Float Testing
I decided to give Edge Tackle Crystal Clear Wagglers a workout. Armed with just 4mm pellets and a small bowl of groundbait, I was back on the top lake at Manea Fisheries and Caravan Park, which is always a safe bet for plenty of rod bending action. The plan was to start with an insert design to catch whatever might turn up, then switch to a straight model if the carp were really having a go. I grabbed this handful of floats when leaving home, not considering I might end up on an island swim. I don’t normally use slim loaded wagglers when fishing shallow to features, due to the way they dive as they hit the water. It is possible to brake them a bit by feathering the line as they land, but it’s still not ideal. Never mind, these floats are versatile. The loadings can easily be taken off or switched, to allow different ways of tackling up.
Feature Finding
If you can choose where to set up when it’s bright and hot, it pays to pick a swim with some cover. This reed lined island provided plenty of that, with nice depth tight against it. I could already see carp moving about under the overhanging greenery, some rooting right in among the stalks. Small rudd were topping close by as well. I fished this peg back in the winter, giving Edge Adjustable Pellet Wagglers a run out. To my surprise, loads of carp resulted on a tactic most anglers would normally use in summer. It would be fun experimenting with a more refined approach now it was much warmer, again doing things differently. I generally prefer insert wagglers because they can catch everything, while fatter topped pellet floats don’t always get pulled under by species that aren’t part of the carp family. It’s nice to mix things up.
Another Way
Edge Loaded Insert Crystal Clears offer 1.5g, 2.0g, 2.5g, 3.0g and 3.5g options, with red or yellow tips. I found the 1.5g size easily reached the island. Used with the base weight it comes with, there’s leeway for some small locking shot, along with a few droppers spread down the rig. Taking the weight off (you can buy them that way as well) offers more variations. They can be locked on the main line with big split shot, or set up this way with drilled waggler weights, anchored in place by rubber stops. This format takes extra time to balance everything properly, but it’s neat and still allows for some small droppers or tell-tales to go down the rig. I’ve been using drilled waggler weights a lot recently. They don’t damage mono and are more compact than non-toxic shot. Edge Line and Float Stops prevent any chances of slippage.
Simple Menu
Feeding small quantities of pellets every cast, bites materialised straight away. Groundbait would only come into play if the swim needed an extra boost at some stage. It’s not just commercial style venues where this simple approach works. I’ve used it on the nearby drains, during summer, when baits like maggots and casters are getting destroyed by small fish. Hard pellets help bypass those and find anything bigger that might be lurking underneath. The only proviso to make them work is regular feeding, which ties in particularly well with waggler tackle. Smaller feed pellets like these perform even better after lightly wetting them. This softens their surface, gains extra catapult distance and ensures they all sink properly. Another trick is to dust them with dry groundbait, creating an attractive stream of particles as they descend.
Getting Busy
I missed a fast bite first cast after just one small dose of pellets. Second go with another helping of freebies, the insert waggler slid away more positively and this small and lively carp resulted. The prolific rudd were swirling when I fed anything. By ignoring any small indications as the tackle settled, more positive bites resulted from bigger fish lower down. Others around the lake were catching on feeder tactics, but I suspected that route would turn harder as the sun rose higher. It was already noticeable casting tighter to the island brought more big fish attention, compared to straying further out into open water. The best response came when a banded pellet was laying a few inches over-depth on the slope, around 3 feet deep. Anything suspended in deeper water was quickly nabbed by ravenous 2oz rudd, which were everywhere.
Ticking Over
The steady trickle of loose feed soon made a difference. Bigger carp began pushing in and the hungry rudd were getting edged out. By having weights around the base of the waggler, it was easier to keep the rig up as it landed, getting it working much faster. This helps to avoid missing bites, which can be missed when slim loaded floats dive deep and take a while to pop up. It doesn’t matter if a bigger splash results when using large shot, compared to what happens with more streamlined custom-made loadings. The extra disturbance attracts fish, especially when casting close to cover. It’s certainly better than waiting for a float to reappear because it might not do that if something instantly grabs the hook bait and swims off. That can result in the tackle getting snagged up. Far bank canal and river chub are experts at doing that.
Well Banded
For many years, I relied on shop bought hooker pellets for this type of fishing, but getting good quality 4mm or 6mm sizes was never easy. When I did find something that stayed on the hook, it wasn’t always a good match for the hard feed pellets I was using. This led me into the habit of banding the same pellets being fed, at least most of the time. The main exception is skimmer fishing, where I like to prepare a few softer expanders for the hook. Sonubaits Pro Expanders are the most durable, but in this case, banded hard baits were working fine. I generally use the smallest bands I can get away with, to minimise any chances of the hook point becoming obscured if the bait moves. It requires a banding tool with fine wire prongs to do this, so the latex is heavily stretched. That allows small hooks to be only lightly attached to the bait.
How It Works
My simple rig format, with just one drilled waggler weight trapped either side of a swivel float adaptor, was working fine. I still needed to feather down the crystal-clear insert float as it landed, but not as dramatically as would be required with a loaded version. Another way is to use smaller, doubled up locking shot. They might look untidy, but help even more to prevent shallow set wagglers from diving. By this time, it didn’t matter. The carp were queueing up, in some instances not giving the rig a chance to settle, arching the rod tip round immediately the hook bait hit the water. Some decent fish were ending up in the landing net, giving the tackle a proper battering, but the float was taking it okay. Line wise I wasn’t messing around, using 6lb Edge Sinking Mono on the reel, combined with 0.15mm Premium Mono as a hook length.
Nice Surprises
It wasn’t all carp. A few times they backed off and small rudd managed to engulf banded pellets. Nearby, one of the venue’s rare tench turned up, caught tight to the island on a small feeder. Others using those tactics were not catching as quickly as my float approach was managing, certainly not finding extra bonuses like this beautiful silver bream that came out of the blue. I thought I caught a skimmer from this lake last year, but suddenly realised why no proper bream show here because this is an entirely different species. Someone else told me they had encountered fish like this, so suddenly I was left wondering just what might be masked out by the prolific carp. This fish was in perfect condition and a decent size, so maybe when it turns colder and the carp slow down, I will see if I can catch some even bigger samples.
Straight On
The carp soon came back with a vengeance. I took this opportunity to switch to an Edge Loaded Straight Waggler. This allowed a different format, simplifying things even more because these floats can be used without any shot. By playing around with base weights, crystal-clear straights will automatically dot down to their bulbous sight tips. They work similar to pellet wagglers, providing extra buoyancy to create a bolt effect. I simply locked the new design on with line stops, attaching a hook length via a micro swivel. The latter doesn’t affect the float, but has enough weight to sink the business end of the rig. I was by now more attuned into feathering the rig as it landed, although most of the time carp like this one were grabbing hook baits before they had a chance to settle. This torpedo shaped sample put up a proper scrap.
Extra Boost
Gradually, the sunny conditions and lack of wind began to slow things down, making it time to try catapulting some soft groundbait over my float. This brought an immediate response from the rudd, with smaller ones causing missed bites on the bulbous tipped straight waggler I was now using. Some slightly bigger ones did manage to engulf banded hard pellets, making me wonder if I had made a wrong move. But the carp soon returned, attracted by all the activity. They were getting bigger, giving my gear a severe battering, while I noticed the feeder anglers were struggling. The groundbait trick works well on the drains around this area too. Having noticed how regular amounts keep whip tactics ticking over for longer periods, I’ve started using soft mixes to bring back bites when the waggler and loose feed begin to slow down.
Top Rod
It was interesting switching Edge Crystal Clear waggler types around, trying out unloaded and fully loaded variations, along with the different tip thicknesses. I don’t think I would have caught the bonus silver bream on the fatter tipped straight float I later switched to. What a surprise when it surfaced near the landing net because initially, I thought yet another small carp was going to pop up. It turned into a busy session, ending up with big fish that my landing net could only just cope with. I was using my favourite CR10 12ft Match rod, which has proved capable of handling everything I’ve asked of it. I enjoy testing new gear like the Edge floats on fish-packed venues because it quickly lets you know if rigs are right and what they are capable of. That instils confidence for more difficult quests ahead on wilder and demanding venues.
