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Calling all rollers, trundlers and meat bundlers

This may be a silly question (in which case I apologise) but when rolling do you need access section of bank to walk along, or can you be static and let it roll past? I did try rolling many years ago but each time I tried before I knew it my bait was back and the near bank again, so gave up after 20 mins and put a lead back on.

I fancy trying it again as where I go on the Loddon I can only fish 8-2ish due to young family and every barbel I've heard of out the stretch has come at night so fancy trying rolling meat see if it can produce. Just need to learn the technique it looks so easy.

I have wondered about wrapping lead wire round a hook instead of plastercine for a more direct contact.
 
Now there is a bit of water in the Wye (1.0mtr on) I shall be out rolling meat ASAP. I tried braid some years ago but couldn't get on with it (too much fingertip info) I use 10lb Big Game to a 36"x14lb Fluoro hooklink with a fixed 6" paternoster by the swivel, created by a grinner knot. The paternoster line is old 6lb so breaks when I snag. It is simple, easily varied weight wise and works for me.
 
It still works

There you go, proof of the pud so to speak, an 11lb-1oz taken on trundled meat yesterday on The Wye.
 

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Nice one Paul, no sooner said than done, good angling. A member asked a couple of posts back if you needed an open, treeless bank to trundle meat, as in the classic 'walking the dog' style of Ray Walton. He wondered if it could be done successfully by casting upstream in a static, enclosed swim and rolling it back past yourself. You are obviously better qualified than I to answer that one, what do you think?

Cheers, Dave.
 
Thanks Dave,
as you can see in the shot that one came from a treeless beach swim which made walking the bait parallel to the flow possible. But earlier in the session I had exactly the swim you describe between 2 trees. I cast upstream above the upper tree when standing by the lower tree. Once the lead hit bottom I moved up to the top tree as the bow in the line pulled the bait downstream. At the end of the run retrieve the bait and repeat, it worked I had an 8lb-4oz and a shoalie from there before moving on.
I use a variety of styles to suit the swims, at its most basic straight out into the flow and let it roll out in an arc to settle out on the crease. Uptreaming takes a bit of practice to interpret bites which feel like something has cut the line, but it has to be said that conditions should dictate your choice of presentation. Yesterday I knew rolling would be ideal, but in low clear water and its a different story, horses for courses.
 
Ray has made a few posts about trundling baits in the past on the forum, he tried lead or solder wire wrapped round the hook shank, the last tip he passed on was to mould heavy metal paste on the shank, cover it with shrink tube then shink it down GENTLY, both methods worked/work:)
 
I would expect differing flow rates/depths would need a different amount of
heavy metal paste as you move from swim to swim ?
 
the bouyancy of some luncheon meat ect is really light but it dont take much to nullify the problem if its too strong a current then obviously the plasticine comes into play:)
 
Craig Wood said:
Mono is a definite no no, when rolling..You will miss little nibbles on mono plus the stretch of mono works against you when rolling, especially when they dart back into the weed when hooked..
Click to expand...

I guess nobody told the many barbel I had freelining meat from the Royalty in the 70's and early 80's that mono was a definite no no Craig. ;) As well as feeling for bites I used to watch the point where the line enters the water, striking at any sideways or abnormal movement. Unlike rolling with braid I didn't encourage a bow in the line to take the meat downstream, but kept in direct contact with the bait on a straight line.

Back then the only weight I ever bothered with was fly tying lead wire wrapped around the shank of the hook. I also had little concern that my bait wasn't always hugging the bottom as I've lost count of the number of times I've seen barbel swim up to take the meat as it went over them. Indeed where your bait reaches a drop off if you are using Newplast/plasticine then your bait will behave in a completely unnatural manner by sinking quickly down to the bottom whilst any free offerings sink slowly as they continue downstream.

It's a fascinating way of fishing, more so in clear water when you can observe the response of the fish.
 
Seen that too, Nigel. Barbel will take a food item at any depth, as long as it's acting naturally.

https://barbel.co.uk/site/vbulletin...picture4896-scan0057-me-trotting-johnsons.jpg

This pic. from the lower Royalty is me trotting meat and watching the barbel that were in that far bank channel following the bait before deciding to take it.
On one occasion that day I watched a suspicious barbel follow the bait throughout the length of the swim until it had reached the point where I had to stop the float. The fish then followed the bait to within a couple of inches as it rose up in the water a good 4 feet , but only lost interest at the point where the meat was suspended and static in the flow!
I've watched barbel on the Throop feed on the muck that came out of the outfall on blackwater, no more than a foot below the surface. Have also been tempted to up the line strength when a big old barbel nearly breaks the surface whilst scoffing my stream of maggots meant for chub.

I suppose that underslung barbel mouth invites us to believe that they are exclusively bottom feeders, ....but having watched them in clear water for years I reckon they are just opportunistic, but not daft.
 
Back,when I was a kid and there was only one set of Pipes across the Royalty, if no one was around we used to free line off the attached walkway, flicking the meat upstream beneath us and then batting the pin back as the meat sunk naturally down and then playing line out as the meat passed beneath us. Most run throughs you'd get a barbel position itself to intercept the meat and then drop back downstream with the meat just in front of them as they checked it out. If we didn't get a take we would let the meat carry on down until it was almost out of view which was around where the depth increased noticeably. At this point we would clamp down on the pin and the meat would rise towards the surface at which point you'd see the underbellies of several barbel as they rose to intercept it, which they frequently did. I learned so much from standing on the Pipe watching the reactions of the resident barbel.

Great photo of Johnsons there Dave, that was a great swim.
 
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