Spring is the ideal time to target specimen slabs. Top all-rounder Duncan Charman lifts the lid on his tactical approach for the species, and details the one rig he wouldn’t be without…
BEFORE I dive into explaining why the rig I use is so effective, I must state that, devastating as it may be, if cast into a swim with no fish, it simply won’t catch.
Sounds obvious, but when it comes to bream fishing there are certain watercraft rules that apply, and most come down to location.
In general, big bream prefer open water, well away from the bank, so expect to be fishing at range, rarely less than 50 yards. Therefore, your choice of rods, reels, mainline and feeders needs careful consideration.
Bream will also almost always follow the wind, so picking a swim with the wind in your face, preferably a warm south westerly, will certainly be advantageous. However, they hate feeding in weed, so avoid such areas – especially those choked with silkweed – like the plague.
Bream also love to show themselves, especially at dusk, so by spending a few evenings watching the water without the tackle can save loads of time when it comes to actually finding the fish.
And one last thing: on vast windswept gravel pits specimen slabs can be highly nocturnal, so be prepared for a night-time assault. On smaller venues, however, they can be caught throughout the day, especially the first few hours of light, with overcast days being far better than bright, sunny conditions.
Understanding and acting upon these rules is paramount, and if all the parts fall into place then you are 90 per cent along the road towards having a red-letter day. All that’s left to do is to present an appealing hookbait on an effective rig right in front of them!.
Balancing act
When it comes to tackle choices, this comes down to the size and nature of the venue you’re fishing, but in general, 12ft rods in the 1.25lb – 1.75lb test curve range will suffice, along with a freespool reel in the 4000 – 6000 size bracket, loaded with 8-10lb line.
In the past I’ve had to use carp rods and big pit reels loaded with 12lb line to cast Method balls upwards of 100yds when fishing for big bream over 15lb, and quite often hooking carp to over 30lb, so be prepared to beef everything up if needed.
Maggots, simply the best
Most of my bream fishing nowadays is done on club waters of up to 20 acres in the spring, until the first week in May, when the bream seem to go into spawning mode. Although the fish don’t grow massive in these lakes, each season the odd double puts in an appearance, with the average size being more than 7lb. And if you find yourself in the right area, catching
