ouchthathurt

Do you know what? Until seeing this post I’d never really thought about it! I use curve shank patterns for my rigs, both pop up and bottom baits, and they are straight pointed hooks. Yet I do like the wide gape patterns which are beaked pointed.

I’ve always preferred peanuts to tigers, but they been to be used sparingly in my experience. I’ve used Brazil nuts before and found that a simple blow back rig with a longish hair was ideal. Tied up with soft braid or a soft coated braid.

Well you haven’t been banned yet! lol!

Even made the BBC news website! I took a walk around my local club water (3min drive) and 50% of swims were taken! Yet on the second water, (3min walk from first water) there were no anglers on. I’ll be getting the rods out hopefully, work dependant! Whatever you decide to do, the important thing is to not take risks and keep yourself safe.

It doesn’t need to have a function... just so long as it looks carpy... 🙄🙄

I’ve been thinking of getting a baiting pole, as bait boats are banned on my waters so that’s not an option for me. I just can’t justify the cost for all the extra sections for it to be able to reach the spots I need it for! I keep searching online looking for second hand kits. I did look at the chimney sweeping rod kits I have for my chimney (funnily enough) but I don’t know if they float!!!

Well it’s been a while since I last saw one!!

Very true mate, my mother in law has covid, she’s a nurse. My wife works in a care home that has covid cases and I work on an ambulance, dealing with covid cases. It’s difficult times for sure. Stay safe one and all.

Well it’s back into a national lockdown so I guess new year will be sorting out the tackle and rolling lots of bait!

I used to do that... right up to the point that I closed the boot, drove home and on opening the boot at home found 3 Neville buzzers all neatly snapped off at the base... 🙄🙄

I use helicopter rigs for 90%+ of my fishing and very rarely suffer hook pulls. I notice you said you don’t have a history for hook pulls before, so did they start when you started using the hinged stiffy or choddie? Do you use the hinged stiff rig with a “traditional” amnesia/stiff boom, or with the “soft” booms, coated braids etc? I understand their use - to allow the hook link to rest naturally over the choddy substrate, however perhaps the soft boom gives the carp too much rope? With the amnesia boom, the carp usually prick and hook themselves on the weight of the lead immediately. Worth a thought.

Happy new year to you and yours. Here’s to a better 2021!

Did you find that the majority of hook pulls came to the chod rigs? The chod rig can produce hook pulls with the mega short hook length with a heavy lead swinging around so close. Is the chod fixed or free running on the line? There is a school of thought that a free running chod may prick the fish but may not drive the hook home fully. Have you tried lengthening or shortening the boom section on a hinged stiff rig?

I’ve fished waters with large populations of crays in the past and I found them to be a right pest! I make my own baits usually anyway, so added egg albumin and/or hardening mix was an option. When fishing boilies, I always felt a little worried that the bait would be gone. Bottom baits were especially vulnerable but crays will get pop ups quite easily. I usually go for different bait options, such as tigers and my personal favourite, peanuts with sugar and garlic purée. Hemp and corn are another option, which allows the use of plastic baits. I never had much confidence in meshing baits to be honest, but they do have their place.

I’ve got a set of four fox torque rods in 3lb t/c. They were to replace a set of sonic xks blacks that were nice rods but I did snap 2 of them during long range casts so I wanted something I could properly throw a 3 1/2oz lead comfortably. I had a set of 3 fox rods then snapped the tip of one through my own stupidity, (don’t try and force a rod bag past an oak tree, stop and untangle it!!) I ordered a new tip through fox but it had to come from Europe so it didn’t have an arrival date. I found a brand new rod online and got that too. Then the tip arrived... they are excellent rods, nice slim blanks, 50mm butt eyes, good recovery, lovely playing action, they do everything I need. I got a set of fox 1200 reels with them. I would recommend them.

On a popular online auction site there are 8mm cork balls if that helps?

When using cork dust in wafters, the only sure fire way I’ve found is to roll the individual baits adding the dust to baits individually and testing each bait in a jar of water until I get the buoyancy I require. I will have a hook pattern that I use and push it into the paste ball to ensure buoyancy is correct prior to boiling. Making baits in small batches. As they air dry out, they can become more buoyant though. I make the baits smaller than wanted, so as you add the cork dust, they increase in diameter. to be honest, I tend not to bother with cork dust any more and just use cork balls with a thicker paste layer to make wafters, although with a 10mm cork ball, you end up with a 14-16mm bait. Sometimes 8mm cork balls can be sourced online for a 12mm approx bait.

Merry Christmas all, happy new year!

Nash heli beads into tubing, nice and simple, I use them with tubing with no issues

I use the no trace beads with the Korda leadcore and haven’t had any problems, maybe switch the lead free leader to Korda leadcore (if allowed) as the helisafe beads kits fit snug onto it. I’m assuming the lead free leader is another brand? In my experience, the lead free leader material is a thinner diameter to leadcore. Or look at the nash helicopter bead kits, they may work, they fit snug and have a wide bore that will pass over a spliced loop in a leadfree leader.

I found the cream stimulant powder in the aminos RR base to be a brilliant addition, especially when I conduct the old break and sniff test. I have continued to have success throughout the winter months, I can't fault it.

I use fresh eggs when making bait, I've got chickens in the garden too... I do use egg white powder as it helps harden the hookbaits, but that's about it.

My plans for 2020 are to find a new water, my current tickets aren't fuelling the fire like they should. I have been extremely fortunate to have caught the largest carp in two out of the three tickets, along with many of the resident fish, so on those waters they cease to be a challenge. A fresh water would be lovely. I've got my eye on a new river system so I might give the lakes a miss mostly this season. I am looking for a new job, my current post is under threat from closure so I might be made redundant, when is anyone's guess, I only get my shifts 4 days in advance now and I may well be unemployed tomorrow if it goes truly Pete Tong! I have applied to be a police officer, I have my fingers crossed that I get in, I love being in a job that allows me to serve the public. Army, NHS, ambulance service, now hopefully the police. I would like to relocate to Nottingham to be closer to my children, they live near Chester so it's a 12hr round trip at the moment, my partner and I have family in Nottingham and its only 2hrs from my kids. Oh, and I'm getting married in 2020...

You're Santa yonny?? My child like dreams of st Nick are shattered... Lol! Emmcee... Ref fine lines, I agree, it isn't like obsession or flick of a tale, I found the writing style to be different somehow, it took a few chapters, but I did enjoy it in the end, I didn't want the last few chapters to finish, but I do feel I need to read it again to take it all in if that makes any sense?

Signed copy of fine lines by Dave Lane, love his books!