PIKE LINES AND THE OUTFIT 45 



disheartened by repeated failures, and then found out 

 that the cause of failure lay more in the outfit than in the 

 fisherman who used it. 



During my wanderings after sport I have seen pike 

 fishermen at work in many different styles, but none of 

 these styles I considered equal to or more scientific than the 

 Nottingham. As I have just pointed out, this style re- 

 quires an undressed, or only slightly oiled plaited silk line, 

 rather soft in its texture, and an easy-going reel to be 

 successful with it. On the other hand, if the angler uses 

 the live bait alone, and is not tempted to spin over the 

 shallows, a waterproof line will be the best ; or even if he 

 does spin now and again, and prefers to do this with the 

 line laid in coils at his feet, the waterproofed line will still 

 be the best, and in this case he need not be particular as 

 to the reel. 



A good waterproof line is rather an expensive item, and 

 even the most expensive cannot be guaranteed to float 

 on the surface of the water ; I only know of one brand of 

 pike line that will float, and that is Messrs. Allcock's 

 " Stag brand," dressed and waterproofed under the air 

 pump ; this is a costly line, fifty yards running up to 

 something like ten shillings, which is a serious item, but 

 the quality is irreproachable; an ordinary dressed line 

 would run to about half that figure. 



Many pike fishermen prefer to dress their own lines, 

 using the white silk ones for the purpose, as they are softer 

 and more pliable than some of the very stiff ones we see 

 sometimes ; in fact, some of the best spinners I know say 

 that if you want a really reliable line you must dress it 

 yourself. Now to properly dress a line is rather a lengthy 

 operation ; I don't mean as far as the actual dressing is 

 concerned, but the length of time it takes to dry after 

 being soaked in the solution j three or four months is none 

 too long for this drying process. Good linseed oil that has 

 been boiled, or, as it is known in the trade, " boiled linseed 

 oil," mixed with half as much copal varnish, and a big 



