Hi Den, I'll give it a try. The good old potato as a bait has fallen into oblivion in Germany. I last fished with swollen wheat, so I outwitted the roach with my uncle in 1965 on the Moselle. Lo and behold, it still works today on the Meuse. It also works without maggots and worms.
That's excellent news Bill. I have never used one at 20mm before and I have not tried Vanilla as a flavouring. I will set some time aside to do both in the near future.
Just an update. Have started making 5mm potato pellets using a piece of brass tubing as a punch. Pellet is hair rigged over a spod of sweet feed pellets (horse feed) followed by a mix of oatmeal, cracked corn, and liquidized bread crumbs in a spring feeder. This AM produced a 16 lb common. Many thanks for introducing me to the world of potato bait.
Once again a most excellent video. I was just contemplating using potatoes, but was somewhat what intimidated by the traditional methods used in the British Isles. Here in the USA I largely fish rivers for wild carp as opposed to commercial carp in ponds as in England. From the looks of your videos, Australia seems to be offering a similar carp venue to that of the USA. I'm finding your tutorials extremely interesting, useful, and practicable. Thank you for taking the time and efforts to produce them.
Yep. I would think it's exactly the same as the USA over here. The fish are wild unlike the commercial carp fisheries back home in the UK. If potatoes don't do it for you, please have a look at my last 2 videos which cover the use of Cooked Prawns as bait for carp. They are working really well for me over here.
Nice vid Den, will definitely give those ideas a crack ! Also well done on winning the Canberra classic, no mean feat eh !! ...were you just using corn or other baits ?
Thanks Pete. If you watch tomorrow's video, your questions will be answered in detail mate. I've just spent the last 3 days editing the video covering the event.😃
Blimey ‘what a super interesting video that was Den Now that I’m retired I spend a lot of time fishing......so not only will I be able to save a few bob I’ll also be getting the buzz of hopefully catching fish with my own home made bait 🤑
Good for you Alan. I thought retirement would be boring. It turns out that I am so busy with Fishing and making these videos that there aren't enough hours in the day. Lol.
Hi Den! I'm just getting ready to start fishing and firstly want to thank you for the how to videos. Really like the idea of using wagglers and will try to make some. They just aren't used much around here that I can tell. Slip bobbers are more common. Trout is the main plan, but there are common carp in one lake that's a 45 min drive from my place and I want to try for them. Almost no one eats them here as they are consider "invasive" but there is a guy that makes videos, "Fishing with Dan" I think that gets them regularly. I think people use sweet corn or dough bait. I was going to go with sweet corn for bait, but like the idea that you can flavour potato. Have you any idea if the flavoured potato will work for trout? Also, per your chat below with Russel Jones, regarding binders. Since I was going to try homemade dough bait, possible using corn meal or corn flour as the base, I was thinking of adding some Xanthan gum to "gel" it a bit more for durability. Xanthan is used as a thickener in foods so I thought it may be good to try. All a theory right now, but think it may do well to give the dough a more rubbery like consistency so it stays on the hook better. Just thought I'd mention it. Thanks again for all your super helpful videos!!! Fingers crossed I can get my first fish soon. Regards, Bert Victoria, BC, Canada
Hi Bert. My advice when you start fishing for Carp is to just keep it simple. I recommend that you take some corn and a loaf of bread as bait initially. You don’t need to get into more complicated mixtures at this point. Use the corn on the hook and throw out small amounts in the area around your float fairly regularly. If you are using a loaf of bread, you can break off a small piece and compress it with your fingers around the hook until it forms a nice doughball. You can also break off a piece and only compress the part attached to the shank of the hook. This will leave a fluffy area which is buoyant. You bait will then sink much more slowly and be wafted around more easily when it hits the bottom. Be careful though, if you have too much of the fluffy part, your bait may not sink. To check this, simply dunk the hook and bait in the water to see if it sinks. If not, break off a small piece of the fluffy stuff until it does sink. As for the Trout, sorry mate, I can’t help you with that as I don’t fish for them. Potato Pellets are worth experimenting with though. I do know that Trout will take bread though. I hope that helps.
@@FishingwithDen: Great. Thank you, I'll keep it simple to start. Here in British Columbia, we can't toss pellets as is would be considered Chumming and that's not allowed. But seeing your method feeder rig made me wonder if something like that would be considered chumming, or as part of your fishing bait, since it's on your line. Might just have to put in a call to DoF and ask. Thanks! I'll let you know how the potato pellets go with the trout. Certainly way cheaper then $9 for a tiny jar of salmon eggs.
@@FishingwithDen: Especially when the regulation booklet defines Chumming as: "Chumming... attempting to attract fish by depositing any substance in the water, is prohibited." ....... Well, by that definition anything other then a naked hook and wishfully thinking constitutes a violation...... Really had a chuckle when I read that one.
Thanks for your comment Carol. I'm afraid I have never tried to freeze Potato Pellets, so I can't provide a definitive answer. If you do decide to freeze some, please let me know if they were still usable afterwards.
Hi Den Another informative video from down under. A couple of questions: Do you find the layers pellets have any application for use with flat bed method feeders ie do they grip ok with a mould or do they need further additives to work properly. I note you like turmeric as an additive for this application but have you tried paprika to give a red variation or oyster or fish sauce for flavour. Both work well whenever I have used them are cheap to buy and often sourced from supermarkets.
Hi Russell. Thanks for your comments. Layer pellets don't work in the same way as pellets in the UK insofar as Method Feeders are concerned. They don't stick to the feeder properly. I haven't tried additives to make them stick yet either. (Ovaltine may work and I will try that soon) Over here, we don't have access to the variety of pellets as you guys in the UK, so I mix them with groundbait on the feeder. As for additives, so far, I have not tried paprika or the other options you mentioned. They may be something I will try in the future but there are so many things to try that it will take me some time to refine my options. I do however like the stuff you can buy from supermarkets to concoct effective baits/groundbaits.
I can recommend nam pla (thai fish source) as an excellent additive for carp and barbel. I use it on English coarse pellets when you can't use halibut pellets to get a super fishy flavour. It will also dye the pellets a darker colour as a bonus. Interesting what you say regarding layers pellets not being very sticky. I suspect that adding a good dose of icing sugar to the damp pellets would overcome this problem and counteract any bitterness in the pellets own flavour. Crushed ginger biscuits also makes excellent binder for ground baits very similar to PV1. Adding icing sugar to cubed luncheon meat before adding powdered additives also enhances the flavour absorption. I'm not sure if you use canned meat down there but it should work for carp wherever you live. Layers mash makes a good ground bait additive but I'm sure you know that already. Looking forward to your next video. Sometimes not having all the commercial products at your fingertips promotes innovation that generates real innovation. Regards Russell
Hi Russell. Thanks for the info. I like the idea of using Icing Sugar as a binder for the pellets. I will give it a try. Ginger biscuits as a binder for groundbait are mentioned in my video on a DIY Groundbait, so I know that works well. We don't use luncheon meat much over here. It seems to attract Eels of all sizes and some of them are pretty scarily big. Lol. You have given me plenty of options to try out, so thanks again.
I remember reading about that many years ago Stephen, but I've never tried it. I'm sure it would work, but for most people in the UK these days, it's all about going down to the tackle shop and buying an expensive bag of other baits.
Den I’ve had a punch set in my box for years, I will now be punching spuds with them, thank you
Hi Den, I'll give it a try. The good old potato as a bait has fallen into oblivion in Germany. I last fished with swollen wheat, so I outwitted the roach with my uncle in 1965 on the Moselle. Lo and behold, it still works today on the Meuse. It also works without maggots and worms.
Using a 20 mm potato pellet soaked in vanilla I landed a 15.1 lb common carp this am. Thank you for alerting me to this bait.
That's excellent news Bill. I have never used one at 20mm before and I have not tried Vanilla as a flavouring. I will set some time aside to do both in the near future.
great video Den!
Thanks Adam. 😃👍
Reminds me of my childhood using a spud gun !
Me too, but I'm sure they are probably banned these days Gerald.
Just an update. Have started making 5mm potato pellets using a piece of brass tubing as a punch. Pellet is hair rigged over a spod of sweet feed pellets (horse feed) followed by a mix of oatmeal, cracked corn, and liquidized bread crumbs in a spring feeder. This AM produced a 16 lb common. Many thanks for introducing me to the world of potato bait.
Hi Bill. I'm glad the potato pellets are working so well for you. Tight Lines.
As an exile and not able to buy all I want, except online meaning expensive postage, this is a really good suggestion.
Thanks for your comments William. I am in the same position as you, so I decided to see what pellets were available locally.
Once again a most excellent video. I was just contemplating using potatoes, but was somewhat what intimidated by the traditional methods used in the British Isles. Here in the USA I largely fish rivers for wild carp as opposed to commercial carp in ponds as in England. From the looks of your videos, Australia seems to be offering a similar carp venue to that of the USA. I'm finding your tutorials extremely interesting, useful, and practicable. Thank you for taking the time and efforts to produce them.
Yep. I would think it's exactly the same as the USA over here. The fish are wild unlike the commercial carp fisheries back home in the UK. If potatoes don't do it for you, please have a look at my last 2 videos which cover the use of Cooked Prawns as bait for carp. They are working really well for me over here.
Really interesting video Den... much appreciated and yes I'll be trying these out myself... Thanks again...
Your welcome John
Nice vid Den, will definitely give those ideas a crack !
Also well done on winning the Canberra classic, no mean feat eh !! ...were you just using corn or other baits ?
Thanks Pete. If you watch tomorrow's video, your questions will be answered in detail mate. I've just spent the last 3 days editing the video covering the event.😃
Great video. I’ve never tried this as a bait but I’ll be giving it a go next time out. Thank you for sharing 👍
You're welcome Paul. Tight lines.
Blimey ‘what a super interesting video that was Den
Now that I’m retired I spend a lot of time fishing......so not only will I be able to save a few bob I’ll also be getting the buzz of hopefully catching fish with my own home made bait 🤑
Good for you Alan. I thought retirement would be boring. It turns out that I am so busy with Fishing and making these videos that there aren't enough hours in the day. Lol.
Get a potato gun from wen you was a kid you do it a lot faster with one of them 😊
Great video mate, super helpful.
Hi Tawhid. Thank you. I also took your advice and changed the style of Thumbnails on my videos. Thanks for your advice.
Fishing with Den Welcome mate.
Hi Den, great videos mate - all of them ! Just a query : Do you soak the potato pellets overnight / then drain off and add the Turmeric ?
Deffo going try this
It's always worth trying new stuff Paul. I'm still learning after 60 years of fishing.
@@FishingwithDen definitely mate. 👍
Hi Den! I'm just getting ready to start fishing and firstly want to thank you for the how to videos. Really like the idea of using wagglers and will try to make some. They just aren't used much around here that I can tell. Slip bobbers are more common. Trout is the main plan, but there are common carp in one lake that's a 45 min drive from my place and I want to try for them. Almost no one eats them here as they are consider "invasive" but there is a guy that makes videos, "Fishing with Dan" I think that gets them regularly. I think people use sweet corn or dough bait.
I was going to go with sweet corn for bait, but like the idea that you can flavour potato. Have you any idea if the flavoured potato will work for trout?
Also, per your chat below with Russel Jones, regarding binders. Since I was going to try homemade dough bait, possible using corn meal or corn flour as the base, I was thinking of adding some Xanthan gum to "gel" it a bit more for durability. Xanthan is used as a thickener in foods so I thought it may be good to try. All a theory right now, but think it may do well to give the dough a more rubbery like consistency so it stays on the hook better. Just thought I'd mention it.
Thanks again for all your super helpful videos!!! Fingers crossed I can get my first fish soon.
Regards,
Bert
Victoria, BC, Canada
Hi Bert. My advice when you start fishing for Carp is to just keep it simple. I recommend that you take some corn and a loaf of bread as bait initially. You don’t need to get into more complicated mixtures at this point.
Use the corn on the hook and throw out small amounts in the area around your float fairly regularly. If you are using a loaf of bread, you can break off a small piece and compress it with your fingers around the hook until it forms a nice doughball.
You can also break off a piece and only compress the part attached to the shank of the hook. This will leave a fluffy area which is buoyant. You bait will then sink much more slowly and be wafted around more easily when it hits the bottom. Be careful though, if you have too much of the fluffy part, your bait may not sink. To check this, simply dunk the hook and bait in the water to see if it sinks. If not, break off a small piece of the fluffy stuff until it does sink.
As for the Trout, sorry mate, I can’t help you with that as I don’t fish for them. Potato Pellets are worth experimenting with though. I do know that Trout will take bread though. I hope that helps.
@@FishingwithDen: Great. Thank you, I'll keep it simple to start. Here in British Columbia, we can't toss pellets as is would be considered Chumming and that's not allowed. But seeing your method feeder rig made me wonder if something like that would be considered chumming, or as part of your fishing bait, since it's on your line. Might just have to put in a call to DoF and ask. Thanks! I'll let you know how the potato pellets go with the trout. Certainly way cheaper then $9 for a tiny jar of salmon eggs.
Yep. We have some stupid regulations over here too.
@@FishingwithDen: Especially when the regulation booklet defines Chumming as: "Chumming... attempting to attract fish by depositing any substance in the water, is prohibited." ....... Well, by that definition anything other then a naked hook and wishfully thinking constitutes a violation...... Really had a chuckle when I read that one.
great video. can i also freeze the potato pellets ?
Thanks for your comment Carol. I'm afraid I have never tried to freeze Potato Pellets, so I can't provide a definitive answer. If you do decide to freeze some, please let me know if they were still usable afterwards.
Hi Den
Another informative video from down under.
A couple of questions:
Do you find the layers pellets have any application for use with flat bed method feeders ie do they grip ok with a mould or do they need further additives to work properly.
I note you like turmeric as an additive for this application but have you tried paprika to give a red variation or oyster or fish sauce for flavour. Both work well whenever I have used them are cheap to buy and often sourced from supermarkets.
Hi Russell. Thanks for your comments. Layer pellets don't work in the same way as pellets in the UK insofar as Method Feeders are concerned. They don't stick to the feeder properly. I haven't tried additives to make them stick yet either. (Ovaltine may work and I will try that soon) Over here, we don't have access to the variety of pellets as you guys in the UK, so I mix them with groundbait on the feeder. As for additives, so far, I have not tried paprika or the other options you mentioned. They may be something I will try in the future but there are so many things to try that it will take me some time to refine my options. I do however like the stuff you can buy from supermarkets to concoct effective baits/groundbaits.
I can recommend nam pla (thai fish source) as an excellent additive for carp and barbel. I use it on English coarse pellets when you can't use halibut pellets to get a super fishy flavour. It will also dye the pellets a darker colour as a bonus.
Interesting what you say regarding layers pellets not being very sticky. I suspect that adding a good dose of icing sugar to the damp pellets would overcome this problem and counteract any bitterness in the pellets own flavour. Crushed ginger biscuits also makes excellent binder for ground baits very similar to PV1.
Adding icing sugar to cubed luncheon meat before adding powdered additives also enhances the flavour absorption. I'm not sure if you use canned meat down there but it should work for carp wherever you live.
Layers mash makes a good ground bait additive but I'm sure you know that already. Looking forward to your next video. Sometimes not having all the commercial products at your fingertips promotes innovation that generates real innovation.
Regards
Russell
Hi Russell. Thanks for the info. I like the idea of using Icing Sugar as a binder for the pellets. I will give it a try. Ginger biscuits as a binder for groundbait are mentioned in my video on a DIY Groundbait, so I know that works well. We don't use luncheon meat much over here. It seems to attract Eels of all sizes and some of them are pretty scarily big. Lol.
You have given me plenty of options to try out, so thanks again.
Hi Den can these potatoes pellets be frozen
You can Blow the pellets out of the punch - I do with Luncheon Meat!!
Sorry Den just found your video.
No worries.
How about pearl barley done in in a flask ?
I remember reading about that many years ago Stephen, but I've never tried it. I'm sure it would work, but for most people in the UK these days, it's all about going down to the tackle shop and buying an expensive bag of other baits.