Sunken Float Paternoster

[Neil G]

Why would resistance matter though if a pike is striking a livebait attatched to any kind of paternoster rig? Not the same as a fish picking up a bait (dead) from the bottom.

 

I can see the uses to sunken paternoster where distance is required and/or wind is an issue

[Dick Dastardly]

Its really the "change of resistance" that can be the problem Neil. As you say the initial strike on a live is going to be so fast that no resistance will be really noticed.Its as the pike makes off/continues after that initial strike.The lead dragging along the bottom can definately cause a difference of resistance over the few foot.

 

Its no coincidence (IMO) that standard pats often get more dropped runs towards the end of the traditional season.Many put this down to the pike becoming "wary" around spawning time but in reality they have normally long spawned by then! the problem being that this time of year (March/April) sees the start of weed growth and its most likely this that the lead is catching.

 

Quite why Zander seem to be even more worried/supceptable to this I dont know but Ive been long convinced they are and have found "CD" rigs (Colin Dyson) or the free running rig I put in the AN rigs section far better. In both of these rigs the lead remains put on/during a run and is dragged along.

[Steve Burke]

I was chatting with someone yesterday who brought up several points relevant to this topic. He uses a popped-up deadbait on a running leger to fish off bottom, and lets off line to allow the bait to float up in the water. Indeed, I sometimes use the same rig myself to fish near the surface over very deep water where long paternoster rigs are an inconvenience.

 

My friend though doesn't move his bait back towards him at intervals as I do as he's found he often picks up all sorts of muck with this rig, or even winds into a snag (which of course could be curtains for a pike that takes a snagged bait). With a sunken float paternoster this very rarely happens as the bait remains well off bottom on the retrieve.

 

Of course you don't always want to gradually retrieve your bait, perhaps because it's positioned in a hot area. However being able to cover a lot of ground like this, including different depths (big pike are frequently off-bottom), can make a huge difference to catches. It also enables the hot areas in the swim to be found in the first place.

 

My friend also commented that sunken float paternosters have been dismissed by some pike authors in the past because of the problems of bite indication, particularly dropbacks. I'd contend that it's not the method that's the problem; rather it's the poor bite indication. In fact some of the indication systems recommended make me cringe, and it's one of the few things in fishing I get hot under the collar about There's just no way that dropbacks (that can happen with any rig) would be shown properly, and sometimes not at all! No wonder these guys preferred surface floats whenever possible.

 

The solution is easy. It simply needs a drop-off indicator with a rigid arm and a sliding weight, that I prefer anyway for all my legering or paternostering for pike. As mentioned earlier I use the inexpensive Fox Pike Swinger.

 

I find that with this arrangement that a pike only has to sneeze for me to be aware of it. It also means that, instead of watching a surface float, I can look around at the water and the wildlife, and this leads to a more relaxing session.

[Dick Dastardly]

Good post Steve has made.Sunken Pat rigs are probably the ones I hear the most rubbish (pike wise) spoken about.

[Steve Burke]

In the current topic about circle hooks I referred to what I thought was one of the worst problems of piking, that of bite indication, especially when boat fishing. I mentioned this earlier on this topic and feel it so important I'm bringing it to the top.

 

Hopefully some who haven't seen this topic will find the other points helpful as well.

[Steve Burke]

Just had a request for a link to this topic so I've brought it to the top.

[Neil G]

Just had another read of the tread and some interesting thoughts. Always use front alarm and dropback indicators so maybe should give the sunken float pat more of a go. River I'm fishing is deep (10 to 20ft) and pretty wide so the ability to move baits around without resetting float stops does sound appealing to search for fish in so much water!

[Steve Burke]

As we're now coming into the pike season here in the South I've been asked to bring this up to the top. I hope it proves useful

 

I'd add that I've made 1 change to the rig. Instead of a small Duolock at the end of the reel line I've started experimenting with a Gemini clip as used in sea fishing. This is because I've changed the reel line to braid and this has a heavier breaking strain.

 

The Gemini clip coupled with the braid then gives me the option of using stronger hooks, although I've no real need to do so at Wingham.

 

The weakest part of my pike rigs is always the hooks. I want these to spring open if I get snagged and need to pull free. That way I don't leave a baited hook stuck in the snag where it could subsequently be taken by a pike that is then likely to be tethered.

 

Some of you may remember my pike blog from some seasons back when I twice in 1 day got snagged but successfully got everything back. See http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/80704-a-grand-day-out/ . The following season's blog, again with a lot of fishing a sunken float paternoster, is at http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/1064490-wingham-pike-survey/ .

Edited November 15, 2016 by Steve Burke