Cymag

[wildman 488]

Anyone ever use it , and if so what  for ,now illegal  of course 

[jukel123 7,957]

It was easily available in the 50s and 60s. From memory it was a pesticide. But unscrupulous gentlemen would use it as a  way of catching salmon. When placed in a pool it deprived fish of oxygen and they would float to the surface. The flesh didn't seem to be affected because the carcases were sold to fishmongers. The trouble was it killed everything in a river. It was common to see large stretches  of river with dead or dying fish. Better off banned.  Especially these days when salmon are much scarcer.

I did hear tell of miners who would nick explosives from work and use them as a way of stunning salmon in pools. Anybody got info on this?

[DIDO.1 22,661]

11 hours ago, wildman said:

Anyone ever use it , and if so what  for ,now illegal  of course 

I didn't use it as such but was very aware of it. My dad was a British rail pest controller so it was a big part of his job. 

As I went into gamekeeping when leaving school it was still around but most often seen as a rusty tin at the back of a shed. I knew enough by then to leave well alone. It was often brought out to destroy a litter of cubs but by then I was enjoying hunting, so rather than being ok with killing a whole litter for the benifit of shooting I'd rather call a mate with terriers if cubs had to go. 

I used phostoxoin alot, sometimes for rabbits, alot for moles. 

Cymag, like strychnine is better off consigned to history. 

[wildman 488]

We used to use it for wasp hives ,go back in  an hour dig it out  sell em to fishermen ,very  effective  stuff  

[DIDO.1 22,661]

2 minutes ago, wildman said:

We used to use it for wasp hives ,go back in  an hour dig it out  sell em to fishermen ,very  effective  stuff  

Wasp nests. A small spoonful at the entrance hole . 

I wouldn't think that there's a fisherman around these days who uses wasp grubs. Same with blood worm. Collecting, selling and using those sorts of baits were as big a part of fishing as the actual fishing. Just like baking bread to make ground bait. Today's fishermen miss out on so much with their muddy puddles full of generic carp....they don't realise what they have lost

[tatsblisters 9,542]

Remember finding some empty tins of it in the mouth of a rabbit warren on the Wentworth estate years ago i think the keepers used to gas them more to piss poachers off more than pest control as lads who poached that estate longnetting and lamping did more to control the rabbit population than the keeper's did gassing a few warren's.

[tatsblisters 9,542]

2 hours ago, jukel123 said:

It was easily available in the 50s and 60s. From memory it was a pesticide. But unscrupulous gentlemen would use it as a  way of catching salmon. When placed in a pool it deprived fish of oxygen and they would float to the surface. The flesh didn't seem to be affected because the carcases were sold to fishmongers. The trouble was it killed everything in a river. It was common to see large stretches  of river with dead or dying fish. Better off banned.  Especially these days when salmon are much scarcer.

I did hear tell of miners who would nick explosives from work and use them as a way of stunning salmon in pools. Anybody got info on this?

As far as dynamite goes mate the pit I worked at it was pretty strict and only officials carried the depts to ignite it. We used dynabol on the tail gate rip I worked on and we used to carry it down the pit in round bucket like carrier's with locks on the top with ten pills in each side I remember one busting open I was carrying on the cage and the dynabol falling out and only nine pills could be found they shut the shaft down to check the sump and I was searched they never found the pill and it was put down to the lad in the powder mag only putting nine pills in and not locking the top properly though lad's who I worked with who knew I was a poacher were convinced I had had it away. Lol

[byron 1,169]

Yep..used to find old tins like tatb lister said..ya needed a long spoon to get it down..was used on other stuff..!!!

[dogmandont 9,805]

3 hours ago, jukel123 said:

It was easily available in the 50s and 60s. From memory it was a pesticide. But unscrupulous gentlemen would use it as a  way of catching salmon. When placed in a pool it deprived fish of oxygen and they would float to the surface. The flesh didn't seem to be affected because the carcases were sold to fishmongers. The trouble was it killed everything in a river. It was common to see large stretches  of river with dead or dying fish. Better off banned.  Especially these days when salmon are much scarcer.

I did hear tell of miners who would nick explosives from work and use them as a way of stunning salmon in pools. Anybody got info on this?

Don't know about the salmon but my grandfather used to steal the explosives from a quarry him and his father worked at for the old IRA, this was in the 1920s.

[jukel123 7,957]

8 minutes ago, dogmandont said:

Don't know about the salmon but my grandfather used to steal the explosives from a quarry him and his father worked at for the old IRA, this was in the 1920s.

That .could have been curtains for him if he was found out. And you would never have been born

[Bakerboy 4,716]

41 minutes ago, tatsblisters said:

As far as dynamite goes mate the pit I worked at it was pretty strict and only officials carried the depts to ignite it. We used dynabol on the tail gate rip I worked on and we used to carry it down the pit in round bucket like carrier's with locks on the top with ten pills in each side I remember one busting open I was carrying on the cage and the dynabol falling out and only nine pills could be found they shut the shaft down to check the sump and I was searched they never found the pill and it was put down to the lad in the powder mag only putting nine pills in and not locking the top properly though lad's who I worked with who knew I was a poacher were convinced I had had it away. Lol

When we carrried powder ( explosives ) we either got extra pay or an early finish, if you used your head you could wrangle both, it was easy to nick because we always charged our own holes, dets were always more difficult to nick

[tatsblisters 9,542]

12 minutes ago, Bakerboy said:

When we carrried powder ( explosives ) we either got extra pay or an early finish, if you used your head you could wrangle both, it was easy to nick because we always charged our own holes, dets were always more difficult to nick

Yes mate we got both though it was only penny's for carrying it down though it was worth it for the early ride up the shaft avoiding the mad rush especially on the day shift. 

[wildman 488]

2 hours ago, tatsblisters said:

Remember finding some empty tins of it in the mouth of a rabbit warren on the Wentworth estate years ago i think the keepers used to gas them more to piss poachers off more than pest control as lads who poached that estate longnetting and lamping did more to control the rabbit population than the keeper's did gassing a few warren's.

Ya used to  poach Wentworth  myself once got caught red handed spent the  morning in  Rawmarsh  nick,and got a  good telling of by the Sargent 

[Daniel cain 45,154]

4 hours ago, jukel123 said:

It was easily available in the 50s and 60s. From memory it was a pesticide. But unscrupulous gentlemen would use it as a  way of catching salmon. When placed in a pool it deprived fish of oxygen and they would float to the surface. The flesh didn't seem to be affected because the carcases were sold to fishmongers. The trouble was it killed everything in a river. It was common to see large stretches  of river with dead or dying fish. Better off banned.  Especially these days when salmon are much scarcer.

I did hear tell of miners who would nick explosives from work and use them as a way of stunning salmon in pools. Anybody got info on this?

No need to go to all that trouble...clove oil  sends them to sleep,they come back around and the river still thrives ....or if your a cnut....a bag of lime...

[jukel123 7,957]

Didn't know the clove oil method.

Lime is lethal. Sprinkle some on grass and worms appear on the surface as if by magic. Useful for fishing.