Trotting help

[Norfolkdan]

Hoping to do some trotting soon and was wondering what gear I needed.

 

I was going to use a 10ft match rod, small fixed spool reel with 6lb line, size 14 or 16 hook and a float of some sort.

 

Questions.

 

1) Is a 10ft rod too small?

 

2) Do certain floats work better than others?

 

3) Is a fixed spool reel ok to use?

 

4) What sort of rig would you use for trotting?

 

Cheers for any help

[hermes]

Yes I think a 10ft rod is too small, when trotting you need to be able to control the float as best you can in the current, if the rod is too short the float will always be drifting back into the bank, idealy you need a rod that is sort of in line with the float for optimum control.

 

Floats depend on what you want to do, if it's fast then you need something that you can slow down enough to present the bait correctly, it all depends on the flow of the river really.

 

Yes you can use fixed spool reels but for the best control try using a centrepin, ther are the ultimate for control.

 

What sort of rig again depends on what species you are after, flow and speed of the water and depth, slowish water you could use a medium stick float but deeper faster water you maybe you would need a bigger balsa or avon float bulk shotted to get the bait down fast.

 

You could use six pound line for trotting but really only for Barbel and Carp etc, but even then not with small hooks like 16/18, you need to balance the tackle acording to what you want to do, in other words perhaps 2.5 main line with a 16/18 hook or 6lb main line with a size 10/8 hook etc.

 

Remember as well the heavier the line the more resistance there will be when trying to let the line flow off the reel smoothly.

 

[ 18. September 2005, 12:50 PM: Message edited by: hermes ]

[Norfolkdan]

Thanks for that.

 

Should have added, will be fishing the Dove and told trotting maggots is the way to go. Chub, Grayling and the odd trout apparently.

[jeepster]

are you going to be wading? then you may get away with the 10 ft rod

[hermes]

Ah well something like 2.5 mainline and hooks like 14-18 would be best for those fish, you could use bigger for Chub but if there are Grayling around they have far smaller mouths just like Trout try smaller hooks.

 

My best tip for trotting is to make sure you keep feeding, Chub are greedy fish and need plenty of loose feed going in to keep them interested, not loads of maggots but little and often if you know what I mean.

 

[ 18. September 2005, 12:54 PM: Message edited by: hermes ]

[Norfolkdan]

jeepster:

are you going to be wading? then you may get away with the 10 ft rod

I wasn't planning on it, although could be a good idea

[jeepster]

i don't know the exact stretch you're fishing, but a lot of the river there is very good for wading, and you'll get a bit of an advantage if you do. as hermes says, your 6lb line is a little heavy, i'd go down to 4 or 3lb. centrepins are the best for trotting, but you don't have to buy one specially, a fixed spool will work well enough

[Norfolkdan]

Cheers lads.

 

Jeepster, expect a PM in a minute

[jeepster]

ooohhhh i can't wait!

[Steve Walker]

Norfolkdan:

Hoping to do some trotting soon and was wondering what gear I needed.

 

I was going to use a 10ft match rod, small fixed spool reel with 6lb line, size 14 or 16 hook and a float of some sort.

 

Questions.

 

1) Is a 10ft rod too small?

 

2) Do certain floats work better than others?

 

3) Is a fixed spool reel ok to use?

 

4) What sort of rig would you use for trotting?

 

Cheers for any help

As others have said, 10ft is a bit short, but you may get away with it. The problem is that it isn't long enough to lift a lot of line off the water to mend the line (straighten it out to prevent the current dragging the float away from where it should naturally go and to give you a fairly tight line on the strike). If you can get into a position where you are trotting directly downstream from the rod tip (i.e. wade out, fish down the inside line, find a swim where the topology of the bank lets you fish directly downstream) you should be able to manage.

 

Float choice depends on the water conditions; for smooth water I'd go for a cane or lignum stemmed stick float, faster, more turbulent water a wire-stemmed stick float, faster and more turbulent still, a wire-stemmed avon. For big baits, you want a large avon or a chubber. Generally you want a larger float for deeper or faster water.

 

Fixed spool is fine, closed face model preferred. I've never used a centrepin, but they are highly rated and I've got one on my wish-list.

 

Rig, like float, depends on conditions. The classic stick float style is "shirt button", with small shots evenly spaced down the line. So for example a 3No4 stick might have 6 No 6 evenly spaced down the line and a dust shot nearest the hook. Prone to tangling and best cast underarm. Can be cast overarm if you feather it before it hits the water, but this takes practice.

 

For faster, more turbulent water and larger floats, I tend to move the shot further down the line and to group them together. Taken to its conclusion this gives you a bulk shotting pattern with almost all the weight concentrated in one group low down on the line and just a dropper or two below it. The point of this is to keep the bait down, but you sacrifice the presentation the traditional style gives you for catching on the drop and for holding back. It does cast better, mind.

 

That's how I do it, anyway. It works for me, but I dare say other people have other ways, and they may catch more than I do