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Tench 2014 season.

I also caught my first couple of tench this year last Friday, a 6-10 female and a 5-05 male, taken whilst bream fishing a shallow pit, a delightful bonus.
 
A bit of help needed - any advice greatly received. Fished a new lake yesterday and managed some nice tench. However, I also had 2 fish come off for no apparent reason. I was fishing at around 20 yards in 7 feet of water with 1.75 tc rods, 10lb mono, medium size drennan oval in-line feeder, 4 inch 10lb braid hooklength with a size 10 barbless hook. Bait was 2 plastic maggots on a hair. Was I just unlucky in losing 2 fish or could the problem be caused by the short hook length or possibly something else?
 
If you don't need to use barbless then get on Drennan Super Specialist hooks in 14's and 12's. Tench ' thump ' so hard they will easily throw a barbless hook on a short hooklength as the feeder / lead helps to bounce the hook out. No need to hair rig either when you are using small hooks and maggots / casters /plastics. The short hooklength ensures that the tench gets hooked as there is no room for error.

I lost a lot of tench on my pit before I was shown the errors of my old rigs.

D.
 
Thanks for that Duncan - that does seem to make sense. I think there's a barbless only rule but I'll check this out when I'm next there early next week. If I have to use barbless, I might look at changing to a mono hooklength with a bit more stretch than braid. I'm also thinking about switching to softer top rods.
 
Great advice from Duncan.

The other point with barbless on a short hooklink is that any fish movement with any slack line will often cause the feeder weight to pull the hook out.

If you can reduce the feeder weight (not size) it will help also.

Dont use plastics on the hook either if you discard the hair.

Graham
 
Caught my first two tench of the season which included a 6lb 1oz male. Both had leeches and didn't run off with the bait! The waters here in Yorkshire are warming slowly and the fish are only just waking up.
 
Very slow up here in the frozen north. Only 1 tench off my local water, to a pigger.
Ventured south at start of month and managed 2 females at 8lb12oz and 6lb9oz.
Going south again this coming weekend with great expectations.
 
Took on board the good advice from Duncan and Graham, added my own thoughts and made a few changes to my rigs and tackle. Result? A great session yesterday afternoon/evening. 4 fished hooked, none came off - all landed. I had 2 five pounders, one of 6.09 and a final beauty of 8.03. Many thanks guys.
 
Chris
Sadly checking the weather wouldn't have helped as I was committed and guesting.
Turned out ok though with a 4,5,7,8,9 and. 2x 6. Plus a couple of Bream.
Made up!
Nick
 
Good result Nick.
Was the 9 a pb?

Will give you a call next week so you can tell me how it's done as I've just signed up for a local tench ticket.

Hope you are keeping well mate.

Ed.
 
I popped to a local club lake for a few hours yesterday evening. It's predominately a carp lake and folk don't really bother with the tench. When I arrived, carrying just a float rod, bait bucket, landing net, unhooking mat and small tackle bag, I was a bit surprised to encounter comments of derision from the carp guys. "Don't catch too many" one chap said as he quickly turned to his mate to receive praise for his witty comment, and then they both fell about laughing. Why do people feel the need to do that. As I wandered around the lake dropping some hemp and other goodies in likely looking spots, other anglers looked at me in total bewilderment, like they had never seen a human move so swiftly around the lake and so lacking in gear.

Anyway, had a happy few hours catching 5 tench to 6lb and 3 carp to 12lb on the float. Bait was prawn. The only disappointing bit was the state of the mouths on the tench. Looked like carp hooks had been quite roughly removed. Shame.
 
Deep Lake at Chichester has been good to me again. 10th April I had 13 Tench averaging 5lb and a small carp. 17th April 6 Tench best went 7lb 5oz. 24th April 8 Tench, 3 bream (best 9lb 3oz) and a carp of 11bl 1oz.
I usually fish one rod on boilie and one on method feeder with sweet corn. When the weather warms up a bit more it is worth going on the float a couple of rod lengths out with red maggot or worm.
 
Have fished one of my club lakes on four occasions now, best tench 6lb 6oz, always in the same swim, the left hand rod being a float rod/centre pin set up, the right hand a quiver tip method feeder. On the float I've usually fished worm, the ledger 8mm boilies. The first and third visits favoured the float rod, the second and fourth the ledger. How weirds that.
 
Managed a new pb today of 9.04. Put nearly 2lb on my previous best so delighted with that. Been a long time coming but nice to put a proper one on the mat. :D




Duncan.
 
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