Hook Bait Ideas Please

[flightliner]

Flightliner, thanks for your reply. The last time I used mussels as bait was about 40 years ago, thet were swan mussels which I think are no longer allowed? Can I ask, what mussels did you use?

Hi peter, I used Morrissons cooked mussels at the Lincoln water, even had some late autumn tench using it back then.

 

[nottskev]

Hi peter, I used Morrissons cooked mussels at the Lincoln water, even had some late autumn tench using it back then.

Another vote for Morrisons. About £1.50 a pack and a brilliant early season barbel bait. If they're a bit soft, put them in a big bait-band with a pellet bander and hook that, or use Fox Arma-mesh.

 

[riverman]

prawns.the smaller roach will leave them alone but the bigger roach will take them regularly.fish the waggler and feed hemp seed over the top and reap the dividends.tight lines.

 

[GrayG70]

ive had Big Rudd and Roach using a simple flavoured dough, home made, primarily with flour and eggs and dynamite red krill in a bowl, mixed until you have a nice firm consistency but still tacky enough to stay on the hook. has worked well for me for the bigger ones. also the tins of flavoured Luncheon meat. i have picked up the odd bream and tench using these baits, but never really had much issue with small roach hammering it. Theres so many things you could try, i would say just experiment.

 

[GrayG70]

Prawns are ok to but i avoid using them because big perch and pike will happily take them on the water i fish.

 

[peterjg]

My wife and I have returned from a trip to the lake. We both experimented with baits. No bites at all on maize though we caught roach and carp on sweetcorn - the maize was very much harder. A few roach on bread. The surprise was catching 13 rudd and only one roach and two carp on sections of prawn. Never caught rudd on prawns before. A really nice day in a shady swim.

 

[The Sogster]

I am surprised no one has mentioned geranium oil yet, this is still one of my favourite additives to either maggots, casters or corn when targeting roach or rudd.

 

[peterjg]

The Sogster, couldn't agree more. I used geranium oil yesterday, I use it in the warmer months with Salted Caramel flavouring and in the winter with HP Brown Sauce: tried and tested it works! I've used it with sweetcorn, bread, wheat, paste, macaroni, live and dead maggots and standard pellets.

 

[markcw]

One water in the northwest stopped anglers pouring water in from cad pots on the pole .
The fish were coming to the sound and only seeing the one bait and bingo ,fish on .
To get round this , anglers started showing up with water pistols and super soakers .
Same effect ,water going in, fish turn up and get caught .

I can understand no floating baits on some waters, due to the amount of birdlife on them .
I am in a club that has that rule , also a minimum length of line from float to hook if float fishing .
I queried it saying sometimes I fish 6." deep when using a pole , apparently it's for rod and line users.

I think fir tree fishery has a no floating bread rule , I can get bread to sink about an inch per minute at times . Brilliant method against the midline or gap in rushes .

Some have must use a float when feeder fishing using a pole . No problems with that the float is only a marker , the elastic is out before the float moves .

Anyone fishing Beacon fishery at Apply Bridge look at his banned baits list , then look at anglers side trays , nearly all the baits on there .
He doesn't bother, just takes day ticket and tells you best way to fish your peg .And if catch any resident sturgeon to let him know .Biggest I've seen is just under 10lb .

 

[peterjg]

My last couple of trips I've tried prawns and done reasonably well, catching roach, rudd, carp, perch and lost a tench in a sunken branch in the edge (now removed). The prawns though were a bit too soft and were being mullered by the small fish - I admit by accident I discovered that if I left a few prawns in the hot sun they soon partially dried and the shell hardened which help to delay the prawn from being destroyed. I've also tried Morrisons mussels and only had one small carp, I followed Nottskev's advice and used a bait band - I'll try again soon.