SURFACE FEEDERS.

Surface feeders are closely allied to fishing a pellet waggler, but for when to use a surface waggler you will need to understand the habits of carp feeding in the upper water layers.

From around the middle of march carp and other species can be caught by fishing at depths of around 3-5 feet. this is normally done using pellet wagglers of your choice and catapulting pellets, or maggots around your float. This method is very successful right up to the end of October, in some circumstances if the water remains warm even into November.

As the spring and summer progresses the fish will rise higher in the water, which means of course that you will have to decrease the depth you are fishing at. In some lakes the water is so warm that fish will rise and stay in the top 12 inches. Under these conditions it becomes very hard to catch using traditional pellet waggler methods, it is then that surface feeders come into their own.

In simple terms the surface feeder is a method feeder, which can be of the coil frame or cage swim feeder type, attached to a small bulbous float , in effect making it a mini bag up

Setting up is very straight forward. attach the main line directly to the swivel on the base of the float, the hook length is also attached to the same swivel. Hook lengths from 3 inches to 12 inches are the norm, the actual length being your choice. Size 16-12 hooks tied as a hair rig or banded pellets complete the business end. Some fisheries have rules concerning minimum distance from float to hook, so check the rules before fishing.

Make up a damp fluffy ground bait mix that will squeeze around or into the feeder easily, too dry and it will fly off when casting. Add a fair sprinkling of 4mm sinking pellets. A suggested mix would be 1kg brown bread crumb, 1kg of ground trout pellet powder and a ¼kg of 4mm sinking pellets of your choice.

The ground bait wrapped around or in the feeder is your casting weight and will easily cast 25-30 yards. Most anglers clip up when using this method as it ensures the same distance every time, accurate casting will produce more fish. These floats are finely balanced, so if you over load the feeder with too much bait it may well sink initially. On entry the ground bait will make an enticing splash and produce a suspended cloud which will get the fish in a frenzy. Try not to move the float too far from it’s original entry point, the further away the float is from the ground bait cloud the longer it will take to get a bite.