YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED BY EXPERTS...
Q I miss a lot of bites when fishing for roach and when I do connect with one, it’s often a tiddler. What can I do to improve my conversion rate?
A ROACH are one of the few species that will come quite high in the water column to feed during the winter months.
It’s quite common for the bigger ones to rise first, determined to beat the smaller fish within the shoal to the bait. It’s these fish that will brush against the mainline as they dart around the swim, leading to the float going under and the missed bites that you are experiencing.
Set up a shallow rig when this happens and there’s a good chance that the issue will be resolved.
Q I often wind in to find that my deadbaits have come off the trebles. What is the best way to hook them?
A THIS all comes down to where you stick the barbed hook on each set of trebles on your wire trace. Follow the sequence below, and you won’t suffer the problem again.
HOW TO mount a deadbait the correct way
Q I know that everyone softens their 2mm micros but is there ever a scenario on a commercial where you should do the same with bigger pellets?
A THERE will be occasions in winter when reaching for a catapult and feeding a few pellets can gain a response. This works particularly well when you don’t feel you have many carp or F1s in front of you, with the noise of bait going in and the trickle of pellets falling through the water often enough to draw a response.
Once the fish arrive, they’ll want an easy meal that they can digest with ease and dampened 4mm pellets that are ever so slightly mushy will provide that. Feed half a dozen every seven or eight minutes if you are struggling, using a 4mm expander pellet hookbait over the top so that it blends in with the freebies.
Q I feederfish a reservoir for bream where I always get off to a great start after putting a big bed of bait down, but bites tail right off within an hour. How can I keep the fish coming?
A LOT of anglers assume that a big bed of bait is essential to attract and hold bream, but there are plenty of venues where being much more negative with your feed is the way forward.
It is likely that the fish are coming into your swim, grazing for a perio
