TACTICS
LAUNCH A TWIN BAIT ATTACK FOR PERCH 8 NEW
MAPS INSID E
VENU GUID E E CUT OU T & KEE S P
YOUR DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO CATCHING MORE
NEW SERIES
FISH BETTER WITH... BOOST YOUR CASTING ACCURACY Easy to follow advice Floatfishing edges Feeder tips
February 13 – March 13, 2018 £3.70
BUMPER TACKLE ADVICE SECTION IDE GU ' RS YE BU R VE MA ED ST TE W NE OK FIRST LO E AG OR ST K LIN OK HO LE PO M 16 -R MV SHAKESPEARE RODS
ISSU E 334
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River fish you can bag up on right now
CONTENTS Issue 334 February 13 – March 13, 2018
14
Dai Gribble urges you to go roving on commercials for better catches
GREAT BRITISH FISHING 8
Fishing the tiny River Gade – Simon Wilsmore
14
Go roving on winter commercials – Dai Gribble
TACTICS 24 Twin attack for river perch – Mark Perkins 30 Get on the cone for winter carp action – Robbie Taylor 34 Picking the right lure is vital – Andy Loble 4 • IYCF Issue 334
39 Ready, steady... bite! – Craig Goldstraw 42 Fresh tactics for new F1s – Jamie Hughes
CARP TACTICS 98 Everything you need to know about running rigs 102 Boilie types explained
46 One rig + one bait = a netful of roach – Pemb Wrighting
104 4 ways with shrink tube
51
80 Shakespeare Agility 2 rods
Keep a hot peg on the boil – Scott Puddy
54 End the river season on a high – Dave Harrell 60 Fish better with Des Shipp 64 Rig school: pike leger rig
TACKLE 82 New gear 84 Live test: Maver MVR pole 87 Sonik Magna lure rods 88 Buyers’ guide to... hooklength storage
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Mark Perkins has devised two clever rigs for running water perch, which makes use of the way stripeys like to feed to plot their downfall
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46
If you want a netful of roach, Pemb Wrighting says there’s only one bait and rig you need
51
Drawing a flyer doesn’t mean you’ll bag up. Scott Puddy reveals why precise loosefeeding is key
NEW SERIES YOUR IYCF 20 Subscribe and save 51% 94 Your letters 96 Mission: your catch shots 108 Crossword: win Korum Lure Bags 110 Bob Roberts’ diary
60
England International Des Shipp helps you brush up on essential skills such as casting
98
Running rigs may have fallen out of fashion but here’s why and when you should use them IYCF February 13 – March 13, 2018 • 5
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ation A celebr river, st of the be canal lake and that fishing as h the UK r e ff to o
HING ● G R FIS
14• IYCF Issue 334
Go roving on winter commercials Staying mobile is common practice on rivers. But Dai Gribble says hopping from swim to swim on commercial venues can improve your chances Words & Photography Tony Grigorjevs
IYCF February 13 – March 13, 2018 • 15
HOW TO LAUNCH A...
TWIN ATTACK FOR RIVER PERCH Depending on how they are feeding, perch will require a different approach to catch them. Thankfully, Mark Perkins has two set-ups that cover all scenarios Words Tony Grigorjevs Photography Lloyd Rogers
24 • IYCF Issue 334
TACTICS
I
T IS often asked, what makes a great angler? There are a number of factors that contribute to them reaching an elite level. An ability to pick the right tackle for the job is key and a firm grasp of which baits perform best is equally important. Possessing a sixth sense to sniff out a red-hot peg is also incredibly helpful. But there is another skill that is arguably the most vital of them all – having a solid understanding of what goes on underwater.
Developing this skill enables you to create theories of how your rigs work once they drop beneath the waterline and there is no doubt that the most successful fishermen all have this well sorted in their mind. Dynamite Baits-backed Mark Perkins is a highly regarded river angler and his record of achievements on running waters demonstrate he is in tune with how his tackle is performing once out of sight.
“You have to make what are effectively educated guesses on how rigs and baits behave underwater and from your conclusions you can decide the type of set-up to use,” explained Mark. “At this time of year big perch are one of the most reliable species to target and in recent months I have worked on two different types of presentation that have given me some great catches.”
TACTICS: FEEDER SPECIES: PERCH DIFFICULTY:
IYCF February 13 – March 13, 2018 • 25
F
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OR as long as I can remember, the last few weeks of a river season have offered me the opportunity to record some of my most memorable catches. Temperatures and river levels always seem to be spot on as the season draws to a close and all species are normally on the feed! I always try to keep the last few weeks of the season relatively free of too much work so that I can take advantage of the conditions! Here are some tips and tactics to help you to put more fish on the bank before the curtain goes down on another season at midnight on March 14th‌
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54 • IYCF Issue 334
TOP SPECIES TO TARGET BEFORE THE CLOSE SEASON End your river season on a high with these top tips from running-water ace Dave Harrell
ROACH
I love fishing for roach at any time of the season but they can be a frustrating species to target on some days because if the conditions aren’t quite right, you won’t catch many! Water temperature and colour is the key to everything and I’ve lost count of the number of times that I have caught big bags of redfins from the Severn at the end of February and into March. For a big bag of roach, I don’t think you can beat using float gear and maggots. Find yourself a swim with 6ft to 8ft of water and cover on the inside in the form of overhanging trees and it’s a fair bet there will be roach present! If the flow is slow use a shouldered top No.1 Heavy Base stick float with strung out shot and dot the tip of the float well down so that there is no resistance. In faster flow always use a dome top No.2 Heavy Base stick float. This thicker top will enable you to see the float much further down the swim. With both rigs, I use 3lb (0.14mm) or 4lb (0.16mm) Pro Float reel line, a great floating line to help you achieve perfect presentation. The rigs are completed with either a size 18 or 16 medium wire hook tied to 30cm of 0.10mm (2.8lb) or 0.12mm (4.2lb) Pro Rig line. Two to three pints of maggots will be ample for a full day. Feed little and often and keep the maggots going in, even if it’s just a few every cast. This is the best way to attract fish into the swim, especially on days when the water is fairly clear, as they will see the bait from a long way off. These floats are ideal for targeting roach
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Look for swims with features when targeting chub
CHUB
As the water temperatures rise and the colour drops out of rivers, it’s much easier to catch big bags of chub with float gear. The best swims are between 4ft and 6ft deep with a fair amount of pace and ideally running down to a feature of some sort. This could be overhanging trees, a tree stuck in the river or maybe a ford where the river shallows up. All these features are havens for chub so find a swim with them in and chances are you will be on for a red-letter day! Mainlines should be fairly robust and I use 4lb (0.16mm) or 5lb (0.18mm) in conjunction with hooklengths of 0.12mm (4.2lb) and 0.14mm (5.3lb).
The best floats for these sorts of swims are my No.1 and No.2 Truncheon waggler designs. Shot these with most of the weight locking the float on to the line. With the No.1 Truncheon, fix a No.6 shot for every 2ft of depth. For the No.2, use a No.4 shot in the same way. A 6ft deep swim would therefore require only three shots down the line. Maggots are my number one choice in these situations and I’d take at least three to four pints for a day session.
You’ll need 3-4 pints of maggots for serious go at chub
IYCF February 13 – March 13, 2018 • 55
! S E I R E S W E N
Fish better with...
DES SHIPP
Brush up on key angling skills with England International Des, to put more fish on the bank
THIS MONTH: IMPROVE YOUR CASTING
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OU could have done hours of homework to find out where the fish in your local venue are sitting, but if you are unable to cast properly you could be in for a struggle. Watch someone cast in the correct manner and the whole process looks effortless. But achieving the pinpoint accuracy and neat presentation required is actually quite tricky. But fear not, by analysing several elements of your cast you can hit the mark every time, which will undoubtedly lead to more fish going into your net.
TOP TIP
Always use a line clip when feeder fishing. If you are happy with where your feeder has landed, place the line on the reel behind the clip. This will make sure the feeder can’t fly beyond that point on future casts.
HOW TO:
CAST A FEEDER
LINE LENGTH One metre between rod tip and feeder loads the ideal amount of force for the cast
60 • IYCF Issue 334
1
2
3 TRAP THE LINE Open the bail arm and trap the line on the spool with your middle finger
HAND POSITION Place your left hand on the butt and right hand over the reel
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5 ROD POSITION
LINING IT UP Bring the feeder over your left shoulder. This will make sure your cast goes straight
Cast out the feeder and keep the rod pointing at a 45o angle
PULL BACK A second before the feeder hits the water, bring the rod back to pointing directly upwards to cushion the impact
IYCF February 13 – March 13, 2018 • 61
In association with
SAFE PIKE LEGER RIG
On windy days or when fishing different swims with varying depths, a leger rig is a better option than fishing a float. Give this tangle-proof set-up a try...
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HILE it’s always nice to watch a float, there are lots of days when legering is a much more efficient way of deadbaiting for pike. Perhaps the fish can only be caught at range, or the wind is so bad that floats are difficult to see. Even fishing several swims with very different depths can mean that legering is the better option. Whatever the reason, using strong tackle that enables the hooks to be straightened before the line breaks is a must, especially in snaggy swims.
Use semi-barbless trebles and mount the bait in tail and flank
64 • IYCF Issue 334
Another important consideration is to protect the line above the leger weight. Often because of the weight of the bait, the trace will land in a coiled heap above the weight, which can lead to pike picking up the line in their mouths with the risk of a bite-off. To combat this, an uptrace above the weight should be incorporated into the rig. An uptrace is simple to create, and can even be bought ready-made if you prefer. Combining strong line, wire and an uptrace will ensure that your rigs are safe and enable you to enjoy trouble-free piking.
YOU WILL NEED...
z PikePro 40lb Seven Strand wire z PikePro Two-hook Trace z Rig swivel z PikePro XL Run Rings and Buffer Beads z 2oz-3oz Nash Flat Pear Lead z Cross-lock Swivel z Lighter z PikePro Twiddlin’ Stick
TACTICS
HOW TO TIE A SAFE PIKE LEGER RIG
A 90cm length of wire makes the uptrace. Heat the last 3cm until it glows orangehot, making it easier to twist
Bend the last 3cm over 180° and thread through swivel. Pass through the loop to lock the wire in place
Use a Twiddlin’ Stick through the eye of the swivel to form tight turns in the wire, locking it in position
The finished wire twist should look like this. Alternatively, you could crimp the wire in place
Thread a Swivel Cover on to the wire and pull it over the end of the swivel. This helps to prevent tangles
Thread an XL Buffer Bead on to the end of the wire, with the bulbous end pointing downwards to the free end
Attach Cross-lock Swivel to the wire via the Twiddlin’ method. Pull the XL Buffer Bead on to the swivel
Attach Flat Pear Lead to an XL Run Ring and slide ring on to the uptrace. The ring should clear uptrace swivel
Attach a two-hook semibarbless trace of your chosen hook size to the Cross-lock Swivel on the uptrace
Tie the swivel on the top of the uptrace to the mainline braid using a doubled-over four-turn grinner knot
Running rigs keep resistance to a minimum and reduce the likelihood of dropped runs
An uptrace prevents the wire trace landing in a coiled heap above the leger weight
IYCF February 13 – March 13, 2018 • 65
Maver masters the all-rounder LIVE TEST
After catching his eye at the Maver trade show last year, IYCF’s tackle editor, Mark Sawyer, finally got out on the bank with the highly anticipated MV-R pole MAVER MV-R 16m POLE SSP: £1,399.99
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ESIDES being most anglers’ dream job, the role of tackle editor does give you a unique insight into exactly how and why companies develop their products. That’s pretty much what happened when we visited Maver’s trade show at Hayfield Lakes. As usual some great new products were on display, including the new Signature Pro poles and several new margin poles. But what really caught my eye was the new 16m MV-R Competition. My first thought was that the pole was good, very good in fact, and it ticked a lot of boxes. Its outstanding feature had to be its impressive price, matched with a range of top kits and extensions – certainly more than enough to kit you out for most
match situations on both commercial and traditional venues. Before looking at how it performs, we checked out its construction. Built using an ultra-high modulus carbon, the pole delivers in terms of strength, balance and rigidity, easily meeting the demands of the modern matchman. Its stiffness and ability to be used at its full length without too much tip droop or shipping back wobble, matched with a silky smooth Suncore finish, make it extremely fast through the hands and ideal for silver fish situations. It boasts long-life Teflon joints on its third, fourth, fifth and sixth sections, and comes with both Powerlite Power and Commercial Power kits, side slotted and bushed.
PACKAGE & SPEC MV-R Competition 16m pole 1 x Match kit 4 x Powerlite Power kits slotted & bushed 4 x Commercial Power kits slotted & bushed Mini extension 1 x cupping kit & cups Fighting No.4 section Elastic rating 20+ 3 x EVA Clean Caps Pole holdall & protective tubes
The pole retains an impressive stiffness even at its full 16m 84 • IYCF Issue 334
TACKLE The live test venue was Horseshoe Lake on the superb Decoy complex near Peterborough. Although the short afternoon session took place under the greyest of winter conditions, the MV-R brightened up the day. Starting the session dripping pellets at 6m produced some stunning F1s. Using the Commercial Power kit with a light hollow elastic, I was very impressed by the pole’s tip speed and rigidity, albeit being fished at such a short distance. As is often the way with winter F1s, they rarely stay in one spot for very long and I soon found myself fishing further and further out. With the first of the three parallel butt sections at 13m the pole shows little discernible difference from 10m to 13m and
remains quick at the tip and bounce-free. Shipping up to 14m it does lose a little of its stiffness and tip speed but is still eminently fishable, as indeed it is at its full 16m length, although it does lose a smidgen in rigidity. However, you need to consider that this is a true all-round pole with the strength and power to tackle decent-sized carp as well as a handling speed to make it competitive when fishing for silvers. Section walls need to be strong enough to cope with the rigours of commercial fishing alongside the finesse required for silver fish. This is a difficult combination for many topend flagship poles, never mind a model which you should be able to find for £1,399.99.
Mark’s verdict Maver has set out to make one of the best all-round poles for less than £1,500, and in my opinion it has done just that. Yes, I know it’s all been said before, but pole building technology marches on and production techniques are forever evolving. Take my advice, if you’re looking to upgrade from your current pole, or you have a budget ceiling of just over £1,000, get yourself down to your nearest Maver dealer, take a long hard look at the new MV-R, then tell me I’m wrong!
The MV-R comes with three parallel butt sections
IYCF’s tackle editor Mark Sawyer has been reviewing e fishing gear for mor to s re ca he years tban remember
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REVIEWS
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CAN TRU U S O
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The MV-R package comes with numerous top kits including slotted and bushed Powerlite Power and Commercial Power kits
IYCF February 16 13 – March 15, 13, 2016 2018 • 85
CAN TRUS OU
TIPS, TACTICS & RIGS TO CATCH MORE
98 • IYCF Issue 334
CARP
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT RUNNING RIGS In a world dominated by semi-fixed bolt rigs, IYCF editor James Furness explains why you shouldn’t neglect running rigs
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EMI-fixed bolt rigs, such as lead clips and helicopter set-ups, are predominantly used by carp anglers. Running rigs have fallen out of
fashion, but they should have a place in every angler’s armoury, especially when targeting pressured carp used to dealing with more common presentations on a daily basis.
IYCF February 13 – March 13, 2018 • 99
BEND IT LIKE... SHRINK TUBE The addition of a piece of shrink tube will improve the mechanics of your rig. This month we look at four different ways to get the most from it...
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HRINK tubing is an essential item of terminal tackle and every carp angler should have a packet or two in their tackle box. Used correctly, even just a small piece of tubing can radically improve the mechanics of a rig and increase the chances of your hook catching hold when a fish inhales your hookbait. It will also drastically reduce the effectiveness of your rig and actually ruin your
chances of a bite if used incorrectly. Shrink tube, as its name suggests, reduces in size when held over steam or dunked in boiling water. During the shrinking process it can also be bent or curved. This effectively enables you to extend the length or shape of your hook. As the tubing will straighten out under pressure from a hooked fish, it enables you to create the same effect as long shank curved hooks but without the risk of mouth damage.
LONG SHANK POP-UP
THE WITHY POOL RIG
A great rig for using with a couple of pieces of fake corn or a small 12mm pop-up boilie. The tubing is cranked over aggressively which creates a ‘claw’ effect. This means that once the hook has penetrated there is very little chance of it coming out again. It’s important to only use a short piece of tubing for this. Ideally, the end of the tubing will be level with the point of the hook. Any longer and it will close the gape and reduce the rig’s effectiveness.
This slightly bizarre looking pop-up rig is named after the venue where it was devised – Withy Pool. Subtle it isn’t, but if you’re faced with pressured fish adept at dealing with standard rigs, this could be the answer. The idea is that the long curved piece of tubing will fit around a carp’s bottom lip. To get a perfect curve use a cork to wrap the tubing around when holding in boiling water or over steam.
BEST FOR
FISHING OVER PARTICLES
104 • IYCF Issue 334
The hooking efficiency is improved massively with the addition of a shrink tube kicker. Try dragging a rig without tubing and the same rig with a piece of tubing over the palm of your hand and you’ll notice the one with the tubing flips over and catches hold much quicker. A curved piece of shrink tube also helps to create a ‘claw’ effect. This means that once your hook has penetrated a fish’s mouth it is less likely to come out.
BEST FOR
RIGGY CARP
BEST FOR
BALANCED HOOKBAITS
BEST FOR
THE NOODLE RIG This advanced big-carp set-up uses half a stick of shrink tubing to create a long shank curved hook effect. It works best with wafter or criticallybalanced hookbaits and is a rig which carp find incredibly difficult to eject once it’s inside their mouth. To create the curved section at the end of the tubing, dunk the rig in boiling water rather than steaming it because you’ll have longer to mould the tubing into the required shape.
FIRM, CLEAR LAKEBEDS
SIMPLE BOTTOM BAIT RIG This set-up incorporates a wide gape hook pattern with a long, slightly curved silicone kicker. The curve helps the rig to flip over in the carp’s mouth and the length of it makes it extremely difficult for a carp to get rid of. The hair is trapped in place with a piece of silicone tubing just past the bend and below the barb. Having the hair in this position when using bottom baits helps to flip the hook over.
IYCF February 13 – March 13, 2018 • 105