| * Many fishermen would love to make their own | | | | would not roll evenly to form a paste, many using |
| 'secret' homemade carp and catfish baits from their | | | | fish meals with a rough or grainy texture, many of |
| personally chosen ingredients but are fearful in case | | | | which turned out to be fairly insoluble and requiring |
| they don't actually work! * | | | | substantial water or eggs to make them bind |
| But often, anglers have been confused by the myriad | | | | together to other ingredients. |
| of information which often serves to complicate | | | | The same can be said of bird food ingredients. But |
| rather than simplify this exciting process. This article | | | | these 'mistakes are never wasted and can indeed be |
| will show you how to make your baits and test them | | | | the perfect bait for a different situation or fishing |
| to GUARANTEE they will be successful and fill you | | | | circumstance. Many a mix that would not roll has |
| with confidence through very positive results and | | | | become used as a fantastically effective free bait or |
| great catches! | | | | form the very attractive and nutritional 'ground bait'. |
| Many people have heard of 'dedicated' dough baits, | | | | I remember trying to make bait using flaked rice and |
| paste and boilie bait 'base mixes'. | | | | spirulina based cold water fish food. I added to it |
| These are a combination of dry powdered | | | | some semolina (wheat based flour) as a binder and |
| ingredients which can be mixed with water, eggs or | | | | lots of molasses and egg biscuit bird food. But I had |
| other liquids, to create a mouldable dough to create | | | | not added enough semolina; once I had added some |
| baits in paste form, or boilied to form more | | | | eggs to help binding, the mix would bind together, |
| long-lasting 'skinned' boiled baits. | | | | but not roll to form bait balls. |
| 'Base mix' design is fun because they can incorporate | | | | Instead of adding more poor nutritional value |
| such a wide variety of ingredients, for different | | | | semolina, I decided to use this new 'sugar' bait as I |
| effects, and to target different species in different | | | | called it, as a new experimental ground bait. (It was |
| ways. | | | | extremely tacky and stuck to my hands like glue.) So |
| But do you start by just choosing ingredients at | | | | I went fishing using my current base mix boilies for |
| random and hoping they mix together, or is there an | | | | hook baits, and used some of the new 'failed' paste |
| easier method of controlling your exploratory mixing | | | | mix as small finger molded baits, to use as carp |
| of ingredients? | | | | attracting close proximity attractor baits. These were |
| Well, one idea is to mix together just enough | | | | baiting needle fed onto dissolving poly vinyl alcohol |
| powdered ingredients that if you mix them with one | | | | ('PVA')strings tied to the hooks. |
| egg or a quarter of a cup of water, then they would | | | | Having cast out two hook baits in a line at right |
| mix together and 'bind' together into a dough. Now at | | | | angles from the bank, and catapulted out a line of |
| this 'test stage' if you have your various ingredients | | | | new sticky sugar paste baits directly over the top of |
| in the right amounts (ratio), they will bind correctly to | | | | them things started to happen. |
| form a smooth mouldable dough. | | | | What a surprise! Normally it could take an hour to 6 |
| Once you have tried small amounts of different | | | | hours or more to get the carp to really get feeding |
| ratios of your ingredients and noted the amounts in | | | | on the bait, as demonstrated by their 'head and |
| each mix tested, you will now have your own | | | | shouldering' surface movements, diving on the baits |
| personal guide to which combinations form a practical, | | | | and bubbling activity. Almost immediately, four carp |
| mouldable or rollable dough or paste; just right for | | | | rolled simultaneously, along the baited line. It took just |
| making balls of bait for hook baits, or to boil in water | | | | five minutes for the first carp run to occur. |
| to make boilies. | | | | Then runs just kept coming for the next hour and a |
| It does take a small amount of trial and error to | | | | half. (I lost count how many!) This was at a time |
| reach this stage, but by using only small amounts of | | | | when it could take 24 hours to produce that number |
| ingredients at a time you will only waste a fraction, | | | | of takes; so this was truly exceptional. This was an |
| compared to incorrectly mixing much larger amounts | | | | important lesson to me in the value of using paste or |
| of perhaps expensive ingredients, and then | | | | dough baits instead of boilie baits whose results really |
| discovering they will not bind together, or roll | | | | were much less. |
| together, or they might even repel the fish! | | | | This was such another striking example of how a |
| Of cause, the design of the bait mix you use for | | | | new bait can trigger an instant carp feeding |
| your fish is paramount to successful big fish captures, | | | | response, and it stuck in the memory. A very similar |
| and you need to test your new mix before making | | | | bait hooked the largest fish in this particular lake |
| loads of perhaps ineffective bait! It is possible to | | | | ("Shotgate", Essex.) This came merely two minutes |
| make bait that seems nutritional and attractive, but | | | | after casting out the bait out! On a different lake, |
| actually, for some unforeseen reason, it does not | | | | ("South Weald" Essex,) a similar paste bird food bait |
| catch fish! | | | | with high levels of sugars, molasses and the famous |
| So, it is advisable to test your new bait mixes on fish | | | | Rod Hutchinson 'Chocolate Malt' flavour, produced |
| before possibly wasting time fishing with it. In the | | | | even more stunning responses from the big fish |
| early days of making bait, I recall fishing for carp one | | | | there. |
| night just casting out when I arrived and leaving the | | | | There were many, many such examples of |
| baits until morning, but without any fish caught. I | | | | experimental baits producing fantastic results, some |
| discovered the bait only lasted half an hour before | | | | being yeast and spices based, some being fish meal |
| dissolving! A quick test before fishing would have | | | | based, and others being milk protein and body building |
| saved a wasted night when the carp were truly | | | | powders based. Again some of these baits were so |
| feeding well, whilst I slept well! | | | | packed with attractive energy boosting sugars and |
| Try leaving your new baits / boilies in a cup of water | | | | were so soluble they proved exceptional 'alternative' |
| of different temperatures, and time how long they | | | | instant baits; many producing the lake's biggest fish |
| last before they break down, or how long it takes to | | | | almost after the first cast! |
| 'flavor' the water with attractors'. This is really useful | | | | Testing new baits is so exiting at times; I made a trip |
| to your confidence to know this for a fact and | | | | to "Dream Lakes" in France, one year. I had been |
| demonstrates to you how your bait performs under | | | | testing a new ground bait made from a boilie base |
| water; something most anglers never experience for | | | | mix packed with taurine rich squid extract. This bait |
| themselves! | | | | was not cheap, but all my experience and bait |
| Perhaps feed some of your new bait to fish in a | | | | knowledge told me it was a fantastic edge to take |
| garden pond, or seen feeding on the surface of your | | | | to a fishery with such consistently high angling |
| lake. You could even make your baits as 'instant | | | | pressure. |
| floaters' perhaps by micro waving them for very | | | | Fishing the often harder to fish "Dream Lake 1" each |
| short periods until they star to be able to float in a | | | | morning I fed just one grapefruit sized ball of this |
| test cup of water. (Try not to burn them!) | | | | ground bait into the edge of the lake right next to |
| Watching the reactions of surface feeding fish | | | | the bank at a difficult to cast to place. This would be |
| feeding on your new baits is an instant indication of | | | | just before breakfast time, at which point I would |
| the power of attraction your baits may have or not, | | | | make my way up to the anglers' lodge for a half |
| especially if you feed them alongside a bait you | | | | hour 'social'. |
| already know is exceptionally good like a top proven | | | | Upon returning to the baited spot the water would |
| shop bought bait. When fish attention to your new | | | | literally be black! Such was the feeding response to |
| bait is equal or even better than that given to the | | | | this bait; my confidence in catching was so high I |
| other 'control' bait, then you're on a winner! | | | | couldn't wait to cast a rod out, and it sometimes only |
| Or leave them in shallow 'marginal' areas at the edges | | | | took a few seconds to initiate a carp take! |
| of your lake or river, and aim to actually observe the | | | | I realise now, that the majority of my most |
| feeding reactions of fish to your bait over a morning | | | | successful bait mixes and ground bait mixes have |
| or evening feeding spell to see how confidently the | | | | come about more by accident and 'doing things |
| fish enter the baited area and feed on the new baits. | | | | wrong' as much as by design - as most great |
| You might be in for a real surprise! | | | | inventions are! |
| For example, I made a new carp bait once, with a | | | | You may be wondering if you could be missing out |
| new sweet 'appetite stimulator' powder incorporated | | | | on exceptionally exciting catches by your ritualistically |
| into the bait's original dry mix. I just tested the paste | | | | and habitually buying your most important fishing |
| dough version instead of boilies. I wished to see if I | | | | competitive edge at the shop, rather than solving |
| had over loaded the bait with this new ingredient, | | | | your special fishing needs and requirements yourself. |
| and made it repellant to carp! I had aimed to improve | | | | * Why not break the lazy habits the majority of |
| the new bait, by enhancing it with a new 'instant' | | | | fishermen seem to have these days; try going fishing |
| feeding trigger carp response. | | | | with your own homemade baits, and make sure you |
| Having dropped pieces of the new bait into a | | | | take loads of spare film for the camera! |
| marginal lake feeding area I waited for carp to feed, | | | | The author has many more fishing and bait 'edges' up |
| and was elated at the response, as instead of fleeing | | | | his sleeve. Every single one can have a huge impact |
| the area, they kept returning with more of their carp | | | | on catches. (Warning: This article is protected by |
| friends to enjoy this new delicious feast; until it was | | | | copyright, but reprints with a link are OK.) |
| all gone. My only regret was I wasn't fishing for them | | | | By Tim Richardson. 'The thinking angler's fishing |
| at the time; it would have been great fun! | | | | author and expert bait making guru. |
| I have made many dry ingredient base mixes that | | | | |