davedave

The bag and landing net don't look bad. Does anybody know if John wilsons fishing world is any good?

Thanks for the link

Dales - Your welcome, It's hard to say as i've no other rakes to compare with, and I guess it depends on what you want it for and how far you will be throwing it, but it seems like it has adequate weight to get a good swing with it. One thing I thought about doing dales was to buy a bar (I'm not sure which metal it is, maybe iron) from B+Q which was £8 to cut and drill and bolt in between the rakes. I decided against it as for what I want from my rake it is fine, but if you wanted more weight that would work I think. Gozzer - Thanks for that, I did think I should have done that after I'd made it. It's not a hard adjustment to make though, so if I try it out and it seems to be twisting I can move the shackles. Andy - Thanks, yes mine is primarily for weed clearing so i'm hoping it should serve the purpose. I live down in somerset which is very muddy/silty/clay which I've read in previous rake threads is not a good substances to be raking up, as opposed to gravelly/sandy bottoms which can pull the fish in it can do the opposite on muddy bottoms. Like I said it's mainly for clearing weed from my local canal so it should serve that purpose well if nothing else. What i'm planning to do in the near future is to rake one swim on my local pond, and throw in a load of dead maggots and old frozen bait over it, and fish it the next day, if it's no good i'll just move down to the next swim after a couple of hours. PS I do like your rake, I wish I had welding gear and knew how to weld!! Is the third rake in the picture effective? Looks like it wouldn't pull up much? Dave

How I made the rake: I bought two of these off ebay: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/REPLACEMENT-GARDEN-RAKE-12-TOOTH-METAL-HEAD-/130864190557?pt=UK_Home_Garden_GardenEquipment_HandTools_SM&hash=item1e781d145d you get a discount on postage for buying two, it was just under £8 together I then drilled through the rivet pins attaching the rake head to the handle attachment. This is a bit fiddly as the drill bit moves quite a bit until it bites into the metal. One drilled through, the handle attachmet comes off fairly easily with a couple of bangs with the hammer. Then I pulled each of the rakes teeth over to more of a 90 degree angle with a pair of pliers so they would bite more on the water bed. I put the rake heads in the vice and made sure they were straight as after hammering the hande attachments off they got a little bit out of shape. Then I put the rake heads back to back and put a washer and bolt through the holes I made to remove the handle attachment. I then put another washer and nut on and tightened them up. Also to be on the safe side I put 8 cable ties around the teeth. Then I put a shackle around the centre of the rake heads, and another shackle through that. I nipped them up and put a small cable tie through themselves to stop them from undoing after time. Then it was just a case of tieing a rope to the shackle and a loop to the other end to hold on to.

Made. I'll put the pictures up in the next couple of days, Dave

I heard once to dig a small trench and lay the eel in that when unhooking it. Never done it, always assumed it would take slime off them. I just unhook eels in the net with a pair of forceps but they can be buggers for taking it down, even the smallest ones. But i've never had an eel over about a pound so can't really comment on bigguns. Dave

Just to update you all. I was fishing the canal today and because of the advice and information you gave me I decided to ring the EA. Their normal phoneline was shut, which was fair enough, so I rang their emergency hotline. After pressing 1 here, and 2 there I got through to someone after a couple of minutes, I gave him the details and said I suspected it could be this pennywort. He told me it was nothing to do with them it was 'my local water-courses' so they couldn't do anything....unless it was blocking an outlet. Funny enough I suddenly remembered it was blocking an outlet and could be a very serious potential flood risk. They'd send an officer out as soon as they could Wether they will or not is anones guess but I hope someone comes and at least takes a look at it. Dave PS latimeria no boat traffic

Maybe I shouldn't have said about the signatures, as I wasn't actually there, however I have no reason not to believe the person who told me as i've known him for a couple of years. It's just my opinion, on total fishing I found him cocky and the whole thing cheesy. I haven't met the guy, and you've obviously spoke with him quite a bit, so you've got a better impression of him, what I said is just my impression of him. Dave

From people i've spoken to who have seen him at fishing shows, they've said he's the only one out of the 'celebrity' anglers who charges for signatures. I also think he's arrogant and a bit annoying. I won't be rushing to it. Dave

Thankyou for the replies and for identifying the weeds. The algae, or blanket weed is not such an issue as it is easier to remove with raking. The worrying one is the pennywort, which a quick look on google informs me is highly invasive, takes light, nutrients and oxygen from a water, can increase flooding risks and is extremely hard to remove. Definitely need to keep a very close eye on it. Dave

PS I say 'weed' but the first two pictures may be a plant, i'm not really sure

Basically i've seen two types of weed spring up on my local canal this year. They are covering maybe an eighth of the stretch, but as it is only early march i'm worried it may suddenly explode in the summer. We do have problems with weed in summer but 3 or 4 guys raking it weekly for about a month keeps it down. So can anyone tell me what it is, is it damaging or invasive, and have you experienced this weed near you, and what was the effect? Thanks, dave Weed type one: Weed type two:

Thanks guys, appreciated

Thanks anderoo, so the rig is fine, but i'd be better with a longer rod, is that to aid casting or for another reason?

Thanks phone

Lovely fish

Do you mean a paternoster rig like this phone? http://www.clivebradleyfishing.com/userimages/DeadbaitRig1.jpg

Huh?

Thanks Mat, noted

Evening all, After a string of blanks i'm rethinking my perch fishing in preparation for the warmer weather. I've taken my focus off the leger rigs which I'm beginning to have less and less faith in, and going back to the humble float. I've been speaking to a guy on the pond who is a very good fisherman, and he's showed me his rig, it's very simple: 3lb main to an insert waggler attached at the bottom with either silicone tubing or float stops. Then two thirds of the way down the line the bulk of the shot, and then dead bottom is a BB shot and then a foot hooklength to a size 6 hook and probably a lobworm, although prawns and deads are also an option. You obviously have to plumb it carefully, but from what i've seen from the guy on the pond, if you cast too far the float won't cock properly, and only when you wind in to where you plumbed it it then cocks itself and sits at the desired position. I've always been put off with float fishing because of the depth of water on the pond, but I think with this rig it should be quite simple, and as the rig is 'anchored' there is no need to keep casting in and out. Does anybody have any feedback/suggestions/improvents on the rig? I'm hoping the bite detection should be spot on and much better than my leger rigs. I'm hoping this year i'm going to break the 'two' barrier! Thanks, Dave

That's what i'm starting to think azrael, they're a bit of a walk away (the manure heap that is) but it's probably still less hassle than making, filling and maintaining a wormery.

Gozzer - It was not meant to be contentious, it was a genuine 'curiosity' question, although I realised it might rile a few up. Too many replies to reply to individually, but thanks guys, very interesting.

Thanks for all the advice. Didn't get round to making it last weekend, and am now wondering, after all the comments, if it'll be too small, and whether I should just stick to the manure heap. Cheers

Thanks guys, I won't bother. I've got an idea for making my own rake, when/if it works i'll take a picture and put it up

I was intending to make my own rake, but this looks like it could be cheaper. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FOLDING-GRAPNEL-ANCHOR-1-5KG-NEW-DINGHY-FISHING-BOAT-SAILING-/140924088749?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_BoatEquipment_Accessories_SM&hash=item20cfbaf1ad Any good do you think, or too light? It's equivalent to just over 3lb. It's for clearing swims on my local canal of weed. Thanks, Dave