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Carp gear for Barbel

There is not the science to show either avenue is better than the other. I think its in the mindset of many anglers today that they will do what the hell they wish in their angling, whether that be right or wrong is of no consequence to them.. It is as I stated a point of view. If you differ from me it is of no consequence, except to your quarry, a dumb animal that lives in water.
 
Right and wrong is in the eye of the user.

There are no fixed rules unless applied by the fishery owner/ licencing authority .

We all have our own ideas as to what is acceptable practice, but is it right to be pedantic ?

For instance I would never use braid in freshwater having seen the damage it causes to fishes mouths etc. I am correct in my eyes but lots on here would disagree , its a personal choice , nothing more.

In other words.

Dont tell me or anybody else what to do unless you have the backing of the fishery owner/ licencing authority .

We can all fish to our own best practice until something changes our perspective. I would however always come down on the side of the fishes welfare as far as I can .

David
 
I see no problem of using carp/heavy gear in barbel fishing, in some sense, it’s actually better since you can land the fish quicker, and maybe good choice for new barbel anglers.

Personally I like using soft/light tackle but I must admit that’s just for me to enjoy the fight with the fish, so I have to take a great care of them to make sure they recover properly.
 
Trevor Summerfield said:
There is not the science to show either avenue is better than the other. I think its in the mindset of many anglers today that they will do what the hell they wish in their angling, whether that be right or wrong is of no consequence to them.. It is as I stated a point of view. If you differ from me it is of no consequence, except to your quarry, a dumb animal that lives in water.
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You are treading on very thin ice there....

This forum is called 'Barbel fishing world' - to me that title encompasses a varity of different approaches.

Your 'holier than though' attitude is ridiculous. And dont mention 'dumb animals'.
 
Most barbel anglers fish with reels that have a freespool/quickdrag facility and also use line about 12lb breaking strain. Carp anglers the same. The only real difference is the rod action. It's horses for courses. Some of the rods advertised as barbel rods wouldn't look out of place on a gravel pit. Chimera 3's or 4's would do for carp. The phrase 'Test Curve' is misleading. Fish welfare first!
 
David Craine said:
Right and wrong is in the eye of the user.

There are no fixed rules unless applied by the fishery owner/ licencing authority .

We all have our own ideas as to what is acceptable practice, but is it right to be pedantic ?

For instance I would never use braid in freshwater having seen the damage it causes to fishes mouths etc. I am correct in my eyes but lots on here would disagree , its a personal choice , nothing more.

In other words.

Dont tell me or anybody else what to do unless you have the backing of the fishery owner/ licencing authority .

We can all fish to our own best practice until something changes our perspective. I would however always come down on the side of the fishes welfare as far as I can .

David
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Oviously a contentious issue. I am not telling any Angler to change anything in their style of Angling for Barbs. Its a point of view which I am entitled to. As are others. To get arsey about it is stupid.We live in a democracy that allows free speech. What are you going to do if you meet me on the bank? throw me in?
 
Trevor , I think you have raised a few hackles by the language / wording you use in your posts ,''crude ' ,''brutal'' , 'bone idle '' , it's hardly going to endear you to folks is it ? With regard to the subject , I think you need to use tackle suitable to the conditions . When the river isn't gunning through I will use a cane rod as I don't have to use heavy leads . If the river is carrying a lot of water I will use a rod that is capable of casting the required heavier lead . I don't subscribe to the view that you need high test curve rods to tame large barbel .but I accept that if you are chucking a 6oz lead to the far side of the trent carrying 12ft of floodwater then a MK1V Avon rod might not be the best tool for the job .BTW , stick a picture of yourself on your BFW avatar then if we meet you on the bank we can recognise you and decide if we wish to chuck you in and have your tackle away or if you look a bit handy we can just exchange a few pleasant words whilst admiring your beautifully balanced tackle !
 
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Richard Dawson said:
I've never felt the need to go heavier than my 2lb greys prodigies.

So I'd probably try and convince a carper to go for that or 1.75lb.
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Depends where you fish though. There was a bit of extra water on the tidal Trent a couple of weeks ago, I’d only taken my 2.25 rods but chose a swim with a 40 yard cast and I needed 8oz to hold bottom. Big mistake not taking the 13’ 2.75 rods, I did manage ok but the tools weren’t really up to it and 3lb Carp rods would have actually been more suitable.

On my local river even the 1.75’s are more than enough.
 
Trevor Summerfield said:
I think using Carp rods is unsporting,, crude and just plain brutal and bone idle on the part of that angler by not doing his research and finding out just how things are done. Has any body actually used chod rigs for Barbel.
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unsporting,, crude and just plain brutal and bone idle
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are you posting this as some sort of twisted joke ???

as its possibly the daftest post I have ever seen on this forum you havent got a clue about Angling
 
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Just as an aside to this debate . I came across that carp fishing programme on the telly the other day , can't remember the fellas name but basically they just sit in bivvies for days on massive lakes abroad and try to out do each other with who's fish is going to be bigger . They were catching these huge 50lb + carp , I noticed that the rods they were using had very little bend in them when they were ' playing' these huge fish , they seemed to totally rely on the clutches on the reels . I got the impression that the basic function of the rods was to provide the ability to cast their rigs huge distances and the action of the rod had very little to do with playing the fish in the traditional sense .
 
Mike, I watch 'Monster Carp' too and I don't think there's much casting done as the rigs and bait are 'boated' out. Why people think that the higher the test curve, the further they can cast is beyond me. There's no pleasure in using a rod that's as stiff as a poker. (Not for fishing anyway😁) A carp rod with a softish action is fine.
 
Nick Horton said:
Mike, I watch 'Monster Carp' too and I don't think there's much casting done as the rigs and bait are 'boated' out. Why people think that the higher the test curve, the further they can cast is beyond me. There's no pleasure in using a rod that's as stiff as a poker. (Not for fishing anyway😁) A carp rod with a softish action is fine.
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It only makes a difference if you are able cast properly - I can't!

Anything over 120 yards and I'm all over the show! I stick to within 90 yards so I know I'm accurate.

I had a pair of 3.5lb Greys X-flites I bought for a trip to France many years back. I couldn't compress them properly and I'm 6', over 15 stone and reasonably broad across the shoulders!

I can cast a 1oz bomb to around 100 yards with a 1.75tc rod with a good wind....I couldn't get a 3oz lead that far with those X-Flites!
 
It's all about common sense,if the rivers raging through I use my 2.25 ,if its well down I use a quiver rod simple as that!! Ps not a carp rod or combi link insight lol
 
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