Surface Fishing for Carp

[Maverick]

Recently fished a new venue where surface fishing is allowed. There were loads of carp cruising around the top with it being so hot.

Pedigree Chum Mixers appear to be a popular choice as a feed bait to get the fish confidently feeding on the top, but which is the best way of attaching them to the hook so that they look as natural as the free offerings do to the fish.

Do I band them? Hair rig them? Use a soft floating hooker pellet that I can bury the hook in? Help from anyone who successfully fishes this method would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Wise Owl]

Hair Rigged Maltesers easy to hair rig and lighter than light.

 

[Fayes Dad]

Hair Rigged Maltesers easy to hair rig and lighter than light.

If I used Maltesers I would fish one and then eat the rest!

 

[Fugley-fisher]

@Wise Owl there ain't no chance I would use a tasty malteaser, the hook would see zero my gob all, and besides how long would the chocolate last in this heat, think your malt-teasering us.

 

[ukzero1]

@Maverick

Will this help you buddy?

 

[Swim Jim]

I quite often pole fish chum mixers. Soak them in water for 10mins, drain, put them in an airtight plastic bag and leave in fridge overnight. Next morning they are firm and rubbery and hookabl.

 

[squimp]

I quite often pole fish chum mixers. Soak them in water for 10mins, drain, put them in an airtight plastic bag and leave in fridge overnight. Next morning they are firm and rubbery and hookabl.

method 1: as above and then either hair rig or side hook. I add a bit of flavour to the soak.

method 2: cut a slight groove in the side of a dry mixer then superglue it to the hook.

method 3: use a tight bait band and simply band the dry mixer to the shank.

other points: try 2 mixers together- bigger bait and all that.

try feeding mixers and using a cut down pop up or a piece of cork as hook bait.

different makes/brands of mixers have different ingredients so some soak/float break up better than others. Chum mixers used to be the best, not so now.

other types of floating bait eg 6mm and 11mm floating pellets are available.

floater fishing is really good fun.

 

[Maverick]

Some good tips there. Thanks lads

 

[Silverfisher]

I tend to be band them but usually use floating pellets for that. Floating hookable pellets or bread are just as good though. A floating rubber caster can be deadly as well if you’ve got some old casters than are starting to float to feed.

 

[EdBray]

Why don't you superglue a dog biscuit to the shank of the hook?

 

[Kevin55]

Some good tips there. Thanks lads

I use a fly rod with dog biscuit flies. Glueing or drilling a real biscuit also works well

Those obsessed with carp fly fishing also use wine corks, sanded down to shape, even putting split shot on 1 side to keep the hook up

I've had them up to 14lb with 10lb leader

 

[Silverfisher]

The most non commercial carp I’ve seen caught in a day was by a fly angler, well over 10 fish probably all over 10lb given the venue. Not sure if he was using actual pellets/biscuits or imitations but it worked as he massively out caught the other carpers that day.

 

[Kevin55]

The most non commercial carp I’ve seen caught in a day was by a fly angler, well over 10 fish probably all over 10lb given the venue. Not sure if he was using actual pellets/biscuits or imitations but it worked as he massively out caught the other carpers that day.

I've found that I've arrived at places and all are fishing on the bottom, even though there is plainly surface activity, though some fisheries seem to only allow the fly fishers to use floating baits, that is the rules say no floating baits but they don't mind the fly fishers

At 1 place renowned for wild carp, I landed 6, lost 4, all 4-8lb with 2 I couldn't stop getting into the lily pads, in about 4 hours, the best fishing I've had I think

It's active and to me more interesting taking them off the top. I've got a controller float outfit for my wife

 

[davebike1]

A few years ago I belonged to a club which had a water stocked with numerous carp in the 5 to 10 lb range enough that float fishing fr the good roach was difficult I tried fishing fr the carp with floating baits with an avon type rod and controller float Good fun but the best once they were up and interested was a 5Wt fly rod and a daddy longlegs fly lots of exciting action ! Baiting with pellets or dog brisket but using a pellet or brisket imitation was refused not a big insect imitation !

 

[Silverfisher]

I've found that I've arrived at places and all are fishing on the bottom, even though there is plainly surface activity, though some fisheries seem to only allow the fly fishers to use floating baits, that is the rules say no floating baits but they don't mind the fly fishers

At 1 place renowned for wild carp, I landed 6, lost 4, all 4-8lb with 2 I couldn't stop getting into the lily pads, in about 4 hours, the best fishing I've had I think

It's active and to me more interesting taking them off the top. I've got a controller float outfit for my wife

Yeah that place where that guy had them on the fly often has them cruising around on the top yet most people still fish for them on the bottom or when they do surface fish they use too big controllers which spook them.

I mostly just fish for the roach and perch there but there are a couple swims that if I’m in them I’ll generally have an hour surface fishing whilst I have my lunch as it’s less frantic than the roach and perch fishing and I almost always get a couple out in that hour in those swims whilst everyone else only picks up a couple in a session of the bottom. Proper fish as well all doubles.

 

[BarryS]

Recently fished a new venue where surface fishing is allowed. There were loads of carp cruising around the top with it being so hot.

Pedigree Chum Mixers appear to be a popular choice as a feed bait to get the fish confidently feeding on the top, but which is the best way of attaching them to the hook so that they look as natural as the free offerings do to the fish.

Do I band them? Hair rig them? Use a soft floating hooker pellet that I can bury the hook in? Help from anyone who successfully fishes this method would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Deejay8]

I soaked them for 10 minutes the night before, poured off the water, left them overnight and they were perfect. Rubbery, easy to hook and had a decent weight for casting. I could freeline cast about 10m with just the weight of one chum mixer, and double that with two of them. I also made controllers that were basically hollow wooden tubes that the line ran through. I made them look like sticks, which basically is what they were, and I could cast up to 40m with those. The idea was that the carp thought that they were floating twigs. I caught lots of carp off the surface on Chum Mixer.

 

[BarryS]

I use Harrington's dog biscuits.....fire a handful out with no additional preparations while I am tackling up. Then I either use a deer hair fly on a light wide gape hook trimmed to match the size of the biscuit. I use a fly rod and this way I can lift off and plonk it right on the nose of a preoccupied carp. When they are fighting each other to get the biscuits the takes are very confident .........the whole lot just goes tight. A ten pound plus carp on a lightish fly rod is like a bonefish when it takes off.
I also have bought some 12mm cork balls from eBay ( the ones made from powdered cork are best) cut a slot in them and superglue them closed with a light long shank hook balanced so that it sits parallel to the surface. These cork balls are dead ringers for the Harringtons ( around £7 for a large sack in Tescos) they can be used again and again without breaking up.
The benefit of the cork balls is they also work well with a controller float if you don't want to use a fly rod.
Yet another controller method I use is to use Crafty Catcher floating soft pellets in various flavours ..hair rigged.....still using Harringtons to get them going with regular biscuits going in to keep the carp in front of me.
Again its a matter of casting into the activity and waiting for the line to go tight.

I have tried oils and glugs with the biscuits but they performed no better than straight out of the bag.

 

[BarryS]

This is the deer hair fly that I tie to mimick the Harrington biscuit. For those not familiar with deer hair each strand is hollow so it floats a treat. The benefit of using a fly is the speed you can cover a feeding fish. As well as delicate presentation

 

[DFL]

Floater cake is another thing worth trying, easy to make. It’s very buoyant and visual too.