Arkie

Firstly, don't use pop ups in PVA bags. By their very nature, when the bag dissolves, they will pop up. Unfortunately, there is nothing to stop them popping up all the way to the surface which kind of defeats the object of getting loose feed around your hook. With regard what make and flavours, yep you guessed it "certain boilies work well in certain places". it's all trial and error I'm afraid. I'm not convinced the cost of a bag of boilies indicates their effectiveness to be honest. remember that they all start out from pretty much the same base mix, it's what's added to them that makes a difference. I'm presently trialling some boilies called 'Zoom' which I have just started to stock in my shop and have been having some great results with them. They're relatively cheap compared to some of the better known brands. The one thing I will say is that this year I have been having much better results with mini boilies rigged 2 to a hair than I have with standard sized ones. Not sure if anyone else has experienced this? Anyway hope this helps. Arkie

Basically you get what you pay for with regard pole rigs. Quality of float, quality of line, quality of hook etc all make a difference to the price. Irrespective of that, £1.95 is over the top for Milano rigs. I seel them in my shop for £1.25 and make a healthy profit at that price. At £1.25 I consider them well worth their money. At £1.95, there are better rigs out there. Hope that helps. Arkie

I think you will find that Normark as a brand no longer exists. Shimano bought the Normark brand and have rebranded them all as Shimano. I used to stock Normark in my shop when they were distibuted by Masterline and then last year they disappeared from the catalogue. When I contacted my rep, he told me Shimano now owned the brand but wouldn't be keeping the name. I suggest you contact Shimano. Hope this helps.

Just found this thread after searching for information on fishing the lift method and though the thread is quite old, would like to thank all the contributors for helping me understand the method and can't wait to give it a go on Friday when I'll get a rare full days fishing. I just have a couple of questions that hopefully someone could answer. 1. Is there any reason I shouldn't use float stops on the line to set the float depth as opposed to holding it in place with float rubbers? 2. The pond I'm fishing (Pidgeon Cottage if anyone knows it) is a mixed water with a good head of tench to about 4lbs, lots of crucians, to my personal experience mirrors to 20lb and a good head of rudd and roach. It's not a huge pond and I would guess whatever peg you pick, you're never further than maybe 3 rod lengths from any feature. Also it has an average depth of about 3 feet. Would you say this is a good water to try out the lift method for the first time? Many thanks Arkie....

You may wish to contact Svendsen Sports who are the UK distributer for Ron Thompson tackle. Here's a link to their website contact page: Svendsen Contact Page Not sure if they have the spares, but they may be able to point you in the right direction. Arkie...

Don't know if it's of any help, but I believe Normark was recently bought out by Shimano and the Normark name has been eradicated. You may wish to contact Shimano and ask them about spares and repairs.

Sorry for the delay in replying, but had trouble tracking down the owner. Anyway, basically the pond belongs to a farmer who uses it as his own personal reservoir to water his land. There are no fish in it, as it usually gets drained every year throughout the summer and fills again during the winter. So as nice as it looks, afraid it's not a fishery. Hope this helps. Arkie

I drive past Thornton Abbey 3 times a week and didn't even know that pond was there. Just found it on google earth and it looks a belter. I'm going that way again on Wednesday, so think I'll stop by the pond and maybe knock on a few doors and see if I can find out anything about it.

Personally I'd go for any of the Okuma baitrunners presently on the market. I use a John Wilson avon quiver rod and have an Okuma epix pro 40. I also own an Okuma Opti drag and Interceptor pro. The reels are absolutely faultless and fantastically priced. They also come with a 5 year warranty. I couldn't conceive buying any other make of reel now. Hope that helps Arkie

Calling all centrepin anglers... I've got the opportunity of an brand new Okuma Sheffield centrepin for £80. However, as it's very unlikely I'll get to fish rivers very often, I was wondering what your thoughts are on using one on commercials? Is it worth it or am I just being indulgent. Cheers Arkie

Hi all Being relatively new to coarse fishing and having NEVER fished a river, I am determined to give it a go this year but need some advice on where to fish. I live in Cleethorpes, which is on the east coast of North Lincolnshire. I'm happy to travel up to an hour and I'm not looking to target any particular species. I simply want to experience the joys of river fishing. Any ideas on where to fish would be greatly appreciated. Arkie....

If you post exactly what baits you are looking for, I may be able to quote you. Cheers Arkie...

Maybe I could help out those who haven't received their licences yet... I ordered mine online 3 weeks ago and a week later received 3 new shiny licences all with different reference numbers. I phoned the EA helpline and was told someone would ring me back to tell me which licence to keep and which 2 I should destroy. That was a couple of weeks ago and still I wait... So I've decided to start dealing in fishing licences ..... Bids staring at £5

After reading all the posts in this thread, it would seem there is a general concensus that fish see RED... After a good bagging up session a couple of days ago on red maggots I would have to concur with this theory... BUT and it's a big BUT..... Why of late are we being told that we should load are reels with RED fishing line as it is virtually invisible to fish once under water? I know there's someone out there that's going to give a very concise and scientific explanation to this conundrum and personally I can't wait as it's been bugging me for a while now...

As a retailer of maggots, I am intrigued by the idea of being able to make them last 6 to 8 weeks. Thankfully during the busy season, my maggots never need to last much longer than a couple of days because I sell so many and have a great maggot supplier who delivers 3 times a week. However, as a bit of an experiment, I will put aside a pint and see how long I can keep them in a useable condition. My preference would be to use bran to help absorb any moisture and like other advice, keep then spread as thin as possible as it's the friction caused by movement that causes them to generate incredible heat and subsequently sweat. Maize flour is generally used to to clean maggots when they first arrive from the farm. As an aside, maize flour is also a wonderful groundbait that creates a fish attracting cloud in the water without being of any nutritional value. Well that's my two pence worth, I'm sure everyone has their own favourite way of keeping them... Arkie