DUNCAN CHARMAN
DAY – TICKET TACTICS
Specimen angler,
Duncan Charman, visits a different day-ticket venue each month and
explains how he gets the best out of his session. This month he looks
into the Pellet Waggler, an enjoyable and active tactic that on its
day is difficult to beat.
Last month I
mentioned how trout/halibut pellets have revolutionised the way we
approach most day ticket venue and how traditional baits such as
sweetcorn, bread, maggot and hemp are usually just an after thought
when we prepare are kit. I have to admit that I am also dependant on
pellet on certain venues and if I were to arrive without any then
would feel as if I was dressed in a straight jacket, they are that
important. One method that I love and try my best to have a few days
out using is the pellet waggler and although I occasionally head to a
venue such as Willow Park and seriously bag up on carp, what I like
to do is to take it to a venue, such as GAS members only Broadwater,
where its rarely used and work a swim in a way very few others do in
the hope of hooking some larger specimens. The method although widely
accepted as a carp method can on the right water catch other species
and I remember fishing at MBK Leisure’s Barons Ponds and constantly
slipping the net under quality roach, so don’t over look it for
other species.
The reason I love
this method is that it’s a very active method and without feeding
you just won’t catch. The catapult has to be in constant use, even
if this only means introducing five pellets every few seconds but get
them constantly falling through the water column and eventually a
passing carp will intercept them and start feeding. Once you have one
carp feeding others will follow and as the session progresses things
should get better and better.
The most common
mistake I see anglers make is to lose patience too soon and revert
from feeding on a little and often basis to catapulting a big
pouchful of bait in every five minutes or so. What you need to try
and remember is pellets need to be falling through the water all the
time so your catapult needs to be in your hand all the time.
Fortunately if the bait has been mounted in the correct manner, bites
in most circumstances will be similar to barbel bites, three foot
twitches, so you can place the rod down and wait for a carp hooks
itself. Saying this I have had times when I have to strike, yet this
is usually in the early stages of a session when the carp aren’t
competing against each other.
It’s a saying I
mention all the time whether an angler is float fishing or feeder
fishing at that is ‘fish within your limits’ and the reason it
rings true when fishing the pellet waggler is because anglers seem to
think that the further out they go the more fish they will catch.
Fishing at a comfortable distance and feeding accurately, as well as
having confidence in what you are doing are the key points in fishing
the pellet waggler. Saying this one more important fact is to pick
your swim carefully as casting it in a poorly chosen swim will mean
one thing, you will struggle. My advice is to take a stroll around
the venue and look at the water carefully. In the summer carp will be
spotted cruising around, often with the vast majority of the others
in the lake. Find this area and fish effectively and you have a
recipe for success.
The way I set up
is also important and I much prefer to sit on a match style tackle
box as the added height, compared to a carp style chair, makes
feeding and casting far easier. The butt of my rod, which is a Daiwa
TDR 12ft Match Power pellet waggler rod, is placed on my knee but
instead of pointing this directly at the float I place it at slight
angle as bites usually see the rod being dragged round, so although
I’m float fishing the rod is placed as if I was feeder fishing and
watching a quivertip. Mainline needs to be strong and robust and I
use Sufix DuraFlex in a 9.9lb breaking strain. This may seem over the
top but its only 0.20mm thick so casting isn’t affected and as
long as a weaker hooklink is used then even twenty pound plus carp
should be landed, just take your time. Instead of making up my own
hooklinks I now use GURU pre-tied ones as they are made from reliable
quality components and aren’t that expensive. In the past I have
preferred to mount my pellet on a hair, mainly as I found tying a
band on the hook or the bands constantly breaking a pain, but these
GURU hooklinks are very good. Floats come in all shapes and sizes,
yet the ones that I have found as good as any are 8g Preston
Dura-Pellet Wag. They come with thin splashed discs, which I rarely
use, and a few weight discs to shot the float at the desired height,
yet I like to shot these down, and then glue the screw in weight
within the float as they do have a tendency of working loose. These
floats cast like a dream and I simply attach them using a quick
change swivel which runs on my mainline and is trapped between two
very tight float stops.
The reason for
using float stops is that these can be moved under pressure which
allows the depth I’m fishing my bait to be adjusted throughout the
session. Usually I will start a session fishing my bait at dead depth
and cast regularly so that the bait falls slowly to the bottom. If I
start getting bites on the drop then its time to fish the bait at
three-quarter depth and if the fish are right up on the surface and
swirling at pellets as they hit the surface then the bait will be
fished just a few inches under the float. It’s just a matter of
finding where the fish want the bait.
As for what are
the best pellets to use, well this is really what you feel confident
in using. Most of the venues I fish insist on using their own low-oil
feed pellets and if that’s what I’m feeding and attracting carp
with then it seems sensible to use the same as hook bait. Low oil
pellets are usually light in colour and sink far slower than high oil
pellets, which is good, but I would recommend taking a variety of
sizes, more for the reason that if the carp are at range then the
bigger pellets will be able to catapult further, however in most
cases 6mm and 8mm will be fine.
So there you have
it a devastating method but one that needs constant attention to
certain points such as feeding, casting and depth changing. This type
of fishing is an art and perfecting it, like all styles of angling,
won’t come overnight, yet as long as you are on fish you should be
able to catch a few and as long as you learn from your mistakes, soon
you will be bagging up big time.
Images
Main – Its not often you see me
sitting on a match style tackle box but every now and again I love to
pop down to Willow Park that’s virtually on my doorstep and enjoy
bagging up on the pellet waggler. Note the position of the rod tip,
around forty degrees to my left.
1 – Floats come in all shapes and
sizes but you will be hard pressed to beat Preston Dura Floats.
2 – Get the carp competing and you
should be able to catch carp like this Ghostie all day.
3 – A nice double. Fun on a float
rod.
4 – No more fiddling about making
hooklinks up.
5 – Fine and strong, ideal mainline
for the pellet waggler.
6– Low oil 6mm and 8mm pellets are
fine.
7 – There are many ways off attaching
the float but I keep it simple and use a couple of float stops.
8– This little tool will help band
your pellet.
9 – Six or seven pellets every twenty
seconds will get the fish feeding!
10 – Top Tip. Add some slicker oil to
your pellets as it will add further attraction to your pellets and
draw fish to your hookbait.
11 – The advantages of a match style
seat box are huge as the height makes casting and catapulting far
easier and the rests allow the rod to be placed across my knee
leaving my hands free to perform the most important part of fishing
the waggler, feeding!
No comments:
Post a Comment