Ramblings Of A Carp Angler – Line

What line should I use? Fluorocarbon, Fluorescent, Monofilament or Camouflage. Paul Cooper runs through yet again more controversial issues, this time surrounding different types of fishing line.

Which carp fishing line to use

Camouflaged Line

Are we kidding ourselves over this fad of slack line fishing, disguising our line or hoping to make it invisible to the carp? I have fallen into this trap! They all work but how many carp are we spooking out of our swims due to the almost invisibility of the line

For years we have tried our best to keep our main line, tight to the contours of the bottom of the lake bed by back leading or fishing slack lines, trying to avoid spooking the wary carp. When you think about it logically, carp generally feed on the lake bottom in silt, gravel, or lake matter.

The clear gravelled areas are only created following a mass feed by carp, after they have sifted through the debris, removing any food sources that they have found.

Lake matter consists of all sorts of objects, thick, long, thin, round, oblong, in fact any shape or size. What about our fishing lines. I am sure that as long as the fish are aware that our line is there, they will try to avoid it, as they see it as yet another obstacle. When they come across line and they catch fins, tail, or body on it because they cannot see it, this can spook them and cause them to bolt, taking other feeding carp with them.

A few years ago I purchased some fluorescent lime green line at the right price, and spooled all my reels with it. That year I had some un-believable catches. I was fishing a 35 acre gravel pit at the time which was very weedy and the water was crystal clear, like tap water. Shoals of fish were cruising the clear waters and could easily be seen as they approached my tight green line piercing the water. The fish simply swam under or over the line, no liners or false runs. I had runs, plenty of them. Why I didn’t carry on using this I don’t know, it wasn’t fashionable and I got sick of the comments from other anglers, but I caught fish. Is this the answer, let the fish see any objects in their way?

 

carp fishing line what to use blog

Fluorocarbon clear line

 

These days it does seem to be the in thing to camouflage everything which includes matching our hooklinks, leads, clips, tubing etc to the make up of the lake bed. Do the fish care, I don’t think so, it surely just appears as  just more lake debris, I can’t see that carp have the intelligence to differentiate between what is tackle and what is debris. When they come across something they can’t see and swim into it, is it this that makes them wary. So where do we go with fluorocarbon lines. I think that again these are simply for the piece of mind of the angler. With the fluorocarbon lines, they sink well and when first spooled on a reel, the line does disappear in the water and sinks like a brick, but once the line has been sitting in the water for any length of time it does pick up debris and algae which clings to the surface of the line. This now has the same qualities as any other monofilament  line, with the exception of that bright fluorescent line that is in their faces.

 

carp fishing line blog

My Shimano Technium 10000 loaded with a Fluorescent Red line

 

I have visited France on numerous occasions and witnessed French anglers fishing with all variety of bright coloured lines; orange, yellow, red, and they catch fish, so why don’t we go down that road.

I was fishing a 25 acre French lake a few years ago and I had mono on 2 of my rods and on my third I had a fluorescent red Sea Fishing line. I had more runs on the Red line than I did on the other rods but yet again I failed to change over all my reels to what was obviously a winner.

So what is the answer? Disguise our tackle, or make it blatantly obvious to the carp? I don’t know. Next year I might bite the bullet and once again try an ‘in your face’ approach.

Paul Cooper

 

what carp fishing line to use? blog

French carp caught on 18lb Fluorescent red Sea Fishing line.

 

Comments

3 thoughts on “Ramblings Of A Carp Angler – Line

  1. Pat Gillett says:

    Hi Paul,
    I can remember you using that bright red line and although it looked very odd on the bank it certainly didn’t put the carp off! Definitely food for thought!
    Cheers
    Pat

  2. […] Lake matter consists of all sorts of objects, thick, long, thin, round, oblong, in fact any shape or size. What about our fishing lines. I am sure that as long as the fish are aware that our line is there, they will try to avoid it, as they see it as yet another obstacle. When they come across line and they catch fins, tail, or body on it because they cannot see it, this can spook them and cause them to bolt, taking other feeding carp with them———————————Click to continue […]

  3. MJ says:

    I only use red, and have baged loads of fish, admittedly the rig is normally clear or dark green braid which I have used and I can’t say my red main line has affected my catch rate at all. Bait will allways be the deciding factor in catching, I don’t think the colour of the main line comes into play too much. This will allways be a debate.

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