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| Stick it! - by Felix van der Marel |
| Stick it! - by Felix van der Marel |
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The last three years the "stick" has made a big step within carpfishing. With a bit of knowledge these PVA-baitsticks are quit simple to fabricate. You can buy the ingredients or readymade-mixes at your local tackle-shop. But you can also use your own ingredients or additives. Sometimes this will lead to surprising results. What do you think, for example, of a maggot-stick?
First of all you need PVA (narrow version) for making the maggot-stick. Always make sure that you have a pipe where you can put the PVA in after you are done. This way moist cannot come in and the PVA stays dry. What you certainly cannot miss is the tamping-bar, this attribute ensures that you press perfect sticks out of the pipe. And if you want to save money when buying new PVA then go for a refill-package. My preference assumes to PVA-products of Korda and Prologic. These two manufacturers brings qualitative well material on the market; it melts down very quick and easy, it's thick material and doesn't stretch rapidly. There is nothing more annoying like a stick that is already melting, above your head, while casting your rod!. Or even more terrible: It doesn't melt down at all! Taking your rods out of the water, after a session, with white pulp trails on your rig and hook bait and then wonder why you didn't caught anything?! There for try out your PVA in several water temperatures! Check out how your PVA works out and how long it lasts for it has entirely been solved! In the beginning it looks difficult to make a good stick, but enough exercise make sure you will deliver a artwork at the end.
If U are planning to use any extra ingredients or additives like flavours, sprays or whatever then do this outside of your house. Most of the time these kind of flavours like mussel,monstercrab,Crustacean,etc what is smelling nice for carp ,almost makes us sick after using it! Also I guarantee you if you want to get rid of your girlfriend/woman do it inside the house! Okay enough with the funny talk....conclusion: make your sticks fresh on the waterside! No angry partners at home and it is a pleasant time-killing job while waiting for that first run! Certainly the first (winter) stick-recipe what I want to discuss. Hereby you only have the possibility to do this direct on the bank. This comes by the fact that this is a living, protesting stick! And therefore it doesn't like to be cast into the water. What the hell you are talking about Felix? Well let me tell you...I am talking about a delicacy for carps and other fish: Maggots! Yes maggots, those small, creepy and slimy bastards. I use them sometimes solo or with other additives in a stick. This is no easy job and you must have a number of matter well in order. Take care that your rods are standing steady to attach the maggot-sticks. Unfortunately you also have to prepare and cast out your rods one by one. Using a boat doesn't seem like a good plan.... all those maggots in your boat. So you have to cast.....but do it quick, because what is the major problem? The maggots will crawl out of the PVA as soon as they can! That is not the intention, so pay attention! Take care also that you have indeed everything at the hand while making the sticks. A good, long particle-needle, nail-scissors and a little towel for your hands, if they get wet. You don't want the PVA to melt while making the sticks and you certainly don't want any maggots in your sleeves.
Now push your maggot-mix into the PVA, but not too hard, because then the maggots are already ennobled to pulp before they reach the bottom. The movement of the maggots under water give the largest attraction, after exploding out of the stick, according to me. Often in no-time, sometimes within five minutes already, the first fat bream was on the bank! But from time to time, after casting in, also within a short period the first little carp. Now the large species of carp are more carefully, especially on pressured water! They will not pick up a "fresh" rig as fast such as that their small family does. Therefore yes, frequently you will catch those smaller carp first, but that does not means that a big carp is dirty of some maggots. Also if the maggots are "wasted" by forgetting their oxygen-bottles! Maggots are no good swimmers and blow out rapidly their last oxygen under water. But this is not a problem for hungry carp, because lifeless the maggots are still a true delicacy. It remains natural food what is recognised directly as edible! Therefore I can guarantee you they will grind every maggot, on your swim ,to a nutritive protein-shake! Okay back to the bigger species and how you can make them also surrender for some maggots. When I use maggots to catch some bigger carp ,I don't use a stick! Just a single hookbait on a big carpet of maggots. You just take a bucket full of maggots( 2-3 liter ) with you in the boat together with a rod. Place your rod gently and make a big square around it with the maggots! Deadly! Or just take a good slingshot when your fishing close to the bank.
After a while the carp will maybe get more shy and won't pick up the rig anymore. Then there is a extra surprise! You can also still use additives with the maggots if you press them in the stick. For example: sweet honey, fresh liver or some powder. Just go into the kitchen and look for ordinary things you can use or even more better...a combination of different additives. For example, honey( that sticks ) and sugar (as a coating over the honey) You just put the maggots in a bucket, add your magic additive or whatever... and the maggots will finish the job. They will put on a beautiful "trench coat" of your additive. And if you are lucky, the maggots will also eat from it!! So they are totally covered ...inside and outside! Let's take a closer look to a personal favourite additive of me which I use frequently. This is a additive inside a additive!!!! What the hell you are talking about now? Let me tell you! I am talking about the DNA powders from Prologic/DDbait. This great powder ensures that not only the maggots themselves are provided with a nice coating but also that the powder-parts are spreading around your presentation!! These parts move around the stick(also moving) and the hook bait! This will stimulate the instinct of the present fish even more then only the ordinary maggots without additives! Can you dig it? After I saw the "magic" of those DNA-powders I am sure if U use them ...not one single fish will pass your hook-bait without paying attention! The powder-parts will go really up to the surface and then will whirl slowly back again to the bottom! Also perfect in the summertime, when the carp will be more on the surface...enjoying the sun! You can make sure ....they will take a look, while sunbathing, where that stuff is coming from and even more important....where does it goes? Right! Straight to your hookbait!
To be continued.....with a spring-recipe for sticks!
Felix van der Marel.
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