May I ask some advice please?

Having had a little trouble keeping rapidly thawing deadbait on my trebles last winter, this year I've adopted the technique of looping a couple of turns of cotton around the rear treble. I think I read about this in Piking Beyond 2000 (although there, the suggestion was to use elasticated thread). However, elsewhere I've heard how important it is to only lightly hook the trebles in thick-skinned bait in order that the hooks come out of the bait (and into the pike) easily on the strike. The arguement being, I believe, that if the hook remains in the deadbait as well as in the pike it can easily get levered out of the latter.

Whilst appreciating one technique is for soft skinned bait and the other is for tough skinned bait I'm still having trouble reconciling the two pieces of advice. Surely the cotton would ensure that the hook doesn't come out of the deadbait on the strike and thus the leveraging out of the hook (from the pike) becomes more likely?

Cheers in advance,
Derek

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hi del

nothing wrong with the cotton mate,good way of doing it or use elastic,first off you have the first part on tough skinned baits bang on mate,baits like lamprey,mackrel,eel section etc instead of putting the hook all the way in, nick it in a few millimeters of flesh(this is a lot easier with a thawed bait)with lamprey and eel section youll be suprised how tough it still is allowing good casts.i had the same problem few weekes back,bumped a nice fish off on lamprey,i got the bait back re-hooked it up as descirbed and bang got it on the second take,no probs hooking.

with soft baits like smelt,herring,sardine etc the force generated on teh wstrike will pull the hooks clean out,especially IMO when using braid.get a cooler bag and only cast frozen solid baits it'll give you more confidence if you want to cast a bit further or experiment!cast a soft bait out and try strike it off.i really wouldnt worry about soft baits concentrate on hooking the tougher baits right,they are the ones that will give you problems.

[ 17. December 2004, 01:44 PM: Message edited by: Ratty46 ]

I don't have a clue where that advice came from.
I use Trout mostly which are tough skinned and I don't try to lose the bait on the strike and I don't bump many fish. This was a discussion point on P&P recently.
As for other softer baits, I go along with Ratty. A good cooler bag lined with freezer blocks or a couple of sheets of Techni-Ice (which really does work) will keep your baits frozen for a session.

common knowledge poach,
everyone says make sure tough baits come off on strike,funny enough tho i dont think trout are that tough skinned,you use brownies tho?i use rainbows.

No I'm fully aware of the idea Ratty but myself and Lumby had a rant about this not too long ago on P&P and we both agreed this idea was mince.
And yea I'd say Brownies are pretty durable but rainbows aren't quite the same unless you happen to use fresh lives ones...

oh ok,i get ya,what was the tread called fella?i was off-line for a bit probably missed it wouldnt mind reading it,no fresh live on es mate to bloody expensive,they are a top bait tho....

I think it's a southern softy thing, Andy. Those limp wrists make it difficult for them setting hooks properly...


My advice would be to try tied on baits and lightly hooked ones nd see how you get on.


It's been said many times, and it's true, the hooks don't go home until the pike relaxes its grip on the bait.

So, when you get a run the way to set the hooks is to point the rod at the pike and wind down until you can't wind any more, then lift the rod to the playing position. Keep the rod well bent and you should have no problems - or very few.

Had a look for the thread Ratty but P&P's search reults are a bit mental to say the least. You Either get nothing or 100's of close results and I just couldn't be bothered after 10 mins. Sorry mate.

[quote] Dave Lumb:
I think it's a southern softy thing, Andy. !

Back legs down the front of your wellies.
Front legs over a wall.
Simple mate....they can kick all they like. There's no escape..... demon