Zeddedhed

Hi Martin. I got out for the first time on Saturday and gave the swinger an outing. I also fished with a second rod with a standard Quiver tip - not a single bite. Not even a little knock or pluck - nothing. Still, the weather was good and the scenery was not bad at all. Better than being stuck indoors for the day!!. I'm heading out again this weekend and will give it another go on a local club lake which is said to be heaving with Bream and Tench as well as the ubiquitous Carp, so with a bit of luck it'll swinging both ways all day long. I'll be sure to let you know.

Martin, the tip and nuts arrived today - many thanks indeed. I'll be out on the local pond next weekend to give it a try and I'll let you know how I got on.

Martin, thanks indeed for this. I shall be keeping an eye out and will let you know when it arrives. Pete

Excellent stuff Ken. Couldn't be more clear. I have to say that I've noticed from your catch list that you clearly didn't do so much travelling in 2015. Where the hell did you catch a Terrapin though? Was this an illicit visit to Seaworld with a folding travel rod concealed about your person, or did you plunder the local Aquatic supply megastore? It certainly is the standout species in an otherwise thoroughly domestic fishing year. Do tell.

I too have been thoroughly bemused by the various rigs for Perch fishing. Drawings or diagrams are good. I like diagrams. They make sense. Diagrams please.....

I've just had another look at 'old tatty rod' as she's become known and it's not an Avon. It's a Daiwa Powermesh X 12' Barbel Specialist, with 1.5lb TC and Go-faster scratches. The scratches are particularly important as without them you can't catch millions of tiny Roach and Gudgeon. Also, the current lack of decent bite indication is also essential if you want a relaxing afternoon on the river - none of this "I'm halfway through pouring a cup of coffee when a fish starts to show an interest" nonsense. Just pure, uninterrupted, totally fish free chilling out.

That would be much appreciated Bartman. I've got some rods that were rescued from a garage that are damaged in several places and it might be worth getting them repaired. Possibly something he would be able to help with.

I've sent you a PM

I do indeed - a Daiwa Avon Specialist type thingy with two different end sections - one full length but threaded for a swinger, and the other abbreviated to take push in quiver tips, of which I have a small assortment. None of them were originally designed for the rod so it looks like a bit of a mongrel once set up. I've been using it with a totally buggered Abu Cardinal reel dating from early 70's by the look of it. It's a 1.75lb TC and although I got it second hand and it's a bit beat up cosmetically I've already grown quite attached to it. It's caught me my biggest fish so far in my short and unspectacular angling career - a very pretty 9lb 13oz Carp from the Medway about half a mile downstream from the Leigh Barrier. It's sort of my lucky rod, but no doubt that will change when I catch a bigger fish on a different setup. I quite like the idea of adorning it with a floppy bendy bit - it can't really draw more derision than it already does, and I quite enjoy setting it up next to the 'hardcore' River Carp Army who seem to change their gear every time every time Fox or Nash bring out a new bit of kit. I see it as the antidote to being a tackle tart. I guess that makes me more of a tackle 'bag lady'.

Martin, you are a true gent indeed sir. Obviously happy to wait until new year - I'm unlikely to get to use them until early spring anyway - I'll be busy going after the feral Carp in my local farm pond - they haven't been caught for several years but I KNOW they're still in there. They were never stocked into the pond but since it's stream fed I guess they've found a way in, along with the swarms of 1lb to 2lb Perch. I'll PM you with address details and start dunkin' loose change in charity boxes in your honour. Pete

Neil, if you don't want the swingers I'd be more than happy to take them off your hands - PM me and let me know what you want for them and we'll sort something out. Pete

I'm looking at these particular Shakespeare rods with great interest - the question I have is where have you found a set of tips, both quiver and swing that fit them. I can't find any info online as to the diameter or screw thread size, and don't want to end up with a rod that I can't use properly. Would love to know if anyone has got one and found a supplier of appropriate tips. Pete

I've just been reading an article in one of the mags - Angling Times or the Anglers Mail that says that in winter the fish are often too busy keeping out of the flow when the river starts to rise, adn when it starts to 'fine down' (whatever that actually means) they will often start to feed again to replenish the energy expended fighting the flood current. The notion makes sense but as I have almost no practical angling knowledge or experience I can't say either way. I will log it away for future reference though.

Chesters, funny you should mention Saveloys. I was only yesterday discussing the rather contentious issue of Frankfurters vs. Saveloys. My opposition was intent on stating that they are one and the same thing - clearly a fool!! Just in case you have suffered from a case of mistaken identity I CAN recommend the finest Frankfurters available anywhere (including Frankfurt). They are made in Paddock Wood in Kent, just down the road from me by a company called the Franconian Sausage Company. I don't know if they take PayPal, but they do allow bulk orders. If it actually is Saveloys that you're after, I'd suggest your local Chip Shop - they probably buy them from Bookers or some other Cash & Carry type shed. Originally Saveloys used to be made with pig brains - much more interesting than the battered pink logs you find in chippys these days. On a side note I'd just like to point out that a discussion that started with me asking for advice on legering for Chub has now evolved into a sausage advice thread. You see how easily these things happen? Sausages and fishing - made for each other in my view. I guess I'd best take some of the afore mentioned Frankfurters out on my next day session and do a review for the blog.

Thanks for the kind comments Neil. To address your questions: Firstly the issue of using the days rations to seduce a Chub - it genuinely never even occurred to me to be honest. Once the frying of the bangers was underway my thoughts quickly turned to my own sustenance and sod the fish. Once I'd scoffed the lot and started to think about the day ahead it was too late. I do think however that those particular examples of the snagmakers art were far too good to be throwing into a muddy river. The 'poncy' lure chucking thing - from that comment I can only assume you're from the 'hard as nails, coal miner by day, flat cap wearing fisherman at weekends' school of angling. You never wear more than a string vest to go fishing, even when it's snowing. Crouching over a grey sluggish canal, crumpled roll-up dangling from your bottom lip staring at a home-made float slowly making it's way through the turgid waters. Hoping to see the tell -tale dip of the tip so you can reel in your prize 9oz Roach, club it to death with the heel of your hobnail and take it home to feed the wife and eleven children. Maybe, maybe not. Chucking lures is a big plus when it's freezing cold. I do feel that i slightly let the side down though. Of the Huntin' shootin' and fishin' holy trinity I was the least well dressed of the bunch. Top hats and all that jazz for the huntsmen, plus fours, shirt and tie and tweeds for the shooters and then there was me - resplendent in dirty Korum waterproof trousers, a very manky fleece that glitters with fish scales and dried on slime no matter how much it's washed. Top it all off (literally) with a grey woollen beanie hat that makes me look like I should be on some sort of national register and you can see that the Angling community was not well represented in the sartorial stakes. I certainly will be back to fish that little spot again - probably in the summer. Just after it is a shallow (1ft max) run for about 200 yards with a gravelly bottom. I don't know if thats likely to be good for anything in the summer but I'll enjoy sitting there for the day watching the waters flow by.