Mashed Bread For Chub

[Stuart Johnson]

Great article as I can not seem to get my feed correct. A few questions though.
Mashed bread, do you keep the crust on. Sounds daft but won't the crust bits have a tendacy to float? Do you add the flavour with the water to mash the bread, then squeze the water out with a lot of the flavour.
Liquidised bread. Again do you leave the crusts on, as the crust bits will be more boyont. Can you freeze liqidised bread or does this defeat the objective.
Your help will be appriciated.
Skive

 

[Richard Drayson]

Stuart, a lot of people cut the crusts off before mashing or liquidising, personally I don't bother.
Liquidised bread freezes very well and is ideal for making up into session size batches. Just ensure that you remove it from the freezer the night before you want to use it.

 

[Dave O'L]

I'm quite like the idea of having a mix. I'm going to try bread chopped in the mixer instead, some of it is liquidised & some different sized pieces.

Forgot to take a big bag out of the freezer last winter when going to Thames. Took it as I thought it would become manageable but temp was too low. Rather than pack up I took the frozen lump (size of a football) out of the bag, & with a delicate pirouette I managed to shot putt it out 30 ft or so. I couldn't believe it. It worked. Caught some really nice bream by just dropping large pieces of punched flake in the area.

 

[Dave Johnson]

Stu, dont worry about the crusts if the bread is stale, it breaks up quickly anyway, AND A FEW BITS FLOATING DOWN IN CLEAR WATER WILL SOON DRAW THE CHUB OUT AND UP!!!!

also, you dont want the bait to all sink at the same rate, it is much better if it clouds and sinks at different rates.

Just think about casters...my dad reckons the finest casters are the ones all identical in colour-cos they look better....I prefer a real mix, this gives different sink rates and enables you to counteract the hook weight.

As for adding flavours, add it to a mix with water, but if you are just flavouring hookbait samples, do it by adding a few drops to a plastic bag, smearing it inside then adding a couple of slices of fresh bread, then almost freeze it rapidly to draw extra flavour in without drying the bread too much.

Dont worry about freezing liquidised bread, after all it is only an attractant. I freeze it plenty of times with no ill effects.

And I'm chubbing again this Sat if you fancy it, a steady afternoon on the Sow.

 

[David Will]

A good additive is powdered milk such as Marvel or even better milk powder which is cheaper from Asian delis. It creates a cloud that lingers in the middle and upper layers as it drifts off.As for flavours I am in the hookbait only camp. The crusts go in a poly bag and are sprayed upon.Aniseed from Richworth being a favourite.Like others I like a mixed bag of mash , some crusts , some flake and some liquidised. Chubbing like this is something I love to do but the recent few winters have not been ideal , fingers crossed for this winter.

 

[Wendy Perry]

Excellent read now i know what to do i will try this out )I bet you could also add custard powder David i know i have tipped this over my maggotts and the chub went crazy for it .
Do ya know the bread mash do you throw that in the water and in your feeder??? and what then do you use for your hook bait ??

 

[DAVE COOPER]

Wendy, use plain sliced bread on the hook. Next time you are in your tackle shop, ask them for a set of the Drennan bread punches. They are green and cut an oval out of the bread. There are several sizes for different sized hooks. They make perfect hookbaits.

 

[Birds Nest]

I like to drop a handful of mixed dog mixers into my mash too...

 

[Rob Shallcroft]

Watch out for the frozen football
shot put "theory",i have tried it
myself as a way of getting bread
down quickly chubbing on the Wye.
I gave it the big Geoff Capes at
Symonds Yat and watched the ball
float down to Monmouth !!1111.
If in doubt test in bath !!!!.

 

[Dave O'L]

Rob, was yours frozen mash or bread? Mine was frozen mash & from what I saw it went 'gloop' & disappeared. The river had a lot of colour & was running so I didn't see it after the splash. Mind you I have never repeated the exercise.

 

[Dave O'L]

I've just been making the tea & was thinking about what you said Rob. Mash's main component would be water. Frozen water is ice & ice floats don't it???? Doh!
Do you mean to say my 'football' went off downstream & I caught those bream without any ground bait??? ~
It's just as well you said this as I was going to try it again some time this winter?

 

[Rob Shallcroft]

Dave , just got in from fishin -
was lobing out frozen balls of
liquidised bread laced with hemp.
I make my own bread in a bread
maker and add my own bits and bobs.
The bread is slightly " heavyer"
than shop stuff but great for
Chubbing.
Its the only bait i make that the
missis doesn't complain about the
smell of. Mind you she got the hump
when i put half a can of kit-i-kat
in her bread maker !!
Getting a Bread maker opens up a
whole new world to anyone who likes
using the stuff.
Bright red , garlic and cheese is
my speciality , Chub love it !!.

 

[Dave O'L]

Sounds like it's you that makes that 'funny' bread for the Tesco Finest shelf Rob? You know, Posh bread for dinner parties. Do you do dips as well???

 

[Keith Finn]

Mr Shallcroft,
That heavy bread you make, Is it any good for patios?. I was looking to re-pave !!!!
Seriously though, if any one is freezing their bread crumb, hemp or whatever to use as ground bait balls you must use the minimum amount of water possible and bag each ball seperately.
Hemp ,for example, will be held together practically by frost and will chuck or catapult a hell of a long way. As soon as it hits the water it will instantly defrost and not float away.
Bread does not need any water adding to it just a little sqeezing, not too much though,and then bagging and freezing.
And yeas you do need to take it with you in a freezer box!!.
Keith

 

[Dave O'L]

I'm confused now. Did my 'lump' sink or float. I thought it sunk but from what we have been saying it probably went off to the sea when I picked my rod up?
What you appear to be saying Keith, is if I froze a block of compressed 'dry' bread & raced down to the water it would sink??? )~

 

[Rodney Wrestt]

Why not make up the balls with some gravel added then freeze it, should be heavy enough to sink the mash and the gravel would help disperse the ball quickly.

 

[Dave O'L]

Cheers Rodney. I don't intend to become preoccupied with this frozen bread thingy but I was just thinking about an area of a small shallow river near me that I intend to explore seriously 1 day. I was thinking due to it's size I could make up a massive ball & place it above the stretch I have in mind. I won't have to disturb the water too much then.
Maybe if I should just use an 'onion sack' or so? A case of 'rubby doughy'???? (sorry I'll get my coat!).

 

[Darrell Cook]

Rob,
I see you fish the Wye at Symonds Yat, this is an area I would like to fish, could you give me any pointers.Much appreciated.
BTW do you fish the Monnow? I had a session there yesterday,first one in a long time.Used to be excellent (behind Woolworths) but was pretty poor yesterday, two nice Dace and a chub that one day might get bigger than the Dace.lol.

 

[Rob Shallcroft]

Yep i have fished the Monnow ,
mainly the entrance to the Wye
itself for Pike and Chub.You can
park up at the allotments and fish
the left hand point.You have to
catch it right as with heavy rain
the Monnow gets the colour of
Oxtail soup and rages through into
the Wye.Plenty of silver fish to
be had when the Wye is well up and
the Pike are not far behind , not
had any real biggies though.Good
value though as the fishing is free

Symonds Yat area is a different
proposition , the rights to fish
are held by Ross , Newport and
Glamorgan clubs
Feeder fishing hemp and casters
using a bait dropper is the go in
the summer.Low water , fish below
rapids / streamy water and you wont
go wrong.When the levels are up it
can be patchy and difficult even in
the summer.
Winter the Chub fishing can be
really good , mashed bread fished
very close in is the go , dont sit
in one spot long if you arent
catching though. I struggle with
the Barbel in the winter to be
honest , cant seem to find them.
So much of the river is high banks
and dangerous to fish when levels
are up . Its a wild river with
natural stocks so at times you can
bag up but as often i struggle to
find fish as they move around so
much .
I fish up there every week and they
know me in the Sarecens Head pub
so if you see a scruffy , fishing
type in there with a Portsmouth
Football Club hat on its me !!.

 

[Carp Angler]

Not another Scummer lover.......