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TBR 2 Barbel Tripod by Andrew Davies

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Steve Williams

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TBR 2 Barbel Tripod by Andrew Davies


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TBR2 in 'normal' use on a bank high Severn, first time out with tripod and had 5 fish in first 5 casts!

I have to admit that I never really thought of buying a tripod, despite having occasionally managed with an old Ian Golds sea fishing rest on occasional trips to the River Wye. Having now used the TBR 2 for my barbel fishing on the Lower Severn I wonder how I managed without one. One of the main advantages of using a tripod is that the Delkims are always perpendicular to the line; hence more efficient, especially in flowing rivers where bites are not necessarily screaming runs.

Here's what Trafford Angling Supplies have to say about their tripod :

"This is the ultimate twin rod rest, a host of features all built in solely with barbel fishing in mind. Conceived, tried, and tested by the shop's very own barbel fanatic Dave, this rest could make previously unfishable swims a reality.
Here's some of the features . . . .

Made for 2 rods

Ultra lightweight, it weighs in at a shade over 1 kilo ! (2lb 5oz with heads and cups)

3ft to 6 ft extending (approx 38'' collapsed length)

Sturdy 18mm telescopic outer legs for stability and strength.

Black powder coated outer legs, top rod rest 'buzzer style' bar and rear twin cup bar

The legs lock into the adjustable block that houses the twin cups for transportation

Turned solid aluminium points on the extending legs

The twin heads are mounted on a housing that cannot twist or move

The twin head and cups have a distance of approx 11'' centres to allow for reels with large handles to be used without the handles coming into contact with the centre extending rear leg.

12 month guarantee on all parts.

Made exclusively for us by a british manufacturer."


That is a fair description of the product and it is difficult to argue with any of that. For my part I have used the tripod quite extensively on the Lower Severn, where than banks consist of fairly soft mud. I have used it in particularly horrendous autumn storms and the tripod performed perfectly. Admittedly I haven't yet had chance to try it out on Gravel/Concrete etc - but I am assured that it works well in these circumstances. The first thing I noticed was just how solid it was once set up with the legs just pushed into the ground - it really isn't going anywhere. A criticism of some of my sea fishing tripods is that they can become very unstable once one of the rods has been lifted - this is not the case with the TBR2.

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It's not going anywhere!​


When I had set the tripod up a little bit low on a sloping bank I was concerned that a ferocious take could actually pull a rod out of the cups and I thought that perhaps an option to use a buzzer bar on the back would be nice. Well an email to Trafford angling the following week told me that it could be arranged and that the cost for a spare buzzer would cost around a fiver.


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The 'business end'. The buzzer bar is locked in place with a plastic thumbscrew - it is actually quite easy to tighten/loosen even with cold/wet hands. They can be folded parallel with the rest when folded, but the front buzzer bar didn-t quite sit square due to the nut on the rear of the threaded section. The central boss is a fairly simple design with the rear leg being fixed in place and the front legs are allowed to be at nearly any angle allowing a good deal of adjustment. It also has a hook which I found useful for hanging spare baited rigs from.​


The major plus point for me is that it packs down very small, and is exceptionally light (just over a kilo). It will easily fit into most quivers although I would recommend removing the 'buzzer bars' completely to prevent any damage.

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On this occasion I had to use the tripod in a high setting to keep the line out of marginal vegetation!


Trafford's website also lists some spare parts, as well as narrower cups to splay the rods and a single rod conversion. Personally well impressed by the ability to buy spare parts, it's very likely that I will lose some at some point.

In conclusion I reckon it's a great bit of kit offering decent value for money, and after hearing about other manufacturers tripods needing to be 'customised' I reckon this is probably top of the pile at the moment. Long term I will monitor how the plastic parts cope, but I don't anticipate any problems.

Cost £39.99, from Trafford Angling Supplies. (Note that the website is still suggesting an introductory price of £34.99, get in there quick!) but please mention BFW if you make an enquiry and/or order one.

BFW score 9 out of 10




Andrew Davies
Feb 2007
 
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