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New big river rod

TC is nothing and should never be used to define a rod IMO. My 2.5 JRC's are all through, bend double rods that easily subdue fish but would struggle to cast a 4oz lead. I've got a pair of 2.5 lb pike rods that are like pokers in comparison and will easily cast a 4oz+ lead plus dead bait. Rods should be classed by their action.
 
Andrew Boyne said:
Is that with the standard 240 litre bin Jon? Reckon you could push it to the far bank ( 80 yds + ) with the slim line 140 litre version. ;)
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Hell no, what you REALLY need is the latest 'wopper dropper' from Korda...it looks exactly the same as the slimline 140 litre jobby from the competition, fins on the back and all, but it comes in Korda colours, so naturally it casts twice as far and holds twice as much. There is even a new underwater DVD dedicated to it, showing how you can create your own shallows in three casts. Of course you have to buy the original 6 DVD's again to get that one....but, be reasonable folks, there's the upkeep on Danny's new carpmobile to pay for after all :rolleyes:

Cheers, Dave.
 
I wouldn't dream of picking a rod based on TC alone and I wouldn't dream of using the bulk of modern carp rods for barbelling.
I'm a little surprised that no one has thrown the Korum Twin Tip (1.75/2.25lb) into the mix. It wasn't that long ago that they'd be recommended for just about everything.
 
I'm a little suprised myself Chris! Didn't mention the Korum as i've never owned or used one and along with the Maximiser it's pushing the budget a bit - cheapest i've seen the Neoteric XT is £80. Shame they don't do it as a single tip rod for around £60 - and the same goes for most of the twin tip rods on the market in that price bracket. Daiwa's Twilight 2.25lb would have been a cracking rod had it not been for the quiver top section - always felt like i'd be paying for something i don't need. I mean - what do you want a 3oz quiver tip on a 2.25lb tc barbel rod for? Spotting 3' twitches in a flood? :rolleyes:
 
Thanks for the input chaps (with the possible exception of all that wheelie bin nonsense!).

On the subject of test curve versus action, it's a good point. Some of those advising me on the TAC forum are casting weights of 8-10oz and possibly above with groundbait added. Obviously a standard players carp rod would probably be unsuitable for casting this! Maybe then I'll have to bite the bullet and buy a purpose made tool rather than a light carp rod.

In answer to Dave, from what I gather although I may have the wrong end of the stick on this, long casts aren't generally advised due to the heavy boat traffic, so an out and out casting tool may be wrong as well.
 
Andrew Boyne said:
I'm a little suprised myself Chris! Didn't mention the Korum as i've never owned or used one and along with the Maximiser it's pushing the budget a bit - cheapest i've seen the Neoteric XT is £80. Shame they don't do it as a single tip rod for around £60 - and the same goes for most of the twin tip rods on the market in that price bracket. Daiwa's Twilight 2.25lb would have been a cracking rod had it not been for the quiver top section - always felt like i'd be paying for something i don't need. I mean - what do you want a 3oz quiver tip on a 2.25lb tc barbel rod for? Spotting 3' twitches in a flood? :rolleyes:
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I bought a pair of these off a mate and while dont use the quiver that often they have been used when bright and hot weather on low river with maggot feeder there are times when the 3 foot twitch dont happen , you will be surprised how many tiny taps are hittable on a quiver and turn out to be decent fish
 
Once again, thanks for the input.

Had a waggle of a few rods yesterday. Sonik SK3 Specialist Tri-tip, Fox Duo-lite multi tip with 1.75 and 2.25lb tc tips, Korum Neoteric with 1.75 and 2.2lb tc. Couldn't try the Wychwood Maximiser but tried the Rapier Barbel 2lb tc instead.

I was impressed with them all to be honest so the Sonik may be the best bet seeing as how I could pick one up for around £50. However I wasn't sure on the tip ring of the Sonik which seemed to be at a much steeper angle than most tip rings. Overall the rings seemed a little on the small side for thick lines, although maybe my mind's playing tricks on me.

Strangely the two rods with the 2lb tc tips (Sonik & Wychwood) felt beefier than the two at two and a quarter. All in all I liked the Wychwood best for both action and finish. The action was all through but felt like it had more power should I require it. This bodes well for the Maximiser as I'd have thought with the extra length and tc on one tip it should be capable of even more.

Cosmetically I liked the fox rod the most but it felt the weakest of the lot as it was much easier to bend down to the handle. The Korum had the stiffest action low down but seemed easier to bend than the 2lb rods. Obviously it's only possible to exert so much pressure in store so I'd be interested to hear the views of others on this. Maybe the Korum would come into it's own when the butt end comes into play more, but not being familiar with these rods I'm unsure.

Need to talk to the missus now and work out if I can get me an early birthday present! Will probably pick up my greys 1.75lb and my other gear from my folks in a week or so. Then I might be ready to tacks the Thames, probably about the time it settles down to strolling pace and gin clear!
 
I have the maximisers in the 13ft length. I have to say they are a cracking rod, i have used the 2lb tip for rolling a big cube of meat on the tidal, fishing with a 3-4 oz feeder, fishing a method feeder at range for bream and one of my breaming mates who can cast has put a 2oz lead 100m (measured).

As you can see i have used them for allround use, and i am sure the 12ft version is as versatile. I even emailed wychwood to see if they would let me have some blanks to get them ringed for distance stuff on lakes but they don't.

As Bob said, although he doesn't use the quiver section of his rods that often, there are times when it's needed (i have to carry a spare rod for when the bites get finicky).

The problem is there are so many out there now it is difficult to choose. I would recommend these rods to anybody, not had many fish on them, but had a 12.07 barbel out of the tidal and didn't feel like i had any worries.

I see somebody is after some in the classifieds section, there is a reason these rods don't come up for sale 2nd hand very often, as they are so good. (if anybody has a pair they want rid of, let me know as would make them up as a bream/tench rod).
 
Martin Stevens said:
Some of those advising me on the TAC forum are casting weights of 8-10oz and possibly above with groundbait added.
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Martin Stevens said:
Strangely the two rods with the 2lb tc tips (Sonik & Wychwood) felt beefier than the two at two and a quarter.
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I have a pair of the old Neoterics. Admittedly my casting isn't great, but I wouldn't feel confident of chucking out 10oz of lead with them. 2.2lbs sounds a lot, but they've never felt like you could chuck out the big weights.
 
Just to add my twopennorth,have you considered the Fox Floodwater duo,you may think that 2.75 lb tc is a bit ott,I have a pair that I use on the Ribble and Tidal Trent,well capable of casting heavy feeders.They have a tip to mid action,and the quiver section is ideal for touch ledgering.
Main problem would be finding one,not now in production for quite a few years,and hardly ever seen for sale as used .
That tells me two things,folk either love them or hate them.There is a piece in the reviews section on here.

Dave
 
Andy Millichamp said:
I have a pair of the old Neoterics. Admittedly my casting isn't great, but I wouldn't feel confident of chucking out 10oz of lead with them. 2.2lbs sounds a lot, but they've never felt like you could chuck out the big weights.
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Having struggled the other week on a flooded Severn and W/Avon .
I have now decided on a new flood water rod and was thinking of a Korum Neoteric Twintip (1.75/2.25 .
Having now read your comment Andy I now have my doubts .
In my local tackle shop they have a Neoteric 2.75lb . So would I be better of with that ? On a flooded river using big leads or heavy feeders ?
Also been looking at the Fox Warrior S Barbel 2.25lb
If any one has got one of these rods comments would be appreciated .
 
David Craine said:
Just to add my twopennorth,have you considered the Fox Floodwater duo,you may think that 2.75 lb tc is a bit ott,I have a pair that I use on the Ribble and Tidal Trent,well capable of casting heavy feeders.They have a tip to mid action,and the quiver section is ideal for touch ledgering.
Main problem would be finding one,not now in production for quite a few years,and hardly ever seen for sale as used .
That tells me two things,folk either love them or hate them.There is a piece in the reviews section on here.

Dave
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used mine today for first time in flooded water,only needed 4oz of lead on but i coped with it easily,they do sometimes come up on ebay,i had a pair for about £120.
 
With the weights being mentioned for casting out, I guess its the Lower Thames at the seaside we are talking about? Or at least the Tidal?

Graham
 
With all the rain we have had this season the Thames has been pushing through rather than the canal it was last season.

Personally, I have been fishing off the edge of the main flow by the crease in the slacker water but those in the main stream were not holding with 5 or 6oz leads in the opening weeks.

Things has eased a couple of weeks back but this week the flow has picked up again and by the looks of the forecasts it won't be the last.

Feeders need more lead to hold than grippers. Also, load up a 5 or 6oz feeder with hemp, pellets and ground bait and it will weight more like half a pound when casting out. It goes without saying that fishing further out will need more power in the rod to cast further and also more lead to hold there.

Hook a large barbel in the strong stream with a large amount of lead on the line and you won't want to be under gunned in the tackle department, rod, line or hook.

Not to mention there are a good number of carp in the lower and semi tidal reaches which run to 40lb plus and you get the picture. Also, there a plenty of folk have hooked the river cats but been led a merry dance before being smashed up on strong tackle.

Stephen
 
How about the Fox Duo Lite FX Specimen.Bought one today for Tidal Trent in flood,which if weather predictions are right will be a weekly thing.
 
Yes Steven . I have caught a few barbel and carp from the lower, mainly a few years ago when it had water in it. We always found it rewarding, in heavy flows, to find the parts that the barbel and carp enjoyed.

We did this by casting in until we found a nice steady bit of water with less pace than the rest of the river.

Graham
 
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Floodwater Rods

I really rate the Fox floodwater rods - I've got two and use then all the time. Last week on a flooded trent they were casting 5oz feeders with no problems and dealing with the hooked fish.

I also have the Sonik SK3 Pro Specialists (3 tips) and much prefer the Floodwater rods to the 2lb tips on the SK3 rods for high water business.

Horses for courses I guess and my advice would be to go with your gut instinct based on a 'waggle' in the shop or on a session with a rod you've blagged for the day. i bought a well known and well regarded pair of rods last year and really didn't like them so sold then on to a couple of delighted buyers at a small loss so it isn't the end of the world if you don't like what you get.

Happy choosing!
 
Graham Elliott said:
With the weights being mentioned for casting out, I guess its the Lower Thames at the seaside we are talking about? Or at least the Tidal?

Graham
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Indeed GE.....

The rods I use are 1.75 and are quite 'tippy'.
They will just about cope with 5oz, (which I have used this week). They have managed barbel over 12lbs in heavy flood conditions and good size carp.
2.75..? Sounds excessive for the Thames to me for barbelling chaps..

Ian
 
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