I've just read Archie Braddock's Magic Book on bait flavouring. It's good stuff, but I get the impression it's quite a complex business. I'm just a pleasure angler who likes to dabble in different types of fishing and goes about once a week for 2 or 3 hours. I get the impression that, to take it seriously, I'd need to get half a dozen additives and half a dozen flavours for starters, which would knock me back at least £50. Then I'd need to experiment quite a lot before the dividends really came.

I'd be interested to hear from other general coarse anglers who've got into the flavour game. Was it worth it?

As a general guide John, the fruit flavours tend
to work in summer and spicey ones work in Autumn
and Winter.
I have spent pounds on different flavours over the years,and can't honestly say that any of them
have improved my catches.If you want to try one
then I reckon Scopex has stood the test of time
and would appear to work for most species.Also
worth a look are any fruit flavours.Even if they
don't improve your catches,at least your hands
smell a bit sweeter at the end of your session!

I tend to stick to proven flavours.
I use a fair bit of sensas bait squirt or the van den eye range.
I have had the most success with pure pellet oil and scopex flavours.

on sat I used pure pellet oil to soak a few course pellets mixed with hemp before throwing into the swim,prior to this I had not had a bite in an hour and a half within 15 minutes of introducing the loose feed with the oil on I had a 6lb common carp,might have been coincidence,but there were anglers who had arrived a couple of hours before me and most had not had a touch it was tried in desperation but I will give it another go and see what happens.

I'm puzzled. Archie Braddock's Magic Book on bait flavouring is about applying carp principles, modified, to general coarse fish. It's an impressive read, and Steve Burke said in a recent thread that he felt it was a really important book. Yet the only actual example so far in this thread of flavours working was for a carp. The only flavour of Archie's I've actually tried was his specialist roach flavouring, and I had very little success. But then I'm a hopeless roach angler. But I'm surprised there hasan't been more support for using flavours for general coarse fish.

Hi fish a match today, mico pellet, soaked
double squirt, stawberry/scopex , with a pinch
of black groundbait, cost bearing in mind the
double squirt, groundbait will last afew matches
£5-£6, = idid ok keep it easy keep it simple.

ps soft hookers

Dave

I went fishing on a small lake in Cornwall a few weeks ago, using maggots on a float, they were only small carp to 4 lb, i had no joy for about 3 hours. I had a bottle of The Source in my bag, and in desperation, give them a dip, and connect straight away. The Mrs was using a block end feeder with maggots and had no joy either, so we dipped hers, and there you go, 12 carp in about 3 hours.

Dave G - did it work?

Billy - it clearly did, but once again carp. Isn't there more evidence of it working for other fish than carp?

Hi John, wish i could help at this minute on that one. Ask me next Saturday....i am off to a local lake on Friday and will let you know how it fairs then. It is (apparently) good for barbel as well.

Hi, John, Yes it did work, I have used this
for the last few years and it has payed some
rewards, Last week 48 1/2 lb carp upto
3lb [ 24 of em ] 3 chub for 2nd, 50 + 1st,
I use the same at a differant venue for
Tench scimmers roach rudd chubb the odd
barbel,hook bait may vary, but the feed
stays the same, one match last year 3hr
92lb the other venue [smaller fish] 5hr
62 lb still a match record