Bite alarms for pike

[eelsfootinn]

When my son and I pike fish we have 2 rods each. Putting aside lure fishing for one moment and focusing on deadbaiting, the set up I have used is that we each have a float ledger set up, and we each have a pure ledger rod with rear drop off arm and front alarm. I prefer the floats, but with a son who can get distracted at times, I feel personally able to watch my float and his, but no more. Hence the other 2 rods are alarm set ups.

Now, last time we fished, I noticed a tiny bit of twitching on the line which was so subtle it did not make my roller alarm beep, despite owning fairly sensitive alarms. I picked up the rod, struck and landed a ten pounder. This got me researching the question of bite alarms. Everyone seems to be suggesting that Delkims are virtually essential rather than the cheaper roller type. But Delkims are insanely expensive, the TXI is over £110. The cheaper EV (around £60) doesn't even have a built in sound - it only comes out of the separate receiver!

So, are the Delkim vibration-sensitive alarms really the only way to go, or is there a good choice at a more reasonable price? Advice welcomed!

 

[sam vimes]

Delkims are insanely expensive, the TXI is over £110. The cheaper EV (around £60) doesn't even have a built in sound - it only comes out of the separate receiver!

So, are the Delkim vibration-sensitive alarms really the only way to go, or is there a good choice at a more reasonable price? Advice welcomed!

Delkims aren't cheap, but I suspect that you've got the wrong end of the stick somewhere.

The TXi Plus is the model with a built in transmitter for use with a remote. It's now over £120.
Next down is a model that has everything the TXi has, minus the transmitter. It is the Standard Plus and comes in at £85.
The base model is the EV Plus at £60. It loses a sensitivity range, but little else.

Both the Standard Plus and EV Plus have a built in speaker and do not require a reciever to work. In fact, adding a reciever requires an add on part.
The TXi also has a built in speaker and can be used without a reciever. However, if you never intend to use a reciever, it's pointless going any higher than the Standard Plus.

 

[eelsfootinn]

Thanks Sam, I was mistaken indeed.

What are your thoughts on Delkims versus cheaper wheel alarms? Would the line twitching I mentioned above have registered better on a Delkim and set the alarm off? I find it a bit concerning that a carp wheel alarm might not be sensitive enough for pike.

 

[sam vimes]

I can't really comment from a pike fishing perspective. However, I can say with confidence that the Standard Plus and TXi Plus can be set up to be ridiculously sensitive. So much so that they can drive you to distraction. However, as with any front alarm for piking, some do have concerns with their use. Much depends on the methods used. I know folks that won't fish an open bail method with front alarms of any kind.

 

[terry m]

For what it is worth, I think that a rear drop off alarm/arm set up in conjunction with a low price front alarm will work well. It is more about the setting up than the alarm itself.

I have a set of TXi's but I never use them for piking, as my pike gear gets a tough time with regular moves and often short trips.

For dead baiting I tend to use floats on rivers and alarms on stillwaters. Fox PS rear drop offs in conjunction with cheap Nash S5 alarms at the front.

The key is to reduce slack to an absolute minimum, when the bait moves more than a couple of inches then some sort of indication should be apparent at the indicator.

 

[eelsfootinn]

Thanks both. I was of the opinion that the line twitching was so subtle that if it had set off the alarm, then the alarm would have been going off all day due to the slightest breeze. The set up I have is always tight to a sliding ledger weight, and I believe that an inch or so of pull in any direction would set off my alarms.

Interesting what has been said here about not fishing with open bail arm and front alarms. I have the bail arm open with the line passing through a drop off, then going through a front alarm. I'd like to know what is wrong with this set up.

 

[sam vimes]

Interesting what has been said here about not fishing with open bail arm and front alarms. I have the bail arm open with the line passing through a drop off, then going through a front alarm. I'd like to know what is wrong with this set up.

The reasoning I've heard is that, once the line is pulled out of the drop off indicator, it can skip across a roller (or the Delkim sensor reed) without giving an indication. Bobbins are a good way of countering this effect, but they aren't generally used by pikers. All front alarms benefit from a bit of tension in the line to operate at their best.

 

[naxian62]

Mr. Eels,
I experienced the very same twitching this past pike season. Which most of the time resulted in a fish. I've since resorted to lightweight bobbins, as explained by either SV or DG on this forum. If you search " drop- off indicators" something should come up.

 

[eelsfootinn]

Are ET Backbiter Mk2 a good solution? Pretty affordable.

 

[naxian62]

Pair o them just gone up on the 'bay.

 

[eelsfootinn]

Just looked. I think they are the Mk1.

 

[BarryC]

From eels quote.
''and I believe that an inch or so of pull in any direction would set off my alarms''.

Would be nice if this were true.
But if you are using say an 18inch trace it is possible for a pike to pick up the bait and move 3 feet without you knowing it.
I have had fish after striking at the very first indication that have the hook (Note single hook) well inside. Allso had others that go off on a long run and strike into thin air.
Pike will frequently drop onto a bait and devour it moving only a few inches.
So bite indication and when to strike is far from an exact science with old esox. Best we can do, like with most species is to minimise the chances of damage to our quarry.
So I would say if legering use as short a trace as you can, I use about 15 inches.
Line bar tight from your rod to lead and allmost any indication that you are happy with. Some use front alarms, bobbins and baitrunners. Others use front alarms and rear dropoffs, and some rear alarms. Each one has fans from the high and mighty of piking.
Me, well I use front wheel alarms and rear homemade dropoffs.

 

[eelsfootinn]

Sorry I should have clarified - I meant a 1 inch pull through the lead. Obviously any movement which doesn't pull line through the lead will be undetectable.

I am now thinking Delkims and drop offs with a small gap between clip and reel spool will be the most sensitive option. This would prevent the bait from being moved with the alarm staying silent, because line skip would not be possible, at least until the drop off clip moves up to the spool.

---------- Post added at 10:45 ---------- Previous post was at 10:05 ----------

By the way, I have thought long and hard about the issue of a pike moving a bait without taking line through the lead. I'm convinced that popping up the bait helps to reduce the chances of this. If the bait is popped up say 18 inches above the lead, then any pike taking it and moving either upwards or horizontally in any direction will cause line to pull through the lead. Only movement downwards would risk this (or staying static), due to simple physics.

 

[eelsfootinn]

2 Delkim EV Plus alarms arrived today. Fantastic range of sensitivity. Paired with my Middy 30Plus drop offs I should detect any movement on the line. October can't come quickly enough. Strange to be wishing away my summer!

 

[keora]

When my son and I pike fish we have 2 rods each. Putting aside lure fishing for one moment and focusing on deadbaiting, the set up I have used is that we each have a float ledger set up, and we each have a pure ledger rod with rear drop off arm and front alarm. I prefer the floats, but with a son who can get distracted at times, I feel personally able to watch my float and his, but no more. Hence the other 2 rods are alarm set ups.

Now, last time we fished, I noticed a tiny bit of twitching on the line which was so subtle it did not make my roller alarm beep, despite owning fairly sensitive alarms. I picked up the rod, struck and landed a ten pounder. This got me researching the question of bite alarms. Everyone seems to be suggesting that Delkims are virtually essential rather than the cheaper roller type. But Delkims are insanely expensive, the TXI is over £110. The cheaper EV (around £60) doesn't even have a built in sound - it only comes out of the separate receiver!

So, are the Delkim vibration-sensitive alarms really the only way to go, or is there a good choice at a more reasonable price? Advice welcomed!

I can't advise you on bite alarms, but I've occasionally caught pike in winter, where despite fishing close in and having a sensitive float rig, pike have taken the bait without moving the float.

The other odd thing is that the pike I've caught in these circumstances don't swallow the bait. They grab the bait, hold it in their jaws and keep still. I can't explain this peculiar behaviour.

 

[eelsfootinn]

I can't advise you on bite alarms, but I've occasionally caught pike in winter, where despite fishing close in and having a sensitive float rig, pike have taken the bait without moving the float.

The other odd thing is that the pike I've caught in these circumstances don't swallow the bait. They grab the bait, hold it in their jaws and keep still. I can't explain this peculiar behaviour.

Maybe using the bait as a lozenge?

I set up and tested the sensitivity of the Delkims last night at home. They will definitely be able to detect the line twitching I mentioned above, though on a choppy day I will need to turn the sensitivity down. I feel more confident now. I'm also looking forward to using my small vaned Locslide pencil floats. They look excellent. Also quite like the look of the Fox red and white pencil float, if anyone has an opinion on that?

 

[pilmart1]

I love the fox pencils I think they're great for short to medium range work when they're set correctly it's like 'lift-float' fishing for Tench.

I find them the most sensitive method available but you do need to take the time to get the depth right.

 

[terry m]

Agree, the unloaded Fox Deadbait pencils are my first choice whilst river fishing as long as the current is not too fierce.

The initial waggling of the float at the start of a take get the adrenaline flowing every time!!

 

[eelsfootinn]

I never know what rig leads to the float rising. I always have the line running through a 2oz lead, so wherever the pike goes my float always goes under. What rig causes a float to rise? I am guessing some kind of deadbait on the bottom held by fixed weights rather than sliding?

 

[terry m]

Yes a fixed weight at the end of the (18") trace.

I use the Fox egg sinkers, they work really well, and for the Fox DB pencil an 18g or a 25g work well.

Pike lifts the bait, and hence the sinker, and the pencil waves at you.