Top Tips No. 3 - Dry Rigs with the ‘Mega Towel’
By Elie Godsi
Every now and then you find a bit of kit that makes life so much easier that you wonder how you ever managed without it. If you use a lot of PVA in your fishing then I think you’re going to like this little product. What I call the ’mega towel’ made by a company called Tiemco in Japan.
I use a lot of PVA mesh tubing and PVA bags in my fishing so much so that I rarely cast a rig out without hooking a small mesh bag or a PVA foam nugget onto the hook itself. I also fish PVA bags, placing the whole rig including lead and hooklink into the bag. As PVA is starch based it is designed to be water soluble. This means any rig components that come into contact with it must be bone dry.
Now I am really fussy about where my rig lands and will make repeated casts until I am happy that my hookbait is exactly where I want it. Sometimes I get it right first cast but more often than not I have to have another go until it’s ‘bang on’. If I am fishing a tiny hole in weed then this is the difference between a take or nothing. Sometimes in strong winds the cast doesn’t land where I want it to. Mostly my casting isn’t that accurate anyway! So each time I reel in I have to dry the end tackle and start again.
This is a pain in the back side because it means I have to put all that PVA back on the hook each time: in my case this typically means a small mesh bag on the hook, followed by a PVA foam nugget, then PVA tape around the foam. I also like to use coated leads - the ones with gravel or compost on them and these absorb a lot of water. For years I used an ordinary hand towel - then I discovered the ‘mega towel’ by Tiemco! This is made from super absorbent material that was designed for drying dry flies when fly fishing. It’s very thin and only a few inches square. A quick dab on my end tackle with this little beauty and everything is bone dry in seconds. Just goes to show, little things please little minds! I think it retails at about a tenner and believe me, it’s worth every penny of that money.
Elie G
![[del.icio.us]](http://www.questbaits.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/delicious.png)
![[Digg]](http://www.questbaits.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/digg.png)
![[Google]](http://www.questbaits.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/google.png)
![[StumbleUpon]](http://www.questbaits.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/stumbleupon.png)
![[Windows Live]](http://www.questbaits.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/windowslive.png)
![[Yahoo!]](http://www.questbaits.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/yahoo.png)
![[Email]](http://www.questbaits.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/email.png)
Related posts
Tags: 30lb+, angling, carp, edge, fishing, method, PVA, Quest, Rigs, tackle, tactics, technique, techniques, Tip, tips, weedy
Nice one Elie. There are so many excellent products in the game angling shops. I guess this is the modern equivalent of the Amadou (spelling may be wrong - it’s pronounced Amadoo). This is actually a fungus which is incredibly absorbant.
Knowing you are a little bit of a fungus/mushroom buff you may be able to help with the spelling,
Best fishes
Shaun
Hi Elie
Excellent mate.
A few questions that I hope you can help with.
Does it become saturated if used excessively?
How long does it take to dry off?
Can it be washed after prolonged use?
Can you buy it from Walkers of Trowell?
Is it equally as effective in the cold damp days of winter, when the air carries moisture?
It certainly seems perfect for the job and at a reasonable price too.
Cheers
Jamie
Hi Shaun and Jamie
Shaun - I believe it’s spelt Amadu, and yes, it’s a very absorbent fungus, from Africa I think. Not sure I’d fancy rubbing fungus on my rigs though!
Jamie - I’ve never got anywhere near to saturating the ‘mega’ towel as all I do is dab the end tackle with it. It will take on a lot of water though. It dries in no time as it’s very thin. I’ve never needed to dry it out yet but if I did I would place it over a still hot kettle after making a brew - after I’ve poured the water out and it’s cooled down a little. This is how I dry my hand towels out of they get too damp.
I can’t see why you couldn’t wash it but as it’s mainly just taking on water I’d have thought it will take a long time before it needs cleaning. I first used mine at Laroussi last October with temperatures down to freezing at night and had no problems with it at all, I can’t see air moisture being an issue. Oh and yes, I got mine from Walker’s of Trowell!
Best fishes
Elie G