Top tips for bait dips and glugs

Boosting a bait with extra scent is a great ruse when fishing a single hook bait for pressured specimens wary of large beds of feed. Even little mounds of food deposited by PVA can be ignored by wily whoppers.

The porous nature of boilies makes them a perfect candidate for absorbing liquid attractors. Particles such as maize and nuts are also good baits to boost.

I’ve had great results with tiger nuts left to soak in liquid molasses for several days and even maggots benefit from a soak in attractors. A mate of mine swears that two drops of geranium oil added to his grubs works wonders for roach.

Boilies, nuts and particles can be given a quick dunk just before casting or left in a deep filled pot indefinitely. Soaking for prolonged periods can also harden baits which pay dividends on waters where nuisance fish or crays are a pest.

A high oil content makes most dips PVA-friendly. Dip a stringer in a pot of enhancer or dribble some into solid bags. Groundbaits and Method mixes can also be jazzed up. My favourite Vitalin mix always gets treated with liquid Source or cheap molasses.

Some commercial boosters are highly concentrated so don’t use masses of the stuff or it could overwhelm.

Dynamite Baits’ range of liquid attractors are perfect for both single hook bait soaks or pouring into PVA bags and groundbaits. They’re not overly potent and there are no worries of applying too much.

1. There are stacks of liquid enhancers ranging from sweet smelling varieties such as pineapple, strawberry and Scopex to pungent fishy liquids that singe your nasal hairs. Use sweet flavours in cold water and fishmeal when temperatures increase.

2. High potency levels mean hook baits can be dunked before casting. Boilies will absorb liquids with ease and remain infused for hours in the water. If you’re using a dip purely for hook baits, it will last for months in an airtight container.

3. The majority of dips, glugs and soaks are PVA-friendly. Dunking a stringer of baits or a mesh bag works a treat, and pouring some into a solid PVA bag will really draw fish in from afar.

4. Carping chums of mine succeed with baits that have been left to soak for several years. Try maize soaked for a few weeks in sweet enhancer for cracking carp and tench sport. Prolonged soaking will also harden baits.

The Marmite Tip! Experiment with supermarket glugs such as Marmite and Bovril. They make excellent glugs although the potency isn’t as strong as commercially-made brands. Try mixing sticky treacle into a Method mix. Our angling ancestors regularly kneaded honey into fresh bread to form a sweet paste.