NASH E-ZINE SUMMER 2016
Q&A am sure softened Q Ipellet around a feeder
will work on my syndicate but everyone tells me this is a small fish tactic? DAVE BARMBY, EAST HORSLEY Maggots catch a lot of roach and bream but does that make them a small fish tactic?? Many of the biggest carp in this country fall to maggots all year round. Softened pellet is considered by some a small fish tactic because in its earliest years it was developed and used by
match anglers on prolific waters. Carp anglers eventually cottoned on and lo and behold it caught small, medium and huge carp! The first time I ever used the tactic was in 1998 at Catch 22 in Norfolk when the ONLY way to catch those carp was a lump of pellet paste moulded around a lead and hurled somewhere out there. It genuinely amazed me but the carp loved it - ALL the carp. Frank Warwick has used it to amazing effect on big fish waters home and abroad and if it’s good enough for Frank it’s good enough for me... and you? If your water responds to pellets then it’s
almost certain the approach will work. At Horseshoe Lake it was incredible because of the huge amount of spodding of pellets that went on and if it’s a water as prolific as Chestnut, Drayton or Brasenose for the carp will compete for food and there’s nothing more obvious and exciting than a ball of softened pellet if you are a hungry carp. But what if your water doesn’t fall into this category? The only way to find out how well it might work is to try it, like fishing Zigs and Floaters where they ‘don’t work’.
Pellet paste bagged up on Catch 22 – a throwback picture with the late and much missed Kevin Green
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Julian Cundiff
" The first time I ever used the tactic was in 1998 at Catch 22 in Norfolk when the ONLY way to catch those carp was a lump of pellet paste moulded around a lead and hurled somewhere out there."
Q&A WITH JULIAN CUNDIFF
Ingredients for a simple but brilliant Method Mix are half a bag of Small Pellet Mix, a handful of corn and the same of Flake to match your boilie choice.
Mix the pellets, corn and flake together first in a round bowl or bucket. Slowly add small amounts of water and work the bait around the bowl to mix it thoroughly.
Once you can give the mix a gentle squeeze and it holds together well in your hand it’s ready to go. If it crumbles back to pellets readily add a touch more water.
With the rig baited, take a handful of soft pellet, put the in-line lead in the middle of it and use both hands to squeeze it together so you form a rugby ball shape.
Gently push the hookbait into the edge of the paste ball or very lightly nick the hook point into the edge of the ball to prevent any chance of tangles.
The same softened pellet mix can be made into regular balls in seconds using the Ball Makers and catapulted or sling shotted into your swim.
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NASH E-ZINE SUMMER 2016 can I make sure my Q How frozen boilies stay fresh for
I’ve been through the whole spectrum of bait from using readymades exclusively to taking HNV baits to a venue each week in a vacuum flask back in the late 1980s to keep them frozen. Here’s a few tips to stay fresh in summer temperatures.
a four day session that I have got planned. I am worried they could go off and not catch? PAUL MEADE, BANBURY
Do they make your chosen bait in shelf life? If you’re a Key, 4G Squid or TG Active user you’ve no worries. I'd take 50% frozen for first two days and then 50% shelf life for the final two days.
Does the fishery have a freezer? Many do and if you contact them in advance you might be able to either beg or book some space.
Do you know anyone living close to the lake? Could they bring you some top up bait (and a bacon sandwich too maybe....?)
Take 50% frozen bait and coat the rest in the liquid bait soak of your choice. The liquid not only stops them going off but boosts their attraction level too.
Take all frozen bait and store it in a Nash Polar Cool bag. In a Carpology test just 10% of the ice inside melted in 36 hours. Just don’t keep opening and closing the bag!
Air dry your baits in advance. Spread them over the base of cardboard boxes somewhere rodent free and let them harden for a week. Stored in air dry bags they will last four days easily.
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JULES’ TOP TIP To make the Polar Cool and Polar Mega Cool bags even more effective, once they are filled with bait put the entire bag sealed shut in the freezer for 24 hours before your session. It extends the period the contents will stay frozen even further.
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Q&A WITH JULIAN CUNDIFF get really manic Q Ifeeding activity on Riser
Wait until they are feeding so hard that they are behaving like pirahnas
Pellet but always feel I should catch more. What am I doing wrong? WAYNE MARRIOT, SWANSEA Without watching you in action it’s difficult to be absolutely sure BUT having struggled myself and watched others have issues I think I can make an educated guess. I always think of Riser Pellets as floating hemp, a great carp attractor but a nightmare to catch over if the carp get preoccupied on it. The answer is in two parts, supplementing the feed and not being over anxious to cast out! Riser Pellet is pretty instant so I get plenty Spombed or catapulted out where I think the carp may be. If they are anywhere near the surface layers you will soon find out summer and winter alike. When one or two are taking add more Riser. Even if it spooks them they will soon be back. As the carp become more confident then instead of just adding more Risers start to add in some larger 11mm Slicker Pellets. I tend to use 70% Riser to 30% Slicker. The carp love these too and being larger they are far easier to use as hookbaits. Keep adding Risers and Slickers but do NOT cast out until the carp are really competing for the feed. You want them on the surface ploughing up and down competing with each other almost like mini sharks in a feeding frenzy. Then and ONLY then should you cast out. I use the largest Bolt Machine I have with an eight foot hooklength and overcast and slowly wind the rig into the feeding zone. Action should be pretty immediate and when you do get hook one get more pellets out there as soon as it is in the net.
Mix up Riser with one third Slicker Pellets to prevent preoccupation
Action should come in seconds if you have fed correctly
" Be prepared to try a variety of hookbaits – I love the Floater Zig Bugs that Nash do that mimic Risers and Slickers. All you need to do is tie to the hooklength and it’s as good as carp in the net"
The key is to keep them feeding and not let them go off the boil. Once they are really on those Risers and Slickers you can play carp through carp and they will still feed. Be prepared to try a variety of hookbaits – I love the Floater Zig Bugs that Nash do that mimic Risers and Slickers. All you need to do is tie to the hooklength and it’s as good as carp in the net. Try a variety of hookbaits, one is often much more effective than the others over Riser
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NASH E-ZINE SUMMER 2016
people say use Q Some different size and shape leads for different rigs but I've noticed some famous carpers use the same ones all the time. Why?
My usual starting point – 2 oz on a clip – if it ain’t broke don’t fix it!
SIMON LEFROY, ELY I guess I am one of those guys Simon... Like any successful carp angler I have starting points and with leads providing I can reach the spot my standard lead size and shape is a 2 ounce Flat Pear. With this I can cast up to 80 yards and feel the lead through the water to accurately interpret the nature of the lakebed. That is massively important to me as I have to know what I am landing on to know what kind of presentation I need to use. Years of experience have taught me that it works for me. With super sharp Twister or Fang X hooks and an overshotted pop up or heavy bottom bait I know that once that hooklength tightens up a 2 oz lead will do the trick. It’s not like where we were ten years ago when you needed a large lead to pull most hooks in to the barb. Hooks are so much sharper straight out the packet today. Occasionally I use a lighter lead at close range or a larger lead at long range or an In-Line Flat Pear for PVA bags or Pellet Paste setups but in all honesty Simon I know what works as MY starting point. If what works for you keeps working that’s YOUR starting point so stick with it.
I make my Multi Q Should Rig slow sinking or overshot it when fishing over your mush recipe? CALLUM WICKES, ST ALBANS When I use the Multi Rig I always overshot it whether I am fishing over
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Keeping the lead the same allows me to read the lake bed it lands on whether I am after big carp or small
mush, a spread of boilies or as a single bait. Having spent almost ten years fine tuning it and watching carp feeding I am convinced that overshotting helps and critical balancing can work against you. When carp feed they create plenty of water movement and a pop up that is not anchored will wobble and waft about very unnaturally which can spook
carp and create problems even when the carp wants the hookbait. Try getting a ping pong ball in your mouth in the bath and it’s the same principle! When you overshot it you are anchoring it down so it spins on the putty counterweight grabbing the carp’s bottom lip no matter which direction the fish approaches the bait from. This pivot point really trips up
Q&A WITH JULIAN CUNDIFF
" When you overshot it you are anchoring it down so it spins on the putty counterweight grabbing the carp’s bottom lip no matter which direction the fish approaches the bait from" carp. I tend to use around 50% more weight than is needed to critically balance it. Not so heavy that the carp will twig it’s a dangerous item but heavy enough to trip the carp up. Once you know how much putty you need Callum it’s easy and at the end of the session save it for next time in a pot. This saves you time and of course money!
can I stop tangles Q How when casting Zigs? I've seen people casting the rig out of a bucket but I worry about catching the hookpoint. AARON WHITELEY,GLOUCESTER When I started using Zigs over six feet long it worried me too but tangles with long links are easy enough to prevent. The first and easiest option is to get yourself a Nash Zig Float which allows
you to use short hooklengths but the buoyancy of the float allows you to feed the hookbait up into position. Once your float hits the surface you wind it down
to the level you want. However if you don't want to go down that avenue then use the good old PVA foam nugget. You only need one over the hookpoint and it will protect the point on the cast. When you cast watch the rig in flight and as the lead hits the surface put your finger on the spool and this slight check will push the lead slightly forwards and keep the hookbait and the mainline well apart. Because the hookbait is a large white blob you will see it hit the surface away from the splash of the lead and you’ll be 100% confident you’re fishing effectively.
JULES’ TOP TIP From Spring onwards I always have a bait bucket containing half bags of Risers and Slickers, Bolt Machines, a Zig Pouch, hookbaits and catapult. As soon as I get to a swim I Spomb or catapult out floaters to see if any carp are about. Whilst I am getting my bottom fishing rods ready summer and winter alike I have had carp taking from areas I never suspected contained carp. It’s like having a third eye! The floater bucket trick will catch you a lot of bonus carp. Even if you can't catch them off the top it will prove that they are there, and give you some very good clues where to cast to.
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