CATCHING A 30 POUNDER

[Chub Frenzy]

I want to catch a 30 pounder.

I am going to be going to this place called bishops bowl lakes, in warwickshire.

They have carp up to 30lbs. The lake i will be fishing is 35ft max and 12ft in margins.

I have just bought a cheap 2.75lb test curve rod from Dragon Carp Direct.

I have a sea fishing fixed spool reel with 20lb line on it.

I have a bite alarm, and a load of bait - know someone who works for a bait company... Lucky i know.

 

My question is, what more do i need and how would i use the stuff.

I would really like some end tackle rigs/tips/ what to use.

Many Thanks

 

Chubfrenzy

[Dick Dastardly]

Just do the same as you did to catch your 20lbr.............

[Chub Frenzy]

Thats the problem.....

My bigest fish was a 13 and a half pound mirror carp, which i caught float fishing in the margins on a big bit of cheese + bread.

And that was in a small pool, not even 1/2 an acre wide. Tunnel barn farm if u no it.....

 

Anyway in this new place i need the biggins, so how do i get em???????

 

Many Thanks

Chub

[Anderoo]

There are plenty of people here who like to see the 'less experienced' angler catch whopping great fish - I'm surprised you haven't had more advice from them.

[gozzer]

Thats the problem.....

My bigest fish was a 13 and a half pound mirror carp, which i caught float fishing in the margins on a big bit of cheese + bread.

And that was in a small pool, not even 1/2 an acre wide. Tunnel barn farm if u no it.....

 

Anyway in this new place i need the biggins, so how do i get em???????

 

Many Thanks

Chub

 

I think you've missed Budgies point mate.

I don't aim for PBs, but can understand that some like to have a goal to aim for.

With all due respect, why not try to build up your PBs gradually. Instead of trying to more than double your present one in one go, try to build it up gradually, (even if it's a few ounces at a time), I'm sure you will find it more satisfying. It will help you gain experience along the way, which in turn will make you a better angler, and the catching of bigger fish a bit easier.

'Learn to walk before you try to run', is a good motto to follow.

 

John.

[chevin]

Chub Frenzy, if you want to catch good fish, you are really going to have to do a lot of work of your own to achieve that. There is no short cut other than the pay and catch fisheries but the bigger fish you want to catch, the more work you are going to have to do to catch them. There are countless books on carp fishing and a very good starter is Still-Water Angling by Dick Walker. That book enables you to understand what "Water craft" is all about and, if you have been thinking about your fishing, it will blow your mind as you read it. There are more modern techniques when it come to carp fishing than those that appear in that book and they are worth researching too. If you want to catch a 30lb carp I would suggest that you read everything you can about carp fishing, fish waters with 30 pounders in it, spend hours creeping around fish watching and be prepared to spend a lot of hours fishing for your 30 pounder. There ain't no easy way of catching fish like that. You have to do a lot of work to get them.

[Dales]

I think you've missed Budgies point mate.

I don't aim for PBs, but can understand that some like to have a goal to aim for.

With all due respect, why not try to build up your PBs gradually. Instead of trying to more than double your present one in one go, try to build it up gradually, (even if it's a few ounces at a time), I'm sure you will find it more satisfying. It will help you gain experience along the way, which in turn will make you a better angler, and the catching of bigger fish a bit easier.

'Learn to walk before you try to run', is a good motto to follow.

 

John.

 

Great advice from John, If you want to set yourself targets that's fine but a good starting point would be to try to catch a few more low doubles or aim for a nice mid double around 15-16lb. Enjoy catching your fish and savour ever new PB along the way and build up your knowledge and experience at the same time. If you set your personel bar at 30lb, how many of the fish you catch are going to measure up and are you going to enjoy your fishing?

 

This season I started fishing a water that contains alot of Tench bigger then my old PB of 6-02lb, I knew the fish at this venue have gone over 10lb in the past and so I was in with a good shout of a new PB, but rather then set a target of 7, 8 or 9lb all I wanted to do was try to get something bigger then my current PB and I was lucky to get a 6-06lb on my first trip and that was such a magical experience. The fact is was not a giant for the water made on difference to me. It was a new PB and something to enjoy. I have since gone on to break my Tench PB a number of times and now it is up to 9-06lb. This has been some of my most enjoyable fishing breaking the same species PB a number of times in the same season and something that will not likely ever happen again.

 

Don't miss out on all the fun you are going to have catching Carp by setting your bar so high and enjoy all the new PB's. I would not concern yourself with what others are catching or what they claim to be catching I have lost count of the amount of people who have claimed to have just caught a twenty but did not weigh it because it was well over and in my mind I am thinking even if I force fed it every lead in my tackle bag it would struggle to go 12lb.

 

A similar thing happened to me the other week, I caught a nice Mirror that went 14lb 03oz weighed and a couple of anglers came over to ask what it weighed. When I told them they looked puzzled and said they were watching me and were sure that it looked a good twenty. They wished me luck with the parting shot that they had already had 3 fish between them and they were all over twenty. That would be those fish that looked around 10lb and that you clearly never weighed

 

And if you fish a busy water you can guarantee that if you hook a 30lb fish you will have an audience around you to see what bait you were on, what method you are using, are the fish up in the water, what did it go. If your skills are not up to handling big fish, they will not be kind. Some Carpers are a weird bunch, naming fish and mourning their deaths and they will not take too well to seeing some one not experienced struggling with a 30 pounder fish that they know by name. They love "gut bucket" more then there "birds" and if you miss handle it

 

Summary

 

Enjoy your Carp Fishing, Gain experience and enjoy all your new PB's then go out and target those 30lb plus ones with dodgy names.

Edited August 25, 2010 by Dales

[Chub Frenzy]

Some great advice, and a great motto.

I agree it would be much more enjoyable to slowly beat my PB so i would probably aim for a 15 then a 17 and try to go up two pound per good fish.

I still have a question though.......

How can you tell the size of a fish before you even catch it?????

How do i only catch the 15 pounders, not the 30's???????

I mean i know how to catch a roach then a few tench, folowed by bream and then carp, but i wouldnt know how to catch a bigger carp.

I cant quite put it into words but i know tha bigger bait is bigger fish but there must be a limit, and hooks ect...

Im quite confused :/

 

Many Thanks

Chub

[Dales]

How can you tell the size of a fish before you even catch it?????

 

You can't unless you can see the fish, floater fishing some times helps pick out a bigger fish as if the water is clear enough you can try to pull the bait away from the smaller ones, works sometimes but often the smaller fish will get the bait before the more cautious big fish.

 

How do i only catch the 15 pounders, not the 30's???????

 

Again you can't if you cast a bait into a water that contains mixed sizes of Carp you have a chance of catching any one of them. It maybe a thirty or a fish of a few pound. I have yet to find a bait that can be that selective as to catch me the sized fish I would like. That is one of the exciting things about fishing, if your venue holds a thirty no matter what method or bait you use the next bite could be from that fish.

 

I cant quite put it into words but i know tha bigger bait is bigger fish but there must be a limit, and hooks ect...

Im quite confused :/

 

I think the bigger bait catch's the bigger fish is a bit of a fallacy and a lot of my biggest fish of many species have come on very small baits. Obviously if you use a giant boilie or pellet you will not be catching loads of tiny Roach, Rudd etc but even a small Carp will take a huge bait. So size of bait will not make that much difference. Chevin's post sums it all up really, you will need to put alot of work and effort into all the stuff he mentions. There is no easy answer I think anyone could give on a forum that could compact all the experience and knowledge required to catch good Carp on a regular basis.

 

Just do the same as you did to catch your 20lbr.............

 

As Budgie pointed out, to catch a 30 you use the same tactics as you would a 20, 10 or any other sized Carp. Learn as much as you can about Carp fishing in general, learn to catch Carp on a regular basis and at some point the bigger fish will come

Edited August 26, 2010 by Dales

[method addict]

My best is only about 5 pounds and that fought like crazy.

 

I can only imagine what a 30 lb will do