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Boilies Only????

John Cook

John Cook

Senior Member
Hi All,

I have been a boilie hookbait user now for many seasons and over that time have amassed buckets and packets of different pellets groundbaits particles etc which i feed by hand in mesh or in feeders......My question is this are there any boilie hookbait users out there who just use boilies?? For example crushed and broken boilies in a mesh bag, whole or halved boilies on a stringer, or just the boilie hookbait? After such chopping and changing with different pellets etc i am thinking of going the boilie only route hookbait and free offerings. Any thoughts or experiences???
 
Yes John - Me !
broken, whole, small, big, soft, hard, on the hook, on the hair, PVA mesh, PVA bag, handballed, baitdroppered, i think i've been through the lot, but for quite a few years now i haven't used loose feed of another type, save for a couple of years back when i ran out of my bait mix right at the end of the season, when i reverted for the last couple of weeks to my old meat recipe, with cooked mincemeat and hemp as the loose feed.

But in fact i think both methods work, and the loose feed is better for attracting numbers, if you are not particularly trying to target big fish.

Ian.
 
John,

It has always worked for me when using boilie only on the severn and warks avon. Usually use fine boilie crumb (now made easier with a krusha), broken boilies and between 1 and 4 half boilies on the hair depending upon boilie size. Great method when you are trying to introduce new baits as they get a minced morsel to taste before sucumbing to the hookbait. I nearly always use this method when field testing hinders new boilies for barbel; as if the bait works, shaun will then develop the groundbait, although sometimes it's the other way around.

Paul
 
I tend to crush boilies and add a little ground pellet or 2mm pellets along with a little base mix to bulk out the boilie crumb.

My intention is to create a strong flavor trail (cloud in the water) for the fish to home in on leaving my hook bait as the only edible offering in the swim.

When water temperatures drops considerably I substitute the ground pellet for more boilie crumb and base mix.

Tom.
 
Hi John,

I think as you and thousands of others have discovered, all the boilie/ground bait/pellet combinations you have mentioned, and a whole host you have not...will work. All have their day, and sometimes their place...but they all work.

Equally, boilies on their own in all their whole/crushed/halved combinations will work. The beauty of the boilie only method is simplicity...you will catch just as many fish, but none of the hassle of other stuff to fret about. If you wish to feed to attract large quantities of fish...use more! To target single large fish, use less but possibly higher quality.

In my opinion mate, on the small rivers we fish, two halves of a quality boilie mounted back to back on the hair, with a wallnut to golf ball sized mesh bag of bits hung on the hook every cast is a winner, with pre-baiting a great help.

Cheers, Dave.
 
Hi Lads,

Thank you for your input, it looks like you are already fishing the methods that were running through my mind, Ian its been a long time since i have used a baitdropper and like yourself i get great pleasure in putting a base mix together and catching on my boilies......Looks like im the only one without a korda krusha i will have to pick one up it will make the making of the boilie crumb a bit easier, i have some ready for tomorrow though, hope that this day of rain has coloured the river a little....
 
I make hookbait boilies that have a slightly higher flavour level than my free offering bait, which I usually prepare as sticks. I periodically trickle a small amount of broken sticks into the swims I am targeting over as long a period of time as possible - by small I mean the equivalent of 4 or 5 boilies. I use no freebies when fishing other than a very small amount of boilie crumb in a PVA stocking. If the fish pick up one bait I want it to be mine. I have, on occasions fished a single hookbait with no free offering at all and I think it is just as effective. I think using PVA/boilie crumb just gives me a bit more confidence.

Steve
 
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Not much to add but I have changed to making my own boilies earlier in the year, baiting less in quantity, letting the subtle flavours do the work. As mentioned, capture rate down but slightly better fish resulted. Presented with a small PVA bag of small 8mm's & rolled paste balls
 
what boilies are every one using always done well on the trusty old mainline active 8 seems to catch on most waters
 
Would this method work on a big river like the Trent or are most of you fishing smaller waters?

Trevor
 
Trevor Davies said:
Would this method work on a big river like the Trent or are most of you fishing smaller waters?

Trevor
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Its all down to if you want quantity or quality, but for me i generally go for quantity and hope some quaility comes my way, if you get my drift. I went the boilie route this season and for me it has worked beyond my expectations, but as the winter draws in i am having to alter my approach.

Jon
 
i don't see why it wouldn't work on any river, just with the trent you would need deep pockets.
 
David Hall said:
i don't see why it wouldn't work on any river, just with the trent you would need deep pockets.
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Precisely why I've shyed away from going for it so far!:eek:;):D
After seeing a fairly modest boilie only attack work very well for someone on the Trent last week, I may just give it a go in the future. The only doubt I'll have is not knowing what the magic bait was. Guess I'll just have to have a little faith in my own!:D
 
Always fish boilie hookbaits but today i also attatched a small mesh bag of boilie crumb to the hook on every cast and that was about 4 casts, result 1 bite and a chub of about 4lb...........Couple of people near me fishing maggots and they never had a touch....:eek:
 
John Cook said:
Always fish boilie hookbaits but today i also attatched a small mesh bag of boilie crumb to the hook on every cast and that was about 4 casts, result 1 bite and a chub of about 4lb...........Couple of people near me fishing maggots and they never had a touch....:eek:
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Hi John, way to go mate :D

I don't use a boilie crusha myself, although I guess it depends how hard your boilies are....and how deep your pockets are :p. My method is to sit with the PVA mesh feed tube gripped between my knees, leaving both hands free to break my baits up and drop in the top, while watching the rod tip for bites. It gives me something to do between bites.

The only problem with that is that on a few of my trips, had I persisted there would have been about 1500 bags tied up between bites :D

Cheers, Dave.
 
Hi David,

I hope that all is well with you? We must be the only 2 on here who doesn't own a krusha:( I crumbed down my softish boilies and made half a dozen bags before i left home, Like yourself if i made mine on the bank i would need a barrow to get them back to the car:eek:
 
John Cook said:
Hi David,

I hope that all is well with you? We must be the only 2 on here who doesn't own a krusha:( I crumbed down my softish boilies and made half a dozen bags before i left home, Like yourself if i made mine on the bank i would need a barrow to get them back to the car:eek:
Click to expand...

Hi John,

Not too bad mate, thanks...be even better if I could get myself together and put a few more sessions in before the weather turns nasty and white. Mind you, at least the water usually stays bendy on rivers when it gets really cold. In my former life as a less than sane carper, I lost count of how many times I woke up in the morning to see rather surprised looking ducks skating past my bivvy as they crash landed on an oddly stiff looking lake :D

Thinking of the number of PVA bags we could make between us while waiting for a bite....perhaps we could go into business selling ready tied bags on fleabay :p

Cheers, Dave.
 
Julian Griffiths said:
Dave/Crooky

Even if the weather does turn extremely colder than of late, I can vouch for the fact that a late session during the hours of darkness, using a large walnut sized piece of paste has done me some nice Barbel, long after everyone else has gone home!;)

The only problems that I have is that my landing net continuously gets frozen to the floor, so quiet often I am battling with two adversaries one the Barbel, the other the landing net. And in the depths of winter its usually the net that gives me a good fight, as the Barbel is too lethargic to do anything!:D
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Oh boy...do I know exactly where you are coming from Julian :D On one winter night some years ago I had a 30+ carp close to the bank, and the tug of war with the net frozen to the bank began...you are terrified that the fish will scream off again...and then when you pull a bit harder and there is a ripping sensation, you have visions of a net with no bottom :D

The mad thing was, once the fish was weighed and returned...I lay the ruddy net back down again...and yup, an hour later, I had exactly the same scenario with an even bigger fish...got lucky that time as well though :D

How dumb can ya get :p

Cheers, Dave.
 
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