yonny

Get down TK Maxx, if you're lucky you'll pick up some top-of-the-line walking boots (Berghaus, Merrell etc) for 20 or 30 quid. Failing that get down Sports Direct and pick up a pair of Karrimor's (or sometimes they have Solomon's in which are really good boots). No need to spend big on boots imo.

I found over 24 hrs the rig ring will lie flat on the deck where they're suspended when you first whack them out. But I'm really particular about my buoyancy (too particular probably). Those Hell's absolutely stink don't they!!

Banging recipe (especially the Hell's with all that butyric) but I found the buoyancy was absolutely rubbish mate!

LOL! Not this time mate I've used them myself as well as his GTX cork balls. Real good hook baits buddy, particularly in spring. Matt is also very helpful when it comes to sourcing special or rarer flavours/additives!

They are decent Rob.

Free Spirit, miles better than Greys imo.

Just type it into YouTube or Google mate, there's literally tons of info on these all over the web and forums. Decent rods.

Yes buddy.... give or take.... I can't say I measure it.

Same here, a nice big mat folded in two and carried on straps makes a lovely receptacle for stalking gear/tackle.

100% Hutch. You just have to go down to any tackle shop regularly to know some of the shelfies have been sitting on that shelf there for months or years in some cases.

Lol..... You know what @smufter, small lakes with big fish tends to mean riggy carp in my experience. Your situation might be one of the few in which I'd be tempted to have a look at bottom baits/wafters (or, more likely, alternative baits i.e. naturals).

Normal unscented dental floss for me.

This can only apply if you're getting regular bites Smufter i.e. if you're not getting frequent takes on a 2" pop up changing to a 3" won't do you any favours at all. With bites so hard to come by on White Cottage I'd be looking to increase the chance of any fish, not just the bigguns. Maybe reduce the size of your hookbait?

If you want to buy in the UK the Colne Valley Tackle stuff is decent too: https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=colne+valley+tackle+braid&_sop=15

Lol.... I didn't count the tench I caught! Sometimes there's just no stopping them..... .... which just so happened to be a lake record in your first season...... Food for thought eh......

I would add to this thread that while I do not believe in such a thing as a big fish rig, in my opinion you will increase your average size of capture by using pop ups. The higher you fish them off the deck, the higher your average size will climb. If you whack a pop up 3 inches off the deck you'll hook fewer small carp imo as it just looks alien to them. Bigguns wont be be able to tell as they are approaching from above due to their sheer size..... I have a close mate that's fished the same waters as me for the last 5 years. His average, every year, has been significantly smaller than mine, and he catches just as many fish. Only difference is he fishes bottom baits where I use pop ups. Coincidence? Maybe. Maybe not..... Last year, in an attempt to target that huge mirror I has in October, I increased the height of my pop up rigs significantly to avoid the smaller fish. I landed 16 fish after that modification with an average of 31 lb, and then the biggun at 49. Normal average on this water is about 25 lb, my smallest fish was 25 lb. Coincidence? Maybe. Maybe not..... You might have to wait longer for bites with big blatant pop ups but when the bite comes I find it's worth the wait. My first piece of advice to anyone looking to target big fish would be to use blatant pop up rigs. Seems to have worked for Vik too looking at his results last year.

I find the normal 15s are a struggle to hold down even with size 4 hinges with 25 lb filament and a ring swivels. I use a tungsten chod bead and still need to use putty. The mega buoyant 15s will hold up a meter of lead core if you don't add weight.

You'd need a brick to hold the 15 mm's down on a multi buddy. Might be better off with the 13 mm's or even the 11's.

Likewise. I have a little tank I use, it sits on top of the bait freezer. There's almost always something in there on test, either new rig components or new pop ups (usually pop ups, testing for prolonged buoyancy). Just this morning I checked in on a new pop up I've been looking at..... 12 hours in and buoyancy is perfect maintained, so far so good. Most off-the-shelf pop ups don't maintain buoyancy for 24 hrs therefore rig efficiency is compromised. Not a lot of people realise that. There's no way I'd rig one up without extensive testing at home first.

I use pop ups for 95% of my fishing. Not really buddy. There are pro's and cons for over-weighting pop ups and likewise for balancing baits. I tend to lean towards a balanced approach although I'll not balance it too well - I think a weightless tethered pop up wafting around feeding carp will look worse than one that's nailed to the deck. To be honest I fish pop ups so frequently because I tend to fish spots which would be difficult to present a bottom bait on. I don't want the bait wafting about in any weed but at the same time I don't want it dragged down into said weed so I'll balance somewhere in the middle.

Agree.

Both Sensor and Big Game are reliable lines but they've both been round for 20+ years. There are lines available now that out-perform them in every way possible. They might cost an extra fiver/tenner but if there's one thing you shouldn't skimp on it's line. Depends what you want it for buddy. Different mono's do different things better than others. - For distance casting go for a pre-stretched line (e.g. Fox Exocet etc.). They cast fantastically but aint so good where abrasion resistance is required. - For general angling without too much weed go for one of the new low stretch/partially pre-stretched lines (e.g. Shimano Technium, Gardner GT-HD etc.) These cast well and have half decent abrasions resistance. - General angling in weedy situations go for an all-rounder (ESP Synchro, Gardner Pro etc.). Cast OK, nice and strong. - Heavy weed go for a heavy line (Gardner hydroTuff, Rig Marole SLS etc.). Not so good for casting but you'd land a bus in a forest. There's no such thing as a line that will do everything perfectly (although the low stretch options are getting there). Think about what's important to you and go for the most suitable.

It's what I use. Awesome stuff fella.

100%

Nah mate.sometimes it doesn't matter what you do, it' against you. Letting it run would just result in a load of line lost with it. We just have to accept that In weedy waters you lose the odd fish. Just got to lose them as safely as possible!!