crusian

That is ridiculous mate, it would certainly offend me too.

Nothing to do with the fishery itself.
i just don’t take to kindly to someone that doesn’t know me (the lady at the end of the phone) commenting on my parenting and telling me that it’s irresponsible to take my three year old daughter to the lake with me. 
What she is un aware of is that that three year old probably has more sense around water than the clientele that where supping Stella the last time I walked round the lake. The same three year old that regularly walks the river with me and comes out in a canoe with me and happens to enjoy watching daddy fishing. Their loss not mine 🤣 I have plenty of places to fish on my doorstep 
 
 

How long have you been waiting to use that one?😋

So I'd spend £60 and have to make 2 journeys?????
 
Who'd look after the one with food in while I deliver the other to my swim???

i like the colour of your jib young man
i would have said 'cut' but their isnt an americanism for that

no worries i might keep the suit so i can catch the fancy fish

Sorry Ross , wrong part of the country for me .
I should change out of the suit before you go though with all this hot weather .

not as if you went and bought a rod is it

For me on river Ronnie is winner.

Take one of his rigs 😆

Yep, you need to have confidence in what you're doing. Whether you can just accept logic, or have to prove something through some sort of test etc. Like if your fishing popups to combat debris etc then find a clear margin spot and plonk your rig on it in a similar way you imagine the cast landing. You can see how it lands and settles, and how it sits. Like I've just changed to a slightly stiffer coated braid for my boom section because I realised sometimes my previous one wouldn't quite boom out enough. 
These are the two slightly different versions of the hinge rig I use. Those tungsten weights balance my homemade 15mm corkballs out nicely, settle slow enough to sit on top of silkweed but don't sink too slowly. In my mind they are also less likely to snag in the weed than swivels, and the stripped bit of braid behind them gives the movement and rotation. 

Yep. But it’s atomic chod wyre not amnesia. 

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

Cheers Steve, think I've cracked it:

I know!!
I'll change bait

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.

Well one of my most important pieces of equipment is my old 2L semi translucent ice cream tub ; this tub doubles as my refresh water container to splash over any Carp lying in my Carp Cradle , and my Pop Up tester .
I am a putty user , it's a lot more fiddly than a weight , but you can fine tune the balance of your pop up ; I also like to wrap the Putty around the tag end of my last knot .
I also like to position my Grip Stop opposite to where the hook barb ends .
Oh , I'm a Ronnie Rig user .
Hope some of this rambling makes sense , Smufter .
  

Thanks B.C.

Hello Everyone
I was finding that I needed to go out deeper than my Thigh Waders would let me - it's a little disconcerting as you watch the water creep up towards your crutch .
So , as recommended by Big Common , I've bought myself some Pros Waders Chesties Sz. 8 ( because that's my shoe size ) and I'm very happy with them - £37.99 ( includes signed for delivery by UPS ) ; when I was buying my Thigh Waders I tried on some Trakker Chesties , but found all the material a bit overwhelming - I'm much happier with my Pros Waders .
Incidentally how do you Chestie wearing lads store your Chesties after you have worn them please ? , upside down to let all the moisture drain away as you would for a normal pair of Wellies ? .
Ta
   

I have used SuperNova, SuperSilk and Merlin for years and reckon Kryston are normally the best braids around. If I said I first started using Merlin in the 1990's and still have a spool or two in my tackle box even now would that say anything?
I use them as a straight braided hooklink, and as part of a combi-link tied to 20lb plus Amnesia or Fluorocarbon. The first pic is Merlin straight through, the second SuperNova as part of a combi-link. I think from memory I had just got back from a session catching 5 decent carp on that setup, so cut the mainline above the tubing and rig to strip the line off the reels to replace it.
 
Abrasion resistance on both is good, although as with any hooklink, check it for rubs and abrasion after any cast.
Another advantage I found with Merlin is that you can splice the hook and swivel rather than knot them. 
I don't keep SuperNova in the box now, Merlin does what I need it to, and I have something like eight hooklink material spools in the box at the moment. 
A word on SuperSilk, while it is white, it takes on the colour of the lakebed, an overnight dye in a cup of tea or coffee sorts it if you don't fancy casting out a white hooklink. It is very thin for its breaking strain, so I worry about cutting the fishes lip.
 
Strangely enough Jackal is the only Kryston hooklink I am not keen on. I found the outer coating would strip and break easily, although the hooklink itself was good. I landed a few fish on hooklinks that I had cast out with a short stripped section near the hook, yet when I got the carp in, playing through weed, the whole hooklink was stripped. 
Coated Braids I use Mantis (and Mantis Gold), and Snakebite. 
 
I work on a simple theory, if it ain't broke, don't fix it

Hi Cyborx 
I have been using barbless Muggas for a few seasons now ,  then I read good reviews of the ESP , but fishing barbless only waters I couldn't use them -  until now .
I can't say I'm unhappy with the Muggas , it's more a case of " is there something better available " .
Hi Nick 
Hmm , yes as you and Cyborx say if it isn't broke don't fix it .
you'd think those roosting Carp would be easy to catch , I guess they're just too sleepy ? .

I like the ESP Cryogen range, haven't even considered looking at other hooks for a couple of seasons now... A lot is down to personal choice. Not used the barbless though.....
Gardener Mugga's  are highly thought of and I'd happily use them without flinching if my favoured hooks were out of stock.....
Not much help really, but I try to stick to what I've all ready got confidence in..... Chopping and changing can be a long , dark, winding road...... Headaches and half used packets of this and that.
If I was really in a dilemma over the two, I'd buy a packet of each and make a comparison, choose one, and stick with it.... Job done. 

Them roosting fish are like that