hutch

I can't comment on the other bits as I have no experience with storing maggots, but the other posters to seem to have this pretty well covered, I don't think you need to add anything to maggots there naturally attractive to the fish, I believe some match fishermen used to sprinkle spices on there maggots (tumeric mainly) in winter to make them more attractive.

Seen a lot of people bundling them into Ronnie Rig starter packs, I would guess the gaining popularity of this rig maybe causing some of the major stores to have a shortage

Because then they can't sell you the idea that you need another line to bulk the spool out, I'm surprised no one does a bulking the spool line yet

Me personally, I would be staying as mobile as possible, I would pay attention to the areas that get the most of that sunshine, but also have a good look at the windward end if its a fresh wind, going off the weather I would say the bottom third would be a starting point but keep an eye for signs of surface movement has the upper layers warm a little from the sunshine. As for rigs, I only have 2 for bottom fishing at the minute a simple snowman and a low pop up rig, use would depend on the bottom i am fishing over especially if the lake is heavily tree lined there will be a bit of debris on the bottom now. Never ignore the old zigs (although im still to master the art) if things aren't panning out the way you planned.

So every fish you catch has a demeaned factor to it I thought your syndi had a similar stocking level Just interested as to why you would call someones water but you fish a water that would sit in the same bracket Just a passing observation

I level mine then give em a little nudge to make them look more old school

Im with Gaz on this one water bottle would be better, will save you a few quid on the purchase of the heater and fuel as well

Completely agree with above. Remember cold comes up from the ground as well not just from above, I have a nash barrow cube which slots nicely under the bed chair which helps with stopping the cold from underneath. As for the bivvy it's a good piece of kit me and the boy have been sleeping under the 2 man version for a good couple of seasons now, if it gets windy have a look in the camping shops for the extra long screw in pegs

Your never gonna get those steaming kettle shots Nige if you leave the kettle at home a smoking flask doesn't have the same appeal

I have 1 of these http://www.anglingdirect.co.uk/chub-vantage-all-weather-suit-2016 Combined with a decent breathable base layer for when it goes really cold from a good outdoor retailer should keep you nice and warm.

I agree with Androoo and touched on it in my rotary piece, I don't think there is a saving to be had anymore, I think its more a personal gains thing these days. It takes me roughly 2+ hours to knock out 5 kilo these days, but this is done with just basic home baiting making kit rather than buying all the bits that you would need for bigger runs then you have a good 30 plus mins clear up. You can pick up some of the best mixes now pre rolled at somewhere between £6-£8 a kilo so will likely save nothing and incur more costs keeping ingredients fresh etc...

I'm gonna appeal to your inner tackle tart and say the fox easy mat, i think its a great piece of kit

Nice work Phil , the fish in my water are such hard work off the top which is a pain because i love floater fishing, its the sort of water where people will tell you they don't get caught off the top

We could start the catapult incidents club

Good point, but also and advantage to making your own as there are ingredients (or mainly ingredient) you can use to make a firm outer with a soft inner. You two sound like me, margins rule distance is for pussy's

Cheers for the input Phil, I am the same i don't use the above myself but very rare you walk round a lake and don't see an airdry bag hanging from a tree, I am interest if some people know what might be happening to there baits by doing it

So before I start I not saying the above is wrong, I am just offering an alternative view on what is happening to your bait. So we air dry our baits why ? well usually to get more shelf life out of them, but what are we really doing to the bait itself, when you design a bait you want it to be moist in the centre it help it release the soluble attraction when the bait gets flooded with water, when you air dry you remove all the water from the bait so when they enter the water it takes a lot longer to get to this point, also are you dulling the effectiveness of the ingredients ? is the soluble content still has effective after the moisture has been removed from them, are they still even soluble ?, after air drying what you are left with ? Hydration mainly used to re hydrate air dried baits right ?, How many re hydrate with a liquid similar to what was in the original bait ?, if not have you taken a bait and changed its profile from what you originally purchased as you may well have neutralised the original liquids that were in the boilie to start with. All this said people still catch plenty of fish using this method but is what you have caught on a bait that has morphed from its original purchased state to a form of high level attractor bait as touched on by the scientist in his rotary entry and thats why it scores high. Is all the above a bait industry tactic to sell more products from add on sales. So there are plenty of thinking anglers present on this site, I would be interested in some of them's thoughts on the above subject.

Another vote for the ESP one, I currently have the Cygnet one at the minute which is good for grouping boilies at short range but struggles over 60 yards

Don't have the 60 but I do own the Compact mate I find cranking the front down when it gets nasty works for me even with the front low you still have a decent head space for a brolly plus you can get the bedchair right to the back, the sides are more extended round than on the mission umbrella so you get more coverage at the sides especially when the brolly is set higher. Hope thats of some use to you

See this is the other side of the coin, I am not sure there is a right or wrong answer, I was looking for peoples opinions as we have a loads of good anglers on here that have a very wide selection of angling experiences. Your last bit takes my initial idea of fish being more spooked by brushing against items they can't see or the feel of that material and turns on its head, or is it the fact that touching the line did spook them but only temporarily and they have just done another circuit of there route and come back for another look as they know there is an easy meal waiting. Obviously the whole sight thing goes out the window at night, as they must be used to brushing against things in the dark but do some materials feel more unnatural to them, knocking against something like tubing might feel more like a piece of debris on the bottom, but then a wet leadless leader may feel just like a bit of weed.

This is along the line that I was thinking that tubing although visible would look more like something already on the bottom which they could natural just avoid as they can see it (as there eye sight is suppose to be quite good close) as where items like leader materials might feel more unnatural against there flanks if touch or bumping into something they can't see. Also brushing against something they can't see must be weird for them. Never thought about vibration would this not effect leadcore more as oppose to mono and braid based materials

Sorry to thread hijack There is a lot written at the moment between invisibility or camouflage of end tackle, I have been of the opinion that the fish brushing against line or possibly something less visible to its eye eg.. fluorocarbon leader etc spooks them more than anything especially if it is slightly sat up off the bottom, as where tubing although being more visible would the fish being able to see it cause then to just work around it as just something lying on the bottom. I'm not trying to attach any form of intelligence in fish, like they know a leader is a leader etc.. , but more looking at them brushing against a certain material makes them more spooked than maybe others Just interested in peoples thoughts

Chemical free baby wipes, which are essentially just water based. I am sure the line wipes some companies do are just these re hashed.

If its any use to you I use about 4 feet, and generally most of the materials on the market straighten (the good ones anyway) by just running your fingers a couple of times down the length of leader, also remember to clean the leader ever so often as they pick up muck which makes then more visible than something like tubing.

Fox items at the minute but thats mainly due to them producing a nice set of components for my current rig choice. With regards to companies its horses for courses, everyone will have there preferred components the main thing is that you have confidence in using them not what brand is on the outside of the packet.