Playing Big Fish on the Float

In this month's Southern Angler, our friend Keith Arthur describes how he tried to get a big barbel he had hooked on light float gear to come upstream by opening his bail arm and allowing the float to "drag past" the fish.

Has anyone tried this and why does it work?

Never tried it nigel but i bet he was not fishing snaggy water.After saying that i like Keith,spoke to him a few times and he certainly has some knowledge

Nigel, I think what hes trying to do is create a "fish swims away from the pull of the line" situation. He is a great advocate of pulling carp towards a snag believing they will go the opposite way, some say it works too.

Nigel wouldn't that give you a 33% chance?
Upstream, downstream or straight across into the roots? (on the rivers I fish!)

"Has anyone tried this and why does it work?"

Does it work?

OK, so if it goes upstream can you then turn it and land it on light float gear?

Fishing the Swale last season and i had caught some chub and a barbel on the float when i hooked into a big barbel which was a double.Played this fish for what seemed an age on a 15ft rod,every time a brought it upstream it held its ground and then moved downstream. After going through the same motion two or three times i finally brought the fish into a bay 20yds below me. I thought if you are not coming to me i will come to you and waded downstream with the net. got to within about5yards of the dam thing and it buggered off not to be seen again and i slung my rod in the rushes. A hand grenade would not have moved that fish never mind slackline and the float below it

Graham, I think you are probably right but how would he create that effect with the float being allowed to go downstream of the fish.Where would the pull effect come from?

I've tried the pulling fish into a snag to get it to swim the other way and guess what I pulled them into the snag.This was also on the Swale John, at Cundall Hall, where you would hook the barbel about 10 yards downstream and all they would do was swim towards you very steadily before diving into a willow just upstream at a rate of knots.The only way you get them out was by sinking the rod tip to below the level of the branches in the hope the float would not get caught up.

I've never known Barbel fight as much as those Swale fish.

I'd always prefer to play a big fish upstream om the float.If you are clever you can release the pressure at the right point and it will drop with the current into the net.Barbel some times can be coaxed upstream but big chub are a much more difficult as they have a tendency to just come to the surface on a long downstream line with their mouths open and its like playing a plastic bag.Often the hookhold gives with the pressure of current.Never really come up with a way of countering this apart from going to meet the fish if the bank permits.

I suspect his reasoning is that even the slight pull of the float against his mouth is enough to create the pull effect Nigel, but I am speculating of course.

I know what you mean about chub, they are past masters of shedding of causing a hooklenth breakage, who said fish havn't got brains. I've lost count of the chub that have swum into reeds downstream and on the nearside bank and applying pressure merely gets them there quicker. The most fearsome of fish maybe but they are certainly one of the cleverest.

You are correct Nigel regarding Swale barbel.Must be either the flow water quality or just the snags but they fight like hell.Remember Peter Wheat saying the same when he came to fish with the late Tag Barnes.
Grahams right regarding chub very intelligent fish.when you hook a big one on the swale you have to watch the angle between rod tip and float otherwise you are snagged