Perhaps the first step towards a solution is to move the float out of the way? Okay, slide all the bulk shot that was positioned just below the float all the way down your line towards your hook. If you place these bulk shot approximately four foot from the hook and simultaneously allow the float to slide down the line to rest on the bulk in their new lower position, you will now find that you can wind the float up to within four feet of the rod tip. Oops, did he make a mistake? All of my slider bulks are made up of three or four of these large Anchor shot. I never use any more than four shot, to avoid tangles, although very small ‘trimming shot’ to fine-tune things are acceptable. My main shot will typically be AAAs, SAs, SSGs or 2SSGs. I also taper them so that the largest shot are nearer the float. Ensure the shot are butted up tight against each other, as gaps can also lead to tangles.

You may well have read or heard about match anglers fishing a slider float rig. If you’ve ever wondered what they are talking about, read on as here’s a compact guide to tying a slider float rig and how to fish the slider… Alan uses a swivel float attachment to hold the float, and small bead to stop it sliding over its knot. Rig 2: The German/Belgian combo I wanted to see how more weight down the line would affect the control of the float in a strong wind. So I chose the 18 gram model of Michael’s Series 4 Genius range, with the long thin sarkandas stem, which reduces wind friction and sits the float lower in the chop. I used two 8g and one 2g Cralusso ball leads, on a tube, with two Drennan Float Stops to hold it, then two No.6 shot and a micro swivel. In total, a metre from bulk to hook. But would nearly double the weight down the line stabilise the float and cope with Serre Poncon's ferocious drift, any better than the Italian model?I hope this has answered your question sufficiently. Truth is if we sat down over a cup of tea and discussed this I could probably go on for hours. Certainly I would talk too long for me to be able to write it all down here. Once the bulk is fixed on the sliding tube, the rigs themselves are almost fool/tangle-proof, even if you have a poor cast. The worse that can happen is that your hooklength may fold over the tube, but this can always be undone by simply pulling the hooklength... rather like with feeder rig!

Perhaps, unsurprisingly, the Italian twizzled boom rig, fished inconjunction with a classic English slider float (Rive), proved better at catching fish than my other rod, which had the more direct Belgian tube system, which seemingly proved too severe for the roach. What it did highlight was that you can benefit from using the extra suppleness of an Italian set up, without having to source specific Italian wagglers. Yet how many of us have tried a twizzled link on a standard slider float? The point I'm trying to make is that we should not be put off by any Italian or English rig 'label'. You can transfer any element of any rigs I've featured in this article and apply it to suit your own particular needs. I could have just as easily fished an Italian style waggler with 6 grams down the line, on a tube to see if a smaller bulk made a difference... in fact I'll make a point of trying this on my next summer visit in 2012. I have seen all sorts of techniques people use to plumb up a slider, sometimes with separate rods or special floats or plummets, but I am completely confident in the way that I choose to do it. Line can stretch and give you false readings, so I always plumb up with the actual rig that I am going to use to get things precise. The only way to be certain is to put your plummet on the actual hook you are going to be putting your bait on. Even if I have two or three rods, each one must also be plumbed up separately. In this world of commercial fishing, where the pole is the first item out of the bag (and often the ONLY item, let’s be honest) many young anglers today don’t hone the skills of fishing with a rod and line. Then, because of the aforementioned requirement for gentle casting and feathering, slider fishing especially can frighten an angler away who doesn’t regularly use rod and line. If you need to anchor your rig slightly, because there is a slight tow, you can trail several inches of hook length on the bottom, especially if it brings you more bites. The extra line on the bottom will ‘anchor’ your float and the effect may even pull the tip down slightly. As soon as the fish lifts your bait it will remove the anchor and because it shifts your bottom shot it will be indicated on your float. It may only be a slight lift but you should still react. This is a difficult lake at the best of times as the water is crystal clear with heavy weed growth in bands, usually 15 – 20 metres from the bank, with deeper water beyond. Depths vary from 3.5 to about 4.5 metres at casting range. Target fish were roach, bleak, with the odd rogue bream and some elusive tench.

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One of the latest stop knot trends to come out of Italy is that of using marker braid, rather than mono line. This is a strong braid of between 10 and 15lb, which the carp boys use specifically on their marker/spod rods. The braid is capable of biting the reel line very tightly and has the added advantage over nylon of being bright green or yellow and thereby easy to spot!

Once all the line is threaded through the rod, I slide on a small-bore bead first and then a float. I like red or yellow, so I know where it is. Next, I slide on my “bulk” which in my set up is an inline olivette, fat end first, so it’s like an inverted teardrop. This is size-dependent on which weight float I’m using. For example, if I’m using a 10g waggler, then I will use an 8g olivette. The reason being will become apparent shortly. You’ll know if you have everything set up correctly as the float should fly straight as an arrow. If it waggles it means something is not quite right and you will invariably get some sort of tangle. Return to Serre Poncon. Having experienced delays in the spring of 2011, I made the decision to wait until my summer holidays and test my nearly acquired floats at Serre Poncon, in South-east France. This is a huge reservoir, over 23km long and at least a kilometre wide, with thermal winds every day which are guaranteed to test the stability of any slider rig. I believe there is no better, or more scenic, venue for this sort of fishing! Place your bulk shot on a short 10-12cm piece of rigid tube, grouping them at the top of the tube. The weighted tube can now slide freely on the lineThe hook itself is either a 16 or 14 PR344. This is a strong pattern yet fine enough for using smaller baits. I drop to an 18 in the colder months. The main species I target are skimmers, hybrids, roach, bream and occasionally a rogue tench. After all, my hook baits are double maggot or caster/corn or double worm, so a decent hook is required. Feeding

If the float does not dot down correctly as you set it then there is a good chance the hook bait has been intercepted, so strike!To the loop, I attach a metre length of 0.20mm fluorocarbon using a simple loop to loop connection. The fluorocarbon has zero memory, which helps with any wrap overs when punching the float out to distance. I have to confess, until a few years ago it was something I would do as a last resort and would generally shy away from in favour of the tip.