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Trotting For Barbel.

I was out again Tuesday afternoon, no Barbel this time but I did get a Chub of about 3ish and two Dace.

Loads of fun though, even if it was Bloody cold!

Back out again Saturday to get cold again, must be as mad as a box of rocks!!
 
Well, I had my first ever centrepin session ( not for barbel, water still very cold), using my right handed Trent yesterday. No fish. Had some problems that I have not figured out yet. First few trots went well, a few yards out with the line being pulled off the reel very nicely by the stream. Then something happened, and the same setup would no longer pull the line off at similar speed without some help. Some stiffness had appeared in the system. Took the reel apart, all seemed clean, and the reel appeared to run free. The line seems to be through the rings without problem. But something was still wrong. A mystery which, with some experience I might solve, but for the moment ????
I will also have to revisit applying a modification. It really is not right for a leftie.
My thanks though to all the contributors to the thread, some very useful information.
 
John, did you check for line bedding in on the spool? If you'd been retrieving against a fair flow it could have been what caused your problem, would explain why it ran smoothly at first before stiffening up.
 
John. How cold was it?

At these near sub zero temperatures the line can have trouble going through the rod rings, partailly freezing especially with a chilling wind.

Gyicerine might help.

Graham
 
Temp was about 4 degrees C, both water and air. So no icing. I would recognise the icing problem, had it many times with the fixed spool, and it tends to block the top rings entirely when it occurs.

Bedding in: I would have to think about that one. I only have about 100 yards of 4 pound line on the spool, and assume bedding in means one layer sort of cutting into the previous layers. I can see that being more of a centrepin problem, rather than a fixed spool, with its cross wound coils. But I don't think that was happening. I can't really understand why it would be a problem, unless line built up against one edge of the spool, with some coils getting in between the reel side and the built up line.

My best guess at the moment is one of some sort of detritus build up on the line ( this was the Mersey! ) , causing some sort of stickyness. Only a guess though, and probably completely out of the ball park.
 
John,
100 yards of line on a pin may be too much.In the 70s i used a pin very often fishing the stick float and we only used 50 yards maximum on ours.Sometimes down to 25 to 30 yards
graham
 
I would say bedding in was a def possibility with 100yds of line on the spool, its not really easy to see it but I also recommedn reducing to 50 yds and you;ll find this will definatley help.
 
John
I never ever put more than 50 yds of line on my pins, trotting puts far more strain on line and so you need to replace it often, I cannot see a stick float well more than 30 yds away and I suspect you are no different so the bulk of line is un-used also you get two fills form one spool of line.

Bedding in can be a problem that is easily removed, when you bat your reel to retrieve tackle look at the reel, you will probably find the line migrates to either one side or the other, if not you can force it to lay on one side or the other by angling the reel slightly away from true, the but ring will then be off centre and will force the line to one side of the spool or the other (obviously if you have Fugi style reel seats on your rod you are bugg…..you can’t do this).
Simply load the line away from where it lays naturally or to one side.
When you fish and trot the swim the line will lay naturally on retrieve, thus if you are trotting 15yards you will only have 15yards worth of line to bed into.

This only really matters if you are using a very light float in low flow conditions, most float tackle should pull line off your reel with no trouble say 6 x No4 stick in moderate flow should pull off OK if it doesn’t then you need to have a look at your reel.
Also another little tip, water or condensation on your rod will slow every thing down if the line touches the rod, so I clean and wax my rods (in particular the rings) with Mr Sheen.
When fishing and the rod gets covered in water droplets I simply bang the end of the butt and most of the water flicks off.
 
Keith Speer said:
This season I have caught 167 Barbel, all on the float from 5 rivers:- The Lea, The Kennet, The Colne, The Gade and The Great Ouse, I have yet to catch one from The Ivel but I have hooked two and both have come un-buttoned, one was off quite quickly, the other was a very big fish that I played for about five mins or so before the hook pulled.

.
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Barbel from The Gade! I've been trotting for them in the Colne around Watford never thought much about The Gade as it's a miserable river in Hemel and abstracted beyond belief but Keith you have inspired me to go looking again!

Cheers Steve
 
Line

First trip out on the pin on monday ,how much line should i put on the reel? and am i wrong in thinking dont use any backing!
 
With your range of vision i'd go for around 30 yds at most ( considering a fish might do you for 15! ) Backing? No chap, it looks like your fly reel but it's not quite the same! :rolleyes:
 
Mark Gaskell said:
First trip out on the pin on monday ,how much line should i put on the reel? and am i wrong in thinking dont use any backing!
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No backing and the absolute minimum amount of line, otherwise you will be dealing with bedding in problems constantly. For small, snaggy rivers like the Teme, if you start letting the fish run to much line out you can say good bye to the fish anyway. I use either 6 lb or 8 lb braid for trotting and spray it with silicon furniture sealant (big cans from the market), around 30 yds max. A decent stepped up float rod will let you hold even bigger fish without giving too much line far better IMO than the sea rods used by many for legering.
The biggest problem with trotting on the Teme at present is the massive catch of chub, they just love caster and home in straight away. You just have to keep going until the barbel move in as well! When the river is up a bit it is far easier to target Barbel as they will be in the faster bits, but presently there are no faster bits! I must admit after getting through a gallon of maggot and caster in a couple of afternoons for god knows how many chub and only one barbel I have reverted to pellet tactics until either we get some rain or I win the lottery.
 
Ignorance!

Sorry to sound stupid but what would the best way too present pellet on the hook ? As at the moment on the castor and maggot im being tortured by minnows, chublets,etc. :eek:
 
i love this method on the centre pin bought myself some stunnning handmade avon floats which work a dream just ordered some fluted avon wil let you know how they get on....keep on trotting;)
 
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