Step-by-step guide to tying PVA
I know for most of you, tying a PVA bag is second nature but for some in can be a real nightmare, so I shall try and explain the way that I tie up solid PVA bags. This will cover the use of your average size standard bag and how to load it with your terminal tackle. It will change slightly when loading a distance bag but the actual order in which you do things remains the same.
Let me give you a tip before we start. I have a small tub that used to contain popups. Having washed the pot out I fill it with a fish meal base mix, the idea being that you will place your hook bait, lead and hook length in the dip to soak up any excess moisture so it doesn’t affect the PVA. You can use any really fine powder such as flour or semolina or even liver powder, I use a base mix as not only dry your terminal tackle out but it also adds a little more attraction to the PVA bag.
This is in the order that I do things, if you are right handed then you need to place everything on your left side or you will be forever leaning across yourself to get things.
1. Put on a new bait or check the existing bait and check the hook length but most important check your hook point.
2. Before doing anything you need to pull the swivel out of the lead tubing and towel dry everything. Once done place every thing in the dry powder dip so that it can soak up any excess moisture you have missed with the towel.
3. If you like using boilie crumb then now is the time to crumb it up, I use spicy shrimp and prawn most of the time and I simply put it in the lid of the dry powder dip. I would also make sure that any liquids that I use have been well shaken and the lids removed. This is not easily done when holding a PVA bag.
4. The next thing I do is to take some PVA ribbon out of the pack ready to tie the top of the bag up with. I do not use string as the knot formed to secure the bag is too tight and the water can’t get into it to dissolve it, which is why you will get residue up the line when using string. In fact string doesn’t dissolve to start with but shrinks pulling everything even tighter. If you use tape then you only have to wrap it around the top of the bag the once, it will grip to the PVA and will form a large knot that the water can easily penetrate. Always reseal the bag immediately after removing the tape to avoid moisture getting in.
5. Next take out a single bag and reseal the packet straight away so to protect the remaining PVA.
6. Put about 1 inch of very small pellet into the bottom of the bag. I use pellets between 1 and 3 mm as they pack down extremely tight so you can form a very tight bag with little air in it.
7. Next put your hook bait into one side of the bag and just nick the point through the side, this will hold the hook in place and stop it turning inside the bag and possibly getting tangled or even getting the hook point masked some bait.
8. I then put the lead in the middle of the bag, this will ensure that the bag will have all of its casting weight in the middle so will therefore cast in a straight line and will not wobble in flight. I will only put the lead in the other side of the bag if I am fishing in weed and I want the hook bait to be sitting near the top once on the lake bed. This will happen if the weight is on one side of the bag as when it hits the water it will turn so that it sinks the heaviest side first. When using solid PVA I always use inline leads as the lead clips are too bulky to place in a bag and they also hold too much moisture and I have always experienced more problems when using them. The lead design is also very important, you want something with all the weight in one area if possibly and not evenly spread out, this will ensure all of the weight is towards the bottom of the bag, for this reason I like the flat dumpy pears or even some of the square leads.
9. Once the lead is in place I then cover the lead with pellet so that the bag is now about one third full.
10. Add your boilie crumb or any other dry ingredient you wish and then your non-water based liquid.
11. I then top the bag up with more pellet until it is within half an inch from the top.
12. Now really start to push the bait down and all the time twist the top of the bag, once it is really compact tie off using the tape.
13. Turn the bag upside down and by pushing the pellets in on either side pull the corners of the PVA out so you have two little wings, moisten these and fold underneath the bottom of the bag to form a neat parcel.
14. Trim off the loose ends of tape and even the top of the bag if you desire, be careful not to cut your mainline.
15. One important thing to remember, DON’T put holes in the bag to let the air out, it doesn’t work. It will only work if you squeeze the bag; as soon as you stop the air goes back in again. All you are doing by putting holes in it is allowing the water to penetrate the PVA even quicker and dissolve the bag. This will speed up the dissolve rate by more than double and will often see your bag in pieces before it hits bottom. Trust me we have done tests on dissolve times on both pierced and unpierced bags.
All of the fish shown in our photos are English fish caught during 2006 from Wellington Country Park. All fish have been caught using Temple Products PVA, Dynamite Baits and Monster Tiger Nut boilies.
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