Sticky pellets.

[rayner]

I've been reading about sticky pellets, who has used them.
Apparently they don't need soaking just dribble a little water on them and they will hold to a feeder with no bother.
Is this a good product, how long does it take for the pellets to break down. Obviously, if the pellets don't leave the feeder they are a little pointless.
It would be good to have a little information from a user than that of a seller.

 

[nottskev]

I had an uncharacteristic burst of method feedering when I found a pleasant old commie with liberal rules last winter and had a few nice sessions.

Sadly, my pellet advice isn't worth much as I used some now obsolete Marukyu 2mm Sticky Pellets. They worked great, and I never came back with feed still on the little hybrid feeder. But I did find one thing that might be useful - instead of dribbling water on, which I thought might be a bit uneven, I mixed up some water and liquid caramel Aromix in a small hairspray bottle and sprayed that on to damp them, with a bit more spray if they seemed to be drying out. I've got some Sonubaits equivalent here now, but I've not been back there to try them this winter. I've also been told that a bit of the old groundbait binder PV1 will make any small pellets bind better, but that's another thing I've not tried.

 

[john step]

I popped in to Evolution Baits last year which are round the corner from AD in Lincoln. I bought a few of those mini sticky pellets. They are fish flavoured.
They certainly stick inside a feeder OK. Instead of a dash of water I have been using Sensas worm flavour which comes in quite a large bottle.

I also found I could squeeze a small amount into a ball and feed by hand. Seems to attract fish well. You can mix with a little brown crumb to make it go further.

 

[rayner]

I've asked this question and now the idea of using sticky pellets is more pointless than it appeared at the time. especially when sticky pellets sound like they're for deep water, I fish shallow water. The idea that they didn't need soaking interested me, then I thought with the amount of time it takes to soak pellets correctly why do I need pellets that don't need soaking.
Any pellets can be made sticky with Horlicks, The sticky properties of pellets can be achieved with just water, plus with a water soak, I know how long they take to release from my feeder. It was Kev mentioning the hybrid feeder he was using that made me think do I need sticky pellets. The easiest task in my fishing is soaking pellets why I thought I needed a sticky pellet for my feeder is anyone's guess.
Johns idea of pellet balls of feed is a good idea, that can be achieved with Horlicks if pellets are too wet to form a tight ball.
Sorry chaps for the false start. Thanks for your help.

 

[Golden Eagle]

You got there my friend! Buy cheap shop or fishery pellets and prepare them. ‘Sticky’ or the suchlike is marketing.

The perfect way with micros for me is to mix them in the ration 2:2:1 - micros: water: groundbait.

Makes the perfect method mix.

 

[rayner]

You got there my friend! Buy cheap shop or fishery pellets and prepare them. ‘Sticky’ or the suchlike is marketing.

The perfect way with micros for me is to mix them in the ration 2:2:1 - micros: water: groundbait.

Makes the perfect method mix.

You need to practise more with just water, ground bait on some fisheries is banned. Normally if you need to add crumb to make them sticky you need a little less soak time.

 

[seth49]

For the 2.3 mm skrettings pellets I use, I’ve found that a soak time of 1 minute 15 seconds works fine for use on a method feeder.

Also when you drain the water off, don’t discard it if your going to fish a margin swim, poured into the margin brings fish in without feeding them.

 

[Golden Eagle]

I do fish the odd venue where groundbait is not allowed. But given the choice will always fish a mix of both, in the proportions above. I got this from an Andy Findlay video and it works a treat. The groundbait fills the air gaps between the micros and is far superior to simply pellets alone. The beauty of it is that it’s based on the volume of water rather than time, so is consistent.

Where groundbait is banned I will soak and drain / squeeze depending on the type of pellets. Soaking time increases slightly in colder water so it’s difficult to give a precise answer.

 

[rayner]

For the 2.3 mm skrettings pellets I use, I’ve found that a soak time of 1 minute 15 seconds works fine for use on a method feeder.

Also when you drain the water off, don’t discard it if your going to fish a margin swim, poured into the margin brings fish in without feeding them.

The venue I fish the fishery pellets are Coppens, they take a little longer to soak than Skretting pellets. on the plus side, I never have trouble with them going mushy. With pellet preparation I prefer to measure an amount of water then leave until the water is soaked up to leave a perfectly prepared pellet ready for use. Generally done at home the day before. It's just a case of keep flipping the tub until the water is fully incorporated.
It doesn't matter how you get to a usable pellet. We all have our different ways.

 

[John Keane]

I find the Marukyu pellets too sticky and unpleasant to handle. As I don’t use a method feeder any more but use the Preston or Guru hybrid feeders I find that normal dampened pellets work fine when pressed firmly into the feeder. Of the proprietary “sticky” pellets I like Ringers Method Micros and have been using them for three seasons now. Simply half fill a bait box and add enough water to just about cover the pellets so that the top appears dry but will pool and become waterlogged if you press down on it. Half an hour and they are done. They keep their shape well, don’t turn to mush and can be frozen and re-frozen multiple times.

 

[laguna]

why do I need pellets that don't need soaking

Superfluous to your original question perhaps but... a soaked pellet has many advantages
1. makes them bind together for use in a feeder
2. sink faster
3. a wet pellet leaches flavour better
4. fish spend less time chomping down on wet fed pellets, giving them more opportunity to take what's on the hook

I'm not suggesting they need to be 'sticky' , just wet that's all..... in fact the only possible time I can think of when someone might need sticky pellets is when fishing deep running water and hard-casting a method feeder that's (purposely) lightly compressed.
Cage feeders I normally plug up each end with some halibut cheese paste to keep the pellets in.