Boilie dips and soaks

Why use boilie dips and soaks

Boilies were banned when I first started fishing at one of my local waters some years ago. It was a fairly new complex at the time and was relatively easy, and so baits such as luncheon meat, sweetcorn and trout pellet paste were the order of the day. After a few months of catching plenty of carp though, they soon began to wise up to these basic baits and blank sessions resulted. I was chatting to a fellow angler after one particular session and saying how difficult it had become to catch without being able to use boilies. He told me that he was still catching plenty and asked what bait I was using. Luncheon meat I replied, there's not a lot else you can use except for worm and maggot, which simply attracts the smaller species. What, plain luncheon meat he questioned. You won't catch on that anymore, you need to dip it. Dip it in what I asked. He fished in his pocket and pulled out a pot of strawberry cream flavouring and a small pot of honey. That was my first lesson in dips and glugs. The next session saw me dipping luncheon meat in strawberry and coating it in honey, resulting in more fish again and renewed confidence in my fishing.

Of course it wasn't long before the carp were wising up to these new flavours as well, but with a little experimentation and a few trips to Tesco I was soon back into the fish again. Nowadays of course, dips soaks and glugs are readily available in a thousand different variations from every tackle dealer. But why not have a go at making your own. It can save a few bob and can be a lot of fun as well.

A few ideas

Here are a few ideas to get you started. Once you have tried them you will be itching to try out your own combinations and maybe it will help you put some more carp on the bank.

The first thing you will need is a base liquid. This can be an oil such as olive oil, or a frying oil such as vegetable or sunflower oil, some specialist stir fry oils come with added flavours like garlic, or a favourite of mine is sesame seed oil. Oils for dipping bread are also good. Another good base liquid is the juice from a tin of sweetcorn. This is a flavour that carp are familiar with and lots of good carp are caught every year on it. If you want to go for a fish flavour, try adding the oil from a tin of pilchards or sardines.

Once you have your base liquid, you can add your flavours. For sweet dips, try adding almond oil, or baking flavours such as strawberry, vanilla, peach, chocolate or whatever you fancy trying. Nesquick powders and honey also work well. Also syrups are a useful addition, glucose syrup can be bought at the supermarket to add a sweetening effect. A spoonful of golden syrup has a similar effect and helps to thicken it all up. If you are aiming for a savoury dip, then pepper, chilli, curry powder, paprika and garlic are all favourites.

For summer fishing when the water temperatures are up, I would go for a fish oil based dip, as these oils will leak easily from the baits and cause a slick which will attract the carp. In colder weather I would be more inclined to go for a dip which will not drift away but will stay concentrated around the baits. In this case, the sweetcorn juice base is a good bet. Corn steep liquor is also a good base for winter dips.

As far as quantities go, it is going to vary considerably depending on the chosen ingredients. Remember you don't want to make it too runny, it should finish up as a fairly thick liquid which will soak into your baits. If you want it to really soak in, try soaking a few boilies, freezing them and then defrosting again. As they defrost, more flavour is drawn into the boilies. Then soak again and use or freeze again for later. Just remember not to overdo the flavours. It is possible to put the fish off completely. And don't forget, it's not just boilies you can dip and soak, any bait works, and you can also try it with your chum mixers. Also try coating your baits in honey and marmite, both said to be good carp attractors.

So, have a look in your cupboards, take a trip to the supermarket, and see what you come up with. A little experimenting can save you a fortune on the ready made dips and may also give you that edge over the other anglers on your lake.