Carp Catchers Blog

After another weekend session on my Nene Valley syndicate I managed to bank 2 carp to 24lb. The fish were landed using Korda Solidz PVA Bags filled with PVA friendly hemp, which was made by drying off some Dynamite Baits Frenzied Hempseed and adding a generous amount of Mainline Hemp Oil and leaving it to soak in for atleast an hour. Dynamite Baits Frenzied Monster Tiger Nuts where critically balanced and used as hookbaits with Avid Carp Sight Stops for added visual attraction.

Tight Lines

Dave

I made another trip down to Richworth Linear Fisheries recently and had another good result. I landed 12 fish during my session the biggest being a 30lb 4oz Mirror. All the fish fell to either critically balanced tiger nut or boilie hookbaits with Avid Carp Sight Stops fished at 85 yards to the island over a spodded area of hemp, corn, chops, maggots, pellets and crushed tigers. Baits were presented in Extra Small Korda Solidz PVA Bags using 2.5oz Avid Carp Inline Groove Leads and short hooklinks.

Tight Lines

Dave

On a recent session to Richworth Linear Fisheries I caught a 32lb 4oz Mirror and a 21lb Common. Both fish were landed using critically balanced Dynamite Baits Tiger Nuts and Avid Carp Sight Stops over a spodded area of hemp, corn, chops, maggots, pellets and crushed tigers. The nuts were presented in Extra Small Korda Solidz PVA Bags with small micro pellets and groundbait and cast to a small clear area in the weed at about 70 yards.

Tight Lines

Dave

The Shot On The Hair Rig is basically a bottom bait rig with a small shot added to the hair to allow a pop-up hookbait to be used. This completely alters how the rig to reacts to how it would with a bottom bait. The hookbait is allowed to move more naturally due to it’s bouyancy and the length of the hair. The shot on the hair allows you to either critically balance or overweight the pop up hookbait.  The nature of supple braid allows the hookbait to be picked up with minimal resistance and the pattern of the hook means the point hangs low below the hookbait helping it to grab hold. The simplicity of The Shot On The Hair Rig makes it easy to tie and it minimises the bulky components such as shrink tubing used on some rigs.

For the purpose of this demonstration I used the Korda Supernatural Hooklink, a Korda Kurv Shank Hook and a No.4 split shot. The shot size is determined by the size and bouyancy of your choosen pop-up, the bigger and more bouyant the pop-up the larger the shot. I found a No.4 shot to work perfectly with a 14mm Richworth Pineapple Hawaiian Pop Ups  although it varies between different makes and types of pop-ups.

Step 1.

Cut 14″ of Korda Supernatural from the spool and tie a small overhand loop knot in one end.

Step 2.

Thread on your choosen pop-up and secure in place with a bait stop.

Step 3.

For this version of the rig pinch the shot onto the hooklink below the pop-up. This will give you a slow sinking hookbait which is almost critically balanced. We will show you an alternative version of this rig, which has  the shot positioned differently, soon.

Step 4.

Thread the Korda Kurv Shank Hook onto the hooklink passing the braid though the back of the eye to the front and position the bait about 6mm from the top of the hook.

Step 5.

Now whip the hooklink up the shank of the hook 6-7 times and then pass the hooklink through the back of the eye to the front to finish the knot.

Step 6.

Double over the other end of the hooklink.

Step 7.

Then form a loop with the doubled over section of the hooklink.

Step 8.

Now pass the end of the doubled over section around the bottom and through the back of the loop created in step 7.

This creates the figure of eight, if you get this eight shape then you have done it right.

If you struggle with tying the knot then try this method. Alternative Figure of Eight Loop Knot.

Step 9.

Now gently tighten down the knot and trim the tag end.

The rig is now complete and ready to be attached to your lead setup.

The rig is best fished of with a small Dynamite Stick or PVA Mesh Bag thread down the hooklink over the hook to avoid tangles.

Tight Lines

Dave

The Solar Quick Change PVA Bag System is ideal for anglers who use PVA bags for the majority of their angling. The system will ensure you don’t lose the bag on the cast while improving casting distance and accuracy. The system is designed to be anti tangle and works with any inline lead.

For the purpose of this demonstration I used a Korda Flat Pear Inline Lead, Solar Contour Super Supple Rig Tubing and Korda Size 8 Ring Swivels  was used between the helicopter beads for the rig to be attached to.

Step 1.

Thread your mainline through your desired length of the Solar rig tubing.

Step 2.

Now thread 1 of the beads provided with the Solar PVA System onto the rig tubing followed by the Korda Ring Swivel followed by another bead. If you’re using mainline straight through there is silicone tubing provided for the beads to the grip. If you’re using leadcore then please ensure all beads can be pulled free of the leader to ensure the lead will be lost in the event of your line breaking. Tie or loop your hooklink to the ring swivel.

Step 3.

Now thread on one of the sleeves provided and push the tubing securely inside.

Step 4.

Then gently push the insert out of your choosen inline……

…..and thread it onto your mainline.

Step 5.

Tie a Figure Of Eight Loop Knot  in the end of your mainline and attach the Solar quick change PVA bag clip like so.

Step 6.

Now pull the lead over the clip followed by the sleeve and rig tubing. The finished setup should look like this.

All you have to do to attach a PVA bag is to pull the clip out of the bottom of the lead and hook a PVA bag on before pulling the clip back inside the lead. Then just thread the hook through the mesh of the bag and your ready to cast out.

This set up is particularly well suited to adding freebies with the Mag Aligner Rig and really comes into it’s own during the winter months.

Give it a go.

Tight lines

Dave

The Atomic Tackle Maggot Rig uses the inline lead setup fished helicopter style allowing a large PVA stocking of maggots to be tied to the swivel at the base of the lead. This enables the hook to be secured to the PVA stocking so once cast out the PVA bag will melt leaving your maggot hookbait lying in amongst the other maggots.

For the purpose of the demonstration I used a Gardner Readymade Mag Aligner Rig.

Step 1.

Pull out the large ring swivel from the base of the lead.

Step 2.

Now thread your mainline through the lead. ( If using leadcore or a leader, you will need to splice or loop the swivel on)

Step 3.

Tie your mainline to the swivel, I would suggest a palomar knot. To tie a palomar knot double over your mainline and pass it through the eye of your swivel.

Then tie an overhand knot with the doubled over mainline.

Now pass the swivel through the loop made by the overhand knot.

Then moisten the knot, slowly tighten it down and trim the tag end.

Step 4.

Once the knot is tied pull the swivel into the insert in the base of the lead.

Step 5.

Now you need to either tie your rig to the swivel above the lead. If the rig has a loop in the end pass the loop through the swivel before passing the hookend of the rig through the loop and tightening as I’ve done in this demonstration.

The finished rig should look like this.

The large ring at the base of the lead is for the PVA mesh bag to be tied to, then all you need to do is push the hook through the PVA mesh to secure it for casting.

Give it a go.

Dave

The Guru Pellet Cones  are an innovative alternative to PVA bags that enables an angler to present a small pile of feed around the hookbait. The tangle free presentation that the pellets cones provide is ideal for use with small soft pellets or groundbait.

The pellets I used in this demonstration were Dynamite Baits Marine Halibut Pellets.

If your using groundbait or softened pellets start from step 4. If your using harder pellets and are scolding them follow steps 1-3 first.

Step 1.

Pour the pellets into the bottom of a bait container.

Step 2.

Now pour boiling water over the pellets until they are all just covered over with the water and leave for 20-30 mins.

Step 3.

After 20-30 mins the pellets should still resemble their original shape but they should be soft to touch and lighter in colour.

Step 4.

Now take the pellet cone and hold it from the thin end.

Step 5.

Gently scoop some pellets into the cone, compressing them in as you go.

Step 6.

Once the cone is full compress it firmly with finger and thumb.

Step 7.

Now pass the fine baiting needle through the pellet cone, going in from the wider end and out the thinner end. Your now ready to pull your baited rig through the pellets, once you’ve pulled your rig through remove the cone and its ready to cast out.

The compressed pellets will look like so when attached to your rig.

Once cast out the pellets will hold together until they reach the bottom.

Within 30 seconds they will have broken down leaving a small neat pile of bait around your hookbait…..

Give them a go.

Tight Lines

Dave

A method that works well over a bed of scattered boilies is mesh PVA bags of boilies. Using something like  Korda Boilie Funnel Web , a tight mesh bag can be created that practically explodes in the water spreading your hookbait and freebies a few inches apart making the trap less obvious to wary carp. The method is to tie a mesh bag with three boilies in a triangular shape as tightly as possible to create the tension in the PVA, which is needed to throw the baits apart upon melting.  When in the water PVA tightens and pulls the boilies even tighter together before the bags burst and catapulting the baits in seperate directions. The triangles are better than the normal linear mesh bag over choddy bottoms as the hook sits in the middle keeping it clear of any chod. However they obviously will not cast as well.

To tie these PVA bags you need some Korda Boilie Funnel Web PVA, scissors and some boilies, these are air dryed Mainline Activ-8 .

Step 1.

Place three boilies in the boilie funnel web tube and allow them to drop out of the bottom into the PVA mesh. If you are using baits over 16mm then I’d suggest using the largerKorda funnel web size as you won’t be able to create the right shape with the larger baits in the boilie funnel web, for baits 16mm and under the boilie funnel web is best.

Step 2.

Now push the baits into a triangular shape and tighten the PVA holding the baits as close together as possible to create a bait triangle.

Step 3.

Holding the boilies in position tie off the bag, again trying to hold the baits as tight as possible. The tighter the bag the better presentation you will achieve.

Once you have trimmed the tag ends of the knots tied in the bag you should have a mesh bag that looks like this. (See Picture Below).

The mesh bag can be hooked on or alternatively you can thread the hooklink through the middle of the baits and pull you hook through to sit between the three baits, this can actually help the slow the rig down as it travels through the water so might be worth a go fishing over softer lakebeds and as I said earlier keep the hook clear of any chod.

Here is a couple of pictures demonstrating the presentation this bag will give your freebies.

The bag still intact.

15-20 seconds after contact with the water.

Give it a go

Tight lines

Dave

Regular customer Jonathan had a lovely zip linear mirror carp recently (I’m dead jealous). Here’s his catch report.

“As you know I have been fishing on the Wellingborough lakes ticket since April and I am not superstitious but my ticket is number 13! I have really struggled this year so thought the ticket must be to blame.

 Arriving at the Island lake on Friday night to find a westerly wind blowing there were a few carp showing at the bottom end of the lake. I chose a swim which would allow me to walk round and place two hook baits whilst casting the third rod to showing fish.

At 2am one of the rods placed on in the far margin spot received a drop-back which I lost (hook pull) after only having the fish on for a minute so I re-cast the rod to the spot.

 At 5am the rod cast to an area where I had earlier seen carp boshing, was away. This one stayed on and kited to my right, picking up one of my other lines which made netting it difficult. I went In up to my knees with trousers rolled up and it was in the net. The fish, a cracking zip linear weighed 32lb 14oz and hopefully sees a change in fortunes.

 Rig consisted of a size 10 Korda wide gape hook tied to about 9” of  Korda Supernatural braid on a clay Korda Safe Zone Safety Lead Clip, 2oz atomic dung bomb and 18” of ESP brown lead core.

 Bait was an 18mm  Mainline boilies tipped with a grain of  Pop-Up Sweetcorn  with about 10 freebees scattered around the hook bait and a small PVA bag of chops courtesy of a  Korda Krusha .”

Nice one!!

Best Fishes,

John

During the colder months of the year many anglers tend to use different baits to their preferred summer baits. At this time of year a lot of anglers move over from their summer fishmeal based baits and start using fruity baits such as Mainline Hi Visual Pop Ups or Richworth Pineapple Hawaiian Freezer Boilies  . These baits which are brightly coloured and have highly attractive fruity smells are more likely to grab the attention and interest of the carp even if they are not particularly interested in feeding. That isn’t to say that carp don’t get their heads down and feed during the colder periods, it is just that the feeding periods tend to be shorter. High food value fishmeal baits such as Dynamite Baits Source Boilies still work well during winter too, with its highly attractive smell and high nutritional value being prized by the carp during the winter months.

It is also a good idea to change your pellet choice if you’re intending on using them in a larger quantity than just for attraction in pva bags as the high oil pellets which the majority of anglers use during the warmer months are less digestible during the colder months. Although you can still use high oil pellets if you’re only planning on using them in small amounts as pva bag fillers for high attraction.

Groundbait mixes in Dynamite sticks are also a valued bait in the carp anglers armoury with the use of fish oils for added attraction but its a good idea to change from the oils you would use during the summer to a winterized fish oil as the colder water temperatures will cause some fish oils to congeal and your Dynamite sticks won’t breakdown very quickly, it could also hinder the melting time of your pva mesh. You could also try Hemp oil as this is naturally “winterised” so doesn’t congeal in colder temperatures. 

Particles and maggots are another big favourite of many anglers during the winter months and carp seem to love them no matter what time of year it is.

Tight Lines

Dave