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Match Fishing Staff  |  Apr 27, 2015  |  0 comments
The 360 Revolution! Joe Carass checks out the latest seatbox development from Preston Innovations – The OnBox 360!I’m going to be honest: I didn’t know what to make of the OnBox 360 when I first saw it. I mean, surely a match angler has to sit on a proper seatbox, right? But then I started to think about it. There are loads of matches that I’ve been on where this box would have made my day more pleasurable. I can think of no end of ‘one rod’ matches where, to be honest, sitting on a normal box for five hours is something of a chore.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Jan 06, 2015  |  0 comments
Joe Carass gets his hands on ABC’s latest hit bait range, the formidable MI7. I am always interested when new bait ranges are released. Most are well publicised through various social-media platforms these days and you generally know when something is about to hit the shop shelves. One new launch that snuck under my radar, though, was ABC’s MI7 range of baits.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Dec 17, 2014  |  0 comments
At £299 this is well worth a look for anyone looking for something new to park their derrière on while out on the bank. Colmic has a reputation for producing good-quality tackle and, if you look at its new and existing portfolio of products, it’s easy to see why. This competition seatbox has been designed with weight and practicality in mind – it tips the scales at just under 12kg, which is lightweight for a box in this day and age. The module slides on four telescopic legs, making it very easy to adjust and adapt to almost any bankside terrain.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Dec 10, 2014  |  0 comments
Carpy Class…. Joe Carass checks out the latest pole from the MAP stable that is built to handle even the largest carp!Producing quality poles is something that MAP does well these days. Every pole that comes out bearing the TKS name really is a brilliant bit of kit, and for the past three or four years they have been gaining a great reputation. It all came to a head last year when the awesome 901 was released, a pole we simply couldn’t believe at the time.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Nov 18, 2014  |  0 comments
Never a company to do things by halves, Drennan’s new Acolyte Carp pole is set to shake up the mid- price bracket. With package prices starting at just £995, here’s what editor Alex Bones thought. My introduction to this pole was on a morning fishing session arranged by Drennan at a local commercial. Sat on a swim offering a long margin my first foray with it was exciting – latching into a hard- fighting carp only moments after sitting on the box!As always it’s Drennan’s meticulous attention to detail that often wins anglers over.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Jul 22, 2014  |  0 comments
If you’re thinking about shelling out for a pole around the £1,000 mark, don’t do anything until you’ve read this! Alex Bones takes the new Daiwa Match Winner for a whirl. Having heard rave reviews about this pole in the run-up to its launch I was already expecting good things. A trip to Warwickshire’s Makins Fishery saw me on Reptile Pool where an island at full length, 14. 4 metres, and a fishy-looking margin were to be the prime target areas for a no-holds-barred test session.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Jun 25, 2014  |  0 comments
Joe Carass explains why two rods from Preston Innovations have stood the test of time!I remember sorting my kit out for my first-ever trip to White Acres. Filled with excitement, I had asked for advice on the tackle I would need and top of the list was a Preston Innovations Mini 11ft Float rod. Being the keenster that I am, I made sure I bought the rod ready for my first trip to ‘pellet-waggler heaven’, as it was at the time. Needless to say, my first trip there was something of a disaster.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Jun 25, 2014  |  0 comments
Alex Bones has a glance at Shimano’s latest marvels – the AR-C Aero CI4+ reels. The first thing that’ll strike you if you get the chance to pick up one of these magnificent pieces of engineering is the weight… or lack of it, more to the point!It’s like an Aero Match that’s been on a leafy-lettuce crash diet. However, the remarkable part is that the CI4+ material that’s used is 250 per cent stronger than Shimano’s already impressive CI4 material, while also being 20 per cent lighter than its XT-7 graphite! While that may all sound like a bunch of letters and numbers there is some real science behind what Shimano has managed to achieve, which, among other benefits, makes it completely impervious to water (even saltwater) and rust. Deriving from the company’s Japanese spinning roots, this is a super high-performance reel designed to rival almost anything out there for float or feeder applications.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Jun 25, 2014  |  0 comments
Join The Elite! Joe Carass gives his verdict on the awesome new Maver Elite Carp 4 pole – the new flagship offering that has really got people talking. Maver has introduced two ranges of poles for 2014, both of which are being sold through its superb Centre of Excellence initiative, whereby some products can only be purchased from a nominated Maver Centre of Excellence tackle shop. Maver’s flagship Signature range are stunning poles aimed at the all-round angler. However, the poles that really grab my attention are the brand’s Elite Carp range.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Jun 06, 2014  |  0 comments
Joe Carass explains why he believes the Guru Pellet Waggler hook is the ultimate choice for rod-and-line tactics!Hook choice is a constant source of confusion for me. I like certain patterns of hooks for pole fishing and use them a lot – the Kamasan B911 and Drennan Silverfish Pellet spring immediately to mind. But when it comes to eyed hooks for rod-and-line fishing, I must admit to being a bit of a chopper and changer. The Guru QM1 has long been my favourite hook pattern for any kind of legering for carp, as once a carp is hooked with this piece of steel they rarely come off! There are times, though, when I have felt that they were just not quite right.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Apr 23, 2014  |  0 comments
Joe Carass checks out the all-new Matrix Match Master seatbox. Regular readers will know that I am a huge fan of the original Fox MSB box from a couple of years ago. I used to absolutely love this box and still believe it to be at the top of the tree when it comes to compact storage. When Matrix was launched, its gaffer, Ricky Teale, assured me there was to be a new model that would pick up where the MSB left off.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Jan 28, 2014  |  0 comments
Alex Bones takes a look at the mid-price-range Xitan model that’s already receiving rave reviews!Having tested Browning’s fantastic Xitan Z8 pole earlier in 2013 I expected great things of the less-expensive Z6 model. It boasts many of the same features as the more expensive Z8, Z10 and flagship Z12 models, but comes in at just £999 for the standard 14. 5m pole and package and £1,199 for the 16m setup!It’s a pole based around strength, but without the usual unwieldy stigmas attached – by employing nanocarbon technology Browning has made this pole crisp and manageable. Boy, what a powerful punch it packs!It’s always little details that make all the difference to the overall product and among many other features are the 2.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Nov 26, 2013  |  0 comments
Get In A Frenzee! Joe Carass gets to grips with the Frenzee FMR 3000 reel. Reels don’t seem to have changed much in the last few years. For sure they have got better and also much cheaper, but fundamentally they all revolve around the same principles. I suppose the biggest shift was when modern commercial anglers started using front-drag reels instead of the previously popular rear-drag offerings.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Oct 24, 2013  |  0 comments
The Best… Bar Absolutely None! Editor Alex Bones checks out MAP’s latest flagship pole – the hotly anticipated 901!Here at Match Fishing we get new tackle to test on a weekly basis. Sure, we tip most of it as good, as a product to look out for, or better than its predecessor but we wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t true. When it comes to standout products, though, it can sometimes become difficult to express just how good they are. Well, be in no doubt that in my opinion this is THE best commercially available pole ever launched, bar absolutely none!I’d be happy to fish with any manufacturer’s flagship pole – they’re all very, very good – but the 901 is special – it’s such a carefully thought out product that suits my fishing perfectly.
Match Fishing Staff  |  Sep 26, 2013  |  0 comments
Daiwa’s original TDR reels, introduced at the 2008 trade shows, were nothing short of an overnight success story! And, I have word from Daiwa Sports’ HQ that they were its best-selling match reels of the modern era – no wonder that they were, and still are, such a popular sight on the bankside! Big boots to fill for the new version then, but just how is it different? Is it simply a tarted-up version that’s received a lick of paint and a few cosmetic enhances? No, no, no – it’s so much more! The instantly recognisable blue livery stays the same, but the reel’s features are what gives this new model the WOW factor. As some of you will know I am a fan, and user, of the incredible Daiwa Certates. But the TDR, for half the price, offers many of the same features including what I believe to be one of the most important for reel longevity – the Mag Seal. In Daiwa’s tech speak this delivers “a water impermeable liquid seal around the rotor and main shaft, protecting the mechanism from ingress of water and debris.

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