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Many anglers will tell you that if there is one bait that can be
associated with sorting out the better fish it is the caster, just
why this is the case we can only surmise but this bait will help you
target and catch those specimen fish of nearly every species.
Caster
fishing has become the main type of fishing for many a top flight
match angler and some whom have perfected this art have walked away
throughout the years with most of the countries silverware it is
arguably one of the best holding baits for any shoal of fish that I
have come across in all of my angling years with the exception of
hemp of course which I rate as my all time favourite holding bait,
The caster can be purchased and used straight from the tackle shop
as long as the caster is fresh and devoid of any dead maggot skins,
They should be supplied in a plastic bag with no water present and
not vacuum packed or treated in any way they will be good casters
and should be fresh but sadly this is not often the case you must
remember that a caster is still a living breathing thing and
to keep it in water will only kill the pupae, I have witnessed
some abominable casters only fit for the bin throughout the years
but if you have a good tackle shop within your area with a good
angler running it as we are fortunate to have in this area then all
should be fine with the casters that they supply, if this is not the
case then it really is much better to turn your own at home using
white maggots even if you use very few.
A
guide to turning
your own casters.
If you are new to this type of thing producing your own casters can
be quite a complicated and time consuming job but the benefits can
out way the disadvantages and you will soon pick up the method after
a period of trial and error, The first thing to decide is how many
casters you will require and buy the white maggots to suite but note
well that if you want to produce two pints of fresh caster you will
need at least two and a half pints of fresh maggots ! as you will
always lose some within the process due to death and natural
wastage, so we have decided that we need four pints of caster for a
days river fishing so we have bought five pints of fresh white
maggots to cover the job, it is also advisable that you time your
purchase of these maggots depending on the day that you wish to use
the caster and the time of year as the maggots will turn into
casters more readily in the summer when the temperature is high than
in the winter when you may have to keep them at room
temperature and away from the cold, So we will assume that it is
Monday in the summer and we want to use the casters on Saturday and
Sunday over the weekends matches, you will need at least two days in
hand before the casters start to turn in earnest so if you
have purchased and prepared them on the Monday morning they should
start to turn on the Wednesday if the temperature is kept
constant throughout this period, maggots will produce a certain
amount of the temperature needed themselves and will heat up the
damp sawdust that you will turn them in quite well without the need
for extra heat but in the winter you will need an extra day or two
depending on where you keep them and the temperature that you keep
them at.
1)
purchase your fresh maggots and riddle them of at least twice
removing all of the maize meal and dead maggots, place them in a
large bucket in some dry sawdust first before adding about half a
pint of water directly into the middle of the sawdust bucket
containing the maggots (do not stir at this point as the maggots
will distribute the water themselves)
2)
run the maggots with sawdust through a large maggot riddle at least
four times a day remembering to add a little water to keep the
sawdust moist but do not stir or move the bucket around (this adding
of water is very important it will help to keep the temperature of
the sawdust and maggots constant and also ensure that you end up
with a big caster as the maggots will absorb a certain amount of
this water which will blow them up to size)
BEWARE
If you add too much water you will have a marching horde of maggots
all over the place as they will crawl up the sides of the bucket and
escape, if you riddle them of at least four times a day before they
start to turn then you are assured to rid the bait of any ill or
sickly maggots and elevate the amount of dead skins at the later
stages of caster runs.
3)
when the maggots start to turn (stop adding water at this point)
then you can decide at which stage you want to riddle them off,
personally I wait until the caster is a light shade of golden brown
so that I can choose at which stage I bring them off the riddle and
have adequate time to clear them of debris or skins, the longer you
leave them exposed to the air the darker they will become and it
will not take long before they are useless floaters in hot weather
so be mindful to place them in a plastic bag with the air expelled
in the fridge or chiller as soon as possible.
4)
once the casters have started to come off then it should only take
that day or into the next morning to turn them all but remember if
you are going to leave them for long periods between runs or
overnight then place them in the fridge as this will slow down the
turning process, be aware that the maggots need to be in a good
ambient temperature to turn well so don't leave them in the fridge
for the entirety of the turning as this will result in poor quality
casters and not all will turn.
You should end up with a good large caster that is very fresh and
will keep in the fridge for at least four to five days as long as
you open the bag and shake them up once a day before resealing them
to keep all of the air out this will stop the casters which are
tight to the sides getting burn marks on them and replace the stale
air, it is possible to reuse your casters after the days fishing for
the next day if you reseal them and keep them in the fridge until
the next day.
Remember to wet your casters before use flooding them with water and
then pouring the water of and leaving the casters to crisp off for a
couple of hours then immerse them in water for the rest of the day
remembering to change the water frequently throughout the session to
keep them cool, you can leave a good handful of casters on a tray to
become floaters as these will help to counterbalance your hook,
There are many ways to hook a caster the most popular being placing
the point of your hook upside down into the centre of the caster and
with a downward motion pushing it cleanly into and though the side
about half way down leaving your knot protruding from the top or ,
using your thumbnail to pop the knot inside the caster when bites
are finicky but remember if any of the internal white juice is
showing discard and try again as it is unlikely that you will get a
positive bite or even get a bite at all, always try to use barbless
or fine wired hooks when fishing the caster as they will not spoil
your bait when you place the hook inside.
The caster has always been associated with Hemp as a holding and
feeding bait for large catches of summer Roach I cannot think of a
better combination than fishing these two baits side by side for any
species, when fishing the caster always take along a few red maggots
and use one every now and again or if the bites prove slow after
feeding caster in, if the bites on the caster become finicky when
fishing with hemp as well, slow down the hemp feed or stop it all
together feeding slightly more casters as you do so, enjoy your
caster fishing.
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