Know your stuff | Your coarse fishing questions answered

March 2, 2017 Sam Curtis

Welcome to know your stuff, where Angling Times readers have sent in their burning fishing questions to be answered by experts. In this Q&A we have an interesting range of questions from how to catch winter carp all the way to what float stick to use on a river.

Question 1. How would you tackle a corner peg on a commercial fishery in winter? How would you tackle a corner peg on a commercial fishery in winter?

Commercial carp in winter tend to prefer shoaling up in the middle of a lake, so the fishing never seems to be much good! Corners at any time of year can be feast or famine, and for every good day you have to endure a few bad ones – but there are things to do when you’re sat in a corner.

If the status quo is to fish long on the pole or feeder, it may well be that fishing much shorter will catch a few. The carp will seek that quieter water well away from where everyone else is fishing. This will only produce an early burst of fish but it can be enough to make the day worthwhile.

The key advantage of a corner peg is the margin that you’ll have all to yourself. Fish will be here, especially if there’s some cover, but don’t rush things. You could catch seven fish in seven casts from here and then not get a bite for the rest of the day.

You’d be better off just catching one fish at a time and then resting the corner swim by fishing elsewhere. This allows carp to gain confidence, and as the day progresses and they seek some safety, the fish will move into the area in greater numbers.

What won’t happen, however, is the summer phenomenon of more and more carp drifting into the corner as the day goes on. These fish aren’t searching for food and so will only turn up if they think it is safe – this is why plundering the peg early on is a strict no-no.

Question 2. Should I leave my feeder completely in winter or should I twitch it every now and then?

Fish are lethargic in winter so leave the feeder once you have cast out and tightened up. However, if the weather is mild and the water warm the fish will be on the move a little more. The trick here is to still leave the feeder completely still and if you don’t get a bite within five minutes, or you have indications that don’t develop, give the feeder a little pull to kick some life into the hookbait.

As a rule though, it’s safer to rely on your feed to build up an area over which the fish will feed and eventually find your hookbait.

Question 3. What kind of stick float should I use on a river?

A good rule of thumb is to use a No4 shot for every foot of water that you will be fishing. Balsa, cane and plastic bodies are fine for smooth, even flows but in fast, shallow water a short float with a balsa body and alloy stem will get the job done. Lignum floats are very heavy and cast really well. A domed top float can be shotted right down, but when you want to hold the float back or inch it through the peg, a stick with a distinct shouldered tip will get the job done better.

Question 4. I keep deep hooking perch fishing worms on the pole. Am I leaving it too late to strike?

If you strike too early, the fish may not get hold of the worm properly – but leave it too late and deep hooking occurs. So what’s the answer? It will take perch a while to get hold of a big worm on a size 12 hook, whereas a size 16 hook and a tiny worm section will be easily engulfed.

If you’re fishing small baits, strike as soon as the float goes under. With a lobworm tail on the hook, let the fish take the bait and count to two when the float has vanished.You will then see how deeply, if at all, the fish is taking the bait down. If it is too deep, strike sooner. If you are missing bites, leave it longer.

Should you deep-hook fish and struggle to get the hook out, invest in a pair of narrow-nosed forceps or a long disgorger with a wide neck to get the shank of a large hook into the slot. Barbless hooks are also handy in this situation.

Question 4. How wet should groundbait actually be for fishing a slow moving river?

Too dry and it won’t hold together – too wet and it will be a useless slop. On a slow moving river, the finished mix should be slightly ‘over-wet’, which means very tacky and damp to the feel. This allows the ball to hold together and carry loose offerings without falling apart.

For the ideal mix, keep adding water to dry groundbait a little at a time and regularly form a ball with one hand until it holds together with just a light squeeze. A good test to see if the mix is ready is to make a ball and poke a finger into it. If it falls apart, it’s ready! Leave the groundbait to stand for 15 minutes, return and add a touch more water to dampen the mix just that little bit more. Now it’s good to go.

Question 5. Can I still catch carp shallow in winter

Typically, carp will sit at mid-depth or a few feet off bottom as they seek the warmest layer of water – so popped-up baits work well even in freezing cold weather. If you are legering, you should consider using a pop-up and varying how far off bottom you present the bait.

On the waggler or even the long pole, keep altering the depth anywhere from 12ins off the bottom up to a few feet deep. An indication on the float or quivertip will let you know when you’ve found the fish, but often there will be no need to feed – the carp won’t be at this level because they’re hunting for food.

Know your stuff | Dave Harrell's top river advice Q&A

March 1, 2017 Sam Curtis

River maestro Dave Harrell has been inundated with questions from Angling Times readers. Here’s his pick of the best...

Question 1. I’m very confused about swimfeeders for barbel fishing. Should I choose blockend or open-end models?

I can understand why there is confusion, as there are no hard and fast rules. I use open-end feeders with groundbait and pellets mainly in the summer months, as the fish are active and hungry and will soon switch on to the smell of halibut-type groundbaits and pellets, with pellets on the hook.

In winter, however, I’ve had a lot more barbel success with a blockend feeder and maggots. Always make sure you’ve got a good selection of sizes and weights with you. There’s nothing worse that having your feeder rolling around in the current and no additional weight to hold it down.

Question 2. I want to buy some new float and feeder rods for river fishing. What lengths would you recommend?

Choosing the correct float rod lengths is always determined by the depth of water. Most anglers tend to go for a 13ft rod most of the time, and that’s fine as long as the depth is between 3ft and 10ft. For deeper swims you need longer lengths so I carry 14ft, 15ft, 17ft and 20ft rods to cover all eventualities.

Try to use a rod that is at least 3ft longer than the water depth and you won’t go far wrong. For feeder fishing I use 12ft or 13ft lengths most of the time, but for close work I favour 10ft or 11ft models. For distance work, or in situations where I want a powerful rod to throw a fair distance and keep as much line out of the water as possible, I use 14ft feeder rods.

Question 3. I read loads of articles about people catching good bags of fish from rivers on float gear, and it’s something I want to achieve. I get very confused about how to start off though. Is there a systematic way?

This is a very good question, but there are no hard-and-fast rules about which rigs you should use – every river and every day is different. Add different levels and pace to that equation and the whole exercise can become a bit daunting.

The good news is that there are short cuts to success for you. For starters, one of the best possible ways is to go along to your chosen river and watch others fishing. If the stretch is used for competitions, you’ll be able to tap into a wealth of knowledge and experience, as the anglers fishing there will be using the right gear.

Never be afraid to ask questions at the end of the competition either, as most anglers are approachable and will help you.The time not to ask questions is while the match is going on as the angler will be deep in thought and won’t want to be pestered nine times out of ten. Think about where you are positioning yourself on the bank, as it’s easy to spook fish in clear water if you’re ‘skylining’ the angler.

You will learn lots by watching a weigh-in.

Question 4. Every time I walk into a tackle shop I see a vast array of groundbaits. Which mix would you recommend for use on rivers between 6ft and 12ft deep?

A lot of groundbaits catch more anglers than fish, in my opinion. I got involved with Bait-Tech a few years ago and worked closely with them on a new range of groundbaits for silver fish. The end result – the Pro Natural ranges – have been a huge success and are now used by anglers all around the country.

My most often used mix is a 50/50 blend of Extra and Dark or Original with molehill soil. How much soil depends on the speed of the flow, but a good starting point is a bag of each, which gives you a 3kg dry mix. Once wetted, I then add one or two litres of soil. You can get a lot of loose bait into this mix in the form of casters and hemp.

Question 5. Every time I walk into a tackle shop I see a vast array of groundbaits. Which mix would you recommend for use on rivers between 6ft and 12ft deep?

Too many people don’t spend anywhere near enough time plumbing up, and often don’t get the best from their swims as they end up using the wrong rigs or fishing in the wrong place. My advice would be to always try and establish the depths and contours of your swim before you choose a rig.

I use a simple small waggler on the line with a heavy plummet tied to the end. This is then cast into the swim well downstream and across the river. Once the plummet hits the water, ‘feel’ it down to the bottom by lowering the rod.

When you feel the plummet hit bottom, slacken the line off. If you’re at the correct depth or overdepth, the float tip will pop up. If not, you won’t see it, as it will be under the water. Keep adding depth until the float pops up for a second or two and work the rig back towards you, slackening off every couple of metres. This way you will soon build up a mental picture of the depth and can then chose the correct float accordingly.

Know your stuff | World champ Steve Ringer answers your questions!

March 1, 2017 Sam Curtis

In this Q&A, Steve Ringer reveals some of the tricks that he uses to overcome common winter fishing problems...

Question 1. Do you use braid or mono on your reels for bream?

For bream fishing at range, braid is vastly superior to mono. Braid has zero stretch, so bite detection is enhanced. It’s also much thinner than mono, which helps distance casting. Even so, there are a couple of things you need to do when fishing braid to avoid any mishaps.

First, always wet your braid before casting – dry braid is a recipe for a tangle, so I always spray mine with an atomiser full of water before use.

Second, when you do get a bite, all you need to do is pick the rod up to set the hook – don’t strike. This will avoid breakages.

**Spool up with braid when bream fishing.**

Question 2. What elastics should I be using for winter F1s?

For F1s on the long pole I use pink Hydrolastic. This is soft enough so that I can lift into a fish and ship back without risk of the hook pulling out. I can then use the puller to gain control once the fish is under my feet.When it’s very cold I will drop down to yellow Hydro, because then F1s tend to be quite docile and don’t fight so hard.

For short pole work I use orange Hydro unless the F1s very small. This is a bit more powerful than pink, and allows me to hook a fish and quickly steer it out of the baited area.

Question 3. On commercials in winter I always seem to get my feeding wrong for carp. Any advice?

I always like to target one fish at a time so I will feed accordingly. This usually means feeding multiple lines and rotating them, with just enough bait to catch a carp in each. if I feed a line and get an instant response that tells me that fish are coming to the bait.

Feed several lines and rotate them until you find feeding carp.

On the other hand, if I feed and it takes ages to get a response I know it’s going to be hard, because the fish aren’t responding to the bait. If you are ever in doubt, a little trick I use is to pick a line well out of the way and feed that more aggressively.

If I then get a response I can try upping the amount of bait going in on one of my other lines. You should also try fishing around the bait as well as on it because sometimes, when it’s cold, carp have a habit of sitting a little way off the bait.

Question 4. Can sweetcorn grain size make a difference?

Yes. When I’m targeting carp and the water is cold and clear I always like to fish a big grain of corn. This was first bought home to me when fishing Makin’s on phase 3 a few years back. I was fishing for carp down the track and the difference between getting a bite and not seemed to depend on grain size.

A big grain produced bites and a small grain seemed to go untouched. I can only think this is down to visibility, as in a big grain obviously stands out better.

Question 5. Which rig do you use for dobbing bread?

I’m a big believer in very light floats for bread fishing, as a light float allows a slow fall of the hookbait. For me it’s a 4x8 cut-down Mick Wilkinson Steady, which has a short bristle and a wire stem so that it sits quickly. Bites can come on the drop as well as when the float has settled.

Mainline is 0.15mm Guru N-Gauge to a 4ins hooklength of 0.12mm Pure Fluorocarbon, which is virtually invisible in clear water. Hook choice is a size 16 or 18 Guru F1 pellet hook, size depending on the size of punch I’m using. For 6mm I will opt for the 18, and for anything bigger I prefer a 16.

Bearing in mind I’m looking for a slow-falling hookbait, shotting is a loosely-strung bulk of No11s with the bottom shot 5ins from the hook and the rest of the droppers spaced at 1ins intervals above this. Use 24ins of line between pole float and pole-tip. This has the benefit of allowing me to keep the pole high off the water which helps to prevent the fish being spooked by the tip waving about over their heads. A long line also comes in handy when I want to change the depth to try and find the fish.

Question 6. How do you prepare bread for dobbing?

I use Warburton’s thick and extra-thick-sliced, which stay on the hook well. If the bread is fresh I remove the crusts and lightly compress it to compact it slightly.

**Compress the bread before punching it.**

Otherwise I will pop it in the microwave for 10 seconds to put a bit of moisture back into it. Then I pop it in a small clear plastic bag to keep fresh until I get it to the bank. Finally I transfer it to my Guru Punch Box ready for use. For most of my bread fishing I start on a 8mm punch, but if no bites come I will switch to 10mm just to try and find the fish.

For F1s 10mm can be a bit too big, so once I find the fish I’ll often drop back down to 8mm, or even 6mm if the fish are biting shyly.

Question 7. Does ‘Goo’ really make a difference to catches?

In winter I find Goo to be at its best as an impact bait. I won’t start off using it, but if I’m struggling it will often produce a bite when all else fails.

Power Smoke flavours are for tagging Method feeders, PVA bags and so on, and Bait Smokes are for soaking hookbaits. One big mistake I see a lot of anglers make with Goo is that they put far too much on. It’s very potent stuff and you don’t need much at all to put a lot of cloud and flavour into the water. As a guide, when fishing the method I find a blob of Goo the size of a pea is plenty.