Start Pole Fishing With Liam Dale (DVD)

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Liked it
How does it compare to similar films?	Good

Advantages:	Learn how to elasticate your pole .
Disadvantages:	4 turn waterknot not explained .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

This dvd, introduced by Liam Dale but presented by Bob Nudd MBE, sets out to explain the basic techniques of how to use a pole, including elastication, making a rig, shipping in/out, holding the pole, feeding, buying a pole, the use of a pole cup and many more points that first time pole anglers need to be successful.

Location
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Kingfisher,Taswood Lakes, Flordon, Norfolk

So, why use a pole?
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A pole has many advantages over rod and line. The ability to place your hookbait in the exact same spot time and time again increases your chances of a bumper catch. This in conjunction with the use of light lines and sensitive floats allows you to see even the shyest of bites, so it's easy to see that the pole is one of the best methods for coarse fishing as long as the fish are within range.

Buying a pole
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Poles come in varying lengths, from 7m to 16m, so which should you buy? A good length to start with is around 11m because poles of this length will cope with most situations. It should be stiff when fully extended, have reinforced joints and not weigh too heavy. It should also have an elastic rating of 16 or 18 so you will be able to cope with large fish with ease. If you find a pole that meets these specifications you must try holding it when it's extended before you buy. This will tell you if it's too heavy for you to cope with, it will also tell you if it's floppy or stiff. There's nothing worse than a floppy pole......... the stiffer it is the better.
You should expect to pay in the region of £100 for the pole itself, which isn't too expensive, but you'll need to buy other bits and pieces before you can use it.

How to make a rig
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First thread three silicone sleeves onto a long section of line, now thread a float into these sleeves (one at the top, and two at the bottom). Three sleeves are used to stop the float from sliding up and down on the line if one of the silicone sleeves breaks.
The second thing to do is to place your shot onto the line. This should be done beneath the float, towards the end of the line. Once they have been placed onto the line they should be moved towards the float, you see the section of line that they were squeezed on will almost certainly be damaged. Once all your shot are on the line and moved up the line should be trimmed and the damaged section discarded.
The hooklength should now be attached using a 4 turn waterknot, which is very small and very strong.
Now at the other end (above the float) a simple figure of 8 overhand loop knot needs to be tied. This will allow you to attach the line to the pole.

Figure of 8 loop knot
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The figure of eight overhand loop knot is one of the most important knots to the pole angler, since it allows you to connect your rig to your elastic via a connector. It is very easy to learn how to tie this knot, but unfortunately many anglers still get it wrong today and they end up tying a granny knot. This may not seem important....... but it is. The granny knot has a very weak knot strength mainly caused by the way the line strangles itself, this produces a very weak spot that breaks very easily. However the figure of 8 overhand loop knot is vastly superior with a much stronger knot that hardly ever breaks.

To tie the fig. of 8 overhand loop knot.
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First get a length of line and double it over, then hold this in place between your fore finger and thumb.
Now double the loop back so that two loops are now visible, once again hold this between your fore finger and thumb.
Now the loop that used to form the end that has been doubled back should now be pushed away from you all the way round and back to the front. Now push this through the other loop. If it's done correctly you will see what appears to be a figure of eight.
Now moisten the line and gently pull the line tight, and that's it.

Elasticating a pole
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Parts you will need;
Bush
Ajustable bung
Diamond eye threadder
Elastic
Connector
Lubricant
A very fine file
Superglue
Bung removal tool

Lets say that the top 2 sections of your pole need elasticating, the first thing you should do is see if your bung fits into the base of the second section of your pole. If it doesn't trimm off a little of the rear of the bung and try again. It should go into the pole about 4 or 6 inches.
Now with the tip section you should trim it a little at a time with the fine file until your bush fits snugly. This should then be superglued in place. But you must get the right bush for the elastic you are going to use, they are clearly marked on the packets so make sure it's the right one.

Now get the diamond eye threadder and place the end of your elastic into the diamond eye and give it a bit of a pull to secure the elastic in place. The other end of this wire should be inserted into the end of the pole (the bush end) and pushed through. When the wire appears out of the other end grab it and pull the elastic through. This process should then be repeated on section 2 and then fit the two sections together. You should now have elasitc dangling out of both ends of the top two sections so remove the elastic from the threadder.
Now attach the elastic to the bung. This is done with a simple granny knot, then wind a few turns of elastic onto the spindle and push it into the base of the pole.
Now at the tip end trim the elastic so that there's about 8 inches danlging out. Now tie a granny knot in the end to produce a loop. With that done hool the loop over something (fence post, railing etc.) and walk backward holding the top two sections until the elastic bottoms out. This has now pre-stretched your elastic, now walk back and unhook it , the end should be trimmed off leaving about 6 inches dangling.
Now get the connector and take it apart. The outer sleve should be slipped onto the elastic first, now thread the other part onto the elastic, and while you hold it in place test the elastic for tension. The connector should return to the pole tip quite easily, if it does then this is where it should be tied on using a granny knot. If it's a little slack pull out a little more elastic and move the connector towards the pole tip.
Once tied on the elastic tag should be trimmed and the outer sleeve pushed over the knot.
Now you should lubricate the elastic...........It's now ready to use.

Shipping in/out
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The use of a pole roller is essential when shipping in/out. It should be placed to your rear in a position that allows the pole to be ballanced in your hands as it comes off the roller. This stops the tip of the pole tip from thrashing about, so a nice controlled movement is achieved.

Holding the pole
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There are several ways to hold a pole, but the best in my opinion is the way Bob explains. The pole should rest across the top of your thigh when you are seated. Your forearm can then trap the pole and hold it in place leaving your hands free to catapult out free offerings. If you get a bite while you have your catapult in your hands you can still strike by lifting your leg.

Rig
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Tubertini 808 size 20 hook
0.10 Hi-tech line hooklength
0.12 Hi-tech mainline
7 No 9 bulk shot
No 11 dropper shot
0.4g Drennan Pinkie float
No 6 or 8 Elastic
Single maggot

This rig is used with great effect by placing the bulk shot half way between the bottom of the float and the hook. The bulk shot pulls the bait down through the water and then allows it to gently sink to the bottom. The indicator shot placed some 10inches from the hook allows you to see if fish are feeding just off bottom. This is done by watching the float, if you time how long it takes for the indicator shot to fully set the float, say 4 seconds, and yet it doesn't fully set by 6 seconds you'll know the fish are intercepting the bait before it reaches bottom.
On the other hand, if the float fully sets but later on rises in the water, this too indicates a fish has taken your bait and swam up in the water thus lifting the indicator shot allowing the float to lift in the water.
The third indication that a fish has taken your bait is when your float dives beneath the surface. This is the most common type of indication that a fish has taken your bait.

Pole Cup
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This piece of equipment allows you to place lots of bait in the correct spot where you intend on placing your hookbait. This maximises your chances of catching lots of fish since they have to come to the one spot to feed.
This is one piece of equipment that any pole angler shouldn't be without.

Extras
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There are three pages listing Bob Nudd's achievements, which is quite impressive and one page listing Liam Dales, and that's it.

Overall
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This is a very good dvd for anyone who is interested in learning the basics of pole fishing and one dvd that I thoroughly recommend, however I would have liked to see a few more knots explained. The first of which is a four turn water knot. This is used on every rig that Bob uses to attach his hook length, so that was a little dissapionting not to see it explained. The other knot I would have liked to see is the one for tying the hook onto the line, I'm unsure as to which knot he uses for this but my personal favourite is the tucked half blood knot, mainly because I use eyed hooks and I've never had a problem with the knot strength.
The other problem with this dvd is that it should really be titled "Start Pole Fishing with Bob Nudd" and not Liam Dale, since he does very little apart from introducing Bob.

Runtime 59 mins
Made 2003
Extras Three pages of information for Bob Nudd
One page of information for Liam Dale
Cost £5 (from local retailer)

Many thanks for reading and rating this review.