The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

In early summer I love to be by the water at dawn looking for a plump tench. I own, but have not used, a swim rake. What are people's experiences of raking a swim?
Does it make a difference?
How long before fishing should it be done?
Any other thoughts and experiences?

Best to do it the night before, if only to avoid sitting there all day stinking of stagnant silt and weed. Gives the swim a chance to settle, too, though I've caught tench very shortly after raking in the past.

Snape, I used to fish with an old Angler called David Saddler (Lived in your neck of the woods, Tadmarton) in his younger days. He became my fishing partner here in Wales until recently developing emphysema. Dave taught me a lot of the older styles of fishing.

We fished Walcot estate lake at Lydbury North for Tench but then it got a weed problem. Dave knew how I loved Tench and fishing Walcot estate and one summer evening as I returned from work, My wife said "You're going fishing with Dave Tonight as a treat". Dave had phoned my wife and asked her if it was ok for me to go fishing with him to which she'd declared it was.
I quickly got my tackle together and Dave picked me up at 4.30pm
By the time we reached walcot it was 5.15pm. Dave told me to leave the tackle where it was in the car and come with him. Wih three spins of the rake head on a rope, he released it sailing out to the middle of the weed and after 5 minutes of repeating this he'd cleared a big enough swim to fish. Moving up to the next peg he did this all again, until we'd got a swim each. At 5.45pm we withdrew for a pint at the pub and returned at 6.10pm.

It was a barmy summer evening, just right for fishing, still and with swallows skimming the surface picking off the various insects and their was plenty of fizzing going on in our swims.
I'd opted for red maggot (until that day my favourite Tench bait) and Dave was using caster.
We each enjoyed what we both felt an amazing nights Tench fishing. We packed up at 10.10pm as the light faded and weighed the contents of our keepnets. Mine contained 57lb of mainly Tench and I could see that Dave had faired rather better than me. His contents again mainly Tench came to 107lb.

A red letter day for both of us and until today still the best days/nights Tench fishing I've ever had.
The difference to my mind being the hookbait and if I get the chance these days, i'd always opt for caster and raking my swim.

I think you have to leave the swim for at least half an hour.

Yes I've found the same. 20 minutes after raking the swim its frothing with tench. I've returned to a water without a rake and nothing. I can't imagine it would be very effective on pits with no weed growth though.

I've always used a rake for tench fishing, shallower lakes with a silty bottom usually respond well to a good raking. I always put down a good bed of hemp afterwards. Surprising sometimes how quick the tench move in, the swim can be positively fizzing after half an hour. I never worry about the noise it creates either, the tench never seem to mind.

"Morning all",

...for Tench, providing nobody elses fishing would be disturbed, I always raked the bottom and scattered some free offerings before setting up. By the time my landing net (always my first move) was assembled, rod and tackle was put together, rests positioned correctly, kit placed carefully to hand and I was ready to fish, the water would be showing signs of life below. A great way to fish!

Yes, I`ve raked on the same morning as I`ve fished, even from a boat, it was fine...............

I used to fish a Ringwood pit back in the 80s when it had a lot of foot-long strands of Canadian pondweed. There was a rake provided so my usual drill was to get a swim, mix up a bowl of groundbait, throw it in, fetch the rake and rake the swim, return the rake, tackle up and by that time the swim would be fizzing. It was a fairly new lake then so no black mud.

Its something I should do more often. I have done it in the past with some success for tench.
But I do need to get a good rake. I currently have a single head metal garden rake attached to some strong cord , but really need a double headed one to be effective.
I found this website recently:

http://www.carletonhillfishery.com/nov_2010_009.htm

One thing I'd like to add to this topic.

Living as I have next to rivers for a good proportion of my life, I've had the chance to study fish behaviour after noises. I used to fish a little brook, where stealth was everything and the slightest noise would make the small trout bolt for their hidey holes. In one particular pool, if I made a noise getting into a fishing position then a trout that always inhabited the shallows would bolt over a sand bar for deeper water, ten minutes later I'd see it swim back if I'd been quiet.
Fish will react to noise but normally not for long, they'll soon be back to where they bolted from and back on the feed.

I caught my biggest carp from the surface with teenagers swimming at the same time.