| * Many fishermen would love to make their own | | | | that would not roll evenly to form a paste, many |
| ‘secret’ homemade carp and catfish baits | | | | using fish meals with a rough or grainy texture, |
| from their personally chosen ingredients but are | | | | many of which turned out to be fairly insoluble |
| fearful in case they don't actually work! * | | | | and requiring substantial water or eggs to make |
| But often, anglers have been confused by the | | | | them bind together to other ingredients. |
| myriad of information which often serves to | | | | The same can be said of bird food ingredients. |
| complicate rather than simplify this exciting | | | | But these ‘mistakes are never wasted and |
| process. This article will show you how to make | | | | can indeed be the perfect bait for a different |
| your baits and test them to GUARANTEE they | | | | situation or fishing circumstance. Many a mix that |
| will be successful and fill you with confidence | | | | would not roll has become used as a fantastically |
| through very positive results and great catches! | | | | effective free bait or form the very attractive |
| Many people have heard of ‘dedicated’ | | | | and nutritional ‘ground bait’. |
| dough baits, paste and boilie bait ‘base | | | | I remember trying to make bait using flaked rice |
| mixes’. | | | | and spirulina based cold water fish food. I added |
| These are a combination of dry powdered | | | | to it some semolina (wheat based flour) as a |
| ingredients which can be mixed with water, eggs | | | | binder and lots of molasses and egg biscuit bird |
| or other liquids, to create a mouldable dough to | | | | food. But I had not added enough semolina; once I |
| create baits in paste form, or boilied to form | | | | had added some eggs to help binding, the mix |
| more long-lasting ‘skinned’ boiled baits. | | | | would bind together, but not roll to form bait balls. |
| ‘Base mix’ design is fun because they | | | | Instead of adding more poor nutritional value |
| can incorporate such a wide variety of ingredients, | | | | semolina, I decided to use this new |
| for different effects, and to target different | | | | ‘sugar’ bait as I called it, as a new |
| species in different ways. | | | | experimental ground bait. (It was extremely tacky |
| But do you start by just choosing ingredients at | | | | and stuck to my hands like glue.) So I went |
| random and hoping they mix together, or is there | | | | fishing using my current base mix boilies for hook |
| an easier method of controlling your exploratory | | | | baits, and used some of the new ‘failed’ |
| mixing of ingredients? | | | | paste mix as small finger molded baits, to use as |
| Well, one idea is to mix together just enough | | | | carp attracting close proximity attractor baits. |
| powdered ingredients that if you mix them with | | | | These were baiting needle fed onto dissolving poly |
| one egg or a quarter of a cup of water, then | | | | vinyl alcohol (‘PVA’)strings tied to the |
| they would mix together and ‘bind’ | | | | hooks. |
| together into a dough. Now at this ‘test | | | | Having cast out two hook baits in a line at right |
| stage’ if you have your various ingredients in | | | | angles from the bank, and catapulted out a line of |
| the right amounts (ratio), they will bind correctly | | | | new sticky sugar paste baits directly over the top |
| to form a smooth mouldable dough. | | | | of them things started to happen. |
| Once you have tried small amounts of different | | | | What a surprise! Normally it could take an hour to |
| ratios of your ingredients and noted the amounts | | | | 6 hours or more to get the carp to really get |
| in each mix tested, you will now have your own | | | | feeding on the bait, as demonstrated by their |
| personal guide to which combinations form a | | | | ‘head and shouldering’ surface |
| practical, mouldable or rollable dough or paste; just | | | | movements, diving on the baits and bubbling |
| right for making balls of bait for hook baits, or to | | | | activity. Almost immediately, four carp rolled |
| boil in water to make boilies. | | | | simultaneously, along the baited line. It took just |
| It does take a small amount of trial and error to | | | | five minutes for the first carp run to occur. |
| reach this stage, but by using only small amounts | | | | Then runs just kept coming for the next hour |
| of ingredients at a time you will only waste a | | | | and a half. (I lost count how many!) This was at a |
| fraction, compared to incorrectly mixing much | | | | time when it could take 24 hours to produce that |
| larger amounts of perhaps expensive ingredients, | | | | number of takes; so this was truly exceptional. |
| and then discovering they will not bind together, | | | | This was an important lesson to me in the value |
| or roll together, or they might even repel the fish! | | | | of using paste or dough baits instead of boilie baits |
| Of cause, the design of the bait mix you use for | | | | whose results really were much less. |
| your fish is paramount to successful big fish | | | | This was such another striking example of how a |
| captures, and you need to test your new mix | | | | new bait can trigger an instant carp feeding |
| before making loads of perhaps ineffective bait! It | | | | response, and it stuck in the memory. A very |
| is possible to make bait that seems nutritional and | | | | similar bait hooked the largest fish in this particular |
| attractive, but actually, for some unforeseen | | | | lake (“Shotgate”, Essex.) This came |
| reason, it does not catch fish! | | | | merely two minutes after casting out the bait out! |
| So, it is advisable to test your new bait mixes on | | | | On a different lake, (“South Weald” |
| fish before possibly wasting time fishing with it. In | | | | Essex,) a similar paste bird food bait with high |
| the early days of making bait, I recall fishing for | | | | levels of sugars, molasses and the famous Rod |
| carp one night just casting out when I arrived and | | | | Hutchinson ‘Chocolate Malt’ flavour, |
| leaving the baits until morning, but without any fish | | | | produced even more stunning responses from |
| caught. I discovered the bait only lasted half an | | | | the big fish there. |
| hour before dissolving! A quick test before fishing | | | | There were many, many such examples of |
| would have saved a wasted night when the carp | | | | experimental baits producing fantastic results, |
| were truly feeding well, whilst I slept well! | | | | some being yeast and spices based, some being |
| Try leaving your new baits / boilies in a cup of | | | | fish meal based, and others being milk protein and |
| water of different temperatures, and time how | | | | body building powders based. Again some of |
| long they last before they break down, or how | | | | these baits were so packed with attractive |
| long it takes to ‘flavor’ the water with | | | | energy boosting sugars and were so soluble they |
| attractors’. This is really useful to your | | | | proved exceptional ‘alternative’ instant |
| confidence to know this for a fact and | | | | baits; many producing the lake’s biggest fish |
| demonstrates to you how your bait performs | | | | almost after the first cast! |
| under water; something most anglers never | | | | Testing new baits is so exiting at times; I made a |
| experience for themselves! | | | | trip to “Dream Lakes” in France, one year. |
| Perhaps feed some of your new bait to fish in a | | | | I had been testing a new ground bait made from |
| garden pond, or seen feeding on the surface of | | | | a boilie base mix packed with taurine rich squid |
| your lake. You could even make your baits as | | | | extract. This bait was not cheap, but all my |
| ‘instant floaters’ perhaps by micro | | | | experience and bait knowledge told me it was a |
| waving them for very short periods until they | | | | fantastic edge to take to a fishery with such |
| star to be able to float in a test cup of water. | | | | consistently high angling pressure. |
| (Try not to burn them!) | | | | Fishing the often harder to fish “Dream Lake |
| Watching the reactions of surface feeding fish | | | | 1” each morning I fed just one grapefruit |
| feeding on your new baits is an instant indication | | | | sized ball of this ground bait into the edge of the |
| of the power of attraction your baits may have | | | | lake right next to the bank at a difficult to cast to |
| or not, especially if you feed them alongside a bait | | | | place. This would be just before breakfast time, |
| you already know is exceptionally good like a top | | | | at which point I would make my way up to the |
| proven shop bought bait. When fish attention to | | | | anglers’ lodge for a half hour ‘social’. |
| your new bait is equal or even better than that | | | | Upon returning to the baited spot the water |
| given to the other ‘control’ bait, then | | | | would literally be black! Such was the feeding |
| you’re on a winner! | | | | response to this bait; my confidence in catching |
| Or leave them in shallow ‘marginal’ areas | | | | was so high I couldn’t wait to cast a rod out, |
| at the edges of your lake or river, and aim to | | | | and it sometimes only took a few seconds to |
| actually observe the feeding reactions of fish to | | | | initiate a carp take! |
| your bait over a morning or evening feeding spell | | | | I realise now, that the majority of my most |
| to see how confidently the fish enter the baited | | | | successful bait mixes and ground bait mixes have |
| area and feed on the new baits. You might be in | | | | come about more by accident and ‘doing |
| for a real surprise! | | | | things wrong’ as much as by design – as |
| For example, I made a new carp bait once, with a | | | | most great inventions are! |
| new sweet ‘appetite stimulator’ powder | | | | You may be wondering if you could be missing |
| incorporated into the bait’s original dry mix. I | | | | out on exceptionally exciting catches by your |
| just tested the paste dough version instead of | | | | ritualistically and habitually buying your most |
| boilies. I wished to see if I had over loaded the | | | | important fishing competitive edge at the shop, |
| bait with this new ingredient, and made it repellant | | | | rather than solving your special fishing needs and |
| to carp! I had aimed to improve the new bait, by | | | | requirements yourself. |
| enhancing it with a new ‘instant’ feeding | | | | * Why not break the lazy habits the majority of |
| trigger carp response. | | | | fishermen seem to have these days; try going |
| Having dropped pieces of the new bait into a | | | | fishing with your own homemade baits, and make |
| marginal lake feeding area I waited for carp to | | | | sure you take loads of spare film for the camera! |
| feed, and was elated at the response, as instead | | | | The author has many more fishing and bait |
| of fleeing the area, they kept returning with more | | | | ‘edges’ up his sleeve. Every single one |
| of their carp friends to enjoy this new delicious | | | | can have a huge impact on catches. (Warning: |
| feast; until it was all gone. My only regret was I | | | | This article is protected by copyright, but reprints |
| wasn’t fishing for them at the time; it would | | | | with a link are OK.) |
| have been great fun! | | | | By Tim Richardson. ‘The thinking angler’s |
| I have made many dry ingredient base mixes | | | | fishing author and expert bait making guru. |