Tips Of The Year

Here are some tips to keep your fishing a success:

Waxing Joints.  Prevent the joints on your rod from sticking by easily rubbing some candle wax or pencil graphite onto the male section.

The Four hand method.     If your rods do get stuck together don't try to pull it apart by yourself.    Get another angler to assist you on getting it apart.   Then each of you gets a good grip and then slowly pull and twist a bit and they should come apart.

Line Tips.    To make a sinking line sink faster, soak the spool for a week in solution of fuller's earth and washing-up liquid.   To make a floating line float better, run it through a cloth smeared with line grease or spray it with line/fly Floatant.

A Gritty Problem.     Putting a pole together with grit in the joints can cause great damage.    A simple and effective way to get rid of grit is to stab it in the water to a depth of 20 cm.   This then cleans and helps the sections to meet smoothly.

Hook Choice.   Dace and skimmers are notorious for slipping the hook.  So to make it harder for them to slip the hook use microbarbed hooks for these fish.

Good Habit.   Each time you bait up you should dip the end of your pole into the water and give the rig a quick pull.  As well as lubricating the elastic, this tells you if the line is twisted around the pole tip.

Pole Care.    To keep you pole in tip-top condition.  You should always wipe the male joints and the inside of the female joints to remove any dirt or grit.

Stop Tangles.   Be generous when cutting a piece of silicone rubber tubing for the stem of your stick - apiece about 17 mm long is ideal.    Wet the stem of your float before sliding the rubber over it - this makes it easier to put the rubber on and prevents the line from getting damaged.

Nick The Bait.   If you hook too much of the maggot's skin it fills the bend of the hook and reduces the hook's fish holding capacity.   There is also a tendency for the bait to wrap around the bend when the fish takes the bait, causing the fish to be bumped off.

Accurate Casting.    It is hard to judge long distance over the water.  When fishing at long range, Dave Berrow puts an elastic band on the spool.  This enables him to cast the same distance each time.

Here are some tips to help you with your baits and lures

Worm Juice.   Nipping off the end of a worm after hooking it will allow its attractive juices to flow into the water more quickly.

Sweetcorn Soup.     Juice from a tin of corn adds flavour to groundbait but you can go further.    All you need is access to a food processor.  To do this juice put equal amounts of water and tinned corn juice and all into the processor and liquidise.

Go Heavy On The Water.    If your boilies seem to light or if they don't sink well add a little water in place of some of the egg.

Tangle Free.     Don't carry your lures around jumbled up loose.  They are bound to get into an almighty tangle.  Buy some plastic treble guards to stop your lures getting tangled.