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| Baits page |
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| MAGGOTS Probably the greatest all-round fishing bait of them all. The larval fo the common bluebottle fly is avilable in many colours, with red,bronze,pink and white being the most popular. COLOURS Different colours work better for different species and conditions. RED= for Perch,Bream and Tench. BRONZE= for Roach and Chub. WHITE= in cold and clear water. |
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| SAWDUST OR MAIZE? If you're keepping your mags in a fridge for a few days, damp sawdust is best as it keeps the grubs moist & unlike maize, prevents them from shrinking. Maize stops maggots sweating, and softens the bait making it more active. Aim to get the freshest maggots possible. |
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| PINKIES These are the larvae of the shiny-backed greenbottle fly. Like their larger cousins,they can also be coloured, with RED or FLUORESCENT PINK the most popular. Great for loosefeed on stillwaters or canals and as a hookbait when targeting smaller fish. FLUORO PINKIES are especially good on hard-fished venues or in cold climates. Being a lot livelier then maggots, they'er excellent when targeting Roach and Skimmers. |
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| SQUATTS Bred from the common housefly, squatts are the smallest grub of the maggot family, and are also the least lively. they are perfect as a feed to add to groundbait (especially for skimmers and bream), as they don't break the ball in flight and they don't burrow in to the silt so quickly. When buying squatts from a tackle shop it's a good idea to riddle off the sand they come in and replace it with maize flour because if you get sand in your pole joints it's GOOD NIGHT POLE!!! |
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| CASTERS The chrysalis stage of the maggot, casters have a crispy shell with a soft, juicy inner that drives big fish crazy! The dark ones sink more slowly than the lighter ones, and when fished with a light-gauge hook are ideal for fishing on the drop. MAKE THEM FLOAT A great bait for big Rud or Carp, simply spread out some casters on a flat tray and allow to dry in the sun. they will then darken and turn into floaters. |
| ( 1 ) Maggots When used for catapulting use stickymag to make maggot balls. ( 2 ) Casters When you find it hard going bury your hook right in to the caster. They are also great for holding the interest of big fish on the far side of canals you are fishing. ( 3 ) Worms When using chopped worms put some powdered or liquid worm additive it's a killer. Redworms for Bream & to fish canals. Dendrobaena for Tench,Roach and Choppin. Lobs for perch, Carp & river fish. ( 4 ) Bloodworm & Joker Powered B & J is an excellent additive to groundbait. Always transport B & J in damp newspaper. To separat the larave sprinkle damp leam over the top. ( 5 ) Breadflake Try flavouring your bread. simply use a sprayer to distirbute the flavour evenly. Your flake will now have the edge over other fishermen. ( 6 ) Breadpunch To help keep your punch on the hook steam your bread slice over a kettle for 30-50 seconds, and then roll out the slice. As it enters the water it will swell to twice the size! ( 7 ) Floaters For shy or spooky carp try colouring or flavouring your baits. For a good presentation place your free offerings and hook bait in a PVA bag. when cast into the water, the PVA bag will then melt and leave your hookbait right in the centre of the freebies. ( 8 ) Sweetcorn Don't throw away that juice from the tin! Add it to the water when mixing your groundbait. It's irresistible to Tench and Carp. When longdistance fishing hair rig a kernel of maize as it's much tougher then corn. ( 9 ) Heep & Tares When feeder fishing add a little grilled hempseed to your groundbait to make it fizz, this can attract big Roach and Carp. Always save the water from your cooked heep and tares and add it to your groundbait. ( 10 ) Particle baits Seed and Nuts. If you flavour your particles, add the liquid flavour during the soaking process. Try them as a popup bait. you can buy ready prepared particle baits. Beans and peas. Tic beans are very good for holding Tench, particularly on gravel pits. Chickpeas are good as a carpet over which to fish tiger nuts on the hook. ( 11 ) Pellets Grind up pellets to a fine powder and add this to your groundbait. When fish over a bed of carp pellets, use soft hooker pellets this can be excellent. Expander pellets Expanders are slow sinking so use them for feeding fish up in the water. Any left-over expanders can be frozen. When thawed, push them through a riddle and add some water to make a sloppy mix. Great when pole fishing or in shallow water. |
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| Worms worms are one of the most deadly and readily available baits to the fisherman. Everything that swims loves them. There is nothing more natural or attractive to fish than a juicy worm. There are three types of worms that are mainly used, these are Lobs, dendrobaenas and redworms. All three will catch fish, use the right one and bingo. |
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| BloodWorm & Joker They are actually MIDGE LAVAE, but they are red in colour. Bloodworm are found in stillwaters, whereas Joker are found in small streams. On waters where all else fails Bloodworm & joker can give you the edge. But a lot of canals and stillwaters have a ban on this bait so check before you buy. |
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| Breadflake Bread is one of the cheapest baits to use and will catch fish of all sizes. Flake is very attractive to fish, as it is highly visible, soft, buoyant and easy to flavour. How to hook it? Take a piece of flake from the centre of a slice. Slide your hook over one side of the breadflake. Now squeeze the flake around the hook shank. Now secure on to the hook keeping your breadflake fluffy. |
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| Breadpunch Without doubt, small pellets of frest bread are often perferred to other small baits, especially in winter by fish like Roach and Dace. Breadpunch is best used with liquidized bread, introduced little and often so as not to over feed the fish. How to hook it? Use a metal punch to push a pellet of bread from a fresh slice. Push the point of your hook into the bread in the punch. Carefully remove the pellet of bread with hook. |
| FLOATERS There is nothing better then watching a Carp taking bait off the surface. It's terrifying just wating for those lips to come out of the water. There are many different surface baits, the most popular being dog mixer, bread crust and marshmallows. The way to present a floater is. Use a bait band. Hair rig the bait. Superglue the bait to the back of the hook shank. If you're having trouble reaching your swim, try using a surface controller to add casting weight to the bait. |
| SWEETCORN One of the best baits I have ever used. The advantages of sweetcorn are that it's cheap, needs no preparation and is usable on almost all waters. Also because of it's size corn can be quite selective, as most smaller fish can't get it into their mouths. Options TINNED - Still the best on most waters. FROZEN - The cheaper option if using in bulk or for pre-baiting. Coloured/Flavoured - For fish wary of standard corn. LIQUIDIZED - Excellent as a binder or flavour in method groundbaits. |
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| HEMP & TARES Hemp is one of the best baits for holding fish in any still or running water venues. HEMP is normally fished with TARES if you are after big Roach, These are pigeon feed that is cooked untill it's soft. To prepare Tares soak overnitght, put in a pan of water and bring to the boil. Simmer gently untill the seeds are soft. Hempseed bites can be lighting fast so keep your floats very low in the water. |
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| PARTICLE BAITS There are more than 70 different particle types to choose from. So i will write about just a few . SEEDS & NUTS These are dead easy to prepare and are without doubt one of the best for laying down a big fish holding carpet and pre-baiting. Some rules to remember. 1 - Seeds for feed bait, Nuts for hookbaits. 2 - Nut hookbaits must be hair-rigged. 3 - Most particles must be soaked at least 12 hours prior to cooking. 4 - For distance feeding, use a bait rocket/spod with a spod rod. BEENS & PEAS These particles are slightly different as they can be used as a feed or hookbait. It.s not only big carp that feed on particles, they're also excellent for Tench,Bream and Barbel. Bean & pea rules 1 - They must be soaked before cooking. 2 - They can be hooked or hair-rigged. 3 - Beans & peas are very good at taking flavours and colouring. PELLETS Carp pellets came from the need for a trout pellet replacement, (which can be bad for Carp), many carp anglers now know the power of carp pellets. This may be down to the fact that most farm carp today are raised on pellets and therefore treat them as natural bait. The most common flavours sold are fishmeal, but there are many other different flavours and sizes on the market. EXPANDER PELLETS A lot of anglers find the difference between carp pellets and expanders confusing. The difference being expanders have almost neutral buoyancy and when prepared lift enticingly from the bottom at the slightest movement in the water. However you can make them sink by 1 - soaking in cold water for around 2 hours. 2 - Using a riddle strain off the excess water. 3 - Gently squeeze pellets to remove air and excess. 4 - If flavouring, add now and place in a fridge overnight to draw in the flavouring. |
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| MEATS Options are Luncheon meat, Meatballs, Peperami, Cat food, just to name a few. Although luncheon meat is associated with barbel fishing these days, it's also superb for Chub, large Carp, and Tench. You can buy pre-flavoured luncheon meats and meatballs, or you could flavour them yourself. Things you can do to your meats. 1 - Chop in to cubes and place in a bag. 2 - add a teaspoon of liquid flavour and scrunch the bag to coat the meat. 3 - Add a table-spoon of dusting powder. 4 - Blow-up bag and shake, the meat is now fully covered and it's flavour has changed. |
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| BOILIES These baits take more specimen Carp then any other bait on the market today, They're also very good for specimen Bream,Tench and Barbel. Boilies are available in sizes from 6mm to a huge 28mm. You can also buy frozen boilies, which have stronger flavours and colours, but remember they contain no preservative so once thawed they will soon go off. Boilies can be used in a number of ways but the most popular being hair-rigging. |
| This is used to keep fish in a tight area or close to the bottom. however, there are lots of different types available for different conditions. What type to use? A lot of fisherman find groundbait confusing. So I hope this will help. Venue - Are you fishing a stillwater, canal or river? On a river you will need a bait thats sinks quickly, while on stillwater or canals, a lighter mix is best. Fish - What species are you targeting? Certain groundbaits are designed for specific species. Water - Is the water coloured or clear? If coloured use a light or red groundbait. If clear use a dark or black groundedbait. This is a very basic guide you can often find advice on the groundbait bags themselves. |
| GROUNDBAITS |
| To get the best from groundbait it's very important to mix properly. 1 - Always use a round bowl. Add the entire dry mix plus any powerd flavouring and mix thoroughly. 2 - Water should be added gradually, and any liquid flavouring to the mixing water. 3 - Mix together vigorosly and leave to stand for five minutes. 4 - Add more water if needed, and then pass the whole mix through a riddle to achieve the perfect result. You can change the behaviour of a groundbait by altering the amount of water you add. The drier the mix the quicker it breaks up in the water, useful for creating a cloud effect. |
| HOW TO MIX THE PERFECT GROUNDBAIT |
| TIP Try using hemp oil instead of water to mix groundbait. It's superb on gravel pits for specimen Carp and Tench. |
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| For seafishing baits click here |
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