Coarse fraction

The coarse fraction is everything in the mix coarser than the base's grind: grain, boiled cereals, chopped particles, maggots. Fine attracts, coarse holds — and that's the shortest description of why it's there.

Why fish don't stay without it

A fine particle spreads out, settles and quickly stops being noticeable. A fish that came for the cloud and couldn't collect anything from it moves on. The coarse fraction gives it a reason to stay: it has to be searched for on the bottom, and that takes time — exactly the time the hookbait sits in the spot.

Live fraction behaves differently

Maggots don't lie motionless on the bottom: they wriggle, and some burrow into the silt. That's both a plus and a minus. The movement keeps the spot noticeable for a long time, but whatever has burrowed in takes the fish longer to get at — so the feed works not when it was put in, but later.

Different fractions release at different rates

Boiled grain is available to the fish the moment the ball opens. A compressed particle has to soften first, and until then it barely exists for the fish. This spreads the feed out over time: the spot keeps working longer without increasing what was put into it.

Why it's easy to overdo

This is the part of the mix that actually feeds the fish. It's hard to fill up on fine feed, easy to fill up on coarse. That's why the coarse fraction is the first thing cut back when bites go sluggish, and the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about quantity.

The link with the hookbait

The coarse fraction in groundbait often matches what's on the hook. The logic is simple: a fish already picking up a certain particle off the bottom takes it on the hook without hesitation. The flip side is that the same particle on the bottom competes with the hookbait, and the more of it there is, the lower the odds the fish takes ours.

How the fraction changes with the season

In warm water more coarse fraction is needed: fish are active and eat up the fine stuff fast. In cold water, less, and in the winter mix it's often cut to a minimum, because the fish's need for food drops and it becomes much easier to overfeed it.

Where it works differently

In a feeder mix the coarse fraction is also limited mechanically: anything that won't pass through the feeder or that stops it opening isn't put in, no matter the effect wanted.