Bait Preparation

[gingert76]

So usually i prepare groundbait the night before i fish as i like it well soaked and just seems to work better for me but ive never thought about feed pellets until i watched a video by Jamie hughes, yes hook pellets i bag the night before for expanders but not feed.

But he says rather than just the night before he says do them a whole day before as he says bait prepped on friday for saturday is even better for sunday! so just wondered if anyone else preps their pellets (or other bait) that early? am just soaking my 2mm feed pellets now for tomorrow so going to have almost 24hrs before i use them to see if it makes any difference (brother is prepping his as usual tonight with the same bait and will fish 2 pegs away from me tomorrow and we are even considering swapping bait after a few hours to see if it makes a difference

 

[NathanP27]

Following. Please post your feedback

 

[RedRidingHood]

I've never purposely made up groundbait 24 hours before fishing, But I've made up groundbait on the bank, Never touched it and used it the next day.... It definitely smelt more pungent, But it also needed revitalising. 24 hours is a long, long time for groundbait to sit in a bucket.

Can't say I really noticed a difference, But then again to achieve a better view on it I'd want to try it out more than once... which I probably won't do.

Not knocking Jamie, One of my favourite Anglers to watch along with Andy May, but he's contradicted himself in a few video's.. I think another MD'er hit the nail on the head when he says they want you to come away from the video thinking you've learnt something new.

Always worth a go though, You might be pleasantly surprised. - Hope all is well Ginger.

 

[gingert76]

have always done my groundbait like that for many many years, doesnt matter what fish i am fishing for i always do it and never seen any issues, smells better, feels better, texture is spot on before i even leave, just always preferred it, just never thought of my pellets and going to tank test some to see if they do anything different.

regarding contradictions, i have noticed different advice from old videos to new videos which is what i would fully expect as he is always learning and only recently been doing the underwater things and new baits etc so fully expect the advice to change and you dont have to follow the advice but he is forever thinking and pushing the boundaries further, you cant argue with his results!

All is good thank you, just frustrating with Covid and restrictions but the same for all of us and that is life, hope you are well bud

 

[Arry]

I often prep groundbait and pellets beforehand... not from any scope of them being better... just because it saves time on the bank.... time spent preparing bait is time that can be spent fine tuning rigs, plumbing up, having a cuppa...

As I don't fish matches any more, it means I can crack on with fishing as soon as I arrive.... couple of balls of whatever in while I'm tackling up, or just tackle up fill a feeder and cast out...

Time spent at home is time saved on the bank

 

[Maesknoll]

It all depends what you want your groundbait to do, an inert GB has long been the accepted way to fish for bream and skimmers, whereas an active GB is more usual for roach fishing. So the inert is made up the night before, or at least as soon as you get to the peg, active GB make up just before you need it and in small quantities, so you make several batches during your match or pleasure session.

 

[The Landlord]

Be interesting to see the results. Having said that, if I've fished 2 days running, I've often used the leftover micros from the previous day & didn't notice any detrimental effects, apart from adding a little bit of water & giving them a good mix.

 

[chefster]

I always prep feed pellets,groundbait and hookers at home in advance, always have done, saves so much time before a match/session

 

[gingert76]

Just to say that im using Sonubaits 2mm F1 Feed Pellets and 2mm Expanders.

so im soaking the 2mm feed as usual with just covering them and added a few caps of F1 Swim Stim Cold pellet soak (the f1 pellets smell amazing anyway!) so been a hour and all teh pellets are soaked and kept their shape.

i have a 4ft glass vase that i use for shotting so got 2.5ft of water in it and dropped loose and balls of pellets, you can squeeze teh ball as hard as you want but it still breaks down into individual pellets, loads of little bits come off as you feed loose pellets, those bits then stay in the top 6 inches of water.

On the bottom the pellets will give off little cloud and bits which float up and then down again and the ball (even a hard ball) breaks down really quickly with loads of bubble coming off it, was quite suprised how a hard squeezed ball breaks down so fast!

The feed pellet is almost exactly the same as the expanders though ive hot hooked any yet as want to give them 8-9 hrs and repeat the test again

Keeping me amused either way lol

 

[Zerkalo]

Quite often do my groundbait the night before for reasons mentioned, more time on the bank, meant to be a less active mix but I've found Sonubaits Black Lake which is heavy on hemp to still be fizzingly active even when frozen and defrosted.

Saw a Des Shipp Q&A, the latest one, where he mentions he soaks feed pellets in water overnight and uses them on the hook for Skimmers.

 

[gingert76]

so quick update as just done a bit more testing, the pellets still have their shape and feel even better now, been prepared for 5 hrs now and they feel perfect, still sink at the same rate, still have bits coming off for the first few inches, are much more sticky but breakdown in the same time but do sink as a ball a little faster now

 

[jimbo24]

prep mine day before always, if any left at end of session freeze it until next trip and take it straight from freezer when needed

 

[Neil ofthe nene]

I do my pellets on the morning. Doing it a day in advance means they may start to ferment, particularly in a warm environment. I have changed fortunes for the better by switching from re-used pellets to freshly prepared. So I have more confidence in fresh bait.

Just done a batch of expanders that are now in the freezer.

 

[Silverfisher]

I do hemp the day before (unless it’s tinned of course ?) but groundbait I do on the bank. Very rare I fish pumpable (not a word) pellets these days but when I do I do them the day before.

 

[chefster]

I do my pellets on the morning. Doing it a day in advance means they may start to ferment, particularly in a warm environment. I have changed fortunes for the better by switching from re-used pellets to freshly prepared. So I have more confidence in fresh bait.

Just done a batch of expanders that are now in the freezer.

So I prepare my pellets the day before, add any additional flavours I may require, bag them and put them in a fridge, how will they not be fresh or start to ferment ??? And considering you advocate taking everything home and re freezing it, when it may have been sat out all day, I think that’s rubbish

 

[gingert76]

NOTN is entitled to his opinion, i do not agree with it and never had anything ferment unless i wanted it to. never had it happen even when fishing in france for a week and topping up the particles each day lol, only time i have used fermented bait is tigers, leaving them for a week and the start of fermentation enhances them no end though only for hook baits

 

[Silverfisher]

Hemp does seem to ferment (or at least go sticky and oily) but still takes a few days so you can still get a couple sessions out of a batch if they are only a day or two apart. It is horrible when it does go off though lol

 

[Zerkalo]

Not done it myself but might try it after watching this.

 

[gingert76]

like des but not seen that video, will stick with my 2mm tomorrow though, amazing how much they swell up

 

[Marker50]

I do all mine night before.
All in mosella groundbait.pellets.corn maggots the lot.
Put mosella on tray done.
I put bait in aldi medium freezer bags first at the end of a sesh any left bag strate in freezer or bin if previous frozen .
I dont like putting mosella tubs in freezer as it was not cheap.