BoldBear

Ken can you recommend a good alternative cheap (but good) android tablet? Thanks Keith

This is the only forum (so far) that I'm having problems with when using my iPad. I don't have any problems when I access the FishingMagic or the MaggotDrowners forums. I've had the same problem before but Elton solved my problem the last time it happened. My iPad is no longer supported or updated by Apple which I think is probably my problem. Although I can still access this forum I just can't reply or create a post using my iPad. NB: I can't open my virgin email using my dated iPad either. I can use my laptop but because I don't regularly use it I have to wait for it to perform updates for several minutes before I can open the forum. So using my mobile using a stylus is my quickest way to reply or create a new post on this forum. I was thinking of getting the missus to buy me a new iPad or a new android pad which would solve my problem. Keith

I can still post on other forums (so far) Keith

I think I'll just have to bite the bullet and spend some cash on a new iPad. Keith

I've often wanted to post on here however my iPad can no longer post on here (as it is no longer supported by Apple) . So I'm having to post using my mobile phone or get my old laptop to post which is a bit of a pain in the backside. Anyone else having to do this because of their aging iPad? Keith

We always used to use Pearl Barley in our Turkey leftover stews after Christmas which we cooked in the pressure cooker. I didn’t take very long at all to cook in the pressure cooker and it thickened the Turkey Stew nicely and took on the flavours it was cooked in. Unfortunately we no longer have our pressure cooker, which is a shame as me and our son always looked forward to a good turkey stew after Xmas. Keith

That’s a real clonker of a Pike, well done that man. Keith

They’ve been a fairly common sight in the gardens and countryside around me in Hertfordshire for several years now. Sometimes they become scarce and at other times you see them every few days. Sometimes there’s about eight or ten of them sitting in the tree at the end of my garden. They damaged one of my nut feeders beyond repair and I’ve had to use a squirrel and large bird proof nut feeder to try and prevent them damaging that too. They also occasionally feed from one of my unguarded seed feeders as well. Keith

Martin, why don’t you get involved with making some decent Wagglers (Onions & straight & bodied), sticks, Avon’s etc. good ones are getting harder and harder to Source these days now that the Pole has become so common; and the parts are quite easily obtained from the bankside (wildfowl feathers) and from the web or hobby shops . If I didn’t already have so many floats myself then that is what I might have started doing. You might even become the new Andrew Field Keith

I bought myself a Ninja reel off of the Web about a year ago because of the good write ups the Ninja gets; however I returned it when I saw it; as I didn’t realise how small the spool was compared to some other reels I’ve used; and I much prefer a reel with a much wider and shallower spool which makes casting a waggler a lot easier for me, plus a wider spool doesn’t cause as much line twist/coiling on the cast because of its wider spool. I returned the Ninja and bit the bullet and went out and bought myself a Shimano-Aero-4000FA reel instead which has a much wider spool together with a Spare spool and two spool reducers for when I’m using finer lines plus a small reel body. It was more expensive (at twice the price) but in my view was well worth me paying the extra cash; plus unlike the Ninja It comes with a spare spool. I’m not saying that the Ninja is not a good reel; it obviously is a good reel; however it’s just a bit too small for me for the above reasons. The Shimano-Aero-4000FA reel with one of the line reducers fitted. Keith

There’s some very nice quality sized Dace (and Roach) caught on our local Barbel stream in flowing water, although there are plenty of slacks below reed beds along the stretch; they are caught both in these slacks and in the faster flowing gravel runs in front of the reed beds. Keith

This year I haven’t seen many goldfinches or coal tits, chaffinches or greenfinches on my feeders; plus I’ve only seen a few great tits visiting too. However sparrows and thrushes have been out in force and even now (in November) my garden is full of them. I haven’t seen so many Red Kites in the area as this year although I don’t think they are responsible for the lack of tits and finches as they are mainly just scavengers and eating road kill and dead animals mostly; although they might have had a few. I have put stiff wire meshing around my feeders and my bird table to prevent the pidgeons, magpies and the other larger birds from raiding them which may be the reason why I have so many sparrows and thrushes visiting my feeders now; but where the tits and finches have been this year is a bit of a puzzle. Keith

Has the broads recovered from the problems it had in the past with sludgy deposits spreading over its river beds in certain places ? Or is it now back to its former glory ? Keith

Very few posting these days unfortunately. It seems like most of the old regulars have moved over to (the rubbish interface in my view ) Facebook or elsewhere. Keith

Nice to see you posting again Peter Keith

There’s not much protein in our ‘white’ bread which is why it’s banned on many park ponds in the UK nowadays. I’ve caught a few Grey Mullet on bread flake but they can be very finicky at times. Our ships fishing team came third in a forces national sea match after catching a few mullet (and a few wrasse) off of the Plymouth sound breakwater once; using bread flake and small ragworm. Keith

Me neither but I expect someone will give one to me for Xmas. Keith

Had a few hours on Sunday evening on our clubs Estate Lake after Carp; but it was unusually quiet as there are usually a few anglers there on a Sunday evening but there were no other anglers there. Perhaps there hasn’t been many Carp coming out recently I thought; although my son had a mirror of just over 27lb only last week plus we both had Carp between 11lb and 17b last week so it can’t be all that bad. Anyway I set up my two rods in the swim below. Unfortunately I was right and it didn’t seem to be fishing well, however just before I started to pack up as the light started to fade after resigning myself to having a blank (which is fairly rare for this lake) one of my alarms finally sprang into life and a Carp in the very low teens was the result. I will be back on my favourite stream after Barbel next week and onwards so I will be giving the estate lake a miss for a while Keith

I also have separate tackle bags and rod quivers containing rods and tackle items for the different types of fishing that I usually do the most; and each tackle bag has everything I think that I will need; which means having several duplicate items in each of the different bags. However my fishing den had so much other stuff that had accumulated over the years; especially equipment and tackle items and other stuff that I hadn’t used for a long time like my old match tackle and associated bits; and my sea fishing stuff; and my fly fishing stuff; and lots of rods that I hadn’t used for quite a few years but would still get to use them at some time or other; plus all of my older reels that I kept for old times sake etc. and this stuff seemed to be everywhere and getting in the way Now I’ve sorted it all out I have much more space and I now know where everything is and exactly what I have and where to find it. Keith

Am I the only very disorganised Angler out there??? At long last I can now actually find all of my fishing tackle and actually get at my work bench for a change. After many years of putting it off; I finally decided to work through all of my boxes, shelves, drawers, miscellaneous bags and cupboards etc. in my fishing den; a lot of which I hadn’t even seen for decades; and do a clear up and sort out and put it all into a logical order. It took a while over quite a few days but I can now actually see what I had accumulated over the years and actually throw away some of the things that I no longer have a use for. I went out and bought myself a label printer to help me; plus loads of different sized containers; plus a couple of new steel storage shelving units; and tall storage cupboards; and threw out some old wooden shelving that had seen better days. Im not usually very organised but now it’s done and everything is in its logical order it’s great. Am I the only Angler that has let their fishing tackle and associated bits and pieces get into such a disorganised mess over the years??? I’ve found things that I forgot I had and the wife no longer nags me to death about the mess in my fishing den I also managed to whip on the odd rod ring that I’d been putting off and had forgot about long ago; and bought a couple of new cloth rod bags that had deteriorated over the years for rods that I might start to use again in the near future; now that I know where they are Are you the same as I was? especially concerning the stuff that you don’t use very often? or are you a very organised person as far as your fishing stuff is concerned? Keith

Good idea Martin My dad and I used to make my mums hair curlers into swim feeders back in the 1960’s when we fished the Thames; (using squeezed bread and maggots inside) with lead wire to give them a little casting weight and to stop them from moving too much in the current. but I think I might prefer your one. Keith

I bought a packet because I couldn’t find any of my normal link beads which are green beads (and occasionally brown) with a side eye (all in one piece) which I sometimes use when using small link ledgers (See diagram) I won’t buy the two-part beads again now I know they come apart; even though they didn’t come apart at the times I used them. I’ll just stock up with the one piece plastic beads which incorporate a side eye. Keith

I occasionally use the ‘red & black’ link beads when using a small link leger when after Barbel and Chub, but I haven’t used or seen the ‘blue & black’ ones yet. The ‘red & black’ ones don’t come apart at all; but as you said the ‘blue & black’ ones do come apart then I’ll make sure that I steer clear of them if I ever see them. Keith

Last night my son and I had a couple of hours at one of the clubs match pools which the club had converted to a fishery from cress beds back in the early 1930s. We both fished the waggler and took maggots and sweetcorn with some small feed pellets. We were hoping for some Tench and Crucians plus some smallish Carp (up to the high singles) however it turned out to be Bream, Bream and even more Bream; mostly from around a pound up to a couple of pounds in weight with a few of around 12oz; and by the time we packed up; (when we couldn’t see our floats); we were absolutely caked in horrible snotty slime. Im not a great lover of snotties however I did have one Carp plus one Tench so it wasn’t a complete failure re my targets. One thing that happened while I was setting up; I got my line wrapped around and under my reel spool so I removed the spool and started to untangle my line when I felt my line start to straighten and my rod start to bend where I’d accidentally hooked a smallish Carp or a Tench on my ‘bare hook’ at half depth (I’d not even plumbed up yet); and I had to frantically try to untangle my line; reassemble my reel and then try to start playing it in, however by the time I had tightened up after untangling and reassembling my reel it had weeded itself solid so I had to eventually pull for a break. Keith

You may be more at home with drop shotting than me; however I had the same problem when I bought a fox rage dropshotting rod and the associated tackle & lures and started drop shotting on the canal. I tried close up to moored barges and all along the near shelf and tight up to a lock; and I used different sizes and coloured dropshot lures as well; however not a touch. The next time I tried I started to vary the amount of rod tip movements and the speed of my twitching and I also learned that not all takes are as savage as you often get when your spinning with a mepps; and the fish can often just take the drop shot lure without even moving off; and so to look out for the tiny plucks; and I started to get the odd perch. Im still learning and each time I try drop shotting I seem to improve a little; but I’ve still got a lot to learn as far as drop shotting is concerned. None of my fishing friends go drop shotting so I’m having to learn all on my own without anyone to tell me what I’m doing wrong, but I’ll get there eventually as long as I keep improving a bit each time that I go drop shotting. Keith