What I've learned so far

[Ian]

Ok,I've been trying to catch bream most Sundays since march this year and I'm learning fast.they really are peculiar creatures of habit.
I'm only going with what I've learnt from the fish in this particular pond and by no means am I suggesting this is the same everywhere but some things might ring true.
The first thing I remember being told was the distance to cast to,with many folk saying a good cast was needed.well I suppose if ones fishing a big clear featureless water,that may well be the case but it doesn't mean it's the norm.
Luckily I've had the chance to fish two completely different swims on this pond,one is 3ft deep to 20yds then has a sharp drop off to about 11ft,the other swim gently slopes deeper the further out I cast.
the results of fishing both swims is that bream feel much more secure at the bottom of the steep drop off regardless of how far out it may be.
I heard bream don't like active groundbait,yes that's about right and I've found this out to my dismay.
When I first started fishing for these bream I only used brown crumb and it worked a treat but the avid roach fisherman in me raised its ugly head more than once,for example I tried adding hemp oil and because it's lighter than water the crumb would rise and fall on the bottom completely killing the swim,I mean not a single bite.i only noticed when I discarded the remainder of the crumb in the water at the end of the day.
Hemp seed on the other hand is great for bream as long as it's put down in a bed rather than every so often.
Trying different baits is another bream fishing tactic and again I've found this to be very true.i had an array of hook baits with me the first time I had a good fishing session on the pond,I had mixed coloured maggots containing reds,whites and yellows,corn,casters and worms.the only thing they were interested in that day was two yellow maggots,not a bite on any of the other baits or coloured maggots.
A week later and I had the same baits but I couldn't buy a bite on yellow maggots or any of the other baits but as soon as I used any of these baits in conjunction with a grain of corn the bites came,even bread has limited appeal.ive been rotating my baits ever since.
they don't like baits dropping down on their heads,skimmers don't mind but big bream do,I've found that putting down a bed of bait is far better for the bigger bream,albeit I've had to sit waiting on them to show up for 3 or 4 hours but when they do the first bite is more often than not a wrap around.
Smaller fish will be attracted by the regular splash of the feeder.
The last thing about trying to catch big bream and possibly the worst thing that can happen,I've found,is that losing a big fish during the fight or nipping in on the strike is a killer,no ifs,no buts,the shoal disappears.
These are some of the aspects of bream fishing in my experience and but I still love catching them,or trying,but is this the same everywhere?

[Santiago]

What a nice and insightful post! On the Thames I often find this time of year that one can just about set your watch by the first bream bite; normally around 9:30-10pm. Often the bream shoal are already present whilst I am catching roach, but not feeding. I can only conclude they have set feeding times; the best time being from 9:30pm to 12 midnight. Anyways, I will try your groundbait pre-baiting method this Saturday night.

[Ian]

Sounds about right Santiago.best to lay the table 2-3hrs before feeding time.the bream in the pond I fish feed from anytime after 8am til about 1pm on a sunny day,an overcast day its the same but with a chance of the odd fish after that.they don't feed again until after dark.
The worst thing for me is putting out a big carpet of bait and losing the first bream,it's happened to me four times on two ponds.i like to fish from morning til dusk and if I lose that fish at 9am I don't get any interest for the rest of the day.
Another thing is hook size.a big bream could swallow a tangerine,so what's the point of trying to find a hold with a size 16 or 14.when the bream start getting their heads down and into the feeding zone they aren't paying much attention to anything else,try a size 10 for corn/worm and a 12 for maggot/casters.most folk go down a hook size if failing to hook up,I go up a size and 9/10 it works.thread the first maggot up the hook shank and nick another one or two on.

[Santiago]

I'm never happy with my choice of hook size when bream fishing! So I tend to change the hook regularly until I start hitting bites, and I could go up and down. But my best catch was achieved by using bigger and bigger hooks up to an eight, yet I regularly catch with a 14. I also use a keepnet for bream, because I find one lost fish means I have to wait several hours for another bite, likewise put a bream back and you'll be lucky to catch any more. Best bait I found is branding /corn cocktail, especially in autumn. On the Thames maggot is pretty useless for bream, although you'll catch a few, even whilst trotting now and again. I also found red coloured groundbait to be better than plain ; especially when mixed with molasses. And a day old groundbait that's gone a tad stodgy works really well in a feeder.

[Duebel]

Very interesting to read, what the both of you write there!

Thanks for sharing your knowledge! It is a thing that is hardly ever found in German fishing forums.

[Paul D]

What a interesting post Ian, thanks for sharing that. Trevor I agree with what you say about red groundbait, the bank opposite Shepperton lock is stained red from the bream anglers.

[Santiago]

So are my fingers! Well, they normally are for a few days after bream fishing!

[Ian]

The place I fish is packed with roach and skimmers but there are also big bream from 4-12lb and I've saw me catching plenty of skimmers on a size 14 only for one of these monsters to come along and I lose it due to the hook size.fish up to around 2-3lb aren't a problem when lost as I know after a good couple of hours they will come back,like you say Santiago,its the big ones that don't come back.thats why I use a big hook now,then at least I know when one of the big ones show up I have a better chance of setting the hook.
I know what you mean about putting a bream back and you won't catch any more.i went to a loch almost 2hrs drive away and the mate caught a bream and put it back,the session was instantly ruined and we sat for another 8hrs without as much as a sniff.
For bream in the pond I fish,corn has proved the best for the bigger bream,worm/corn cocktail or bread/corn cocktail works well for the hybrids and maggots for the skimmers.
I may go back to the pond this week after all this talk about bream,tight lines for tomorrow Santiago,I look forward to hearing how you get on.

[Ian]

Just a few things I've picked up on over the past few months Paul.
Due to my roach fishing I got put off using red groundbait as it didn't seem to work for me and since then it's never entered my mind,but since you and Trevor seem to agree on it Paul then I will defo give it the chance,as long as it's not an active type.

[Santiago]

Make it a wee stodgy so it stays on the bottom and to reduce swirling up as the bream feed.