, but it’s not often - this could just be down to knowing the waters I’m on currently. I fished a pit that was a flooded fold in the ground that in WW2 made up a large anti aircraft gun emplacement/early warning site built to protect the nearby Lydd Aerodrome (I think) it has deep gravelly margins that gives way to silt and seems pretty featureless, besides several concrete bases/towers that sit proud of the water surface. Yet there is an old road that stretches from one tower to open water. When you run the marker rod over it, you can feel the lead bump over one kerb and then over the other. It’s a good place for a bite, I’ve had the majority of my takes from there, yet a lot of the other anglers all fish on the gravel. In my experience, placing a bait in the silt just beyond the gravel produces the larger fish too.

Or a dog sled??

I’ve found I’ve struggled with motivation since the start of the 3rd lockdown. I’ve got some time off from the ambulance and thought I’d be raring to go, I think the fact I can’t night fish is probably having a negative impact on my motivation. My water does not fish brilliantly during the day, but there again, I’ll catch naff all sat on the sofa at home! I only made bait yesterday because the darling wife insisted I made some as my bait draw in the freezer is totally empty. I’ve been walking my waters most days and was finding carp most days, especially in the smaller water all shoaled up and looking catchable, but the last few days they’ve drifted away from there, although they wouldn’t have gone far I reckon. If the rain holds off tomorrow, I will get the rods dusted off for a few hours, after all I’ll regret it if I don’t!

Well I’ve rolled the bait... may get the rods out on Friday...

There’s an idea!

Does anyone remember a time when you just walked into a swim and thought “I’ll cast one over there, one to the far margin and one under that bush” (or similar) and “fish the swim” as opposed to finding “the spot” as such? on my local water, I can stand in a swim and the other anglers will say “9 wraps casting toward the left hand side of the dam” or “18 wraps toward the water tower” or “cast on the bank and place the rig 12” from the 3rd set of rushes from the dam wall” and everyone drops into the swim and casts to exactly those spots. A procession of anglers all placing their rigs in the same place. I’ve always thought that if you fish the same spots you can only catch the same as everyone else. when I stand in a given swim, i know that at “9 wraps (or whatever) cast at the dam is “the” spot, yet I can’t ignore the snaggy margins either side of me, plus there’s a lot of unfished water that’s being ignored by 90% of other anglers. on my second water, it’s a small intimate place with (admittedly very inviting) far margins that are an easy cast, nice overhanging trees and bushes. Everyone casts tight to the far bank, yet I get more takes fishing right under my rod tips. One night I had 13 carp under my rod tips, yet the one rod fished to the far margin (just in case) only produced one carp at dawn - which was a repeat capture - I had caught it 8hrs before... under the left hand rod tip! whilst fishing the known spots can and obviously do produce fish, I think that doing things differently suits me better.

Very true Elmo. Keep us posted on how you get on bash.

Many thanks mate, I’m very much a leadcore/unleaded leader kinda guy, but my club has banned leaders of any kind after a few anglers night fished up to snags with loose clutches... (they weren’t using leaders though) the carp got tethered and leaders (as well as night fishing in the aforementioned swim) got banned. I use the nash tungsten tubing mainly which I can thread dry but wet it’s a nightmare!

Simple question, can pole elastic threaders be used to thread rig tubing? I have a rig tubing threader but it’s a bit short and can be a pain to use. I’ve seen pole elastic threaders for sale and wonder if they will do the same thing?

Are pole elastic threaders the same as the Gardner tubing threader things? I was thinking of getting a pole elastic threader as the tubing threaders are a bit short for my liking. I take it a pole threader will do the job with tubing?

I still use stiff D rigs now and then, dependant on the situation. I used to use amnesia/Fluro/stiff links religiously a fair few years ago, as on my lake everyone was using braids, so I tied up some amnesia rigs just to be different... caught a 29lber that night, a PB at the time so I fished on with them full of confidence. wind the clock forward 22+yrs and the thought of using a fluro/amnesia/stiff link can make me wonder about it “not sitting properly” etc... and I find myself leaning towards a coated braid again. 20odd years ago I didn’t give it a second thought, it went out, I caught fish on it happy happy. ive got so many different braids and fluros and other hook link materials (about 15 different types in my tacklebox, if not more...) that I’m probably in very real danger of disappearing up my own rectum...

Pretty much mate, this time of year I used to use PVA bags in the areas already described. It’s a tricky lake, but the rewards are in there.

I once bet on a greyhound whilst out on the razzle in Catterick... his name was lightning... he came last. I’ve never bothered since!

I’m guessing you’re thinking of baiting hamworthy lake? Unless there has been regular angling pressure throughout the winter (which from my experience is doubtful) I would probably hang fire (with the cold wind/rain/snow forecast) for a month or so mate, it was always a slow water to wake up after a cold winter, due to the depths and its location right on the coast. Regardless of the lake (prebaiting rivers can produce the goods all year round in my experience) unless I’ve been feeding baits on a regular basis all year round and the carp are still getting on it and feeding well at this time of year, then I wouldn’t start prebaiting during the winter. I find that you can keep feeding them throughout the winter if you started prebaiting during the warmer months and the carp are still actively searching for it and remain active, but trying to get something going in freezing temperatures when the carp have slowed right down can be very difficult. The carp in hamworthy lake overwinter in the deeper main section 2/3rds of the way across from the point or 1/3rd of the way across from the beach swim. I’d concentrate on using proven winter tactics and nick a few bites until it starts to warm up, then start trickling in the chosen prebait and go from there pal.

Just finished watching them, they’re a good lockdown watch. I skipped the shark fishing bit too to be honest!

My waters are only about 5min drive, in fact I’ve just got back from walking the dog around there. It’s looking pretty bleak at the moment, need to get some bait rolled anyway, so might get that done tomorrow. I just can’t fire up any enthusiasm right now. My club just stocked 15 high single/low double mirrors into my larger water, so I might even get a bite when I get back on there! Lol!

Very true Nick, due to covid, I’ve been on shift a lot more, I’ve lost touch with my water. I walk the dog around most mornings, but when I have got the odd overnighter in, I’ve been fishing more in hope then confidence. The swims I know can throw up consistent catches are usually taken and I’ve not got the recent/current info on the place, nor have I been able to go off shows etc as they are stubbornly reluctant to show when I need them too! my bait has stopped going in, I have no idea when I’ll get on the bank next, I sit in my ambulance and get messages about carp caught at my water...

The beach road car park used to get really busy during the summer, it was a popular spot with beach goers during the day and boy racers at night. The top car park by the holiday camp was more open and felt more secure. The close season was also enforced during my time there.

I used to park up by the haven car park, the beach road car park I used a few times, never had any problems to be honest. I used to keep the seats flat and leave the car totally empty so there was nothing worth stealing. That and my car was worth about £50 all in! (£20 if it didn’t have a full tank of fuel)

I recently brought a nash pocket pod as I was really struggling to get the sticks into one or two of the swims at my local, they concreted a few swims to make them wheelchair friendly, so I won’t complain! When I used the pod for the first time, as both buzzer bars are fixed at equal height, with the alarms added, the rod tips pointed up in the air. Plus the height of the swim above the water and my lines were several feet higher than I’d like. I brought some QR thingies for the rear rod rests that are about 2inches long, supposedly for making your landing/keep nets etc quick release (although they don’t seem strong enough for a specimen landing net) they stood high enough for the rods to sit level on the pod. oh yeah... I also rushed the purchase of the pod and didn’t realise that rods with 12000 fox big pit reels didn’t fit the pod without the QR “butt grip raisers” as they hit the central bar...

Oh don’t worry... I’ll find you! Lol! I did fish hamworthy lake a fair bit when based in Dorset, I always liked the place. The carp could be very hit or miss though. I used to have fish by setting up on the point/peninsula and casting into the main body of the lake towards the rushes on the far bank. They used to move up the rushes a fair bit. Also from the end of the point into the smaller section of the lake there is a bar that runs out from the swim facing the smaller section towards the rushes on the far bank to your left when stood facing straight out of the swim. I used to see carp crossing that bar a lot. The rushes at the back of the smaller section used to lead into the smaller pond behind when water levels are right, but I never saw or caught carp in the smaller pond. on the far side of the lake, furthest from the beach car park and closest to the holiday camp (car park up there too leads to this section of lake) is the wide Sandy expanse of bank that you can access the rushes to the left of the bank with a little bay that used to have lilies growing in there. There are small bars etc in front of this bank and they can produce fish. I have seen people catch carp by fishing from the point and rowing (or lilos!!) their baits over to the rushes, I used to try and hit the rushes religiously, until I watched a young lad catch a few by just lobbing a pva bag into the middle full of boilies. When I tried this, I started catching from the middle area - about 1/2 - 2/3 of the way across, especially at night. baits were just straight bottom baits nothing technical. There’s lovely tench in there too, but I didn’t get too bothered by them. I fished there with a Sgt from the marine camp and he told me of a double decker bus and an old WW2 midget submarine that were lost in the depths somewhere. In years gone by, the bootnecks would practice diving in there so I was told. As well as the usual “monster catfish” look on YouTube as there’s a video by dynamite baits filmed at hamworthy lake https://lm.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DzjniQmB67Do%26t%3D136s&h=AT35vpvZFlf7rrklRO8LLW9x4YF90qBaVwZsEbavSjetuhV8prRFx4iV_48ntvkE3qhK5P3QBquh5BMW0DPgJHdb15qM6_Anvo0EQ9NkRdEAT7RUvjFzttQTJKbnXeg7j7h3SZKPTfq6sW3y