nealjt

Lovely....

Very well explained Ouchthathurt, thank you! Makes sense to me now, for years (literally) I've not known why and how a bent hook will cause damage and couldn't understand how double hooking could happen! The fish safety talk always makes me cringe a little, as it is a total juxtaposition ( long word, oh yeah, probably spelt wrong) having tempted a fish with the most attractive meal I can make I force a ridiculously sharp object into its mouth and drag it out of its environment effectively suffocating it just to take a picture and try again to get the rest of its family.... Although I am aware the fish can't appreciate what I do I will try to minimise any long term impact. I went to my local lake which I adore, small tree lined, not any anglers and even less carp! The trees over hang quite far and there is currently a dead duck decomposing on one of the over hangs as it took a liking to a rig that was snapped off in the tree with its bait attached.... This is a horrible sight and would break my heart if it was a carp that had been snagged up like this. And for this reason I stay away from rigs and methods that carry the myths and rumors of harming fish, even though a lot of time I can't understand the potential for damage. So for me having read your explanation of the bent hook issue and if this may be a similar problem for the 360 I will stay away from using it. I'm not a big fish angler, but I complicate anything I can so rigs with lots of swivels, whistles & bells catch my attention. I think tackle company's and magazines should take more responsibility and give clear instructions on the specifics of the kit they sell and the difference between rigs for big carp and rigs for smaller standard size carp..... (Ok essay over, now back to just hitting the like button)

I couldn't comment on the right or wrong way to tie the Albright knot with some line confront of me but when I first used it I didn't think it would hold but after testing a fee rigs either the hook straightened the know at the hook snapped the Albright didn't break or slip I was very surprised! Have you tried rigmarole hydrolink, I've not used it but looks to be a great material for combi rigs. It's an opposite to a coated braid, flurocarbon inner with a dynema braid outer. I'll definatley get some on my next trip to the tackle shop!

I'm not sure what forum this should be in.... sorry if incorrect, i saw this and had to share it, nice fish and a great way to land it!!!!

Welcome to the forum MrToftman, if you haven't already have a look in the suffolk waters thread of the venues section there is a fair bit of info about SWP on there, there is a regular on here that I'm sure will add to this thread soon that can probably give you all the info you are after. The big lake at SWP is not my kind of place but there are defiantly some good fish to go after, i think you are pretty much garanteed every fish in there is over 20lb with a number of 30's to target and it does have everything you could want at a day ticket lake. It can get busy but as you say they have a system (the board) which can make this more manageable. the food in the cafe is spot on! and they even deliver it to your swim, i think it can be arranged for your gear to be dropped to your swim on their John Deer I hope you have a good time when you go!

Ok grange that's really interesting, mainly I use it as when it tried it on a palm test the hook would turn and prick in really well. I'm not silly enough to think the palm definitive but I tend to place the rig on my hand, with a bait attached and also lead. I then pull my hand away and it consistently hooked in well and did try in different directions. Thank you for your thoughts, I'm still very much learning and only starting to properly consider how stuff all works under the water!! When i can I'll definatley do a comparison when fishing, thank you again, am always open to helpful critism. Why do you think it would only work from certain directions? In my mind I tend to just imagine the bait being sucked in and the rig following irrelevant of the approach. But now you have got me thinking do you mean as the carp sucks in the bait all the stiff part may lift and touch the mouth before the bait therefore it would stop the bait and importantly the hook entering the mouth????

Pretty much always a running rig 2oz max.... I tend to use a gripper or paste type lead and squeeze some paste around the Lead as well as having a bag

I use this rig a lot and really like it. Recently I have tied it using Korda IQ (i think, chod stuff with no memory) stiff part formed into a curve pretty much as a chod with the supple boom being solar contour which is very supple but also quite heavy. (Which I think helps set the hook) I mainly use it with bottom baits on a supple hair. I'm not a rig guru but I am super confident with this rig, I've not caught many on it but every pick up I've had I have landed and they have been hooked nicely in the bottom lip. I always use a pva bag with it though as I think it would tangle easily without

Thank you Ian, I'll have a look, all suggestions I pass to my brother who will decide.... (I've got a good deal my brothers pay for the week end, my dad gets the bait and I just have to sort the rigs etc for us all ! Happy dayz) Thanks Nick, I have had a look at Jacobs creek, am wary of the amount of weed there may be though.....

Thanks againfrogy taswood might be a good idea Andy52, thanks, those places seem perfect! I'd need more time to venture that far though, I might see if I can convince my wife she needs a holiday with her friends so I can take a trip to one of them !!!'

Cheers, frogy, I'll have a look

Morning all, Hoping to pick the brains of people in East Anglia, me, my brothers and my dad have a weekends carping each year, usually we go to Hertsmere lake at Waveney valley lakes it works out that we can hire the whole lake. We want to try somewhere new, can anyone suggest a similar place? We're not after mahoosive fish, mid doubles and higher would be nice, ideally a smallish lake that we could have to ourselves, Thank you in advance

That place is becoming a real good venue it seems, the specimen lake is way beyond my ability but I didn't realise how established the traditional lake was getting

Rather than start a new thread I thought I put this here, check this out, I might have to get me one !!!! http://shop.biolitestove.com/campstove.html#.UsSnPX8gGSM

Did you not get any pm replies? Looks like a blooming lovely club and reasonably priced! Did you join? By the looks of it members are keeping quiet! You've had 400+ views and no answers tells me you'll have to get down there and get your face known by the regulars. Looking through the gallery there seems to be plenty of very decent fish to be had though ! If I lived near Chelmsford I defiantly be a member

I've never fished middle reservoir, worth asking in tackle up BSE, left bury AA when they sold rushbrook apparently some of the rushbrook fish went in there and there are a few sizeable carp to be had. (Pics on the buryAA website) personally I'd go for sicklesmere, have had some lovely carp out of there, was a few years ago though. I'd be interested to hear how you get on

Sorry mods, blooming lovely! Oh yes shallow brook have a Facebook page so prob worth checking that out if you haven't already

Meadow lake can get packed, so go early if you can, the carp lake is much prettier you have to work harder to catch them though, carp lake can be silty so have a lead about, watch how the others are fishing, as it's mostly regulars. I've only fished meadow once and don't know much about it there are loads of single figure carp to be had but there's defo some doubles and probably a 20 if you are after the bigger ones. It has a no floating bait rule but I saw plenty of doubles up near the top (it was hot though!) I would still try a zig. If you stand at the carp lake end looking at meadow lake two thirds of the way down in the middle there is a weed bed which would be a good bet I'm sure. Personally I would head to the far end, but that is more because it isn't quite so overlooked by other anglers. Id set up so you could cast a bait into the margin after one of the float guys leave as I'm sure the carp will move in and mop up after the float fisher leaves I'd say on meadow you have a good chance of a run two but do check out the carp lake, it can be tough but it is bloody lovely and doesn't seem to get that busy. I'd be interested to here how you get on, good luck.

Thanks for the link Nick, good point re breaking at knots, my breakages occur as you mentioned and I don't think I've ever had a line snap with a fish on. My worry is mostly about a fish picking up a bait after a snap off. At the moment my mind is contemplating the idea of a home made clay weight that would weaken enough in the water after say 2 days that if snagged it would easily break away from the line. But then I do go back to a lenfhtbof mainline connected to a rig that tangles on something. Ideally I want to find something that can connect a lead on the end of the line, keep enough pressure to ensure a landed fish but that after day 24 hours could release the lead from the mainline so if a fish has the rig, lead and line connected it would then easily loose the lead, main line comes away from the rig at lead end and voila carp left with only a rig..... Any ideas anyone....?