Reviews

Andrew urges all anglers to use their local tackle shop as often as possible. I grew up in a small village with a few fishing ponds which catered well for kids. The thing was, there were no fishing tackle shops within easy reach of the village, so as a teenager it was always a case of “Get what you can, when you can”, when the chance of a lift to a tackle shop arose! I’d been fishing for 20 years before I finally had a tackle shop in the village I lived, but after a couple of years it had already closed down. The tackle market is a different place to when I was kid, mainly because of the internet. Whilst there are thousands of bargains available out there from the major players, the advantages of having a small, local tackle and bait supplier cannot be overstated. You can’t order a last-minute pint of maggots from the internet, or replace that packet of hooks you realise you’re without, just as you’re leaving the house! Yes, it can be invaluable to go into a large shop and pick up 10 different rods to compare before you commit to that big spend, …

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2017 UPDATE!!! Unfortunately Korum discontinued their 42 inch Latex Mesh triangular nets some years ago (despite still selling their excellent Latex Mesh spoon nets and – new in 2018 – Snapper Folding Latex Pike Spoon), but as it is still the best pike fishing landing net I’ve ever used, I kept the review online in the hope that it spreads the word about the many benefits of Latex mesh for pike in particular. I regularly receive emails from frustrated anglers who are looking for a similar pike net with latex mesh. In fact, with the amount of contact I receive on the subject, I think Korum are missing out on some serious business.  The problem is, they never marketed it as a pike net, so not many pikers were aware it existed!  As much as I like using Korum tackle – I think they sell some well made, innovative gear – I have been secretly hoping that a competitor will fill the gap Korum left when they stopped making their triangular nets with Latex Mesh. Angling friends, I’m pleased to say that day has arrived!… Firstly, I was emailed by a chap called Ray who had become so frustrated by …

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I spotted this gizmo on a banner advert on the PAC website and one look was all I needed to know I had to try one out.  Wobbling for pike is great fun and on the right day very productive, but it can also be frustrating due to the number of lost and destroyed baits from simply casting and retrieving.  I’ve experimented with different methods of attaching baits to make them stay on longer but the best I’ve ever come up with involved threading a wire loop in through the mouth, out through the gill flap, straight through the flank and then back through the gills on out through the mouth.  It worked but it was as long-winded, fiddly and time consuming as it sounds to rig up!  So when I saw the concept of the Peak Pike Wobbler Rig, it seemed so intuitive that I couldn’t help but think the old cliché, “Why didn’t I think of that?”! The wobbler rig comes complete with everything needed for a snag-proof, effective method of wobbling deadbaits.  The only thing you need to add is a treble hook on a stinger wire, to your own requirements. The rig comprises a couple of …

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By reading this review, chances are you’re already familiar in some way with the Caught In The Act project, you’ve either watched parts 1 & 2 or read my previous review.  I think it was clear that I really enjoyed the first two films and I must say that the Autumn & Winter instalments in parts 3 & 4 do not disappoint. Just in case you’re not familiar with the format, each of the two DVDs is split into five ‘acts’ of around 15 minutes each.  Stu Walker and Bob Roberts film all of the footage themselves besides presenting the films, taking turns to be behind the camera or behind the rods.  They are also joined in a couple of the Autumn & Winter acts by friend James Gould, who manages to more-than-justify his appearance with the capture of some fine specimens for the cameras.   There’s also a short sketch of what I believe is the first fully animated version of the “Jack’s Pike” cartoon strip by Brian Roberts, which Bob regularly features in his blog. The fishing in CITA is never complicated, just simple rigs and techniques done extremely well.  No angler should feel out of their depth when …

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Caught In The Act is the ambitious latest project from Bob Roberts and Stuart Walker; the duo behind the successful and enlightening (it certainly taught me plenty about how barbel and rigs behave underwater) “Barbel Days and Ways” series, which features some terrific underwater footage.  I am a fan of that series of DVDs and when I heard that this new series was in the making, which dramatically expanded the range of species targeted, I had high hopes for it. The complete films are the result of over 3 years of angling trips to day ticket & open-access club waters, after a variety of species over all four seasons.  Each session is chronicled as a short “act” and there are ten acts in this 2 DVD set, which covers Spring & Summer fishing (Autumn & Winter will follow later in the year as a separate double-disc set).  Stu and Bob don’t have the benefit of an on-hand professional cameraman to film their sessions but instead call upon their own filming experience from making “Barbel Days…” and film each other.  When one is fishing, the other does the filming and vice-versa.  Both Bob and Stu are extremely accomplished anglers, which means that when …

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An informative talk-through video showing the key features of the Cyprinus XLR8 lightweight carp fishing bivvy: Do you have any tackle items you’d like me to review? If so, please get in touch with details.

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An informative talk-through video showing the key features of the Cyprinus bivvy overwrap, the Breathable Winter Skin for the Cyprimax carp fishing bivvy: Do you have any tackle items you’d like me to review? If so, please get in touch with details.

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An informative talk-through video showing the key features of the Cyprinus Cyprimax breathable carp fishing bivvy: Do you have any tackle items you’d like me to review? If so, please get in touch with details.

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I trust everyone had an enjoyable Christmas time.  I certainly did but it’s only involved one fishing session, which I’ll mention in my next blog post. Meanwhile, here’s something I found in my drafts folder which I thought I’d posted this a couple of weeks ago. Better late than never, as they say… A quick message to inform you of two recent additions to www.fishingmagic.com; firstly part 2 of my “Alternative Ebro” article is online to read at:  https://www.fishingmagic.com/features/coarse_fishing/specimen_fishing/15601-alternative-ebro-part-two.html Part 2 covers all of the catfish fishing we did with our guide, Carl of Rio Ebro Angling, during the week we spent boat & bank fishing with him at Riba Roja.  I’m told by Carl that since we were there, some of his guests have landed catfish to 164lb, including lure-caught catfish up to 148lb!!! Also, if anyone has a bit of Christmas money to spend on a little bankside/backside comfort for 2012, I recently reviewed the “Stalk-Lite Mk II” reclining chair by Cyprinus for FishingMagic, and rather liked it!  You can read my full review here:  https://www.fishingmagic.com/features/reviews/15584-cyprinus-stalk-lite-chair.html If you’re impressed, you can purchase this chair for less than £30 from Tackle Discounts Online Fishing Tackle Shop online fishing tackle store. That’s all for now …

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I’m writing this post as a showing of gratitude to Fox customer services.  It’s easy to criticise companies when they get it wrong, so I think when good service is received it’s worth praising. I had a major issue with a set of Fox Stalker digital scales (until the faults, I’d been very impressed with their quality and operation) which I’d bought back in January 2009.  They were technically out of their warranty period but these were not cheap scales and they had suffered what appeared to be a complete mechanical failure which rendered them useless.  Due to the nature of the fault I was requested to post the scales back to Fox for further investigation, last week.  Yesterday morning, I received a parcel in the post which contained a brand-new set of Stalker scales!  There were no quibbles whatsoever and I am very pleased with this outcome and the quality of customer service I received.  I think this offers peace of mind when looking for other big-ticket items in the future. UPDATE Although I couldn’t fault Fox’s customer service, unfortunately I can fault the Stalker scales. The replacement set lasted me a couple of seasons and then failed with the very same fault! …

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