Method-feeding fishing is an extremely popular method for catching carp and other coarse species in commercial fisheries.
It allows you to cast small bundles of carp-attracting ingredients such as groundbait or micropellets with your hook bait presented within.
The method feeder is great for baiting up a small area with not too much bait at large distances and accurately (depending on your casting ability).
I’ve already written posts on:
But today, I’m going to discuss if you should strike into bites while using the method feeder.
So, do you need to strike with the method feeder?
Do You Need to Strike With the Method Feeder?
While method feeder fishing, it is common to use a quiver tip rod. These rods have extremely fine tip sections that will twitch and move with every line bite and nibble on your bait.
These are great rods to fish with the method feeder, as you can accurately see what’s going on around your bait due to the action of the rod tip.
One thing that beginner anglers struggle to decide is when to strike and not to strike and what movement actually indicates a bite and not just another line bite.
If you’re using an inline feeder rig then if a fish picks up your bait then the line will slide through the feeder and the weight won’t help with setting the hook.
If you’re using an inline, then you should be striking every movement of the quivertip that you believe is a bite.
That being said, though, the strike should not be aggressive and lifting your rod tip high is enough to set the hook effectively.
If you’re not using an inline feeder, then if a fish picks up your bait, the weight of the feeder should help set the hook as the fish pulls away with your bait but by picking up your rod as the quiver tip pulls around you will also be making sure the hook is set.
Line Bite or Bite?
Now, spotting the difference between line bites and bites can be a little more challenging.
Line bites refer to any movement of your quivertip and line without a carp actually picking up your bait.
Line bites occur when carp or other fish rub against your line or move your rig by feeding around it. These line bites will register on quiver tip rods as twitches and movements and can easily look the same as shy bites from fish.
Sometimes you’ll have no doubt that it is a bite as the rod will double round in either direction, and the fish is already clearly hooked in this situation, a simple lift of the rod is all you need to ensure the hook is set.
When it comes to small movements and knocks then, it is extremely difficult to differentiate line bites or wary fish picking at our hook bait.
A lot of anglers will swear by striking into every small pull and twitch but the majority of the time, you will be met with nothing at all.
Generally speaking, i tend to wait until the rod pulls around or I notice something different between the usual small knocks and taps.
As soon as I notice a pull or knock that is more prominent than the rest, I will lift into the fish. This is all the striking you need to do and there is no point in putting any power behind the strike as this is more likely going to end up in hook pulls, snapped lines or damage done to the fish.
That’s All
So, to clarify, you don’t need to strike into fish with the method feeder with any power behind it. Striking into fish in this way can result in more hook pulls, snapped lines and damaged fish.
Lifting the rod tip high and quickly is enough to set the hook effectively, not just in method feeder fishing but in all areas of carp angling.
I hope this help and if you’ve got any questions, don’t hesitate to leave a comment below and i’ll get back to you ASAP.
