barblesss

It is very usual for carp in such waters, to sit in the lillies all day (particularly sunny days of course) and come out at night. I suggest you limit your time to dawn and dusk if your not serious enough for a night, be very quiet at such a water, wear a green top if fishing close to the bank (usually where they will be at night).

Hi, In a recent 'Angling magazine weekly' I bought, there was a test of 6 rods, and one of them was the Fox Rangemaster II £79.99. 2.5 IB t/c version. Here is the 'review':- DESRIPTION:- 12ft 2.5IB high modulous carbon rod with abbreviated grip, six rings plus tip. PERFORMANCE:-'Slim and light, the Rangemaster Two feels more balanced than it's competitors and it's a good looker. Finished with comfy soft touch Fuji NPS reel fitting, slender duplon grips and smart gold livery, it's a tackle tarts dream. I'm impressed with the smooth edged and practical line clip at the butt. Most butt clips on cheaper rods are useless. Genuine three-legged rings take knocks better than single leggers. Carbon X-Weave claims to add strength and rapid shape recovery. Action feels better than original Rangemaster, but still lacks a bit of guts in the middle. As an all-rounder I'd pick a higher test curve. Also in 12ft 2.75IB, 3IB and 13ft 3IB. VERDICT: Brilliant package for the money. Looks and feels like a more expensive rod.' It is then summed up in the verdict:- 'The originals were snapped up as quickly as they could be made but the Rangemaster II is a step onwards again. A usperb package with low diameter, light weight blank, outstanding finish ad striking cosmetics at a realistic price.' Five other rods were tested in this round up, the Fox got the best buy, and the Daiwa Vulcan X got recommended. The Daiwa rod (Daiwa Vulcan X £62.99)was claimed to have a heavier than stated testcurve in the test and comments of power and enough meat to handle PVA bags , heavy leads. I can't offer much on the subject..I don't do much long range fishing and haven't handled enough 3IB tc rods. The general trend now is for rods to use single legged rings instead of 3 legged. Apparently single legged rings help the progressive action of the rod. I'm sure Steve Burke can offer some info here. I was going to buy the Fox Rangemaster till I heard it was 3 legged ring design.

quote: Originally posted by Gaffer: Barbless, I use 3.5lb tc, 12ft 6in, Greys PZ200's with 50lb PowerPro (Braid) for most of my fishing, whether near or far. My rods are very 'tippy' and handle fish very well under the tip, in the margins. They have enough backbone to cast a 4.5oz lead over the 150yrd mark. (although I do the casting, not the rod!) I've got two other sets of lighter rods, but prefer my PZ's. I use a Silstar 2IB testcurve which is more 2.5-3IB in reality, a Harrison Multicarp 2IB which is more a quarter less, and a Daiwa Avon rod at 1/4 IB tc. The Silstar can bash a 2 oz lead a fair way to be fair. quote: In the 10 years or so of fishing just for Carp I've only ever had one hook-pull, and that was my fault in putting the landing net in an awkward place! I had about 5 in one year when I first started fishing! quote: I use the Fox series 5's (Barbed) simply because they put more fish on the bank, so why, with the limited time that I get to fish, would I use a hook that won't hook fish nor get them to the bank???!!!! :confused: Exactly, you woudn't! Read my post again carefully. quote: Where does money come into it as they are just as comparative in terms of cost to most other makes of hook?!Money and greed as in Tackle companies want to make money and lots of it, irrelative wether the item is safe or unsafe to the fish. e.g Fox makes the series 5 'cause they know anglers will buy it..they make the money..safety is not an issue. quote: I also use a leadcore leader which doesn't cause damage to the fish as/when it rubs along the flanks of the fish.I just use Pro Gold line. 8 ib or 10ib for snaggy water. I have a spool with 12ib on, but never fished too close to a snag to use it. quote: Right, that said (dunno why I'm defending myself! ), I'll say one more thing, perhaps a bit clearer...it's not the tackle that damages the fish, it's the angler!.....answer, simple, education.Whatwhy are you defending yourself from? You are entitled to your opinion and the way you fish. Best regards, Danny.

Hi all, Gaffer, thanks for your views. Braid and 2.5 pz leads damaging, how?....and how on earth can heavier leads take the skill out of angling?....and what damage? But a beginner wouldn't know exactly how much pressure to keep on a barbless hook and would perhaps pull a little too hard!? LOL! What a load of toffee! When your playing a fish, if you have a heavy lead dangling down it will wobble from side to side, causing more more line to hook movement, which leads to more hook movement in the mouth. Cmon that's basic physics. Braid has a sharp texture, and it's material is more likely to do damage when rubbing against something. Good point...but once these fish get snagged up, they must damage their mouths so badly trying to get free again. Their mouths must literally have to rip for them to come free. Especially with guys using 15IB line!! doh...some people fishing for sharks lol. LOL! ..Cmon get real Gaffer! If the angler sees something in the tackle shop that he thinks will give him an advantage he will likely buy it!! You bought your series 5 because you thought it would help you catch a Carp.... Tackle manufactures with profit in mind and not fish safety. I like Ron's comment and is my stance also:- "Chris, My general philosophy is that things should not be banned rather that we as anglers should take responsibility for our actions and stop using anything that causes problems. Unfortunately in the real world it doesn't quite work like that." I think anglers, particularly those who fish for Carp like myself, need to take a step back sometimes and ask..'Are we overdoing it and becoming to greedy at the fish expense.' [ 27 June 2002, 01:01 PM: Message edited by: barblesss ]

Hi Chris, No, have never used these 'long shanked curved hooks'. Sounds like another gimmick to me...when it comes to hooks all I look for is wide gape, straight forward patterns. T6 for carp/snags around, drennan specialist/specimen for other quarry. Anyway I saw the Fox Series 5 mentioned here, so I took a look in the catalogue. My immediate reaction was 'what an ungainly looking piece of ####.' Surely with such a small Gape this hook must do the opposite of what it's advertising. Obviously I can't say wether this hook does damage having never used it, but I can guess that curvey shank could rip a fished mouth up on a long fight, if hooked deeply, especially with that eye bent round like that. Nasty looking contraption, and more to the point is it 'necessary' when such a risk is involved. Greed and money rearing it's ugly head again, me thinks.

What to ban? The Braid and 2.5 oz+ leads combo. is extremely damaging in my opinion. Heavy leads take any skill out of fishing anyway..whats the point? Does a 3 ounze lead cast further than a 2 ounze lead? I woudn't know. When playing the fish with a 3 ounze lead dangling down, it does alot of damage. As for hooks...complicated.. In commercial fisheries with many beginners it *has to be* barbless. The amount of snapped up fish swimming round with leads on them, and the result of some dieing. Barbless hooks just fall out on all but tight lines. For Syndicates and Clubs where experienced anglers are present, you could argue Barbed hooks only...I accept the barbless can cause more damage argument...they do slip more.

Yep, can't beat an overgrown lake with trees/reeds etc. Great for stalking. As long as there aren't fallen trees all over the place, and it's important weeds/reeds don't choke the lake to death. So some maintenance is certainly required, but unfortunately with fishing becoming more commercial, most lakes hav gone the other way with 'concrete base swims' and waters devoid of any growthcover.

Steve, I use a Harrison 2IB (Multicarp blank) and a Daiwa 1.25IB Avon rod for my close in carping. I much prefer the action of the Daiwa 'factory' when playing a fish. I feel comfortable and really feel like I can lay into a side strain. I think I would have to hook a Tank for the Harrison to bend much in the Butt.

Ok, sorry..post edited. I have had a couple of these reels, and I find they are probably teh smoothest/best built reels on the market, but have always suffered with an inferior drag. I have needed to set the drag lighter than it should be, then tighten once the fish has moved, otherwise a snap would occur, say hooking a carp under my feet with 3 + 12(rod) feet of line out. Maybe I have been unlucky and just had bad batches. Of course a match rod is ridiculous, and no doubt could snap, but some of the modern carp boys think you need a 3IB TC poker stick to land any fish over 15 IB... I guess they read 'sources' , and this makes the money spin I guess. We are getting to the stage now where people think you need a 'Barbel rod' to catch a Barbel and a 'Carp' rod to catch a Carp. In two years time no doubt there will be Roach rods and Bream Rods ..LOL. It's important we get the message across to all new anglers you don't need to spend money on all this tartish gear..my post was tongue in cheek and very innaccurate, but trying to get this point across. The Drennan Super Specialists..I guess I had 2 bad packets. Lost 2 fish on them last year....both times the same thing..hit and hold situation close in, carp knocks it's head severely left and right like they do...boom... hook bent and straight out. It's amazing how you learn so much about strength of tackle close in..that moment you hook it under your feet and the mass charge that follows.... Playing carp at range is a different ball game...by the time they under your feet it's all over.

Wow so much BS talked about in this area. One thing people forget is...ROD'S DON'T SNAP!!!!! OK.. 1)Any match rod can land 'any' carp that swims in an English water. The problem can be in a snaggy type situation where they take more time (split seconds)to stop bending, thus stopping the fish. 2) the softer the rod the more floppy their action, so setting the hook is a lottery, especially if you are using heavy leads and hard baits, and at distance. 3) the softer your rod the more limited you will be to how far and accurate you can cast. 4) playing fish close in is much easier using soft rods...they are good cushions/elastic, and if you are using crap reels they can save your line. You need to concentrate on your line, reel and hook. Drennan Super Specialist for example won't do in snaggy waters..they bend . ESP Raptor T6's don't bend. Choose line by type of water...usually 8IB for no snags. But most important is you have a decent drag that is set properly on your reel. Front drag reels are much smoother. Us English are the only country in the World that continue to use these horrible rear drag varients. [ 23 June 2002, 11:07 PM: Message edited by: barblesss ]

Typing your credit card number into an encrypted server, is safer by a mile than handing it over to someone in a shop/petrol station, or worse still, giving it to someone over the phone....e.g insurance for your car etc.

Typing your credit card number into an encrypted server, is safer by a mile than handing it over to someone in a shop/petrol station, or worse still, giving it to someone over the phone....e.g insurance for your car etc.

Thanks for the replies guys.....some very helpful info there. The Quarry will be Big Carp, Bream, or Tench in a weedy water, so 5-6IB line, and i think a size 8-10 hook. With this in mind I think I will try a full or half worm of 4-5 inches? Gratefully, Danny. [ 13 June 2002, 06:25 PM: Message edited by: barblesss ]

Thanks for the replies guys.....some very helpful info there. The Quarry will be Big Carp, Bream, or Tench in a weedy water, so 5-6IB line, and i think a size 8-10 hook. With this in mind I think I will try a full or half worm of 4-5 inches? Gratefully, Danny. [ 13 June 2002, 06:25 PM: Message edited by: barblesss ]

Hi, I would like to start using worms more often for my fishing , and have very little experience using this natural. My query regards hooking these things..Should I put a whole one on the hook or should I cut them into halves? And where is the best place to hook these blighters . I have heard various conflicting advice..some say hook it twice, others say just once is much more natural? Also, I would prefer using Barbless hooks if possible, and no doubt this is a further equation, 'cause I hear they wriggle off? So It's got me thinking, and any advice regarding hooking/using worms would be much appreciated. Thanks, Danny.

Hi, I would like to start using worms more often for my fishing , and have very little experience using this natural. My query regards hooking these things..Should I put a whole one on the hook or should I cut them into halves? And where is the best place to hook these blighters . I have heard various conflicting advice..some say hook it twice, others say just once is much more natural? Also, I would prefer using Barbless hooks if possible, and no doubt this is a further equation, 'cause I hear they wriggle off? So It's got me thinking, and any advice regarding hooking/using worms would be much appreciated. Thanks, Danny.

Put a 'big' piece of bread/meat on size 6 hook, and 'don't loose feed'. Just 'drop' it in the edge very 'quietly' so the hoards of fry don't 'hear' it.

Put a 'big' piece of bread/meat on size 6 hook, and 'don't loose feed'. Just 'drop' it in the edge very 'quietly' so the hoards of fry don't 'hear' it.

If you know it lives under the tree, just get hold of a big net and trawl it out!

If you know it lives under the tree, just get hold of a big net and trawl it out!

What about those 'Bivvy Tables'. Only £40-50 .. LOL. And don't forget your Boilie Bag @ £25. Also, where would you be without your 'Carp Barrow!' only @ £100 for 6 pieces of bent metal , 10 nuts and a wheel!!!