Bluemoon Angling Thread

[BlueMoonRisin’]

I never buy the most expensive gear mate and I never replace until I have to. I’ve just got absolutely fucking loads of it. I probably average about £100 a rod and £80 a reel, some of my rucksacks are falling to bits. But I’ve got three carp rods with reels; three old carp rods with knackered reels, a spod rod and reel, a marker rod and reel, four barbel rods with two reels, a chub/feeder rod, a trotting rod with centre pin, an ultralight lure rod and reel, a pike lure rod and reel, two fixed spool reels for trotting etc, two whips for my boys (and catching livebaits), the list just goes on and on and on. A 15 year old bivvy and bed chair , 20 year old rod pod, three 12 year old bite alarms, 3 sets of waders, a river tripod, a box of perch lures, a box of pike lures, 5-6 different sized landing nets, etc etc etc. I couldn’t even begin to calculate the original cost of some of this stuff which I’ve built up over decades and decades.

I once had one of those trolley things you have and chucked it away because it could hold enough stuff and didn’t take the weight right. I replaced it with a Carp Porter barrow. Maybe this is why I’ve got so much stuff: I’m not bothered about expensive or new gear but I want it to be the right gear. I’m too snobby to want to look like a noddy on the bank ;-)

When i was a keen angler i bought a lot of good quality gear and I'd get a lot of use out of it. When i got divorced my kids were youngsters and i more or less stopped fishing due to spending quality time with them, plus work commitments. Now they're young adults they both have boyfriends so I have more time. Well i had before i became a full time carer for my mum.

I don't have as much gear as tou but probably not too far off having. I have gear for all aspects of course (and sea) fishing. Two canal whips, a 13m pole. Probably about 7 or 8 light to medium tip rods, 4 barbel/light carp rods and(i think) 4 match rods. 2 heavy catfish rods and 1000 Shimano reels. I probably have a dozen reels in total. The most versatile rods are the pair of Korum twin rip rods, i think they are brilliant for the money.

I recently bought a Fox bivvy and bed chair that is for future use. I have loads of terminal tackle and plenty of bait waiting to be used but I haven't got much time to use it at present.

But fishing is for life and i will get back into it when i can. I'm gonna contact PAA today and get on the waiting list.

I almost forgot the pike/perch gear i have, something i should leave in the car for a chance of grabbing an hour or two on the bank. When i was younger lived and breathed fishing, was really obsessed. There is a happy medium i need to find when i get to go more regularly.

 

[Newman Noggs]

I’m not bothered about expensive or new gear but I want it to be the right gear. I’m too snobby to want to look like a noddy on the bank ;-)

I end up looking like a noddy whatever tackle I use. For me, it's all about having the right tool for the job. For really light ledger work, say a maggot feeder on the canal for perch, my wand is fantastic. At the other extreme my 1.75 tc Fox barbel road is okay for fishing the Severn when it's in flood but pokey and pretty shit for everything else. My two Tom Pickering 11.5ft feeder rods were great for roach and bream but the right tips got increasingly difficult to replace. And so it goes on.

Also, as the kids have grown up I've had more disposable income so I have been able to upgrade virtually all my tackle. I had a 15ft match rod built to my spec on a Harrison blank with tapered and hollow tips but that's the most expensive piece of kit I've got.

 

[BlueMoonRisin’]

A great thing about fly fishing for salmon is you have to carry next to nothing.
The wank bit is hardly ever catching one!

I know i take the piss about you scaring fish with your fugly mush but I really admire your casting enthusiasm mate. Every salmon you catch is well earned and you'd catch more if you didn't look such a noddy; )

 

[Saddleworth2]

So now I have my tackle organised, the next job is to redesign my flytying workstation and storage of material. That will be a damn site more challenging. I have a study that is bursting at the seams with assorted feather, fur, threads, tinsel, dubbing and particularly fritz. I am afraid I have a fritz fetish. It is mind blowing just the variety available and all of it 'guaranteed to be brighter, softer, more attractive, shorter, longer, more translucent, more solid, easier to tie and capable of catching more fish than its predecessor. My favourite just now is FNF original but I do like their jelly fritz too. I spend much more on fly tying stuff than I do on fishing tackle. Being a slob and tying flies is not a happy combination when you cant be arsed putting material away before you start the next fly. Very soon the desk is covered and you cant find anything.

 

[yerwot?]

Many years ago, the ex- and i were sat by Green Lake in Seattle having a snack. An old-timer sat on a bench in front of us with a paper bag, took out a telescopic rod with a built-in reel. The end-tackle was a drilled bullet and about a size six hook, the paper bag held salmon eggs, put one on the hook and cast out about ten yards.
Ten minutes later he reeled in a trout, which he dispatched, and same again soon after. He put the fish in a carrier-bag and was on his way. Apparently, there is a two fish limit on concession permits, 65 y.o. qualifies. Another day we met a young bloke with a crossbow, with a reel attached, for pulling in the carp he'd shot.
Different world. Carp-fever is a bit like bass-fever, o.c.d is the only explanation i can think of. A genuine love for the country-side comes across strongly in this thread, which seems to dilute the blanks, though it never worked for me.....

 

[Saddleworth2]

I end up looking like a noddy whatever tackle I use. For me, it's all about having the right tool for the job. For really light ledger work, say a maggot feeder on the canal for perch, my wand is fantastic. At the other extreme my 1.75 tc Fox barbel road is okay for fishing the Severn when it's in flood but pokey and pretty shit for everything else. My two Tom Pickering 11.5ft feeder rods were great for roach and bream but the right tips got increasingly difficult to replace. And so it goes on.

Also, as the kids have grown up I've had more disposable income so I have been able to upgrade virtually all my tackle. I had a 15ft match rod built to my spec on a Harrison blank with tapered and hollow tips but that's the most expensive piece of kit I've got.

I think I am like you. I try and get the best possible equipment for the job. My main fly rod is a G Loomis GLXd two piece 8 weight. They don't make them any more. I have had it over 20 years and its pretty indestructible and can cope with just about all fishing styles albeit I do tend to use something less powerful for dry fly fishing. It was bloody expensive when I got it but I have never felt the need to replace it. I have a Greys 8 weight as a standby in case the Loomis ever broke and then a wychwood size 5 for more delicate work. + a salmon rod that I very rarely use and thats me.

The value of my rods are far less than my collection of reels spools and lines. I have 16 working lines and another 10 or so that I seldom use. Lines are now averaging at £60 each which is bloody ridiculous. My fly collection is probably the most valuable piece of equipment, at last estimate I must have 3000 and counting. A friend lost his entire box in a sunk boat and had a merry dance with his insurance company who wouldn't believe he had over £5k of equipment in it. Easy done though.

 

[Didsbury Dave]

When i was a keen angler i bought a lot of good quality gear and I'd get a lot of use out of it. When i got divorced my kids were youngsters and i more or less stopped fishing due to spending quality time with them, plus work commitments. Now they're young adults they both have boyfriends so I have more time. Well i had before i became a full time carer for my mum.

I don't have as much gear as tou but probably not too far off having. I have gear for all aspects of course (and sea) fishing. Two canal whips, a 13m pole. Probably about 7 or 8 light to medium tip rods, 4 barbel/light carp rods and(i think) 4 match rods. 2 heavy catfish rods and 1000 Shimano reels. I probably have a dozen reels in total. The most versatile rods are the pair of Korum twin rip rods, i think they are brilliant for the money.

I recently bought a Fox bivvy and bed chair that is for future use. I have loads of terminal tackle and plenty of bait waiting to be used but I haven't got much time to use it at present.

But fishing is for life and i will get back into it when i can. I'm gonna contact PAA today and get on the waiting list.

I almost forgot the pike/perch gear i have, something i should leave in the car for a chance of grabbing an hour or two on the bank. When i was younger lived and breathed fishing, was really obsessed. There is a happy medium i need to find when i get to go more regularly.

Yeah, totally agree with all that. I think we’ve discussed the Korum twin tips before: my most used and versatile rods too.

 

[Mazzarelli's Swiss Cheese]

Yeah, totally agree with all that. I think we’ve discussed the Korum twin tips before: my most used and versatile rods too.

Would they be decent for shortish range method feeder work (bream and carp)

 

[Didsbury Dave]

Would they be decent for shortish range method feeder work (bream and carp)

In the 1.75 size they would just about suffice although you have no quiver tip and you’d barely feel a bream coming in. For that sort of pleasure fishing you’d be better with a feeder rod.

 

[BlueMoonRisin’]

I end up looking like a noddy whatever tackle I use. For me, it's all about having the right tool for the job. For really light ledger work, say a maggot feeder on the canal for perch, my wand is fantastic. At the other extreme my 1.75 tc Fox barbel road is okay for fishing the Severn when it's in flood but pokey and pretty shit for everything else. My two Tom Pickering 11.5ft feeder rods were great for roach and bream but the right tips got increasingly difficult to replace. And so it goes on.

Also, as the kids have grown up I've had more disposable income so I have been able to upgrade virtually all my tackle. I had a 15ft match rod built to my spec on a Harrison blank with tapered and hollow tips but that's the most expensive piece of kit I've got.

Your angling enthusiasm really comes through on this thread mate and i admire you being an all rounder for silver fish that many anglers ignore nowadays. A big congratulations on your recent bream/roach PBs mate, well earned.

A lot of anglers come into the sport and go straight onto the commercial waters without ever realising there's a whole lot more species to fish for other than carp, and wanting ton plus catches. Commercial waters are quite new and the better ones get hammered every week by the same anglers fishing the same tactics, usually pole, method feeder or pellet waggler.

I'm really glad I started fishing on hard natural northern waters where fish were not plentiful. I think @Sir peace frog is appreciating getting away from commercials and the crowds. Sometimes less is more, especially when you've had to outwit wily fish that don't easily get caught.

 

[Didsbury Dave]

Your angling enthusiasm really comes through on this thread mate and i admire you being an all rounder for silver fish that many anglers ignore nowadays. A big congratulations on your recent bream/roach PBs mate, well earned.

A lot of anglers come into the sport and go straight onto the commercial waters without ever realising there's a whole lot more species to fish for other than carp, and wanting ton plus catches. Commercial waters are quite new and the better ones get hammered every week by the same anglers fishing the same tactics, usually pole, method feeder or pellet waggler.

I'm really glad I started fishing on hard natural northern waters where fish were not plentiful. I think @Sir peace frog is appreciating getting away from commercials and the crowds. Sometimes less is more, especially when you've had to outwit wily fish that don't easily get caught.

I believe that if an angler doesn’t start young and “come through the ranks” starting with tiddlers on the float, moving up to learning how to leger, maybe with bream and tench, then perhaps fishing a river and/or predator fishing, eventually moving into big fish fishing…then not only do I think they aren’t good anglers, I think that they rarely catch the bug for life. That’s why you see people selling whole carp or barbel sets.

unfortunatly overnight fishing now appeals to young scallies who want to get stoned with their mates and have a laugh. Those lads don’t turn out to be lifelong anglers and they ruin the sport for the rest of us.

 

[snorky]

I know i take the piss about you scaring fish with your fugly mush but I really admire your casting enthusiasm mate. Every salmon you catch is well earned and you'd catch more if you didn't look such a noddy; )

Thank you dear friend.

I have only coarse fished twice in many many moons. Both times with you....
And both times I whipped your fat ass!
Noddy

 

[BlueMoonRisin’]

Would they be decent for shortish range method feeder work (bream and carp)

As DD says, not much pleasure in playing bream with these rods unless they're large river bream. I'm not well up on current rods suitable for method feeder fishing but you want something 11-13ft with plenty of backbone for casting and playing large fish, ideally with a sensitive spliced tip. I have a 20 year old Shimano 11/13ft twin butt and twin tip rod that will chuck a 6 oz feeder across the Trent. It's not really suitable for large barbel and river carp though.

If you're after a method rod I'll ask my mate who is a tackle rep what's best suited if you like mate, maybe save you 40% or so off list price.

 

[BlueMoonRisin’]

Thank you dear friend.

I have only coarse fished twice in many many moons. Both times with you....
And both times I whipped your fat ass!
Noddy

Haha, fair play. I was just happy being a noddy in your good company mate. If you want a few quid on a days fishing, then I'd be more focused; )

 

[BlueMoonRisin’]

I believe that if an angler doesn’t start young and “come through the ranks” starting with tiddlers on the float, moving up to learning how to leger, maybe with bream and tench, then perhaps fishing a river and/or predator fishing, eventually moving into big fish fishing…then not only do I think they aren’t good anglers, I think that they rarely catch the bug for life. That’s why you see people selling whole carp or barbel sets.

unfortunatly overnight fishing now appeals to young scallies who want to get stoned with their mates and have a laugh. Those lads don’t turn out to be lifelong anglers and they ruin the sport for the rest of us.

I agree entirely mate. Some of my happiest memories are as a young un float fishing farm ponds on crude gear with a crow quill float, sat there fully concentrated on tryna hit finicky crucian bites on bread-punch.

 

[Didsbury Dave]

I agree entirely mate. Some of my happiest memories are as a young un float fishing farm ponds on crude gear with a crow quill float, sat there fully concentrated on tryna hit finicky crucian bites on bread-punch.

It took me about 8-10 fishing trips over a couple of year to even catch my first fish and the buzz I got from that tiny roach, from a punt, on a Shropshire lake by a caravan site, was bigger than when I caught a 40lb English carp nearly 40 years later. I remember every little detail of it.

 

[BlueMoonRisin’]

It took me about 8-10 fishing trips over a couple of year to even catch my first fish and the buzz I got from that tiny roach, from a punt, on a Shropshire lake by a caravan site, was bigger than when I caught a 40lb English carp nearly 40 years later. I remember every little detail of it.

My first fishing trip was Holingworth lake as a 6 year old. I caught a few roach perch and gudgeon. That was it, hooked for life and mithering my dad to take me again.

 

[Didsbury Dave]

My first fishing trip was Holingworth lake as a 6 year old. I caught a few roach perch and gudgeon. That was it, hooked for life and mithering my dad to take me again.

Brilliant. Proper fishing. Nobody ever took me. I just picked it up myself. Before I even held a rod I loved rock pooling, catching frogs and tadpoles, all that. I reckon you’ve either got that combination of a fascination with nature and instinctive hunting instinct or you haven’t. I think you are born an angler.

 

[Newman Noggs]

Brilliant. Proper fishing. Nobody ever took me. I just picked it up myself. Before I even held a rod I loved rock pooling, catching frogs and tadpoles, all that. I reckon you’ve either got that combination of a fascination with nature and instinctive hunting instinct or you haven’t. I think you are born an angler.

I've often pondered that question of nature or nurture and I'm still not sure. I used to take the lads to Center Parcs where they have little over-filled ponds stuffed with fish. So I'd take my rods and it wouldn't be long before kids started asking for a go. So I'd shoo my boys out and make them let the other kids have a go. I may have made a few anglers in my time.

Quite often there would be a long queue of kids, boys and girls, waiting patiently for their turn to catch one. Eventually, their parents would come looking for them and have to drag them bodily away.

So there is possibly something inherently appealing to most humans that eventually gets subsumed by other interests (girls/boys for example) or socual convention.

My late dad, on the other hand, just decided one day, at the age of 33 to take up fishing. So he wrote to the MEN (or Guardian) which had a regular fishing column and asked which club they recommended. And the rest is history.

He possessed two fishing books. "Confessions of a Carp Fisher" by BB and "Be Quiet and go A-angling" by BB under the pseudonym of Michael Traherne. Both first editions and both much sought after these days. They were fishing "bibles" to me and my brother and consequently went on camping trips and holidays with us getting increasingly dilapidated. My brother still has them but they are not in great condition. Both of us have bought first edition copies since.

 

[Didsbury Dave]

I've often pondered that question of nature or nurture and I'm still not sure. I used to take the lads to Center Parcs where they have little over-filled ponds stuffed with fish. So I'd take my rods and it wouldn't be long before kids started asking for a go. So I'd shoo my boys out and make them let the other kids have a go. I may have made a few anglers in my time.

Quite often there would be a long queue of kids, boys and girls, waiting patiently for their turn to catch one. Eventually, their parents would come looking for them and have to drag them bodily away.

So there is possibly something inherently appealing to most humans that eventually gets subsumed by other interests (girls/boys for example) or socual convention.

My late dad, on the other hand, just decided one day, at the age of 33 to take up fishing. So he wrote to the MEN (or Guardian) which had a regular fishing column and asked which club they recommended. And the rest is history.

He possessed two fishing books. "Confessions of a Carp Fisher" by BB and "Be Quiet and go A-angling" by BB under the pseudonym of Michael Traherne. Both first editions and both much sought after these days. They were fishing "bibles" to me and my brother and consequently went on camping trips and holidays with us getting increasingly dilapidated. My brother still has them but they are not in great condition. Both of us have bought first edition copies since.

I think you’re right that many have a innate fascination with the mystery of what lies beneath the water’s surface. When I’m out lure fishing nearly all the kids who walk past say “look! he’s caught one!” And want to stop and watch (before they realise it’s a lure)

Two classic books there.

I still have the books I learned literally everything from: The Young Angler’s Handbook by Peter Moreland and The Piccolo Fishing Book which was basically a rip off of Mr Crabtree.