Dips

Now this is something that some of us have boxes full of! Mostly unnecessary of course… We don’t need to chuck around 50 dips to the dam. Most of the time we need at most about 20-30 and to me that is still too much, but it does give you some options for when the fish become finicky. If we do some research before going to a venue we will soon find that there is a pattern with regards to dip flavours. Places like the Vaal Dam you can get fish on anything sweet most of the time and certain combos are successful 80% of the time. Just remember that there are no hard and fast rules regarding dips as fish tend to change their preference from day to day and from venue to venue. Play around a bit, but don’t saturate the water with too much flavour as this will chase the fish away. Rather use less flavours if you are not sure what is working for the day. Rather change distance that change flavours. The right bait in the wrong place won’t catch any fish.

Caramel dips like FX are a must in any tackle box. It can be used in conjunction with most any other dips you might care to use.

Vaaldam dip is one of those sweet dips that is also found in every comp anglers box. It is basically a strawberry flavoured dip. Works well on its own or with a stronger dip like Garlic or TCP in a combo. Also works well as a flavouring when mixing doug.

Cinnamon and Bunspice type dips are also found in every comp anglers box. I myself use Cina1 and Perdeby. These work well on their own or as a combo with FX, Pinksweets and one or two others.

Pinksweet flavour is also a must have dip. My preferred pinksweets dip is called Kiana. Works well on its own or in combo with Predeby/Cina1, TCP, FX, Banana(Banjo).

TCP is always part of most anglers’ arsenal, unless that angler doesn’t know where to buy TCP…lol! Luckily for us it is again readily available since last year from any pharmacy under the name 3CP. A 100ml bottle costs about R35 and I mix mine 50/50 with tradisional syrup. I have used it with great success as a combo with Vaaldam dip on the bomb and TCP on the other side of the bomb.

Garlic  is always a winner at the Vaal. Some guys start every session with at least one rod loaded with garlic. Works very well on the bomb or as a dip for your bait(floaties/dough/pap). Also a great combo with Almond and there are even dips that are a mix of garlic and almond like Algar, Yellow Activator and Devilsfork. You must  have at least one of these in you box as well as these normally don’t last long, because it is used so much. There is also a dip named Strawlic which is a mix of garlic and strawberry. Also a winner, but you don’t need to have it if you already have garlic and Vaaldam in your box. Just use it as a combo. Any of these garlic mixes also work well as flavouring when mixing dough as well.

Looti is a very sweet berry mix. Must have dip as many a day has been saved with Looti. You can use lots of Looti on the bomb at a time as the fish love it! One of the best combos are a spot of Vicks(Eucalyptus) covered with Looti. Works very well on cold days and during winter.

Duiwelsdrek is a very smelly dip that works well when most other dips fail. Seems to attract bigger carp. I mix my own as it is cheaper than buying the dip. I buy Lennons Duiwelsdrek from any grocery shop and then mix it with honey or syrup in a bigger bottle(50ml). Works well with Musk-Molasses on the bomb.

Musk-Molasses is also a dip that I discovered recently to be an excellent addition to any box. You can pour lots of it on the bomb and it gets fish to the feeding spot. I normally have a 100ml bottle of it ready at all occasions.

These are a few of my must have dips. There are n few others that I would not leave home without, but they are mostly personal choice. These include Stuttafords(Wintergreen), Almond, Passionfruit/Granadilla, Muddy-Red(peach). All have their place in my arsenal, but they are not used as much as the ones mentioned above. As I said before, these are not set in stone and anyone can try anything they want and be very successful.