Drennan has launched a new reel line! So what? There are dozens out there to choose from so why buy this one? Well, it just happens to be one of the best monofilaments we’ve clapped eyes on! Alex Bones gives his thoughts. We all fish our own way, so if you asked 10 anglers what their favourite reel line is they could all have a different answer. Drennan is well established in the line arena and has some super variants on offer already, so during a recent meeting at Drennan HQ my first thought was what did this line offer that others didn’t?Peter Drennan, founder of the company, was highly enthused about this product as he removed it from the simple, clear packaging. “Have a close look at that gentlemen!” he exclaimed, as he handed Jon Arthur, Joe Carass, Tom Scholey and me (the Match Fishing and Pole Fishing teams) a spool of his brand-new Supplex monofilament.
MAP is offering a whole new way to organise and store your pole’s top kits. Alex Bones took an instant liking to the new system – here’s why. I love a gadget, fishing-related or otherwise, so when Mike Robinson, the man in charge of developing this new product for MAP, showed it to me I was an instant fan. It’s simple – a hard ABS case roughly five feet in length with a zip holding the two halves together and an EVA liner designed specifically to keep up to eight pole top kits in place for transport and storage.
With hundreds of new products on display at the T&G Show, it was going to take a special one to really impress Joe Carass. . . and this is it!It was really difficult to pick out a star product this year, as there were simply so many excellent products on show.
Alex Bones gets an exclusive first look at three of the short feeder rods on offer from a new brand set to take match fishing by storm!Matrix is the all-new brand with all-new ideas, and was shown to me in its entirety by the man responsible for it… Mr Ricky Teale. Most of you will know or know of Ricky, but for those who don’t he’s been a formidable name in the trade for many, many years. And, he’s responsible for a great deal of the developments that present themselves before your very eyes when you visit your local tackle shop. So, what’s new about these rods and what makes them different from those sitting in your holdall already? I wanted to find out.
Feeder fishing for carp is one of the most popular approaches these days, so when a clever new feeder turned up at Match Fishing HQ, Joe Carass couldn’t wait to give it the once-over. Since the inception of commercial fisheries there has been one man who has arguably come up with more fish-catching devices than any other… Andy Findlay!Andy has revolutionised feeder fishing and his previous three creations – the flat Method feeder, pellet feeder and pellet cone – are responsible for taking some huge weights of carp every year. But, Fin being Fin, he couldn’t stop there, hence his latest creation: the banjo feeder. The banjo came about a couple of years ago when many of the fishery pellets were of a spongy consistency.
With Marukyu starting to take the bait market by storm, Joe Carass decided to take a look at one of its most popular products… krill!Marukyu is still a fairly new name on the UK bait market. The baits are clearly very good but, never one to follow fads, I must admit to being fairly sceptical about them at first. I mean, I have always been of the opinion that as long as the bait we use is fresh and good quality and the fish are in front of you, then you will catch them! My opinion has changed somewhat of late, however, after going on several features with Jamie Masson, and also noticing the continuing list of results that Andy Kinder has been getting. With both of these top anglers using Marukyu products I felt I really needed to take a closer look.
Renowned for their quality, Tri-Cast rods are among some of the finest available. Editor Alex Bones takes a close look at three of their latest 14ft and 15ft models. Recognising the increase in demand for long float rods on river venues like the Avon, Severn, Trent and Wye, Rochdale-based Tri-Cast has had these three rods in development for just over 12 months. Designed primarily for stick float and waggler work on rivers, they are nothing short of a pleasure.
Poles – the choice is almost endless! So, why spend your hard-earned cash on Garbolino’s latest G-Max 600 model? Alex Bones reveals why…The first thing that struck me when I removed this pole from its holdall was the finish! “Wow… silky smooth,” I said to my MF colleague, Joe Carass. However, upon assembling it to its full 14. 5m supplied length I must admit that I was dubious. Why? Because it felt so light, manageable and stiff… yet Garbolino says, and I quote: “It’s suitable for comfortably fishing elastics to a size 20” – surely it couldn’t be this good and handle the punishment associated with modern-day carp fishing?I treated the pole to its virgin session at the popular Leicestershire fishery, Makins.
Abu Garcia is a name synonymous with quality reel developments. Dave Harrell checks out the company’s latest two offerings…Abu Garcia Cardinal 504i SDH FD & 506i SDH RD ReelsThe first thing that struck me when I took these reels out of the box was how impressive they looked. In terms of cosmetics and finish they seemed like much more expensive reels, but of course it’s what’s under the cover that really matters. Cardinal reels are famous for being reliable and strong and I reckon these reels will be able to take some serious punishment.
Joe Carass inspects a new range of hooks that might just take the market by storm. . . H ooks are hugely personal things, and for most anglers their choice of patterns tends to come from a variety of companies.
The G-Max feeder rod range was a massive hit in the Match Fishing office, so when the float rod range came in we all got a bit excited! But are they any good? Joe Carass took a closer look…After being hugely impressed with the G-Max feeder rods that we tested a couple of months ago I could not wait to get my hands on the new float rods from Garbolino. I have long been a fan of Garbolino rods having used several of them from the Super G range for quite a long time. They have always been great value and top performers, so when Garbolino’s main man Darren Cox told me that these new offerings were in a different league then I must admit to getting rather excited!First up in the range is the 11ft 6in Commercial Waggler. This rod is a two-piece model that has been designed for commercial-fishery situations.
Joe Carass checks out a new flagship pole that’s set to become a big seller in 2011… Preston Innovations has managed to raise the bar in pole design yet again with the GiS 14 Absolute. In an era where every pole we see is aimed at carp fishing, it makes a refreshing change to find a pole that is beautifully light and stiff, yet still retains plenty of strength for those situations when you need it. Preston has worked closely with Tommy Pickering and Des Shipp to produce the ultimate match pole. With the GiS 14 Absolute you get an excellent package of two match top fours, three power top twos, one short No4, one Kup Kit and Kups and a 10-tube GiS holdall.
Joe Carass reveals his thoughts on Browning’s new Xitan Z7. 5 pole. Will it be another success for the tackle giant?With Browning’s Xitan range of poles growing in popularity, I couldn’t wait to have a look at the latest addition to the range – the Z7. 5 – to see if it could live up to the standard set by its predecessors.
We’re in an era when good-quality seatboxes are arriving at our offices every few weeks, so just how good is the new Sensas 700? Joe Carass checked one over to find out… For the past few years Sensas has been trying to make a name for itself in the seatbox market, and several models have been brought out since the company’s first designs. Now, though, I think that a product of a quality synonymous with the Sensas name has finally hit the tackle shops. The 700 box really is the perfect example of what the modern match angler is looking for in a seatbox. It has a modular design so that trays can be added for extra storage, along with a slide-out rig section where anglers can house hundreds of rigs or various other bits and bobs.
After developing a successful range of gear that all started with pole pots, the Frenzee design team has now turned its attentions to rods. Dave Harrell checks out the initial range of seven… Having worked in the fishing-tackle industry myself in a previous life, I know more than most exactly how difficult it is to break into the marketplace with a new range of angling products. I went through the exercise just over 20 years ago when I created the MAP brand, and while taking on the big boys in the industry was challenging I sometimes found myself wondering if I could make products like rods any better than (or even as good as) what was already available from long-established companies. Thankfully, at that time at least, the answer was yes and sales were good for several years before the big influx of rods from China put paid to any competitive developments I could achieve in the UK.
