Bomb Fishing For Carp... WITH BREAD!

Bomb and Bread is a deadly way of targeting carp and F1’s during the colder months. It’s quite a unique tactic in the sense you don’t actually feed any bait to attract the fish, it’s all about locating the fish and then fishing with a single bread hook bait to catch them.

Bread swells up when it’s been in the water, making it easy for the fish to suck in. It also pops up off the bottom and sits right in front of the fish, giving you the best chance possible of a bite, even on the coldest of days when they’re reluctant to feed. These are the two reasons bread is so effective in my opinion.

You need to find liners and indications, slow pulls and movements on your rod tip are classic signs you have found a ball of fish. During the colder months fish ball up tightly together and once you find them I honestly think Bomb and Bread is the best way to catch them

There’s a few ways to find the fish in your peg; keep an eye out for fish moving or swirling, jumping out of the water or any signs of bubbles on the surface. These are giveaway signs of where the fish are in your peg, and you should cast to these.

I always try and use the lightest bomb possible; this spooks less fish and I feel it gives me maximum chance of catching. I use the 10g and 15g Square Bombs for anything up to 25 metres. I’ll then increase the weight up to the 31g Bomb if I’m fishing further. But try and use as light a weight as you can this will get you more bites!

The orange Toastie Warburton is my go-to bread for this tactic. It swells up perfectly and it’s durable enough to not come off on the cast. Usually, I fish two to three discs of bread. If I’m fishing for smaller carp and F1’s I will use two discs of 8mm bread. If the fish are bigger, say 5lb to 15lb carp I’ll use 10mm discs, bigger hookbait for bigger fish!

My bomb set-up is super simple, I attach my bomb to the line using a    Snap Link Swivel and this runs down to a Speed Bead, which I then attach my hook length to. It’s a straightforward set up, but it’s the best I’ve found for this method. Line wise I don’t mess around with too light a reel line, I opt for 8lb Pulse Pro, for most of my running line carp fishing to be honest. It’s bullet proof and doesn’t let me down.

Rod wise, I use a 10’ Aventus Steve Ringer rod for distances up to say 30 metres. If I have to fish any further, I’ll use the 11’ Ringer rod. This is a mega versatile rod that has a very forgiving action. It bends all the way through, and I think it minimises hook pulls and lands me more fish!

Hook choice has to be a SMWG in neither a 16 or a 14. This is a hook I have ultimate confidence in, and I feel you get brilliant hook holds. This will be attached to a N-Gauge hooklength in either 0.15, 0.17 or 0.19mm depending on the size of fish I’m targeting. If you struggle to tie hair rigs the Guru SMWG 15” Speed Stop Read rigs are perfectly suited for Bomb and Bread

Keeping you bread fresh and in perfect condition is important as you need to have the confidence that your hookbait is working as effectively as possible. The Punch box keeps each slice of bread in the freshest condition possible. The punches you need are also located inside the box too making it the ideal bread combo!

This method is all about confidence! Finding the fish is THE most important factor to consider when fishing for carp and F1’s in Winter. Find them, employ the above tactics and you’ll be fishing the most effective way to catch fish in the colder months!