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I found the same as Joe above, that it twists to death no matter how it’s loaded or how much it’s cast out/wound in. I’ve got multiples of the same reel with different lines and none of those have any issues with twisting. Maybe it’s different batches, maybe it’s just one of those things that...

I’ve got 3 reels full of 15lb that are getting stripped and going in the bin. Maybe I got a bad batch, but it behaves horribly and feels rough. Spooled as I do all my other lines (and as per the ESP video too) with the spool upright in a cereal container with warm water in. Fished 2 sessions...

I get your point, and I was actually going to say that a downside to the Wide Gape X and other strong hooks is that they won’t bend even with a straight pull on heavy line. However, I’ve had other hooks bend out on fish including a standard wide gape with a good double at Gunthorpe. I landed the...

Not a chance of bending the wide gape X, they’re super strong. I’ve used them for a few seasons now for both Barbel and Carp. :)

….Until you use them as stakes with rope to keep the cows off your gear, and the cows start using them as rubbing posts, get their feet tangled up and run off, dragging them along 😆 I’ve got about 8 and all of them are bent or snapped somewhere, I still use them though early season until the...

Got to admit, I’ve had all these retro ‘cool’ reels, and they’re just rubbish compared to a decent modern reel. They might last a lifetime with some care, but that’s because they’re so basic and agricultural. Even the SS2600’s I had all got sold because there is much better available for less...

Backwater has plenty of fish and is usually the quietest part. There’s a cracking peg (first one on the backwater where the sluice gate is) just as you come over the bridge onto the island. A few years ago the sluice was closed and the backwater like a canal, but now it’s opened it’s like...

I fish all different places. My local river with a rod, net and bag. The Trent for overnight sessions with all the gear. A local Tench pond on the lift method. And ‘hole in the ground’ Carp lakes. Just got back from one of those actually after a couple of days there with my kids. They loved it...

I tried Bug when it first came out - had a good double on a 14mm barrel within 30 minutes of getting there, and that was enough to convince me! I’ve used it together with SLK ever since.

You’re kind of disproving your own point there. Regardless of how elusive they are, we know Pine Marten’s exist because there is a ton of footage out there, including lots of clear amateur stuff. Strange how the big cat sightings are all filmed by people with a terrible camera phone from a...

DNA Bug and SLK. I like the concept of Bug as it’s made with sustainable soldier fly meal and not fish meals. Caught well on it too over the last couple of seasons since its release, and SLK longer than that.

On the Tidal when it’s low and clear I get a lot more bites in the daytime on small (8mm) single or double pellets than boilies or anything big. Dusk-dawn and coloured water I’ve found bigger baits more effective. Strangely, the one place I’ve fished on the Trent where that wasn’t true was...

I do exactly that. I have a fluorocarbon ‘boom’ of around 2-3ft with a small figure of 8 loop at the hook link end. Then I tie up a load of roughly 3” soft braid loop hook sections (have a look at the Korda ‘loops and booms’ rig). I can change the hook section in seconds, don’t waste loads of...

I’m just downstream at Sutton, but have always managed to get sticks in between the rocks ok. Needs sturdy sticks/storm poles though.

I’ve ditched the pod and gone with single sticks with Korum screw in butt cups. I haven’t fished a swim yet on the tidal Trent where I can’t get the sticks in, just far less faffing about than the tripod - which btw is a JRC Extreme TX and a good bit of kit if you really want one. It’s actually...

It’s more a practical thing for me. Tidal Trent there’s no chance of dipping the rods on the vast majority of it - 1) There are large rocks littering the bottom and using a backlead is asking to be snagged, and 2) The amount of line in the water would need a massive lead unless slack or margin...

If a new item of gear is an upgrade only by way of encouraging you to get out on the bank more, then that in itself will catch you more fish which is as significant an upgrade as you can get… For me personally, I’m the same as some others in this thread, in that buying and using new gear is...

Sounds like a certain large company have been onto the landlord too….lets see how long it takes before that building opens as another branch.

10oz lead with a pva bag as well. Lobbing rather than casting obviously, but no issues at all. I’ve thrown 8oz 50+ yards across the tidal without issue. They sound like broomsticks but they’re really not, they’re still really nice to play fish on and I believe the 13’ really makes a difference...

I’ve had the Hi S for a couple of seasons now, using them on the tidal Trent. I love them, they don’t feel 2.75 until you load them up, then you can feel the power down the lower section of the blank. No experience of the Chimeras, but I know a few on my stretch who use the 4’s and really...