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Off the shelf Barbel rods

Huanzhou Zhu said:
To be honest, I dont find the tip ring is that bad, it is not an anti frap ring, but I personally don't find this is a problem. If you want to change it, just heat the ring with a lighter, and you can remove it easily, if there are any glue or epoxy left, remove with a fine sandpaper, and glue a new ring with right size. 5mins work top.
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I don't find it a problem either. Only problem I've had is when Breaming (yes) and or Tenching. Wrapping up,it can catch on it. However I think I've overcome that. You're not thinking of parting with yours Huanzhou? 😉
 
Michael Weir said:
I don't find it a problem either. Only problem I've had is when Breaming (yes) and or Tenching. Wrapping up,it can catch on it. However I think I've overcome that. You're not thinking of parting with yours Huanzhou? 😉
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I never had the line catch on it yet, but I only used the rod for winter barbel fishing yet.

I am looking for a second one as well 😂
 
Robert Waker said:
One on eBay at the moment 😬
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At the risk of reinforcing the stereotype of a tight northerner, the £400 plus price tag for the Basia just brings up a big "NO!" for me.

On the infrequent occasions I need a beefy 12 rod for punching out big feeders I have arrived at a pair of 2.75lb Fox Duo Lite FX Specimen rods (second hand and only £170 for the pair) which do the job and have a decent playing action.

I have never even waggled a Basia because I'm just not paying that amount of money.

I will reconsider if someone can seriously tell me that the Basia is 400% better than my Fox FX Specimen rods ... or even 200%.
 
Neil Kirk said:
At the risk of reinforcing the stereotype of a tight northerner, the £400 plus price tag for the Basia just brings up a big "NO!" for me.

On the infrequent occasions I need a beefy 12 rod for punching out big feeders I have arrived at a pair of 2.75lb Fox Duo Lite FX Specimen rods (second hand and only £170 for the pair) which do the job and have a decent playing action.

I have never even waggled a Basia because I'm just not paying that amount of money.

I will reconsider if someone can seriously tell me that the Basia is 400% better than my Fox FX Specimen rods ... or even 200%.
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well, if you shop around, you will find that the basia is about same price as a custom Harrison rod or free spirit a range barbel seeker, slightly cheaper than hi s rods. So the same question can be applied to almost all Harrison and freespirit rods. And IMO basia is a far better blank than all Harrison and freespirit blanks at same tc and length.
 
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Robert Waker said:
Hi all,
This thread is a great read.

I’ve ordered a Basia X45 in 2.25 to my local tackle shop to have a play with.

I’ve only seen people speak about the 1.75 and 2.75…..may I missing something?

I opted for the 2.25 as currently using the Korum 2lb on the Lea. It’s a massive step up in quality and due to the cost need it to be right.

I’ve looked into a Dave Lumb Chimera 2.25 so torn between the two. Haven’t seen either.

Any help would be great.
Thsnks
Rob
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Hi rob use basia 2.25,s for 90% of my fishing can’t fault them .. far better than the hi s i owned
 
I dropped on a Basia 2.25 last year for a paltry 130 quid. As is the 1.75 and the 2.25, it's an absolute class act. Imagine if Daiwa would let custom rod builders have the blanks and build customs......?
 
I’ve got a pair of the Guru twin tip 1.75’s. I bought one to use as a distance feeder rod for bream on Windermere. I liked it so much i bought another to use as a pair for Barbel. To be honest, i’ve used & had loads of rods over the years and these are up there with the best!
They’ll chuck 4oz feeders (across the Severn) really well made, solid feeling rods with decent, hard wearing guides and are a dream to play fish on!
Plenty of backbone lower down and bend right through. I love them!
 
Huanzhou Zhu said:
PS, Korum just released some new high end specialist rods, called Omega rods.
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I think this the third attempt from Korum in rods in this price bracket (Xpert, XCalibre and now Omega).

I wonder if they’re all the same blank and have just had cosmetic & component alterations… Or whether they’ve been complete overhauls each time?

Korum seem to offer a fair bit of bang for buck in their budget rods. Be interested to find out if their higher end rods are the same.
 
Alex Warren said:
I think this the third attempt from Korum in rods in this price bracket (Xpert, XCalibre and now Omega).

I wonder if they’re all the same blank and have just had cosmetic & component alterations… Or whether they’ve been complete overhauls each time?

Korum seem to offer a fair bit of bang for buck in their budget rods. Be interested to find out if their higher end rods are the same.
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I’ve owned the Xperts and now the X-Calibres in the same tc. If it makes any difference they were released quite a few years apart, and while the action is similar I didn’t feel like they were the same. The Omegas coming so soon after the X-Calibres that were a limited run and at the same price point suggests they might be the same blank, but that’s a guess

The Xperts were popular among tenchfishers, and still are second hand - they are great value distance rods. I haven’t caught anything on the X-Calibres yet but they feel a little softer than the Xperts which felt like a true fast taper.

I’ve been using them alongside an Infinity for big breaming and they’re pretty much equal in casting medium to longer dustances. Further and more accurate than a Torrix 1.75. Like I said I haven’t caught on the X-calibres yet, they don’t feel like they’d be too stiff to deal with lunges under the rod tip but obviously they aren’t as nice a playing action as the Infinities. The cork and rings seem about right for a rod of their rrp but in all honesty I’m not that discerning.

Since we’re talking about off the peg Barbel rods, funny enough the Free Spirit big rivers seem to be the choice for longer distances for some of the Tenchers.
 
Nigel Whittingham said:
I’ve got a pair of the Guru twin tip 1.75’s. I bought one to use as a distance feeder rod for bream on Windermere. I liked it so much i bought another to use as a pair for Barbel. To be honest, i’ve used & had loads of rods over the years and these are up there with the best!
They’ll chuck 4oz feeders (across the Severn) really well made, solid feeling rods with decent, hard wearing guides and are a dream to play fish on!
Plenty of backbone lower down and bend right through. I love them!
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The Guru N Gauge Specimen rods are absolutely great rods, from 1.5, 1.75 to 2.25 a bargain from £99.99. The Guru lads have done quite a few vids on YouTube promoting them...
 
Dave Quinn said:
I’ve owned the Xperts and now the X-Calibres in the same tc. If it makes any difference they were released quite a few years apart, and while the action is similar I didn’t feel like they were the same.
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Thanks, Dave.

I've got an Xpert in 11.6ft 1.1tc and it seems a nice rod, although I've not used it extensively. Recently picked my dad up another one in 12ft 1.75tc second hand, but he's yet to use it.

I considered the Xcalibres a few years back as Barbel rods, but was put off by the handle length and eventually opted for some customs instead.
 
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