Roach can be great fighters but you need to scale the tackle down to fully appreciate it. Even a big roach on a medium-heavy rod won't put up much fight - a lot of anglers go for Roach in the colder months and have light rods & reels with low breaking strain lines.
For your sort of depth you want one of the short crystal wagglers, either insert or straight. If you want to cast a little further then go for a heavier float and bulk the majority of the shot around the float with just a single dropper. Feather the line as the float is about to hit the water to straighten it out so you don't get as many tangles - putting a lot of effort into casting a waggler can often result in an almighty mess. Try fishing over depth a few inches so the bait is resting on the bottom.
Experiment with different baits and feed. Cooked hemp is great for pulling all sorts of fish into your swim. I like a carpet of hemp and sweetcorn with either worm, maggot, bread, meat or sweetcorn on the hook - small cubes of luncheon meat might tempt the odd carp!
Make sure you plumb up the depth at the start of your session and get it exactly right. You can mark the depth on your rod with a dot of tip-ex so you know exactly what depth to go to if you get a tangle, which will save you having to plumb up again and disturb your swim.
Not sure if you know about it already but have a look into hair rigs and the knotless knot as there are a lot of advantages in presenting your bait that way and will hopefully help you get into different/bigger fish.
If you're resting your bait on the bottom make sure you keep an eye on things as a big carp might come along and bolt off like a torpedo, taking your rod with it. I know I keep banging on about this sort of thing but I see and hear about it happening all the time, especially when the going is slow and attention can wander.
The general rule when fishing any method or style is that if you're not catching or you're not catching your target fish then you need to change something.
I had a short session surface fishing for carp yesterday evening. Had two takes and both times was pulled straight into weed and lost the fish. On the very last cast, as the light was fading, I managed to get this little beauty on bread crust, which made my day.
Didn't have time to weigh it as it was nearly dark by the time I landed it but it put up an almighty fight so I was very happy. If, for some crazy reason, I had to pick only one style of fishing to do for the rest of my life it would be surface fishing for carp on relatively light gear. The action is just electric with fish all round your bait and you sat there holding your breath saying 'take it take it take it...' and then an almighty explosion erupts as the carp is hooked. Great fun.
For your sort of depth you want one of the short crystal wagglers, either insert or straight. If you want to cast a little further then go for a heavier float and bulk the majority of the shot around the float with just a single dropper. Feather the line as the float is about to hit the water to straighten it out so you don't get as many tangles - putting a lot of effort into casting a waggler can often result in an almighty mess. Try fishing over depth a few inches so the bait is resting on the bottom.
Experiment with different baits and feed. Cooked hemp is great for pulling all sorts of fish into your swim. I like a carpet of hemp and sweetcorn with either worm, maggot, bread, meat or sweetcorn on the hook - small cubes of luncheon meat might tempt the odd carp!
Make sure you plumb up the depth at the start of your session and get it exactly right. You can mark the depth on your rod with a dot of tip-ex so you know exactly what depth to go to if you get a tangle, which will save you having to plumb up again and disturb your swim.
Not sure if you know about it already but have a look into hair rigs and the knotless knot as there are a lot of advantages in presenting your bait that way and will hopefully help you get into different/bigger fish.
If you're resting your bait on the bottom make sure you keep an eye on things as a big carp might come along and bolt off like a torpedo, taking your rod with it. I know I keep banging on about this sort of thing but I see and hear about it happening all the time, especially when the going is slow and attention can wander.
The general rule when fishing any method or style is that if you're not catching or you're not catching your target fish then you need to change something.
I had a short session surface fishing for carp yesterday evening. Had two takes and both times was pulled straight into weed and lost the fish. On the very last cast, as the light was fading, I managed to get this little beauty on bread crust, which made my day.
Didn't have time to weigh it as it was nearly dark by the time I landed it but it put up an almighty fight so I was very happy. If, for some crazy reason, I had to pick only one style of fishing to do for the rest of my life it would be surface fishing for carp on relatively light gear. The action is just electric with fish all round your bait and you sat there holding your breath saying 'take it take it take it...' and then an almighty explosion erupts as the carp is hooked. Great fun.
i want my youth back! lol
