plaicemat

Hoorah, Gives you a little faith that when the laws are made, they are actually upheld occassionally. I wonder if the same happens the other side of the channel as this is a community law? Terry B.

That's similar to the publican who had a 1ft piano player on his bar playing hits from the movies all day long. He should have been more careful about his diction when making his wish. Terry B.

As a slight variation, do everything as far as the soy sauce and substitute a splash of Thai fish sauce on each fillet and a glug of dry sherry. Equally delish. Terry B.

Is there a precedent that the bigger boats generally win these competitions? I think I like Martins idea so everyone gets something, sometime. Terry B.

Tom, instead of improving the outlet, how about restricting the inlet slightly with an adjustable clamp? You should be able to get it spot on then. Terry B.

Ah, yes, but he understood the optimism of anglers. While we are catching numerous doggies, we always have Great Expectations. Terry B.

For those that are interested in these things, it has been organised that the supremo of KeepAlive, the Florida based company that manufactures and markets the system, is going to contribute to the forum. He is very hands-on and a practical angler to boot and is very involved with the catch and release tournament scene in the U.S.A. In their system, the fish are kept alive in tanks, weighed in and then released. Keepalive tanks are the adopted system used. I will, hopefully be communicating with him very shortly and you can then direct your questions and misgivings to the horses mouth, as it were. Terry B.

I think you need to find a safer hobby. If I was your Mum, I'd be very worried about you! But, a good day's fishing. Terry B.

That's not the r.r.p., Kam. The r.r.p. is

Although, in my case, this is not the reason today - I got let down with crew at the last minute, I think you may have something there, Adam. For those of us who travel, not many but keen as mustard, we need to weigh the travel time and expense of our day against the expected catch. If, as is the case at present, there is the possibility of a good day on bass, I am sure quite a few would forego the competition for a concentrated day targetting this, or other, species. Anyway, as you say, a topic for consideration at some later stage. Terry B.

For anyone interested, here is the scientific bit on the manufacturers site. It shows the theory (most of which has been covered by our resident experts) and how to set up an aeration system properly. Keep-alive aeration advice Terry B.

I also use Fladen solid 'c' 12-20 rods paired with either Abu 6000 or 6500LD, which are a delight. I personally think the Abu 7000 would be a slight overkill for use with a 12lb outfit. I have 3 Abu 6000, none of which did I pay more than

All cabling and pipework is routed through conduits; no nasty little corners for them to hide in! But thanx for the tip, Rich. Terry B.

Or your system works the same way the French one does, i.e., ignore it! Terry B.

..........or pep the water up with some happy juice! By the way, I have now set the tank up with the outlet pipe facing in a clockwise direction with a pipe attatched and a fantail end piece on it and I am getting good aeration and a good rotational circulation of water. I'll see how that works before going down the road of plumbing. Terry B.

Thank you, Tom, back to the workshop. Terry B.

O/k, I've got a new plan, Stan. Now just a bit of clarification. Both Jimbob and guest Allan have quoted the fish swim in a particular direction. Unfortunately, one says clockwise and the other, anti-clockwise. Now, come on chaps, give a bloke a break, which is it? Terry B.

Rather defeats my original point though, Rich, which is to have a system without all the plumbing and drilling and to also make it portable between boats. If you're going to the trouble of the plumbing, I don't think you need the aerator. Terry B.

Tom, you can probably help me out here. My brother-in-law in the States tells me that he has a digital temp guage on his tank and changes some of the water before it gets to the critical temperature. Also, if the fish are looking a bit jaded, he opens the valve up and floods the chamber with oxygen, making the water go cloudy with the bubbles. Have you tried this and does it work? He reckons it keeps fish going most of the day. I don't know how big his tank is, however. Terry B.

The information I have from Florida (where it also gets pretty warm) is that the fish die from a lack of oxygen (many fish competing for a finite supply) and not temperature alone. If the water is oxygenated and the temperature is ignored, yes, they will die eventually but nowhere near as quickly as with no added oxygen. This is simply horses for courses. I'm not lauding this as the best sytem above others, I simply offer it as an alternative which seems to be simple to install and use. I don't personally consider it to be a hardship to change a bucket full of water every now and again, perhaps this is more difficult on a bigger boat. In a perfect world, everything is perfect but for me, the lack of drilling and machinery to go wrong outweighs the downsides. As I said, horses for courses; if others are happy with their system, it doesn't make this one wrong for someone else. Terry B.

You're right, Adam, that's why I didn't go for their complete system. There is a smaller 10 gallon kit for

Hopefully, this is what will happen in a short while. To answer your point about the cost of the bucket, what I have done is compromised by using their pump system and combining it with one of Adam's 60ltr tubs, which only cost around

Tom, I have just been introduced to the Tek-Tank system and have spoken to their 'boffin' and will be producing a short report for those who may be interested. As far as the warm water is concerned, the answer appears to be to remove a bucket of water from the tank now and again and replace it with fresh from the sea. Alternatively, they have the kit to plumb this system in, but, obviously at an additional price. My initial contact with the company was to try and find an alternative to the DIY (Adam) system at a price that is not exorbitant. This seems to fit the bill and the company are extremely helpful and their specialist extremely approachable. I will also be speaking to them about a discount for block purchase if enough are interested. Let me know what the take-up might be. Terry B.

Just to finish this topic off, many thanx to Billy and the Rich postal service, the appropriate rod ring has arrived and the rod is now as good as new. I'm now looking forward to using it to good effect and hopefully the replacement will last longer than the original! The power of PBSBAC and it's helpful members. Job Done! Terry B.

Or even a tweeker, given the oportunity! Terry B.