Bait bands

Bait bands are one of the most popular methods for attaching hookbaits. They were originally designed for use with hard pellets, but later adapted for use with all kinds of baits. A bait band is a small band in which you trap the bait, which is usually hair-rigged at the back of a hook. This way, you have a bait secured right against a hook leaving it exposed to hook fish. Hard pellets are the most common bait to place in a band. I often stick to a standard Micro Bait Band for pellets up to 8mm. Although the band is tiny, it stretches over a pellet, and being small it remains discreet. One thing that is often overlooked is the versatility of bait bands. You can slip all kinds of baits in them! Fishing with a banded caster is lethal for F1s in the summer months. You just have to be careful when placing a caster into the band so as not to crush it. The standard Micro Bait Band is the perfect size to slip a caster into. This offers a lot of advantages when you’re fishing venues with a big head of small fish, which don’t pop the caster when you miss a bite from them. You can also catch several fish very quickly on the same bait. Bands also offer other little advantages when it comes to thinking outside the box. I’ve had a lot of success placing dead maggots in a band when legering. It’s very difficult to present a natural bait on a hair rig quickly and effectively, but this is a great way to do it with maggots! This makes a lightweight, natural bait, and you can place anywhere between two and five maggots in a band. Often, big, wise and older fish will be less suspicious sucking up a maggot compared to particle baits such as pellets.

A banded pellet is lethal when fishing a pellet waggler