DEADBAIT RIG TWO:

Phil responded to necessity years ago when he was getting bitted out using waggler-fished maggots and worms. A switch to larger, more selective bait was required. This took the shape of small, fresh roach or rudd deadbaits. “As soon as I started using them, the transformation was almost instant,” he explained. “Perch, like pike, are predatory, so it stands to reason they’d pick up a dead fish as well as chasing down live prey. If anything, a deadbait makes an easier meal for a big old ‘stripey’ too.” Scaling down his pike kit, Phil fishes in a similar way to how he now targets zander. A free-running leger rig combined with a 2ft hooklink of 6lb fluorocarbon terminates to a size 6 hook. Like the prawn rig, he uses a 1oz leger weight so it doesn’t shift on the take. The hook is a lighter gauge than the prawn rig to which he hooks the lip of the deadbait. Regarding presentation, Phil always recommends testing the set-up in the margins prior to casting. The reason being the fresher the bait the more buoyant it tends to be. The last thing you want to do is have it popped-up the length of the hooklink off the bottom. “To remedy this, I like to squeeze an AAA split shot on to the hooklink around two to three inches from the hook,” he explained. “The deadbait will then gently fall to the lakebed, where it will sit tail-up, replicating a feeding prey fish, or in a perch’s eyes, an easy meal!” Similar to pike or zander fishing, Phil’s deadbait rig incorporates a Korum Bite Indicator set-up on the rear rod rest, drop-off style. With the reel’s bail arm left open, once the mainline is pulled from the clip, the fish is free to take line without feeling giveaway resistance. “Wait until the line is confidently peeling off the reel, before closing the bail arm and striking into the fish,” said Phil. “As well as giving them time to take the bait, I also like to regularly recast. Every 15 to 20 minutes is about right. “But I don’t put a new bait on every cast, what I’m trying to do is advertise the presence of a dead or dying fish to any patrolling fish. It’s amazing the number of runs I get just as the bait settles.”

Open bail arms and dropoff indicators create a resistance-free set-up Both rigs are almost indentical although the hook for deadbait is a lighter gauge Expect fewer but larger fish on deadbaits