Boilie Shape's!

[Blue]

Originally Posted by Big Dave

However the legend Ritchie McDonald stated in a recent article that in his opion a carp cannot tell the difference between shapes...!

I don't quite know how to read that. Obviously a carp doesn't know a square from a barrel from a sphere. BUT, can they associate shapes with danger?

I don't believe carp feed entirely on smell, they can obviously see what they're eating, so therefore can distinguish between different shapes. Does a carp see a snail on the bottom of a lilly pad, or smell/sense it?

[HAWTHORN]

carp cannot tell the difference between shapes...!

Either you miss read it or Ritchie miss wrote it
He probably meant to say that he cannot tell the difference between shapes

I feel sure that carp can though.

[scotty]

Originally Posted by nick27g

Got to laugh, not because it's funny, but because the round boilie shaped came because of our "need " to get baits out consistently to distance and the use of catapults.

Having watched Carp sucking and blowing baits I think the different shaped bait make a bit of difference, but not just putting a dumbell from corner to corner rather than end to end
Try your disc without a hook, if it ever gets blown out it tries to flip, then frisbee style plane on ejection, so how does this compare to being on a hair?


Personally I far prefer using different shapes and sizes, and sometimes even the dumbell is too much effort for me and I end up with things more like "pillows".
Like you I also like the Sausage chops/discs, or block cut squares, they work well and are what very few people use.

I'm not sure but maybe in some cases that the round boilie shape is starting to get boilies sussed, and on pressured waters the different shaped baits are better, which is why the marketing of dumbells. If a bait is properly fished and pre-baited, then it will go on long term, but someone somewhere decided that dumbells are the best.

On top of that having perfectly round baits is also time consuming compared to making other shapes, unless you go to the trouble of getting out the pastry cutter.

i too always fish with different sized and shaped baits...im allways fishing on miss rolled baits and scagg ends and do sometimes feel more confident on them....i have also had some good success with combining hard boiled baits soft boiled and pastes fished all together so the fish get a different feeling when theyre picking them up..

[aphplumb12]

when i used to roll my own bait i used to use pellet shaped boiles they were easy to roll just a 14mm nozzel across a16mm rolling board 1 straight pass and you had perfect barell shapes all the time.used them on a new water iam fishing and caught straight away all ways worth trying a diffrent shape especialy if they havent been used before or the norm on that water is round boilies.

Originally Posted by carpking

ive been using hexagonal ones at the moment and find they are doing the business.

like yer finkin, wen the hexagon blows you cud use a octagun then a triangle

[netbustercarp]

Originally Posted by carpking

ive been using hexagonal ones at the moment and find they are doing the business.

lol how do you roll them?

[netbustercarp]

i think bait shape only matters if youre fishing a venue that has seen it all.went to a syndicate lake last year for 4 days,used home made pellet shaped baits and had 4 twenties in 4 days,while others around me were using bog standard round baits.went to a very hard day ticket water and shaved down my hookbaits into a cube shape,as soon as i put the rod on the pod it was away.if i do use round baits which i still do using various sizes helps,the fish get used to sucking up the same size boilie and can regulate its suck.so a mixture of sizes confuses the fish,resulting in more bites hopefully.speaking of bait ive just been rolling some for the social next week.

[nick27g]

Originally Posted by netbustercarp

lol how do you roll them?

Lol,

You know that Pastry Cutter I mentioned in my first post?

I wasn't going to elaborate on that, but someone has dropped me in it.
Roll the base mix out flat with a Rolling Pin and then cut with pastry cutter

Now I'm going to have to pinch a Bart Simpson shaped Pastry Cutter from my Children's Play Doh Set just to be different

[Big Dave]

Originally Posted by HAWTHORN

Either you miss read it or Ritchie miss wrote it
He probably meant to say that he cannot tell the difference between shapes

I feel sure that carp can though.

Found the article.It's in March ACF. When asked about applying bait in the margin in clear water did he ever cut the boilie up ? Ritchie replied "There is no way that fish associate shape with danger"
And also goes on to say that he believes that a fish tastes rather than smells.
Interesting reading from a guy who has done it all.......

[HAWTHORN]

"There is no way that fish associate shape with danger"

Is this his thinking twenty years ago when there was far less pressure? or is this his bang up to date thoughts?

I have a great deal of respect for Ritchie, always have done but if this is his current thinking then IMHO he is wrong.

[netbustercarp]

Originally Posted by nick27g

Lol,

You know that Pastry Cutter I mentioned in my first post?

I wasn't going to elaborate on that, but someone has dropped me in it.
Roll the base mix out flat with a Rolling Pin and then cut with pastry cutter

Now I'm going to have to pinch a Bart Simpson shaped Pastry Cutter from my Children's Play Doh Set just to be different

bart simpson shaped boilies,could be the way forward

[chukie]

When Scotty roll's my bait I get him to do them in all different sizes and shapes don't know if it make a diference but it's another little quirk that we all have like when electing a hook bait I alays seem to pick a handfull out the bag and select one from the pile I never just put my hand in the bag and pick out one seems daft but thats what I seem to do and seen plenty doing the same thing

[DanDare]

The secret of being successful catching carp is TO BE DIFFERENT,therefore as VIRTUALLY EVERYONE, on most lakes anyway, fishes round boilies UI use square, pellet, barrel and it works.....blindingly so

[mark]

Originally Posted by Blue

I don't quite know how to read that. Obviously a carp doesn't know a square from a barrel from a sphere. BUT, can they associate shapes with danger?

I don't believe carp feed entirely on smell, they can obviously see what they're eating, so therefore can distinguish between different shapes. Does a carp see a snail on the bottom of a lilly pad, or smell/sense it?

I agree i bought triangle shaped solar boilies about 3 years ago from the go fishing show in birmingham.

[mancity]

The amount of round baits going into lakes, wouldn't this make carp believe its a food source and not a danger?

Maybe