salokcinnodrog

Welcome to Carp.com. You will get varying opinions on which line is best, from loads of people. Bearing in mind I have been carp fishing since the 1980's, and have used various different lines over the years. In the 1980's I was using Sylcast, until the introduction of Berkley Big Game, around 1992/3 ish so I switched to that. I think within two or three sessions I took it off the reels, it was awful for me, and others on the lake. On casting it would twist up, and sometimes crack-off mid cast. Line twist itself was awful. I went back to my favourite line, and started testing everything I used on the reels Later in the 1990's I was pointed in the direction of Daiwa Sensor by Simon Wheeler, who was their rep at the time. I have never been able to fault it. There are now only 3 lines I ever use, Daiwa Sensor in brown, Gardner Pro and P-Line Floroclear.

The higher test curve does not necessarily equate to more fish playing power, but does to casting. It is rod action as well as the test curve, but rod action is not often included in the description. This is my understanding, so others may correct me. Tip action is casting, which are usually high test curves. Progressive, where the rods bends through the blank in gradual step, or progression. Through action, where the rod bends equally from tip to butt. I feel far more comfortable playing fish on a through action rod than I do on a fast taper. With the fast taper I do get the worry of hookpulls, so have to loosen off at times, only just keeping a slight bend, so the fish doesn't disappear. We have gotten into the trend for short rods, big high test curves for stalking, yet you can put far more fighting power from a lower test curve into a fish, and feel it on a through action. I have caught some big fish on Lure, Avon or Barbel specialist rods from snaggy areas, the rod control is much improved.

Personal advice after having Nash rucksacks is avoid them. I had two that had zips break, one that split a pocket, one that split across the back and shoulder strap, and one that the top box section wore away. That totals 6 rucksacks, I only bought 3. Replacements of new purchases had to be replaced. The longest one lasted was 2 years! Since then, I got a military Bergen, now over 10 years old, and still going strong. For long session fishing I wouldn't use anything else as it handles so much gear. It is not zip down, but to be honest, I load it in order of use, and put stuff I will need in pockets. All Clothes and towel at bottom, rig bins on top of that, coffee maker or kettle on that with saucepan and the two gas canisters. I then have a stalking bag with food in that fits in on top. My scales and weigh bar fit in the inside top flap pocket, cups and stove in outside top flap pocket. My spare stove and bait delivery kit fit in front outside pocket. A big point about the Bergen, is it is water resistant, and you can get covers that go over them. The big link is for 60 litre, you can get a bigger one, 110litre, and extra bought side pockets enlarge it to 120 I think it is. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BRITISH-ARMY-COMBAT-RUCKSACK-BERGEN-60-70-LITRE-MULTICAM-DPM-MTP-OLIVE-GREEN-/300878964619?var=&clk_rvr_id=1491165626330&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=twenga&utm_campaign=twenga&utm_param=eyJlcyI6MCwicyI6OTcyMDIzNywiY2kiOiIwMzg2MzcwNTQ1ZTM4MjE1NmU5MDAzOTA4ZjRkYjRjOCIsImkiOiIzMDA4Nzg5NjQ2MTkiLCJ0cyI6MTUyMzAyMzAzMCwidiI6Mywic28iOjE1MDAsImMiOjE4MTM3OX0%3D&rmvSB=true&ul_ref=http%3A%2F%2Frover.ebay.com%2Frover%2F1%2F710-53481-19255-0%2F1%3Futm_source%3Dtwenga%26utm_param%3DeyJlcyI6MCwicyI6OTcyMDIzNywiY2kiOiIwMzg2MzcwNTQ1ZTM4MjE1NmU5MDAzOTA4ZjRkYjRjOCIsImkiOiIzMDA4Nzg5NjQ2MTkiLCJ0cyI6MTUyMzAyMzAzMCwidiI6Mywic28iOjE1MDAsImMiOjE4MTM3OX0%3D%26utm_campaign%3Dtwenga%26utm_medium%3Dcpc%26ff3%3D4%26pub%3D5574631662%26toolid%3D10001%26campid%3D5338243305%26customid%3D0386370545e382156e9003908f4db4c8%26mpre%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.ebay.co.uk%252Fitm%252FBRITISH-ARMY-COMBAT-RUCKSACK-BERGEN-60-70-LITRE-MULTICAM-DPM-MTP-OLIVE-GREEN-%252F300878964619%253Fvar%253D%26srcrot%3D710-53481-19255-0%26rvr_id%3D1491165626330&ul_noapp=true I do have a Korum Deluxe Ruckbag, and that only gets used for day fishing, it is simply not big enough to take the gear for a few days, no matter how tidily I pack it. An example of what it takes is my pike unhooking gear, wire cutters, side cutters, forceps and long nosed pliers in inside pocket, 1 medium tackle box, 2 flasks, camera, scales, sandwiches in lunch box, roughly 20 deadbaits, a pair of cold weather trousers and jacket, then banksticks, indicators and alarms in outside pocket. Probably not what you wanted to hear, but my honest advice on rucksacks is go military, NOT tackle manufacturer. *Bait delivery kit Spomb, 2x spods, boilie rocket and catapult.

I use Shimano Beastmaster 7000's and love them. I used to work in a tackle shop, so I would play with all of the Shimano range, and by choice picked what is probably the cheapest reel in the big water range, despite having a feel of the Ultegra's etc. When in the shop they felt rugged, tough and comfortable, and time on the bank has not changed my view on them Seriously of the view you don't need to spend as much as £150 on a reel, but you do have to buy carefully.

With the 2.75 NG's I was using a 3oz lead on 15lb Gardner Pro Blend, with the 3.25 The Ones I use 3.5oz lead on 15lb P-line Floroclear. Since I went onto the higher TC rods I have suffered a few crack-offs when going for it. I'm not comfortable leaving leads, hooks or tackle in a lake due to my incompetance, but the amount of weed means I'm not going to risk tethering a fish on a leader. I would much rather the run ring and lead comes off the line guaranteed, so a fish is just trailing a hooklink. I also don't like braided leaders either, even less than normal leaders. Braided leaders need double the strength of mono. So for a 3oz lead, in theory, you would need a 30lb mono leader, for braid you need 60lb. I also like my fingers, I do make miscasts, hence my crack-offs, but braid can cut through to the bone. I don't feel comfortable wearing a glove or finger stall, it actually worsens my casting, more miscasts and slipping versus protection. I say 'theory' above about line strength against lead size, I think that line has most definitely improved since the days of Bayer Perlon, Maxima and Sylcast, but most we were using in 8lb, not the 15 we do now, so we needed a shockleader more. I used to use Black Amnesia, in 20 or 30lb or Drennan Grey Greased Weasel in 40lb as my shockleader. They are softer than clear, or other colours in the respective range, more supple and cast better. (I do still use them on my marker and spod rods) I will say, on giving it the big one, check the mainline to hooklink or leader join, every cast. Not all lines can put up with a big chuck. Some lose strength, ping for no reason, yet are ok with a leader. Others can stand the abuse. Others may say different, but I like a casting line to be supple, not stiff, it has to be a good diameter versus strength. So when it says 15lb, it should be 0.35mm. Thicker lines obviously reduce casting distance. I worry about thinner lines than 0.35, they may well be 15lb, but can they stand the abuse of repeated regular casting?

Sorry, my bad. Brain and fingers not coordinating😱😳

First tip is reel line slowly onto the reel from a bucket of water. I don't know why, but going slowly seriously improves line lay compared to reeling on as fast as you can. The washers are in theory there to change the line lay to specific circumstances, washers on, line at the front for casting, so its tapered towards the lip of the spool.

The worst they can say is No.

I got to the stage on a 100metre chuck I could hit that car bonnet with a stringer with my 2.75lb NG's, 40mm butt rings. It has taken me a lot longer to get used to the same with the 3.25 The Ones, and I can feel I am putting more effort into the cast with them, it just is not so controlled. On one swim, my favoured spot was underneath a gap on an overhanging tree, a cast you really do not want to mess up! Not being funny, but I honestly think you could do with better reels as well. For such a supposedly 'Big Pit' reel, the line capacity of 270yards of 0.28mm diameter line is to put it bluntly pants. Even a Shimano DL 10000 size baitrunner holds more. (90yards is I reckon top cast with 0.35mm line on one of them). You could improve distance with for example, because I use them, Shimano Beastmaster 7000's which are not mega bucks. Put the bigger reels on a better rod, a few days feeling the two together and practising would not go amiss. Its likely your accuracy and distance would improve.

A few years ago on Brackens in one of the corner and margin swims it was safer to let a fish run and away from where it was hooked. The lead staying on the line kept it down until it was clear of the overhang. Lift straight into it, and you often pulled the line into the snag yourself. Totally doesn't feel right, but it worked.

I merged your question with an existing one on the same subject

To be honest we hadn't even intended fishing there, had planned on going to another lake in Hadleigh, but didn't see any fish show whatsoever, and Hintelsham was on my way home. I regularly use 8lb line for floater fishing in snag free lakes, going up in weedier waters to 15lb. Yet I have only lost fish floater fishing to hookpulls, not line breakage. Lilies are actually more spread out on top than below the surface. Imagine a table, the table surface being the lilies, now imagine it standing on one leg in the middle underneath, that is basically a lily bed. The lily leaf stems are also quite easy to break, not the main root stem, but the leaves will pop free. On Taverham in weed and lilies I was using 12lb Daiwa Sensor, no tackle breakages, quite regularly. I honestly think, and it may cause some thinking, we use heavier line because of the weights we are using to cast, not because of the fish we are fishing for. An old thread, but may be of interest:

You'd be surprised what i've landed on 8lb line around weed and lilies😖😉 20lb from the lilies behind my right shoulder, size 10 hook, 7lb hooklink on a dog biscuit, and yes, thats Hintelsham. A very through actioned rod that was bent to the handle at times.

The big question is what rods do you currently have? In UK the prices are around £40 for each of them, and the Mad Dragon are around in $ 60. While you say upgrade, that is the reason for my question as these are essentially entry level rods, as your first rods, not necessarily an upgrade. I would also personally be avoiding Nash! In America you actually have one of the best blank building companies, who also manufacture and supply some of the best rod guides in the World, (that even Shimano, Fox, Daiwa and others are now using), in Pac-Bay. You could create and custom build your own rod with their equipment for roughly double what you would pay in UK for the rods you have mentioned. Don't tell anyone, but the big name IM7 carbon blank is a Pac Bay blank, and now used by various companies for their mid range rods. UK around £130

Personally I try to avoid leaders altogether, going mainline straight through or tubing if I have to. Nige Woodcock made a tip on a thread a while ago to stop the tubing climbing. Lighter blob the end that is held in the lead clip or buffer bead. The lighter blobbed end stops it pulling out and up. The pic is my standard mainline with tubing on, and a running lead. I don't do quick links or lead clips

Welcome to Carp.com. On snag free lakes 10lb line is fine. It is if there is loads of weed and any snags you may need higher.

I looked up Kamasan on the internet, and I can't find a Kamasan website, but I did find a Kamasan hook range site. Almost every hook pattern in the trout range has been adapted into carp fishing. Years and years ago, Andy Little in the Anglers Mail Guide to Carp fishing did some rig pictures, and in one he recommended a particular trout pattern with a certain setup. For how many years were we using B175's? One of my favourite hooks for pop-ups, and when it was legal, for Bent hook rigs. It may actually be that I preferred size 8 and 10's that unlike many others who used larger hooks, I didn't get mouth damage on fish I landed with bhr's. The pic below, spot the Nash patterns, the Gardner, Korda, the Drennan or whichever

I like going into a tackle shop as well, it is almost an adventure in itself, even if I do spend more than I need. OK, I lead a sheltered life😖😅 The tackle brand is the 2nd middle man; I'm sure a number of tackle firms quite literally went to alibaba, and bought up massive amounts of tackle at cheap prices! As the tackle brands have no manufacturing of most items (there are a few exceptions), they buy and import from various factories via companies like alibaba. Chinese companies will often reverse engineer, then sell the design to someone else or copy and manufacture and sell. That from a number of companies, includes bedchairs, bivvies, as well as the smaller bits, although a few do own possible 'slave trade' factories in Far Eastern countries. By slave trade I mean because its Far East, wages are lower and i'm sure conditions not as good as here. I'm sure Drennan is a most definite exception to the hook factory rule, they do own their own factory, bought from Kamasan, keeping the Kamasan name alive in the process. Kamasan for years have been a big player in trout fishing hooks, so Drennan make it on both sides! I do not know Drennan own their other manufacturing processes factory, but they have their own supervisors in their factory. I keep harping back to UK made, a strange point was made by of all people this week, Donald Trump, and his 'banning' Chinese steel imports. The Chinese government want money, from exports, but they import very few goods themselves, import tariffs are high. By Trump equalising tariffs into USA, he could well be putting money back into USA production. Britain has been needing to do the same for years. How many British companies make in UK?

Thing is Mate, Leeda, Mustad have the breaking strain printed on the packing, yet carp brands don't. I have been using 'shiny' swivels for years, long before carp fishing was big business. Most of the swivel is often covered in lead clip, buffer bead, bullet bead or lead.

A large number of hook shapes come from trout or salmon fishing, the hooks are often identical patterns, same gauge, but market them as carp, and price increases. Then you have wholesale or dealer price, and genuine retail mark-up, however some tackle brands do over charge on the price they sell to tackle shop at. Swivels are a major case in point, and tackle brands want you to use their swivels, after all, only a Korda swivel fits a Korda lead clip. A size 8 swivel is a size 8 swivel, although some genuine manufacturers do have slightly different barrel sizes. Yet the price for a Korda swivel is carp taxed, compared to a size 8 Mustad, Leeda or heaven forbid Breakaway Tackle swivel. All are probably manufactured at Mustad, the latter brands are around the same retail price, yet Korda charge 5 times the price... Fishing line, I recently made the point on Asso thread, there are I think only 6 line factories in the world, yet prices for monofilament line range from £8.99 for a bulk spool, to £20, on essentially what is the same product that costs pennies to make. Tackle brands stick silly prices on what they sell you. It probably actually costs more for the plastic spool and packing than the line on the plastic spool❗️😏

The Webtex stove takes the screw on canisters, as does the TFG. I now prefer the butane/iso-butane propane Go-system or Cadac canisters over Coleman ones. Past couple of years the Coleman canisters don't seem to work as well in cold weather as they used to.

Stoves, clothing and even sleeping bags are worth looking at in camping shops. Why pay carp tax when you can pick up a Polar minus 12 degree sleeping bag in olive green for £80 as opposed to £150? The Webtex Warrior stove I linked to is cheaper than exactly the same stove in the Trakker name, but from a camping store, not a tackle shop.

I have used SuperNova, SuperSilk and Merlin for years and reckon Kryston are normally the best braids around. If I said I first started using Merlin in the 1990's and still have a spool or two in my tackle box even now would that say anything? I use them as a straight braided hooklink, and as part of a combi-link tied to 20lb plus Amnesia or Fluorocarbon. The first pic is Merlin straight through, the second SuperNova as part of a combi-link. I think from memory I had just got back from a session catching 5 decent carp on that setup, so cut the mainline above the tubing and rig to strip the line off the reels to replace it. Abrasion resistance on both is good, although as with any hooklink, check it for rubs and abrasion after any cast. Another advantage I found with Merlin is that you can splice the hook and swivel rather than knot them. I don't keep SuperNova in the box now, Merlin does what I need it to, and I have something like eight hooklink material spools in the box at the moment. A word on SuperSilk, while it is white, it takes on the colour of the lakebed, an overnight dye in a cup of tea or coffee sorts it if you don't fancy casting out a white hooklink. It is very thin for its breaking strain, so I worry about cutting the fishes lip. Strangely enough Jackal is the only Kryston hooklink I am not keen on. I found the outer coating would strip and break easily, although the hooklink itself was good. I landed a few fish on hooklinks that I had cast out with a short stripped section near the hook, yet when I got the carp in, playing through weed, the whole hooklink was stripped. Coated Braids I use Mantis (and Mantis Gold), and Snakebite. I work on a simple theory, if it ain't broke, don't fix it

Quite a big stickie at the top of the Tackle and Equipment section on stoves😉 You might find some ideas in there. Like you I am totally against petrol stoves now, an accident with a Peak1 put me right off them These are my choices for gas stoves, I own both, and both have lasted well. https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/321507812729?chn=ps&dispItem=1&adgroupid=52284554832&rlsatarget=pla-414249613828&abcId=1133906&adtype=pla&merchantid=7335174&poi=&googleloc=1006826&device=t&campaignid=1058843953&crdt=0&ul_ref=http%3A%2F%2Frover.ebay.com%2Frover%2F1%2F710-134428-41853-0%2F2%3Fmpre%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.ebay.co.uk%252Fp%252FWeb-Tex-Warrior-Field-Stove-17x6cm-Steel-Hide-Accessories%252F1012714793%253Fiid%253D321507812729%2526chn%253Dps%2526dispItem%253D1%26itemid%3D321507812729%26targetid%3D414249613828%26device%3Dt%26adtype%3Dpla%26googleloc%3D1006826%26poi%3D%26campaignid%3D1058843953%26adgroupid%3D52284554832%26rlsatarget%3Dpla-414249613828%26abcId%3D1133906%26merchantid%3D7335174%26gclid%3DCj0KCQjwy9LVBRDOARIsAGqoVnvBD8r5sgw6SDefGZfHH5W9vwjOwWEcEHdoja5684S2oYuPCvD8xXcaAvLzEALw_wcB%26srcrot%3D710-134428-41853-0%26rvr_id%3D1475678685017 https://www.totalfishinggear.co.uk/buy.cfm/carp-accessories/tf-gear-thermo-lite-stove/39/no/62195 Of the two, the Webtex Warrior I found cheapest and free of carp tax. There are other sellers on ebay around the same price within a pound or so. The TFG one has gone up around £5 since I bought mine, but is better than a lot of other big brands.

Rivers are a totally different matter to lakes, continual flow in most, the chances of debris coming down with the current rubbing your line up, playing fish round potential snags that compared to a lake, you know nothing about. You want a decent line with good abrasion resistance, and you may need to consider the distance you fish, a thinner line will get less line pressure from the flow, meaning you can use less weight to hold bottom. Casting upstream or downstream makes a difference as well❗️ For river fishing I would be using Daiwa Sensor in brown, or Gardner Pro, light or dark. I actually landed a 28lb river carp over brambles, thick weed and rushes on 15lb Sensor in about 4minutes flat. I stopped the carp getting its head down towards the snags in the middle, and only had the nearside brambles to contend with before netting it. Sensor was a line I totally trusted, although only in brown.