Feeder fishing for roach

[Markywhizz]

Following on from the thread from @Joe C about winter fishing for silvers I thought I would post this question. I fish mainly for carp in summer in a mixed lake but since the temperature dropped I’ve been fishing for bream. I would like now to fish for roach. I have in the past caught roach on the pole with everything scaled down but I don’t consider pole fishing much fun when the temperature is 5 degrees or less and it’s raining. I want in general to feeder fish hunched up with my hands in my pockets lol.

Does anyone actually feeder fish for roach? I’ve caught plenty when I’ve been fishing for carp so I know it’s possible. Would using a heavier main line matter if my hook length was light with a small hook?

Any tips would be welcome.

 

[Mike atkinson]

Yes,i do this all the time, and chuck the waggler over the top, it’s a great way of fishing, I would scale down my reel line, if I was you, your going to be chucking a small 10 gram feeder only 18/20 mtrs or less, depending how far you can loosefeed casters accurately,, 0.18 reel line for the feeder, is thick enough, dropping to 0.14/0.16mm for the waggler mainline. Groundbait is your choice, whatever works for you, start by chucking every minute, to get some cloud in the water, and loosefeed 4 or 6 casters over the top, if your pulling the catty back to far and spreading the bait over to large an area, your fishing to far out, hooklengh of 12/16 inch of 0.10mm, size 16 B911F1 hook or 16 preston SFL is fine, soft quivertips 1/2 ounce or below, I use a 0.25oz glass tip, short 8/9 ft rods are handy for this, cause yer in and out every minute, casting and creating a cloud, keep loosefeeding every 40/60 seconds, then, after an hour or so, chuck the waggler over the top, two 11ft waggler rods, will cover you, one fished on the deck,with 3 or 4 no 10’s strung out, and another rod for fishing shallow, I fished like this last Sunday, and caught some quality roach 18 inch deep, cast the waggler past where your fishing, then feed twice, only 4 or 6 casters, then, wind your float over the top of your feed, then repeat, this method is not about sitting with yer hands in yer pocket, it’s very much a busy day, keeping bait trickling through the water and casting very regularly,,

 

[ukzero1]

I would agree with @Mike atkinson. Small maggot feeder and keep trickling in maggot and caster. Switch your hook bait around between maggot and caster, then try a cocktail bait of maggot and caster on the hook, a size 16 B911 would be ideal.

 

[Silverfisher]

Never done it on a Stillwater but do it fairly often on rivers when the conditions aren't good for the float. I find it's rarely as effective as float fishing for them but on its day it can work very well. Couple maggots on a 16 to 3lb hooklength then a small feeder with a hempy dark ground bait laced with hemp and maggot seems to work well. Alternatively punched and liquidised bread seems good as well. That said I'd fancy my chances on the float over it every time if the weathers calm and you're fishing fairly shallow slow water at short range.

 

[Arry]

There's a rig called the "dink dink" rig.... a blockend feeder on the end of your mainline with a short chod style hooklink above it trapped by a couple of rubber float stops

 

[squimp]

There's a rig called the "dink dink" rig.... a blockend feeder on the end of your mainline with a short chod style hooklink above it trapped by a couple of rubber float stops

If you do a search; there was a 3 page thread on ‘helicopter rigs for Roach ’ in May 2020.

Also be aware that some fisheries ban helicopter rigs.

 

[Arry]

Hey.... the man asked, I replied... I dunno the venue rules... just proposing a rig

 

[Sebbie]

I caught loads of roach yesterday on maggot feeder using the ‘twizzle-boom‘ rig advocated by Andy May in his Winning Ways October rig of the month video on YouTube. Didn’t have a single tangle all day.

 

[Zerkalo]

I think that might have been my thread, the 'helicopter rig' one. Be warned I went fishing for Roach with it and had a load of Tench and a Carp instead lol. Also, I feeder fish in winter too at a couple of venues, one of them holds silvers matches in winter presumably for the Roach and Skimmers, but I fish maggot there and catch mostly small Carp, so go figure!

I guess a lot will depend on venue but the heli rig is very good. Decent video here.

 

[Yosemite Sam]

You could perhaps try a small cage feeder with liquidised bread and hemp mix.

 

[squimp]

Hey.... the man asked, I replied... I dunno the venue rules... just proposing a rig

No criticism intended.

I was simply trying to save myself and others rehearsing what we all wrote on the same subject a while back.

I love helicopters and use them regularly.

 

[Joe C]

I caught loads of roach yesterday on maggot feeder using the ‘twizzle-boom‘ rig advocated by Andy May in his Winning Ways October rig of the month video on YouTube. Didn’t have a single tangle all day.

IMO the best free running rig around, very rarely tangles.