Klop, Klop!

Hopelik 'n lekker vet baber.

Hier's 'n paar baberroep videos wat ek op YouTube opgespoor het. Ek het Saterdag weer probeer roep, maar niks so gevang nie, maar het wel 12 babers (en 2 lures) op my spinning setup verloor ... ek kan nie wag om my nuwe heavy casting setup te koop nie ...

Nogal baie kykstof, so geniet!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRmrW_84bgc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cq0wP0o7ofU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWn_bLuiHGk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2UEEhvYvCU

Hierdie ouens vat die babers met ligte stokke aan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haZ6KoOICA0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAQYyz5DM4Q

Cheers
 

The Owner

Senior Member
I have seen some of these vids before and checked the one's I haven't seen before.

Though all vids show how to call barbel I must admit that there is a few key aspects missing from there technique.

Here follows a few key tips with regards to calling barbel;

- firstly use the right rod. I am a strong believer of using Blue Marlin Bigshot calling rods for calling, not only because they are very strong but also because they are stiff and give of the right sound when calling. I have seen a few variations of calling rods, but most of them are either to flexible or don't have enough back bone thus allowing it to brake when you hook into a brute.

- secondly one must remember that you are trying to imitate a bird/fish struggling in the water so your calling should reflect this. Some venues with little fishing pressure will allow an angler to call as they want and still deliver fish, but most venues barbel will be hesitant to take your lure if your technique is not natural. Thus give eratic 'plonses' and 'calls'. Istead of repetitively plonsing your lure give 2-4 plonses and then let your lure sink below the spot you plonsed.

- anglers often plons a lot without letting the lure sink below the spot they called. This leads to them missing strikes as the barbel come to take the lure but get spooked or find nothing to take. So after you plonsed your lure let it sink down and give the barbel a time to strike it (especially at Bloemhof the barbel tend to take your lure when you let it suspend for 3 secs). Plons can be vertical or via swinging the lure and then letting it hit the water, varies from venue to venue which method is prefered.

- how hard you must plons or call depends on the venue you fish, some venue's barbel prefer louder calling and plonses (Bloemhof) and other likes it very soft (Rust de Winter). Usually its a good idea to start of softly and call harder as time passes. If you see barbel spook (mudclouds/swirls/bubbleclouds) when you start calling harder, this indicates that they prefer it softer.

- call next to structure if possible and in the shade as this is where barbel lay to stay out of fish eagles sight. If you see lots of barbel turning in shallow pans you can try calling in open water.

- try calling in different depths, sometimes the barbel prefer taking your lure just below the surface and other times they want it deeper down.

- the depth you stick your rodtip in when calling will influence how far barbel will pick up the vibrasion. Thus if you get no strikes after calling softly, stick in your rodtip deeper into the water and start calling to call barbel from far away to your lure. Calls must be quick eratic horizontal movement of your rod tip.

- Use decent loodkop or pumkinseeds when calling, if you use a lure with small hooks you will have a lot of misstrikes (like in some of the vids). I prefer Lume Fast Sinking Pumkinseeds, the bigger version works better

- I have seen how barbel under 10kg snap 100lb braid on the take, for this reason I use 150lb braid and have never been snapped on this line.

Catching barbel on calling is great fun and proudly South African, therefor I urge all anglers to give it a whirl. My father and I have caught 50+ barbel on calling in one day, just giving the stats for the sceptics
 
 
Dankie

Very informative reply, as always.

When using the 150lb braid, do you lock the drag on your reel completely?

What are some of the reels that can be used?

Cheers
 

joshua02

New member
kaptein delarey wrote:
Dankie

Very informative reply, as always.

When using the 150lb braid, do you lock the drag on your reel completely?

What are some of the reels that can be used?

Cheers

if you are fishing in structure then you have to lock the drag.

reels shimano baitcasters size 300-400. penn fathom 15 star drag, daiwa sealine 20 with upgraded drag, shimano torium 14 with drag upgraded. but there are many others just make, sure its light, strong and holds enough line
 

Spekkies

New member
In a dam like Bloemhof, where does one start to call? Close to any trees that one might find?? How do you know where to go and look for them in the flats (like they have done in the Hier gaan ons Alweer program. For the inexperience angler it can lead to "giving up" if you try, try and try and do not get any success, and I think a lot will have to do with the spots that you pick. At least if you know you are in the right spot, then you can start working on your technique. Thanks for all the insights so far.
 

The Owner

Senior Member
I agree with Joshua. Just like to add that Abu also has some nice reels for calling. Round-shape baitcasters with reliable drags is what is comes down to. I don't like to lock my drag as this is not good for most reels and will only do this in very dense structure. Most of the time I set my drag quite tight, hook the fish, lead it out of the structure and then loosen my drag when I'm in the open water for the remainder of the fight.

Spekkies, you are not the first person to struggle to call for barbel at Bloemhof. HGOA has gave a lot of anglers the urge to try and persue Bloemhof's whiskered giants. It looks very easy to catch these brutes when you watch the show, but in reality it is a challenge. Finding the barbel is the key to success at Bloemhof as they are relatively easy to catch once you have the spot. Both the Vet and Vaal inlets have produced big barbel. When fishing the dam you need a few days to find the barbel, usually one of the two sides of the dam produce more barbel than the other, thus you have to try both and compare. I have had most success in the Vet. Bloemhof's barbel are not struture bound and very few are caught next to trees. What you need to look for is shallow bays and shallow pans. Die Sloep has produced very big barbel on calling, you just need to look for the area where they are most active ito swirls. Otherwize you can try high up in the Vaal and Vet inlets. Just be careful when fishing the Vet as there are lots of shallow sandbanks when you get into the river. Also know that it is a huge challenge to find the riverbed if you want to move higher up in this river. One good thing of the sandbanks are that they usually mean that shallow pans are close-by...thus good places to call for barbel are close-by:wfish. Wade on these sandbanks and call next to them. If you stumble upon a shallow pan you are in for a jol! I have found that the biggest barbel lay in the shallowest pans as this is where they hunt for feeding carp. Another thing to look out for is where deep and shallow water come together, as barbel can move into the shallows to hunt right through the day. Most people are sceptical of calling in the open (even I was at first:fbash), but at Bloemhof it works like a bomb. My previous trip there in February I caught 42 barbel in 3 days all on calling with 10kg+ barbel on each day and a new pb of 17,3kg. Lastly remember that the barbel will only be in the shallows if the water temp is hot (22+ degrees). The hotter the water in the pan, the more active the barbel and the better your chances of catching them. On my previous trip I called for a few hours and covered a lot of shore via wading before I came across the barbel, but after I found them I caught 21 for the day and Aqua and his dad also caught a bunch on the same spot. Hope this helps and post pics when you go a give calling at Bloemhof another try:fishn
 

joshua02

New member
the big problem with locked drags on reels is that the drag system, is rated to lets say 25Lb but the other components cant handle it so you must make sure of this, i learnt the hard way of not checking
 

Fishpaste

Sealiner
Hey Werner, we need to organise a cat hunt soon. I am not good with this klopping business but have had some sucess at night, unfortunately they all came loose in the end... Actually not really klopping, more like a plons plons as I am using an 8ft kingfisher rod... :fbash but as long as I get hammered, i dont care!
 
F1%hpa%te wrote:
Hey Werner, we need to organise a cat hunt soon. I am not good with this klopping business but have had some sucess at night, unfortunately they all came loose in the end... Actually not really klopping, more like a plons plons as I am using an 8ft kingfisher rod... :fbash but as long as I get hammered, i dont care!
Reg so!

PM sent.
 

joshua02

New member
tackle junkie some people go without a leader the lure keeps the braid safe but bloemhof and the orange river, people use a short 80lb leader
 

Tackle Junkie

New member
Thanks.

The few times I've targeted barbel direct with braid and no mono leader I found I pulled the hooks too often.

I like the stretch the mono gives, and feel it will result in a lot more landed fish.
 

joshua02

New member
tackle junkie and to make it even better use a shock leader it is desgined to prevent hook pulls with braid
 

Ryan

Sealiner
Problem is with all those knots you run into issues with weakpoints - by setting your drag correctly you should have more success in having less breakups.

In open water you can use 20lb mono for calling - the reason such heavy tackle is used is for when calling in dense structure to give them as little string as possible that they cannot wrap you - barbel are dirty fighters and they dive for cover or deep water.

Why do we use leaders?
So that fish donot get spooked by such thick heavy line.
Using a calling technique such in the case of barbel does not require camoflage line as quite often the water is either turbid or dirty.

My humble 2 c but different strokes for different folks - use what works for you at the end of the day
 

Enigma

Moderator
IT's 150lbs and not 150kg braid. I have shown a number of the Artlure guys that the only reason the barble break the 80lbs is that they tie a spider hitch to get a loop to put the lures onto.

Even the 150lbs with that loop in now breaks at 60-70lbs.

The thickness however also helps prevent the line rubbing off and being Jerry Brown the 130lbs that Droomvanger and Owner fish with breaks at 185lbs (the 150lbs breaks at 210lbs) and being Jerry Brown Spectra it has a better abrasion resistance than Dyneema's.

Tying a shock leader is not recommended as it interfers with the lure action ans as Ryan says is just another knot to break in the setup.

The correct use of the Drag of the reel and hinging the rod on the wrist to absorb shock and bumps is a better option to prevent hookpulls
 

Enigma

Moderator
Not to damage the rod

Provide abrasion resistance in the obstructions

If tied correctly you can anchor a boat with them. They are not used for the playing of the fish on the calling rod. If you want to do that fish open water and use a casting rod
 

Droomvanger

Senior Member
It is usually not necessary to use a tippet (leader) on your braid. However, it is advisable to use a tippet when fishing for big barbel, especially in Bloemhof Dam and the lower Orange River where the barbel are feeding mainly on other fish and have sharper teeth which can eventually cut through the braid. Use fluorocarbon as tippet because it is invisible in water and highly abrasive. The breaking strength should be between 40 to 60 ponds. Don’t use a leader longer than 40 cm. Be very careful when using a tippet not to let the knot between the braid and the tippet ever be reeled into the tip of the rod. This would usually be fatal since the front in bedded guide on the tip of the rod is very small and you will not be able to thread the knot back through the front guide on the tip of the rod without irreparable damage on your rod!
 

sheldon12

New member
Hi Guys

Where is the best spot on the vaal river to go klopping for the first time ?

And do u guys think the river will be suitable for klopping this Friday ( 13.01.2017) after the rains we had ??

Thanks :) :)
 
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