Barbel Baits And Rigs, Part 2

To most of us the term ‘meat’, when applied to fishing, usually means the old pink stuff – luncheon meat, and it’s many variants such as Bacon Grill, Spam, etc, etc. If ever a bait deserved the term’special’ then this is it, the barbs just love it. Sure, on some waters it can be the kiss of death if used at the wrong time or in the wrong way, but it still has its place at the top of the premierleague of barbel baits.

My first ever barbel came from the middle Severn more years agothan I care to remember. My father introduced me to them, they werethe ‘aliens’ who were rapidly colonizing a previously chub, roach andbream river, but they were easy to catch and the bites were awesome.I remember my old man showing me how to mount the cube of meat withthe aid of a piece of grass, “now cast it out and don’t take your eyeoff that rod.” It was probably his and he wanted it back! We caughtmany barbel in all conditions, including a huge one for the time tothe old man. A long love affair with both barbel and luncheon meatwas born! Our favourite in those days was Tudor Queen, but I haven’tseen it around for a long time now – can anyone still get it? I graba tin of whatever is on the shelves nowadays, usually Spar’s ownbrand. To you more seasoned barbel anglers, what’s your favouritebrand? Click onto the forum link at the bottom of this page and letus know.

For years meat was used as it comes straight from the tin andpersonally I’m still happy to use it that way, it still catchesplenty of fish and you can do a few things with it It can be used insmall or large chunks, particle sized pieces, liquidised and added togroundbait, there are many permutations to try. I have had some nicefish and decent bags during daytime sessions by using very small dyedpieces along with hemp when big pieces couldn’t buy a bite. At theother end of the scale I have had fish on a hookbait the size of athird of a tin! When the silver fish are active I like to use a hugepiece, the continual pecking of the bits attracts a biggie to move inand down the lot. Fry too, if they are foolish enough to hang about!Definitely worth a go in warm floodwater when the smaller bits wantto have a go, but use a BIG lump so they don’t break it down tooquickly.

It is very popular to flavour luncheon meat nowadays and there arecertainly a vast array of flavours to go at. It can be an expensivepath to take though, for not all the flavours are fish-catchers! Atone time I had a fine array of almost full bottles of the stuff, buttake my advice and keep your ears open for proven fish-catchers, andremember most of these flavours are meant to flavour boilies at verylow doses, so don’t use half a bottle thinking it will enhance yourchances. You will probably empty the swim through chemical overkill! Some flavours are safe to use heavily but if in doubt don’t riskit.

Spices are used a lot to both colour and flavour meat, giving adusting of the stuff in the process, I like to fry my meat with myfavourite spice mix, this releases the spices true flavours and coatsthe bait in fatty sticky covering, I then let it cool and againfreeze it in sealable poly bags……..in my opinion you need notworry about overdosing spices when used like this, spices are anatural product not a chemical one, it’s fun buying really cheapspices and masalas from the local Asian supermarkets, the dyes thereare dirt cheap too. Once you have mixed your own spice mix you canbag up and freeze in bulk……..it’s OK to refreeze too though themeat can get soft, I save my left over baits to make the lads in myour group a lovely hot curry when we have get-togethers?

Other meat baits are plentiful…..meatballs, garlic sausage,pepperoni,…..if you find a good European deli ( ask a Polishfriend!) there are barbel baits galore! Failing that, some of thesupermarkets are getting very experimental in what they sell, so ifyou fancy something different they are the places to go. I usuallycan’t resist trying them though and they never make it to a hook!

SPECIALS

Now there’s a word that conjures up all sorts of mystery! What itreally means is that the angler doesn’t want you to know what he hascaught his barb on. Why, I bet good old spiced meat has beendescribed as a special many, many times (blush). The term sounds alittle daunting to newcomers but really it’s just a term to describea bait that has been doctored or put together.

One of my all time favourite bases for a special paste is sausagemeat. It can be stiffened up with a multitude of things, includingbread, groundbait, milk powder, boilie mix, etc, etc. It can be mixedwith eggs to make boiled baits and attractors and additives can allbe included………and the barbs love it! An excellent startingpoint is to put together your own special. I make an egg-based pastefrom mine and make up some boilies from half of it, I then use aboilie on the hook and cover it with paste. If the fish in your waterare shying away from light-coloured baits dye it a darker colourduring the mixing stage.

Another bait that has often been described as a special is thehumble trout pellet. They’ve been around for years but are far morereadily available nowadays. I mentioned them in part 1 as a particlebut they are available in a huge range of sizes from micro to donkeychokers. To be used as a hookbait they need to be drilled and used ona hair or used on a band. They are excellent as they come but if youfancy messing they can be ground up, mixed with eggs and made intopaste and boilies. Remember, most are not made for coarse fish and bygrinding up different type of pellet and then mixing you may stumbleon something barbel like even better! I have a friend who has ashoot, the pellets he rears his chicks on are …….interesting?

Boilies and HNV (High Nutritive Value) pastes are an important part of specialist barbel fishing and rightly so, get it right and they can be devastating. I had this driven home to me by a friend who took a lot of big barbel in his first season on a stretch of Midland river. The theory is not new, little ever is in angling, it is simply being applied in a new direction. Basically the idea is to presentthe barbel with a bait that they like to eat and more importantly perhaps, makes them feel good. If you are the type who likes to visit many different waters this, in my opinion, is not the path for you to take. However, if you a prepared to put some time into a selected stretch the rewards can be very high. If you decide to take this path, quality is the thing to remember. You need a decent base mix, and to start from scratch I would approach a carp angler and get hisadvice, but there are decent enough base mixes available ready-made, and even specifically made for barbel fishing, so this way is open to all. It’s just another method, not a recipe by black magic!

For me the ultimate special will always be the ‘naturals’. If Ihad to choose one special to cover all my barbel fishing it wouldwithout a doubt be the lobworm. My downfall is that I’m not soprepared nowadays to collect them as I was when I was 20! But neverlose sight of naturals; there are plenty to have a go with. One thatvividly springs to mind are the brook lampreys I used to get fromrotting vegetation in shaded shallow parts of small rivers. They areterrific baits, ugly yes, but terrific; hard skinned, they oozeblood, and fish adore them. They are another one I’ve neglectedlately! I must have a weekend where I have to find my own bait againsoon, they are so educational. Never turn your back on truenaturals!

The last two articles have been a chat about barbel baits ingeneral use, old hat egg-sucking stuff to seasoned barbelers perhaps,but writers nowadays seem not to want to write about basics. I thinkthat’s a shame, we need to attract newcomers and hold them, it’s notjust about ‘advanced’ angling. If anyone has questions feelabsolutely free to ask through the forum thread below. If I can’tprovide an answer I know there are others who can.

Coming soon: ‘Part Three – Rigs’