The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

I like fishing with bread. Don't do it as often as Id like. Really need clearish water.

Yes I think that you are right about the colour Ally. I much prefer worms when its up and coloured. But, I could be wrong.....

I have ordered Captain Parker's book Olly. I also found, rediscovered, on my shelf Fine Angling for Coarse Fish, edited by Mr Eric Parker. The first nine chapters are penned by none other than Edward Ensom, Faddist, and they are all about roach......

Tim Fine Angling for Coarse Fish, edited by Mr Eric Parker. with Edward Ensom, Faddist, on roach, its the best chapter in the book. I have had a copy since I was a young boy

I love fishing bread, my favourite bait by a country mile for chub and roach. It’s best when the water clarity is six to twelve inches. Once it starts to get to eighteen inches it is time for white maggots, then when it’s gin clear red maggots or caster or hemp. That’s my rule of thumb anyhow.

Thank you Tengisgol - very special ‘tacit knowledge’ shared here. I’m very grateful - Ive copied and pasted your post into my ‘angling wisdom’ file on Word.

Troydog wrote: ↑Fri Feb 15, 2019 6:35 pm Thank you Tengisgol - very special ‘tacit knowledge’ shared here. I’m very grateful - Ive copied and pasted your post into my ‘angling wisdom’ file on Word.

I have just come upon this thread - I would like to add some - I only ever use bread when I’m fishing a river - only exception is Barbel - always flake and around 3 - 4 days old all one needs is a slight pinch and your away - I have never found a rivers variation in colour, depth or flow to hinder my bread presentation in fact it’s very surprising what you catch when fishing large flake - Dace, Roach and then when fishing paired back flake you can land a lunker of a Chub - it’s so very gratifying - have confidence and your enthusiasm will grow alongside the catch rate.
I fished recently on a spate river and freelined a whopping piece of flake and caught some really very fine Roach - they tend to take it quickly - I will let the bait take a few knocks until I feel confident in striking a good positive take. What a joy fishing with bread is - it will be interesting to hear how your getting on.

Peter

I started with bread on the tidal Thames where the water clarity was nonexistent! All the old boys ledgered with it (I am one of them now) - mostly crust squeezed so it sat on the size 8 hook well. Then with swim feeders - pink hair curlers - catching roach and bream. Wasn't for some years I found out about maggots!

My 3 best chub over 6 have come on ledgered bread flake on either a 4 or 6 hook.

Have a look at Wet Bread Fishing video by Bill Rushmer - we met in 1957 and fished the tidal together - and still do meet up fishing!

Thank you Pallenpool and Olly. This is all very timely. I think that confidence is everything with bait and although I do fish bread flake for roach I have always got a tub of my very own home grown red worms and brand Ling’s, plus another tub (actually a three pint Drennan maggibox) of lobworms by my side. Always just wondering if a great big stripey has moved into my swim.
I’ll just take a loaf with me one day......

Three of the best modern pieces from the web - I hope it's OK to post links to other fora -:
https://www.fishingmagic.com/forums/coa ... t-out.html
https://www.talkangling.co.uk/Punch.htm
http://neilofthenene.blogspot.com/2014/ ... punch.html

For the Wye, I'd suspect that the first reference, Keith Speer's thread, is best; the others are more concerned with winkling match-winning bags of roachlets from slow rivers and canals.