THE shallow fishing season is almost here, and that leads to our expectations of a great day suddenly ramping up.
Fish of all species are so determined to get to the bait first that they’ll come off the deck to beat their mates to the feed – and when they’re that hungry, it’s bites galore.
But getting them to take the hookbait is only part of the equation. Fail to hit the bite and it’ll go down as a wasted opportunity.
When the competition for food really kicks in, fish will often swipe quickly at the hookbait, which leads to the float flying under and even the most lightning of reactions missing a good proportion of the bites.
A rig that all but eliminates such frustration is required, and my experiments with ‘The Pendulum’ float may have done just that. I’ve dabbled with this unusual-looking device for several weeks and have seen my results rocket as a result.
I was fed up with missing so many fast bites and needed to do something to improve my conversion rate. A quick look online and I stumbled across The Pendulum, which is a small, bubble-type float. The idea with this is that when the fish hit the hookbait, the resistance from the float leads to the hook setting before they can reject the bait. While the float’s buoyancy will lead to a good percentage of fish hooking themselves, a little work is required to up that ratio even more. For starters, I’ll always maintain a tight line between pole-tip and float, further increasing the resistance that a fish feels. Around 2ft of line between the tip and the float lets me swing the rig into place or use it to target any cruising fish nearby. Plus, the ‘plop’ made by the float makes an enticing noise, drawing fish directly to the hookbait.
I’ve used the rig to catch a wide range of species from Meg Lake on my local Fenlake Fishery where carassio, ide, skimmers and roach are the mainstay, with the odd small carp for good measure.
A regular trickle of bait is essential to maintain the attentions of the fish, and maggots work superbly. I’ll feed around 20 maggots, then plop the float directly over the top a split second later. If no bites come, I’ll repeat the process until something hooks itself.
So, remove the frustration that sometimes comes with targeting them just under the surface and allow The Pendulum to get this season’s shallow fishing antics off to a flying start!
Visit www.iansfloats.co.uk to buy The Pendulum floats
Get the best from The Pendulum
Use a soft elastic
Harsh elastics lead to fish being bumped. Use a No8-10 for quality silvers and the odd bonus fish, stepping up to a 12 if carp and F1s are dominant.
Hold the pole high
Maintain a tight line at all times, keeping the pole-tip well above the float. Use 2ft of line between them both and you’ll hit almost every bite.
Pick your weight
The float comes in 1g and 2g weights, the lighter one being best for mixed bags. It plops in without making a commotion.
Ditch the shot
No shot are required on this self-cocking float. Adjustable rubber stops hold it at the desired depth.
Balance your tackle
For fast and furious action your terminal tackle needs to be durable. Go with 0.15mm mainline to a 0.13mm hooklength and a size 16 hook.
Work dead maggots
Live maggots will wriggle, possibly covering the hookpoint at the key moment. Use dead red maggots and that simply won’t happen!
