RINGER TO THE RESCUE
Champion angler Steve takes an in-depth look at your angling problems
RINGER TO THE RESCUE! Steve reveals how to safely play and land big fish on rod and line
THE KEY thing is to remember is that the harder you pull a carp, the harder it pulls back! Playing a carp on rod and line is all about getting it moving towards you with minimal pressure.
Basically, it’s like having a dog on a lead – if you don’t believe me, then next time you are playing a decent fish try taking the pressure off and see what happens. My guess is it won’t do much other than just sit there. It certainly won’t start running off hard.
Keep the rod low
When you hook a carp, the first thing to do is keep the rod low to either the left or right. If you hold the rod high in the air, the carp feels like you are trying to pull it out of the water, and the fish will fight twice as hard.
After keeping the rod low, and once the fish has stopped running, I pump and wind to keep it coming towards me. If the carp starts to run hard, you can let it run and when it stops simply repeat the process.
Changing the angle
Something else that might happen is that the fish might run off the angle of the rod. By this, I mean if you have the rod down low to the left, the fish might run even further left. If this happens you need to move the rod to the right, again in the low position. Try to do this nice and smoothly, avoiding sudden jerky movements which could weaken the hookhold. And try to avoid constantly swapping from left to right, as excessive movement of the rod can lead to hook-pulls.
Netting time
Once a fish is within netting range and you have the right length of line between rod tip and fish, the next step is to smoothly lift the rod and bring the fish to the surface.
Changing the angle disorientates it, as suddenly
Can you show me the best way to play big fish on rod and line gear? Jamie Craig, Ilkeston
all the pressure is coming from above. When this happens, the fish tends to come to the surface, giving you a chance of netting it as it does so.
You have to be quick because you are basically netting the fish early due to the change of angle. In a match this is a big advantage as it saves time.
That said, if you miss this first chance because the fish is too quick, don’t panic! Instead, drop the rod back down and take your time before repeating the process. Too many anglers miss the first chance and then panic, which results in a lost fish. It’s much better to drop the rod back down again, take your time and make sure the fish ends up in the net.
Backwind and clutch
On the subject of playing fish its worth mentioning backwinding and use of the reel’s clutch, as both can be important.
I prefer to play fish on the backwind of the reel because I feel I can control things that little bit more easily. Sometimes I might want to apply a bit more pressure and at other times ease it right off.
I would add that I think for smaller carp backwinding is definitely better, because they tend to be more erratic in the way they fight. For bigger carp, let’s say 8lb-plus fish, then it really is a toss-up between the two options, especially given how smooth the drags are on most reels these days.
The only time I have used the drag in recent years was at Earlswood Lakes where it was all big carp – the average fish weighed 10lb-plus. For that size of fish I did find playing them on the drag was easier.
The key, of course, was getting the drag set right. What you don’t want to happen when playing fish is to be winding against the drag, because this can cause line twist. Winding
“First thing to do is keep the rod low to either the left or right”
against the drag means winding the reel while the drag is giving line. If this is happening, then your drag is either set too light or you are winding when you shouldn’t be.
A helping hand
One little trick I use when feeder fishing, and which I feel makes playing fish easier, is to use a shockleader.
The beauty of this is that it gives you that little bit of insurance when casting so there are no crack-offs, but there is another advantage too, which is that it allows me to know exactly where a hooked fish is once I get it under my feet.
There’s nothing more annoying than lifting the rod thinking the fish is within netting range, only to find it’s too far out. With a leader this doesn’t happen. When I hear the leader knot hit the tip ring, I have six turns of the reel before the fish is on the right amount of line to be netted. I say six turns, but the number depends on the length of your leader. I do this a lot, and it definitely helps me when playing fish as I know how far out they are.