Breadflake
Bread is a superb all-round fishing bait which will take fish of all species and sizes when used in its many forms. The fluffy white flake from an uncut loaf is particularly attractive to cyprinids, and its advantages to the angler include the fact that it is highly visible, soft, buoyant and easy to flavour.
It is also easy to present on the hook. Just take a piece of breadflake, fold it around the shank of the hook and pinch it, leaving the point showing.
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For fishing over weeds, or on the surface, use a piece of flake with the crust attached. Use hook sizes 10-14.
Bread Punch
This is a very good fishing bait for catching roach in clear water, when used in conjunction with liquidized bread feed, which you can either make yourself or buy as ‘punch crumb’ in tackle shops.
Bread punches are usually available in sets, with a variety of different-sized heads that will press out neat pellets from bread, to suit the type of fish you are after. Fresh, sliced white bread will achieve the best results.
Using a hook of between 14 and 22 in size, push the point through the slot at the side of the bread punch and turn the hook to fasten it into the bread pallet.
Hemp
Hempseed does not look very impressive, but it is probably the best holding fishing bait for fish in both still and running water. A ‘maggot and hemp’ attack is a standard approach for many match, and pleasure, anglers.
You can buy hemp in tackle shops, already cooked, or prepare your own, which is actually very simple to do. Simmer the hempseed until the shells start to split and the white kernel appears. It is this kernel that the fish love. Fortunately, hemp freezes well so you can prepare Use hooks sized 16-20.enough for several occasions at one time.
Hemp can be fished on the hook, and although this is quite difficult and requires precise precision, it can be deadly for big roach. In fact, on some hard-fished venues roach will almost never take a maggot but can be caught quite easily on what anglers call ‘the magic seed’. Use Use hooks sized 16-20.eds which have only just split and use the shell itself to help clamp the bait to the hook. Use hooks sized 16-20.
Tares
These are a superb summer bait on venues with plenty of roach of 4oz (113g) or bigger. They are usually fished in conjunction with hemp loosefeed but because of their larger size, tares tend to attract the bigger size.
Tares are like hard, black peas when bought from the tackle shop, and quite easy to prepare simply by boiling in water for about 40 minutes until they have become soft. Adding a teaspoonful of bicarbonate soda when the tares are nearly cooked turns them an attractive purplish-black color.
They are hooked simply by pushing the point in and out of the skin, leaving plenty of the hook showing. As with hemp, it can take a couple of hours of regular feeding for the fishing bait to start working, but if you do get the roach feeding on either, you could be in for the catch of a lifetime. Use hooks sized 16-18.
Sweetcorn
Sweetcorn is an ideal fishing bait because it is cheap and can be used straight from the tin. It is an excellent summer bait for big fish, in particular carp, barbel and tench. Quite recently, ready flavored and colored sweetcorn has become available, so you can now use anything from red, strawberry-flavored corn, to orange Tutti Frutti corn.
A company called Pescaviva even produce these permutations in liquidized form as well. Golden corn is particularly useful because it is highly visible in clear water.
There are various ways to present corn on a hook, but whichever you choose, try to cover as much of the hook’s shank as possible, leaving the p0int free. Use one piece of sweetcorn on a size 16 hook, two pieces on a size 12, and so on as hook sizes increase.
Tips
- When fishing with bread paste of flake, always ensure that the point of the hook is showing, and is not masked by the bait.
- Save the water from your cooked hemp and use it to mix with your groundbait.
- To stop your fingers getting sticky when using sweetcorn, open the tin before you go fishing and rinse the corn under running water. Save the juice, and use it for mixing with your groundbait.
