Search results

Agreed. I remember seeing Jon's fish in the Yorkshire Evening Press all those years ago - I was 10 at the time! Fantastic fish Steve - thanks for sharing the pic.

Good thanks Rich. Check these out: - Boilie Beak Point BBP Micro Barbed | Razor Point Hooks | Products | ACE - Advanced Carp Equipment

Hi Rich. How's things? I'm still using Trickster Heavy nearly 3 years after reviewing it for BFW and as yet not lost a fish due to it breaking. Perhaps you've just hit a run of bad luck? Not walked under any ladders recently?! :) With regards to hooks straightening - are you using standard...

Nash banksticks are top notch when I need them but generally I use my right knee.

Thanks for the input chaps. Had a feeling the Korum rod would be up to the job. Gavin - I hear what you're saying regarding 2nd hand gear and if I was looking to kit myself out on a budget that's the route I would take but as these are recommendations to friends and family I would rather they...

Can anyone recommend a good rod and reel combo for around £100? I've a few friends and relatives looking to get into Barbel fishing. Basics first - rod and reel! The Korum Barbel rods look good for £50 - anyone tried one? For the reel my thoughts are towards a Shimano ST4000 but what about the...

Save yourself a small fortune and buy a hook sharpener! Straight points are easier to sharpen than curved so go for something like the Drennan Super Specialist Barbel, Gardner Incizor or ESP Raptor Big T's. Check the point every cast and if it's turned over, a quick lick with the file and back...

Depending on which bait companies your local tackle shop deals with I'd be happy with any of the following: Sticky Baits Krill, Nutrabaits Trigga Ice or Dynamite Baits Sardine n Anchovy - all great Barbel catchers. I had an excellent season on Sticky's Krill last term but not easy to come by in...

Amazing what you see in the river valley. You would have wet yourself seeing what I saw the other day. Mink pops up in the margins with a 2lb+ eel in it's gob. Eel giving it's best wraps itself around the Mink and almost strangled it! Proper fight to the death - unfortunately the mink won.

Swings and roundabouts Bill - that's all. Last season I started with 3 blanks on the trot. Caught 1 or 2 Barbel on every session so far this year and had a couple of great sessions in the last few days. Having to search for the fish again and they're turning up in all sorts of odd places - my...

I find 4-5" about right. Wouldn't go much shorter than that (unlike the classic carp rig) as you risk defeating the object - a big Barbel has a long snout and the braid section needs to be long enough for the fish to be able to get the bait in it's mouth with out coming into contact with the...

Another option to Kryston's Quick Silver is Gardner Vigilante - cheaper too. Demonstrated it's abrasion resistance to a mate while filing the corner off a house brick with it! Quite wirey off the spool but once wet becomes supple, not as supple as an uncoated braid like Trickster, but more...

I did read from the start Graham and saw you advocating the use of a mix that stays in the feeder which in my view is part of the problem David was facing. Thankfully he's listened to some advice, tried a shorter hooklink and a mix that exits the feeder easier and he's found a solution. Not sure...

Bit tetchy today aren't we? Presumably no one should have an alternative opinion either! :rolleyes: Consider which is more likely to cause foul hooked fish: situation 1 - David's situation, the fish are approaching a feeder filled with method mix and micro pellet and staying in one spot...

Freely admit it's not an option for every situation, should have added pace of water to the distance and depth consideration! My thoughts mainly revolving around where the loose feed will end up - if you can't be sure, then don't do it! We should add substrate type to that list as smooth sand or...

Hi David, I think your initial suspicion that the micro's are holding the fish over your hooklink for longer is correct - Barbel love them and will hold station over the baited spot for as long as it takes for them to eat them all! They're obviously working though so don't ditch them. As Graham...

Looks decent but why is 1kg of 12mm boilie £1 more expensive than 1kg of 14mm? It's still 1kg of base mix gone through a rolling table! Not aimed at you Clive - just putting the question out to all - why do we pay more for 10/12mm baits than we do for 14/16mm? It's not like they are hand rolled...

Hi Paul, If the swim I'm fishing is within range of a bait dropper I'd feed mainly hemp with just a few hookbait samples in each dropper load. Out of dropper range I'd fish a groundbait feeder with a few hookbait samples trapped between the groundbait. If fishing boilie I have most confidence in...

Trigga is a Chub magnet! Like Bob I prefer Trigga Ice for Barbel, used all year round. Got on to Sticky Bait's Krill last season and had my best season ever in terms of numbers of fish per session - really rate it as a Barbel bait. Prefer to fish paste as a hookbait rather than a boilie but we...

Water with a bit of pace on it, preferably after a riffle or weir that helps oxygenate the water. Depth not an issue at this time of year - fished a swim last week that was barely 12" deep and could see the Barbel moving up to the baited spot as they caused a bow wave on the surface as they came...