When buying pellets, you may have come across bags of small 2mm expanders and thought ‘why would I use these?’.
When it comes to fishing expanders, especially during the colder months, bait selection can make a significant difference in your success. While larger baits like 4mm expanders might be effective in warmer weather, there's a time and place for smaller options.
EFFECTIVE POLE FISHING REQUIRES THE BEST POLE FISHING ELASTIC, OUR GUID DISCUSSES ALL THE OPTIONS ON THE MARKET TO SELECT THE PERFECT ELASTIC FOR YOUR POLE
Use positive floats
Positivity is essential when fishing with pellets. Use a slim-bodied 4x14 pattern, but it has to have a wire stem to help it sit up quickly. You are not look for a slow fall of the hookbait when fishing with expanders.
OUR GUIDE TO THE BEST FISHING POLES UNDER £1000 IS WORTH A LOOK
Pick a thin bristle
F1s can quickly pick up the pellet and it will not register on the float at all, so a slim bristle on your float, something that’s 1.2mm in diameter is recommended. Dot the float right down to leave just a few millimetres of show conditions allowing.
A WARM JACKET IS ESSENTIAL WHEN FISHING DURING THE COLDER MONTHS CHECK OUT OUR GUIDE TO THE BEST WINTER FISHING JACKETS
Match the hatch
A 2mm expander pellet resembles closely, micro pellets, these can be fed to match the hookbait creating an area that contains the feed and the hookbait that look similar, so there’s no apparent danger to the fish – you wouldn't get that effect with 4mm pellets on the hook
FISHING IN COOLER CONDITIONS? SEE OUR GUIDE TO THE BEST WINTER WATERPROOFS TO REMAIN WARM AND DRY ON THE BANK
Get the feeding right
Feeding is designed to get one F1 into the swim and to catch it. The delicate nature of the feeding and that numbers of feeding fish will be greatly reduced in cooler conditions, means a nugget of 2mm micros or crushed expander groundbait potted in on each drop, feeding for one fish at a time.
THE BEST FISHING POLES WILL ENABLE YOU TO FEED ACCURATELY, OUR GUIDE HIGHLIGHTS WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN SELECTING YOUR NEXT POLE
Keep your hooks big
A size 16 or 18 fine wire hook is recommended for this. It may sound big for a 2mm expander, but once mounted on the hook it leaves enough hook point showing and adds weight to the bait allowing for optimal control and accuracy.
THE BEST POLE FISHING TIPS WILL IMPROVE YOUR FISHING, SEE OUR GUIDE TO OPTIMISE YOUR POLE FISHING
Fish light lines
Hooklengths as low as 0.08mm in diameter can be used if bites are really cautious, although 0.10mm is a good starting point. Combined this with a 6-8 hybrid elastic, you can land any bonus carp that show.
SELECTING THE BEST POLE FISHING LINES IS ESSENTIAL TO EFFECTIVE PRESENTATION
