Fishing Milestones

[G0zzer2]

The biggest step forward I ever experienced was when I did a feature with Bob Nudd on the River Lea, and he produced this groundbait called Supercup. Prior to that it was white crumb, or brown crumb, or crushed dog biscuits, which all varied from one batch to another. Bagged groundbait revolutionised coarse fishing in the UK. It was always the same standard.
The next bagged groundbait I remember was Secret.

 

[The Landlord]

The lead ban came in in 1987 but there were some experimental matches that had lead bans before this as I had to use tungsten putty down the line at Longleat (circa 1985) which was fun in the rain as you couldn't even use no. 8s and below.

Ah right...it must have been one of the experimental matches I fished then. It was definitely 1985 though because it was the year I left home & bought my first house.

 

[robinta]

The biggest step forward I ever experienced was when I did a feature with Bob Nudd on the River Lea, and he produced this groundbait called Supercup. Prior to that it was white crumb, or brown crumb, or crushed dog biscuits, which all varied from one batch to another. Bagged groundbait revolutionised coarse fishing in the UK. It was always the same standard.
The next bagged groundbait I remember was Secret.

Suoercup.. Same as me!

 

[Markywhizz]

I fished as a kid in the 70s and then took it up again 10 years ago. Absolutely everything had changed in the meantime.

Fishing a pole was revolutionary as I’d not been fishing during it’s evolution. Carbon rods. Modern inline cage feeders I love. They may have been around in the seventies but I’d only used what we used to call a ledger bomb. QM1 hooks drastically reduced my hook pulls. I only discovered Maxima line ten years ago and was amazed, it just does not break. Commercial fisheries are brilliant. We used to fish the canal and certainly didn’t catch much. Maggots were available back then but I couldn’t afford them as a kid. We used to dig up worms. Having everything attached to my chair or my box makes everything so much easier.

Even an angler of below average ability like me can catch consistently these days.

 

[MarkW]

My first decent carbon rod - the Bruce and Walker John Dean stick float rod - was revelation as were the JD stick floats, still unsurpassed.
Chemically sharpened hooks in 1985 were also a big step forward with the biggest step backwards the banning of the smaller sizes of lead shot, especially no. 4s and 6s.

 

[nejohn]

Carbon fibre for me having fished with glassfibre rods and poles as a teenager, going from a B&W CTM to a Hardy Carbon rod was like night and day , it was the same with poles I had a Shaky Polystel that looking back weighed a ton at 6.5m and felt like a stick of wet celery compared to my 1st Carbon pole which was a 10m LERC job ....lots of other things have been evolution but Carbon fibre was a step change

 

[squimp]

Decent hooks for me. I started carp fishing in 1977 and hooks used to either snap or bend when you hooked a decent fish. The alternatives were such heavy wire they were ridiculous. Now quality hooks are available for all types of fishing.

Another One is the advent of multi piece rods that don’t break. I now use 4 piece fly rods that will fit in a suitcase and yet they will still land huge fish -amazing technology. Years ago I used to travel with a KIS rod case, what a pain they were.....but they did stop your rods getting broken.

 

[Sebbie]

‘Skirted’ spools on fixed-spool reels. Anyone remember the joy of line getting trapped round the back of the old spools which when you untangled it resembled the curliest pube ever?

 

[Zerkalo]

Seem to remember before Cupping Kits everyone would make their own pole pots, often hanging ones. I have still not used a pole with puller kits.

 

[chefster]

Pellet welters ??

 

[Yosemite Sam]

Pellet welters ??

I have 2 of these. Bought 1 and must admit they are good for micro’s. Found the other on the bank.

 

[Dave]

Gozzers - I used to breed my own at the end of the garden and could always sell the surplus on the coach, a couple of dozen in a matchbox for hookers.

I remember tackle shops starting to sell 'Super Maggots' which became a fad for a short while

 

[warrington63]

Still got my Daiwa Jaguar ! My lad has learnt onit and it is still going strong

Have you still got the ASI Jonny ?

 

[RedRidingHood]

Not an item of tackle, so I'm not sure that this counts but the Internet I'm sure quite a few people can relate to this also.

As a kid we never had internet, So the only information / tips I had on fishing came from the Angling Mail / Times and if not (usually) bad information from other local Anglers. Being an 8 year old kid with ADHD I never took the time to do home work, Let alone have the patience to read the Angling Times every week so I was pretty rag and tag as a kid, Usually casting and hoping for the best.

...Then we eventually got the internet I no longer needed to read articles on how to be better. I no longer needed to wait weeks and weeks to eventually find that odd article that could actually help further my Angling. I could get tips live on Youtube from expert Anglers on anything I wanted. Feeder Fishing? Pole Fishing? Shotting? The Right Floats? The right weight feeder for the occasion? All this information was just one click away and you can guarantee someones made a video on it. It wasn't boring, It kept me occupied and it helped me understand different waters a lot better.

Of course, As a kid we had DVD's. Matt Hayes and John Wilson (RIP) But these were more random DVD's my parents picked up for me on fishing that moreso fascinated me rather than actually helped me out some. I'd never fished from a boat, We never had fast flowing streams containing Barbel, Chub, Trout and so forth and that's what most of these DVD's featured.

But yeah, The Internet + Patience + Better understanding. Basically growing up was a fishing milestone for me!.

 

[Neil ofthe nene]

I can still recall seeing my first bristle topped pole float. I was walking behind one of the evening matches ABC matchgroup used to run on the Lee at Cook's Ferry. I immediately saw the potential and benefits of these wonderful floats. It was like being struck by a thunderbolt.

Getting my first take apart, elasticated pole. Until then I had used fibreglass telescopic poles with a flick tip and never really understood the benefits of take apart ones. I imagined you had to remove each section while playing the fish whereas I could just telescope the sections into my pole to get the fish within netting distance.

Then my fist pole roller. The difference in speed and convenience as against using my rod holdall was amazing.

And a match that went perfectly to plan. Division 3 National on the drains around Boston. I was drawn in front of the windmill that gives the Sibsey Trader its name. We had worked out a team plan after two and a half days practice. I doubled the weight of the next best on my coach and was sixth in section. I think very few team mates fished to the plan and so we came mid table. The captain, damning with faint praise, asked the rest of the team "If Neil could make it work and get a good result why not the rest of you?"

There is of course the usual biggest fish, best match weight, first ton. I cannot though remember my fist match win.

 

[derwentboy]

Have you still got the ASI Jonny ?

Hiya Mark..certainly have although I picked up a Plattforms Series 6 box for myself as well. I got my lad one last year and thought it was brill and well designed so looked out for another one..took a while mind. Am going to get a proper platform/stool made for the AS1 eventually..have been making my own attachments after learning some basic fabrication skills with aluminium and my mate is now TIGwelding so should be able to hopefully pull it off!

 

[derwentboy]

Not an item of tackle, so I'm not sure that this counts but the Internet I'm sure quite a few people can relate to this also.

As a kid we never had internet, So the only information / tips I had on fishing came from the Angling Mail / Times and if not (usually) bad information from other local Anglers. Being an 8 year old kid with ADHD I never took the time to do home work, Let alone have the patience to read the Angling Times every week so I was pretty rag and tag as a kid, Usually casting and hoping for the best.

...Then we eventually got the internet I no longer needed to read articles on how to be better. I no longer needed to wait weeks and weeks to eventually find that odd article that could actually help further my Angling. I could get tips live on Youtube from expert Anglers on anything I wanted. Feeder Fishing? Pole Fishing? Shotting? The Right Floats? The right weight feeder for the occasion? All this information was just one click away and you can guarantee someones made a video on it. It wasn't boring, It kept me occupied and it helped me understand different waters a lot better.

Of course, As a kid we had DVD's. Matt Hayes and John Wilson (RIP) But these were more random DVD's my parents picked up for me on fishing that moreso fascinated me rather than actually helped me out some. I'd never fished from a boat, We never had fast flowing streams containing Barbel, Chub, Trout and so forth and that's what most of these DVD's featured.

But yeah, The Internet + Patience + Better understanding. Basically growing up was a fishing milestone for me!.

Well said that man. Everyone has a different learning style and youtube has made the learning of an infinite amount of things more accessible to people not just geographically but in relation to how folk pick things up.

 

[Millers Thumb]

Luminous floats.....

 

[johnfranks]

My first carbon rod a B&W XLS i think, had a sliced tip. Also the ABU 507 and the humble hook tyer , kamasan hooks and Japanese mono. All changed my fishing. And a little tool made by sensas that looks like a diamond eye on a handle for threading ultra fine silicone on wire stem floats. So simple but so handy.

 

[Marker50]

Not tackle.but getting my first moped.
Instead of 2 buses .