Finally, I must mention the Series 3 Michael Schlögl slider floats, which are based on classic English wagglers that go up to 20 grams down the line! I will be devoting a whole section to what Michael has come up with, in terms of float design, later in this article. These floats open up possibilities for getting a lot of lead down fast, in deeper waters, or anchoring floats in big drifts, that were previously impossible. Pierre Francois has also been developing his rig and now he only uses two leads on the tube where possible. What he found was that if you used a large and a small lead, rather than say three similar weights, the larger lead helps to create more of an angle on the tube by pushing the lower part of your rig further away from your main line, thereby making the whole set up even more tangle proof! My preference for fishing the slider is the Cadence CR10 14ft rods, where I use the No 1 and No 2 rods. The CR10 14ft #2 is a medium action and my usual go-to rod for 8g sliders upwards, which I use for most of my fishing. The CR10 14ft #1 is the softest action of the range, which I use for sliders up to 8g, ideal when roach are the main target. I pair both rods with a 4000 sized reel. In this instance, I’m using the original CS8 reels with 6lb line.

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 line I've tried several things to obtain the perfect tube. The first tubes I made where from cotton ear bud stalks (after first removing the cotton buds of course!). These were fine, but the hole was a little big and the tubing itself was too weak, because the Cralusso leads tended to crush them when you squeezed them together. Pierre Francois used rigid anti-tangle feeder booms, but I was not able to find the right diameter tubing in our UK shops. Fishing a slider is one of the most rewarding methods out there. There is no denying the satisfaction it can bring once the mystique is removed and the angler moves into confidently understanding all the subtleties required for success. Just the pleasure of consistently casting tangle free to exactly the same spot is rewarding enough, as is watching the float settle so predictably on every cast that it is sufficient to allow the angler recognise with absolute certainty that there has been a bite ‘on the drop.’ 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. It’s been great to flex the slider gear once again and really helped me prepare for the busy international schedule I’ve got this year. Get out there and give it a go yourself – you’ll soon realise that it’s a lot more fun than the feeder!This plumbing technique obviously only works when the bottom is relatively flat, like most international-style venues I fish such as the big canals and rowing courses. If the bottom is sloping and you cannot find a flatter area then you have to compromise a bit and increase the depth to guarantee your bait is always on the bottom if your range is slightly out.

As you said, Steve, the straight-through strike is great, you can move the bulk - or olivette - up and down to change how the bait falls, and it's really versatile. Compared to pole fishing deep water, it takes all the heavy lifting out and leaves you holding your favourite few ounces of carbon. 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. Get the basics right and it’s a great method and a really enjoyable way to fish. Hopefully, my advice and tips will convince you to give it a go! You might still be afraid of slider fishing because of that weird ‘slider-knot thingy,’ and if you are unfamiliar with tying different knots you may be daunted by the prospect. Never fear, though, it is much easier than you think. In terms of performance both rigs fished perfectly all day, no tangles, no tears but sadly, no bonus fish on either set up! It proved an interesting and enjoyable session, winkling out some pristine roach on single and double maggot. What was clear is that twisted braid and long hooklengths change the way a bait is presented in a way that classic loading doesn’t. It's that long hooklength, helped naturally by the stiff braid, that makes the fall of the bait so effective. Steve Gardener talks about the waggler rigs he used for roach and dace over 20 years ago, when hooklengths of 1.2 to 1.5 metres, with a couple of small dropper shot attached, were quite normal. These Italian rigs have something of the same suppleness about them, no matter what style of float you fish with up the line!The second modification is down to my son, Dave Jnr, who fine-tuned his floats by wrapping lead wire on the tubing, just to get each float settled perfectly.

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. Milo Colombo. When I needed help in understanding Italian rigs and set ups, I went to the 'maestro' for help and inspiration Today has been a typical slider session as things were slow to begin with after an initial 20 or so balls were fed. I waited a good hour before trying to top up and found a couple of balls every 10 to 15 minutes drew more fish into the peg. I've mentioned Michael Schlögl and his great floats a couple of times already in this article. In both cases he's brought an innovative twist to both English and Italian sliders, but in addition to these, he has developed some uniquely Germanic angles on slider fishing, which I'm describing here as legitimate techniques. You have asked a very important question that really goes deeper into all types of fishing, not just slider fishing. Because I didn’t want to overcomplicate my article I stopped short of explaining these matters more fully. However, because you asked, here goes.Feathering the line. Secondly you need to be able to dab your finger on the lip of the spool just as the float is about to land. This is called ‘feathering the line’ and even if you never fish a slider it is a powerful ally if you are fishing any float method because it will lay the hook length and all your shotting out in a nice straight tangle free line as it hits the water.

Once the feed has been introduced, it’s time to fish! By casting direct off the bulk, the float will sit on top of it, and a simple cast, feathering the line on impact is all that is required. I then sink the rod tip, give the reel a couple of turns to sink the line and open the bail arm to feed the line out until the float hits the stop knot. Once the float settles, you can read any indications on the way through while the hook length reaches the bottom. Slider fishing is something of a lost art in the UK – over here if we need to fish at distance in deep water for bream and skimmers we turn to the feeder.This may seem crude but it still meets the criterion that every shot is still having a discernible effect on the float. If a fish dislodges the anchor shots, no matter how many there are, the float will invariably shoot up to clearly indicate the bite.