PVA mesh, bags, string and tape: which one, and when

PVA is a plastic that dissolves in water. Wrap bait in it, cast it out, and a minute later there is a neat pile of free offerings round your hook bait and nothing else left. It is the simplest edge in carp fishing, and it comes in four forms that do four different jobs.

Mesh, for sticks and bags

Mesh comes on a tube with a plunger. Push a stick mix or pellets down the tube, twist and knot, and you have a stick that casts well and sinks straight. Narrow mesh makes small sticks that put a tight patch round the hook; wide mesh makes a bigger bag for a proper mouthful. NGT's 7m narrow mesh and 7m wide mesh each come with the plunger, and the two-tube pack is the way to start with both.

Solid bags, for the whole rig

A solid PVA bag takes the lead, the hook and the bait inside it, so the whole lot lands together with no tangle. It is the presentation for weed, silt and casting a long way. NGT's bags come in 70 by 100mm and 100 by 130mm, twenty to a pack. Fill them with dry pellets or crushed boilie; anything wet starts dissolving the bag before it leaves your hand.

String and tape, for a few baits

PVA string threads two or three boilies onto the hook so they sit next to the hook bait; tape does the same and ties more easily with cold fingers. Both are for a couple of free offerings, not a bed of bait.

Keep it dry

PVA dissolves in a damp bag as readily as in the lake, and a season's worth has been ruined by one wet net. The PVA storage bag keeps the tubes, bags and string sealed and together, and the 45 piece bundle puts every form of it in one pack for a season.

What to put in it

Dry pellets, crushed boilies and a stick mix are the safe fillings. A boilie grinder turns whole boilies into a fine mix in seconds, and a splash of a PVA-friendly glug such as the Corus krill glug adds scent without melting the bag. Ordinary liquids and anything containing water will.

• Terminal tackle for PVA in every form, plus leads, clips and hooks.
• Bait and baiting for boilies, pellets, groundbait, glugs and the tools to feed them.

Every roll and bag here is NGT, sent from a real shop in Lowestoft. UK delivery is £6 and free over £300.