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

The Seaguar knot was specifically designed for attaching fluorocarbon to monofilament. Fluorocarbon has become very popular in recent years with carp anglers due to its sinking and invisibility properties when submerged in water. However fluorocarbon has a very poor tolerance for incorrectly used and poorly tied knots. The Seaguar knot forms a reliable connection between fluorocarbon and monofilament, is easy to tie and the finished knot is neat and does not compromise the strength of either material.

Below are two ideal products for tying fluorocarbon leaders with.

Korda IQ Fluorocarbon

Step 1.

Hold the monofilament and fluorocarbon leader together.

Step 2.

Form a large loop in the leader and mainline.

Step 3.

Twist both loops anticlockwise three times.

Step 4.

Pass the tag end and the entire leader through the loop.

Step 5.

Moisten and pull all four ends to tighten. Trim the tag ends and your done.

Give it a go.

Tight Lines

Dave

Avid Carp Corn Stops combine the benefits of an imitation bait with a boilie stop, mimicking grains of sweetcorn perfectly. They are available in long and short to suit different hair lengths, it also enables you to change bait size without the need to tie new rigs. The Avid Carp Corn Stops are made from durable plastic and come in bright and visual colours to draw attention to your hookbait whatever the conditions.

Step 1

Thread your choosen bait onto the hair.

Step 2

Attach the Corn Stop to the hair loop via the hook on the underside of the stop.

Step 3

Pull the Corn Stop into the bait and your ready to go.

Tight Lines

Dave

Avid Carp Sight Stops are a useful boilie stop that adds visual attraction to your hookbait. They are available in long and short to suit your hair length and enable you to change bait size without tying up new rigs. The Avid Carp Sight Stops are made of a durable plastic and come in a range of bright and visual colours to draw attention to your hookbait in any conditions. The Avid Carp Sight Stops are availble in either Yellow or Mixed Colour packs.

Step 1

Thread your choosen bait onto the hair.

Step 2

Now attach the Sight Stop to the hair loop via the hook on the underside of the stop.

Step 3

Pull the stop into the bait and you are now ready to go.

Tight Lines

Dave

What do you do when you keep getting liners but no takes? Many carp anglers will just sit there and wonder why? They will maybe change the hookbait or buy a different bait next time they go fishing. My advice is to reel in and recast 5 to 10 yards shorter. If you are still getting liners reel in and recast shorter again keep doing this until you get a run or the liners stop, you should now be in the right area.

Best Fishes,

John

Salt is often used by many anglers as an additive to particles and spod mixes. Although a lot of anglers don’t know why it is such a good addition to bait. Salt works well as an additive on many waters but it can be more effective on some waters than others. Now it isn’t completely understood why it works so well but I believe part of the reason it works is due to fishes requirements to regulate their salt and water content. Fish need to regulate the levels of water and mineral salts in their blood the same as we do, this is called osmoregulation. Freshwater fish absorb their required salts through their gills in exchange for waste products and through their food. By a combination of urine production and salt absorbtion fish can maintain their body’s salt concentration. Therefore the addition of salt to particles, boilies and spod mixes can be very effective when fishing for carp, especially in soft water areas where salt minerals in the water are scarce. One of the principle ions involved in osmoregulation include Sodium Chloride which is better known as Salt. So next time your preparing some bait for part of your baiting campaign or just for a forthcoming session grab some salt out the cupboard and add a generous handful to your mix.

Give it a go.

Dave

This Spool knot is very simple to tie and is used to attach your mainline to your spools before you refill your reels.

Step 1

 Pass a loop of line around your spool.

Step 2

Now pass the free tag end over and around the line, creating a loop.

Step 3

Then wrap the tag end 3 times around the line, closing the loop.

Step 4

Now pass the tag through the loop created above the twist of line.

The picture below illustrates what the knot should now look like.

Step 5

Moisten the knot and gently tighten down.

Step 6

Now keeping the line moist slid the knot tightly up against the spool. You are now ready to reattach your spool and start loading your new line on.

Tight Lines

Dave

Those of you using coated carp hooks may have noticed that they rust around the eyes and even sometimes the hookpoint. Give them a little dab of Vaseline and the problem to a great extent is solved. You can buy small tackle box sized tubs of Vaseline from most chemists.

Best Fishes,

John

Here’s a handy little tip for getting really neat knots. Instead of using saliva to bed down knots use a dab of Lipsalve which is easily obtainable in chemists or supermarkets and comes in handy tackle box size containers. It will give you a much tighter knot with no line burns or pig tails.

Best Fishes,

John

The methods you choose to bait up with will depend on the distances you are baiting and the bait you have choosen to use.

Boilies

If you have choosen to target your water with boilies then prebaiting can be done using a variety of methods. Most peoples choice would be to use a catapult at short to medium range (Anything upto 50 yards) or a throwing stick like the Korda Eazi Stick  for longer range baiting. Both these methods will allow you to bait up with boilies both quickly and accurately without too much disturbance. If you have choosen to bait a spot out of throwing stick range then I would suggest using a good spod setup and a boilie spod such as the MCF Extreme Range Rocket Spod. Spodding out your bait will create a little more disturbance but it will enable you to reach further distances and get the bait out to where you want it. Spodding your boilies can also be a good way to avoid the seagulls diving down and grabbing baits as your baiting up. The method I would recommend for short range baiting with boilies would be a bait spoon, this can be used with a landing net handle or baiting pole depending on the situation you are in. 

Particles and Pellets

Baiting with Particles and/or Pellets can be a little trickier than boilies. If you are fishing the margins or at short range then I suggest you use either a catapult or a baiting spoon and pole such as the AI Baiting Spoon, Pole Float and Baiting Pole (8 or 12 metre available) as they are far less hassle than spodding. If you have choosen to bait an area out of catapult range then a spod is probably your only option. If so I would suggest making sure that you know your sight markers very well and you have your line on your spod rod marked up so you are able to bait accurately at the right distance.

Groundbait

Although I haven’t mentioned this method of baiting in any of the previous blogs I would just like to touch on quickly the methods used to bait up with groundbait. A lot of people are able to ball up their groundbait and throw or catapult it to their spots. For those of you who wish to try groundbait on your water but wish to bait up out of catapult range I would suggest using a groundbait sling such as the Atomic Ballz Out Goundbait Sling. These are very good bits of kit, once you have mastered the technique it is possible to bait up with groundbait balls well beyond the range ever thought achievable.

Depending on how busy your choosen water is and whether you mind people knowing what you’re up to then it makes sense to choose the time of day you bait up carefully. If you wish to try and keep your activities undercover from other anglers then I would suggest baiting up well after dark to avoid being seen. This also has its advantages in other ways. It cuts down on the birdlife activity while you are baiting up and over the area in general. It also means there is bait in the water for a good few hours before the birdlife moves in and finds the bait giving the carp more of a chance to get a look in. 

Tight Lines

Dave