salokcinnodrog

You're not alone in loving cork handles. I'm sort of betwixt and between in that, a few years back, I had my Greys Prodigys customised to suit me and my needs rather than having full-on custom built rods.
 
The first thing that I insisted on was full Portugese cork handles which came out just perfect for me, all these years later I'm still loving them.
 
I also had Fuji reel seats fitted, all of the eyes relined with PTFE which has the lowest coefficient of friction in the civilised world (possibly ) and slightly larger diameter tip-eyes. Oh, and rather posh brushed stainless butt caps.
 
These rods are now fully mature (read "old") but I'm very fond of them and ain't looking to change them any time soon.
 
Ian

Build wise, many machine built rods will not be built using the natural spine of the blank.

Aside from aesthetics, Where a custom rod really comes into its own, is the fact that its custom. You can have the handle length set up perfectly for your arm length, and the eyes positioned perfectly dependingon what reel you are going to be using.

Yes mate, very similar. I like to use a stiff filament though as I found it tangles less especially if used with an anti-tangle sleeve on the hooklink. Also, the large ring, used so the mainline can travel through with as little resistance as possible, sometimes had the tendency to 'spin' leaving the mainline sort or trapped. It's not that much of a problem but makes it act as a fixed lead (not what I was after with the setup). To combat this, a short length of tubing on the mainline, blobbed into the bead to stop it slipping, works wonders!
I showed this to Mick the other week at Horseshoe. It's how I set up my marker float but incorporate a foot of leadcore (lead removed) to get over that spinning of the ring.

I don't use runing rigs that often but when I do, and I am fishing in silt or a soft area as you put it, I will use this simple arangement (sorry for the tattyness. It was just a quick sketch as its better than me trying to explain it in words):
 

And with leadcore and pendant or inline set-ups, it only takes a tiny kink and the fish could now be trailing a death rig. If you have to use leadcore, then only ever with a helicopter set-up, but my advice, is ditch the leadcore totally.
 
I know about inline running leads, and yes, they can work, but are they working as we think they are?
 
I came to the conclusion, if I want a running lead, use a run ring. If I want to fish in weed with an inline, then use a straight semi-fixed inline

Just reading this and realised I didn't make it particularly clear.
 
I make the hair from the mono, by tying a uni knot loop at the end, and putting pop-up in to get the hair length right. With the pop-up in place, I then attach the hair to the ring allowing enough space for a bottom bait as well. I then remove the pop-up, and put bottom bait on the hair with baiting needle, the pop-up then gets put back into the loop. The pop-up effectively becomes the bait stop. 

If you do decide on Lee valley, it's likely I'll be back on Nazeing. I've got withdrawal symptoms for the lagoons, and I'll happily put kettle on for you, if you can handle black coffee, and chat if you ever wander round when I'm there

No worries, I didn't want you jumping in at the deep end, fishing for fish you weren't ready for, either not knowing the effort required or the skill ability. A bit of a difference between an overstocked day ticket water with a couple of easy 30's or the more natural balanced fishery.
 
I believe that Carthagena has taken this years membership on, but you'd be looking at around £400 if you went for that lake syndicate, although one of the 2 has 40's as well. It is actually not that far from Nazeing Meads, on the road from Broxbourne station towards Nazeing.
 
Also come to mind is Kelvedon and District, Silver End, some old fish, very weedy, but I know quite difficult.
 
Anyway if you follow the previous link I gave to Lee Valley there are a few in there, although North Met and Bowyers I think have a waiting list

I'm a little bit iffy in worrying about 'having to catch a 30', but that is just me, possibly because I don't know your ability level, and knowing how few and far between 30+ fish it has taken me with over 30years fishing experience, only ever catching 3 30's.
 
Suffolk is pretty much a no, although NS fisheries, West Stow and Nunnery may have space, although very much a case of what you know (have a look at Suffolk Venues)
 
I can point you directly to Lee Valley fisheries, and they are not syndicate. They have venues from the edge of London to Harlow, Broxbourne and Hoddesdon.
Nazeing Meads has 3 lakes, Brackens, which has a few 30's, 2 acres, but quite a hard 'riggy' water, where the fish can shy away from pressure, or the Lagoons, which I know hold 30+ fish, although I have only managed to get to 27 so far from there.
 
http://www.visitleevalley.org.uk/go/fisheries/
There is a gallery on each fishery as far as I can remember, and a few of the fish may look familiar

What do you think of the setup on this running KD rig?
 
The rig is connected via an ACE quick change clip covered in an anti tangle sleeve; this quick change clip sits inside a Korda safe zone running rig stem
 
Would the rigidity from the bottom of the leader across this join to the top of the rig help or hinder the anti tangle properties of the rig?
 

 
 
 
Compare and contrast with the obvious "hinge" at the same point in this rig:
 

 

I had dreadful problems with 8lb double strength and found it to be the worst material I have ever used, snapping at a measured 3-4lbs

I had some nuggets that I knew were fresh in my tackle box, but only a few so I threw them away, well out my bedroom window. It has since rained, had storms etcs, but the sad remains of a few of the nuggets are still stuck on the lead flashing.
 
i have doubted that all of them dissolve properly, and in fact I think that some baits have been zig rigged without anglers realising it. After casting in when using them, I was only ever happy if I could see the nugget come to the surface after breaking away from the hook. The ducks on the lake would then be picking up the mush,      

When was the last time you put a few of your beloved nuggets in a water tank mate?
Reeling in to find snotty white residue all over your hookpoint, as well as seeing, every day I went past my tank the same expensive 'premium brand' nuggets floating there after several weeks kinda put me off the things a bit somehow 

I use both the stripped back and the combi-rig.
 
With a combi-rig, I would suggest that you check the knot between the materials after every fish, and change the hooklink regularly. I have had a knot fail after I played and landed a good 20, then without checking the knot between the braid and Amnesia cast out, and then lost another good fish when the knot gave way. My fault for NOT checking!
 
With the stripped back hooklink, the same rig can be used to land a number of fish, obviously checking hook and the knots as well, but you only have to check hook knot and mainline join, compared to the 3 on the combi-link.

Swivels are more than just a convenience for me, and I still don't think that they work as intended, probably partly because we cover one side with a nice lead clip or rubber sleeve, to stop tangles, but also because I don't think that line as it compresses and twists will exert enough 'pressure' to untwist. I think a swivel needs a fair amount of force to make it swivel.
 
One thing that they are very handy for is attaching the hooklink to the mainline. The eye is large enough to pass the mainline (or hooklink) through twice to create a very safe strong knot. I don't like joining lengths of line together, (mono leader or braided (leadcore for those that have to    ) a knot creates a weak spot; so joining a hooklink with a knot to mainline is a worry for me, although I do it when I'm small fish fishing with fine lines  
 
One very big advantage that swivels have in that join is regularly changing rigs, you automatically cut away a (short) length of the mainline, this piece of mainline just happens to be the section most likely to be damaged anyway, the lead rubbing over it, the run ring running up and down it, all will weaken that last bit especially, plus with the lead, it is the section that gets most force exerted on it during casting, causing stretch, and weakened line.

I hate chod rigs and hate pop ups. They just don't work for me and never did. All my pop ups get cut up to use as tippers to semi balance baits sometimes, but even they don't catch me nearly as many as bottom baits. Maybe that is just the way it is with the lake I target, I don't know, but I know my mind, and I don't like chod rigs full stop.