Neil G

Good luck I'm going to buy some surface popper lures today for a short lure session tomorrow morning.....very weedy now so I know I'm going to loose some

Interesting read as I am thinking about getting a pin for pike fishing on the rivers I was put off by the price but since te Okuma seems to be recomended as a good real at the price I may have to invest in one now. Do people use braid with CP reels when targeting large fish such as pike?

Gutted....that's always the side of lure fishing that I find hard.....they are so expensive and cause distress when lost!! Popped up deadbaits still a goer now....I'm still catching on that setup.

Appaling If people want to know if their fish are recaptures etc why don't they just take photos and identify them by their spots/markings? Every fish is different in that respect.

Sorry but I have to laugh at that

Here we go again Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Shall I add in the close season debate as well for good measure!

I've always had luck with Perch using simple ledger setup & red maggot.

Exactly..it does work Just experiment with a few different baits & configurations (whole, half & fillets) & I'm sure you will have some luck!

who knows....all I know is that fillets work for me for what ever reason. Also..I fish quite big waters these days (80 hectares) so mackerel fillets threaded on a hair and hooked usually stay in place on the big casts you need to get out to features etc.

A friend of mine laughed at me when I started doing it but when I started catching he soon changed his opinion. I've fished this method in a gin clear reservoir as well so obviously the look of the fillet doesn't put the pike off at all....I think the fact that the bait is 'open' if you like helps spread the oils from the bait as well. I kind of got the idea from some articles I read about Mick Brown using hair rigs and single size 4 or 6 sea/catfish hooks baited up with just chunks of deadbait instead of whole/half fish baits. If it's good enough for him then it must be good enough for the rest of us!

All my reels are Daiwa ones that seem to keep on going season after season and I do a lot of winter fishing as well....pretty cheap as well which is a bonus. Good point about testing the reel out on a rod....definately worth doing if you can

Looks about right Andy if your using snap tackles I usually fish deads head down with one treble and a couple of bait bands round the tail if I'm fishing mid water which isn't that often....I've had the most luck with popped up deads, particularly mackerel fillets.

Deadbaiting for pike

That stuff about hunter gatherers etc is always my excuse as well to her indoors. In reality though I juts lik ebeing outside chilling etc as my job is pretty stressful in the week

lol @ carp domination

Lots of different views on this but I'm sticking to fishing for pike year round as I haven't really that much interest in catching carp & tench anyway. I think the pressure aspect is true on some smaller waters but not realy applicable to larger ones. Some of the reservoirs I fish are around 80/100 hectares in size and I hardly ever see anglers there....I wonder how many fish are recapured there?

I'd have to agree with that Caught a couple of nice doubles last weekend and I've never seen pike jump so far out of the water!!!!

I usually use size 4 or size 6 sea hooks when using single setups too....as you say, striking as you would do on a 'normal' rig.

Not sure if it's the 'done thing'....more like personal preference. I prefer catching fish with sharp teeth in but as far as carp go I definately prefer the sleeker common to some of the hulking great commons you see with massive bellies.

Yet more politics It's £25, not the £300 or so it costs to fish some syndicate lakes so I can't see the issue. I really don't care what 'they' do with the money either, they can wipe their a**es with it for all I care.....it's soon forgotten about when your out there doing what you love doing..fishing.

Agree with the above Looking for fish activity is where it's at.....you can't catch what isn't there!

Too true Appaling news about the otter...who the f**k would do that?

Good pics mate I never use snap tackles and have been using singles with mackerel fillets for a while now with quite a bit of success. I have also hair rigged baits a la Mick Brown..great for long distance work as the bait is 'locked on'...haven't had much luck with that setup yet though.

Agree with you boozlebear Also angle of photo etc can play a part in it too...a bit side on and they can look far lighter then they actually are.

Well done...you must be chuffed I'm not a carp fisherman but can appreciate the top fish....commons for me are just so much prettier than jellybelly mirrors!