Quiver tip strength on rivers

[Zerkalo]

Just something I was thinking about today. Used a 50g feeder and struggled to hold bottom. Fed out a bit of a bow and it was a bit better.

I was using the heaviest tip my 1.25lb Greys rod comes with (love the rod now I've had a few fish on it) a 3.5oz tip and it was bent over quite a bit in the flow. Obviously you can still see bites as a sharp movement compared to swaying in the flow, but it leaves me wondering, what strength tips do you use on (fast flowing) rivers on a maggot feeder for example, and do you just put up with the tip being bent double in the flow?

 

[Zerkalo]

Lee Kerry mentions something similar here, video should start at the right point.

 

[NoCarpPlease]

Most of the time I'll be fishing a bow, balanced feeder and looking for drop back bites .... so in theory the amount of bend in the quivertip shouldn't matter.
However - I still prefer to have it a bit less than shown in Lee Kerry's video - so carry a selection from 1oz through to 6 oz. I've also cut back a spare 4oz one to make a floodwater special that must be about 9oz t.c.

 

[JohnLondon]

My go to tip is 3oz on the stretch of the Thames that I fish regularly. I don’t like the tip to be too bent over, I let out some line after casting to get a bow in the line & the majority of bites are drop backs when the line goes slack & the tip straightens. I sometimes drop down to 2oz if I’m fishing close in & there’s not much flow. You’ll find you cast better with a stiffer tip

 

[Silverfisher]

Not often that fast here so usually go with 1.5oz and don’t recall ever going over 2.5oz. Even on quicker rivers I’ve not really fished them with water on so 2.5oz tops has been fine on them as well save for one time on the hants Avon where probably a 3.5oz would have been handy.

 

[NoCarpPlease]

well i do fish the Severn and Wye with 8ft or more on!

 

[Silverfisher]

well i do fish the Severn and Wye with 8ft or more on!

I wouldn’t have a clue what to do in that. I don’t even own an uptider ??

 

[Arry]

I wouldn’t have a clue what to do in that. I don’t even own an uptider ??

Just watch the rod tip for the 3foot twitch

 

[rd115]

5 or 6oz tip for heavy flow, but to be fair if I needed a tip that stiff I'd just put the Avon top on.

 

[squimp]

Exactly. I’m going on ano recce mission to the river tomorrow. 2.25 tc rod, 12 lb line and a selection of leads from 2 - 4 oz.

No quivertip required.

 

[Zerkalo]

Fishing with a bow is best if casting upstream or directly in front, is that right? I cast downstream to features on this weir, sometimes the flow will catch the feeder and wash it downstream, that's when you get the biggest bends in the tip, sometimes still fishable, especially for bigger fish that tend to give positive bites, but it can be quite a bend in a 3.5oz tip with flow on so sometimes it wipes out your cast. I find the 3.5oz tip best for normal flow on the weir, and just about usable with heavy flow, but 50g is a bit light to hold in heavy flow.

 

[bettsfan]

I have occasionally fish the Severn and more lately the Wye. Rarely use a tip as such as I seem to be unfortunate with rising rivers. The Severn I would normal use the Fox Barbel Specialist Tip but at its 1.75lb rod. with a 2oz Feeder. However last year on the Wye I was on 5oz Feeders and 2 and a quarter pound Lightish Carp Rods and still struggling to hold bottom!! Fortunately with that style of fishing the river dictates that 'finesse' of a tip is not required.

My local Rivers have very little flow so can get away with a very light tip, an ounce, or less as I can use a specially made little 9ft Quiver I have from years back. This would normally be fished with maggot feeder rather than the big Open Ended ones on the rivers described above.

 

[rd115]

Even a 2lb Avon top shows bites from small silvers.

Last time out barbelling a small dace no bigger than a couple ounce managed to hang itself on one of my size 10 curve shanks and I could see the tip rattling quite easily even in a bit of flow.

Don't think I'd bother with a quiver unless I was fishing a really slow river or a nearside slack.

 

[Zerkalo]

True. I say big fish give positive bites but even some of the small ones on this river give deceptively good ones, especially I think if they manage to move the feeder.

 

[Lee Richards]

Changing the feeder to a flatbed also makes the world of difference.
Once a round feeder starts to move even a minimal flow will catch it and accentuate it's movement.

 

[Silverfisher]

Even a 2lb Avon top shows bites from small silvers.

Last time out barbelling a small dace no bigger than a couple ounce managed to hang itself on one of my size 10 curve shanks and I could see the tip rattling quite easily even in a bit of flow.

Don't think I'd bother with a quiver unless I was fishing a really slow river or a nearside slack.

All depends on how they are having it and the flow, sometimes you need a sensitive tip other days probably not but I still think it wise to have as sensitive as you sensibly can.

Changing the feeder to a flatbed also makes the world of difference.
Once a round feeder starts to move even a minimal flow will catch it and accentuate it's movement.

Very true that ??

 

[NoCarpPlease]

5 or 6oz tip for heavy flow, but to be fair if I needed a tip that stiff I'd just put the Avon top on.

Yeh ... as a match angler I don’t own an Avon, barbel or carp rod, so those heavy and cut down tips really create my closest possible equivalent ... with one rod only.

 

[Arch]

Unless I'm fishing a big lead/feeder 6oz plus, I like to use a quiver tip. My Greys rods have a 6oz tip that complements the rod perfectly and I tend to use that most of the time.



One other thing, I just prefer looking at a quiver tip rather than the Avon top.

 

[Total]

^^@Arch ....Cracking photo Arch...

 

[Arch]

That's the only thing I've captured all season though........