LATEST ADDITIONS

It’s always a pleasure making my annual trip to the ESP headquarters in Oxfordshire, but when I headed down there earlier this year it was with a particular feeling of anticipation. I I was champing at the bit to see its three big product launches, namely the Onyx reels, Barrel bobbins and these Cryogen hooks. ESP has, for me, always produced superb hooks in patterns that are useful to carp anglers. They were, as far as I remember, the first to introduce odd sizing (3, 5, 7), which many companies have followed suit in more recently.

Spodding and marker float work require an altogether different capability from a reel, compared with a general fishing one, as more anglers are realising. Daiwa has produced the extremely popular Emblem Spod Reel for a few years but has now brought such a key piece of kit into the price range of more anglers with this Emcast version. It matches the superb (especially when you consider the price) Emcast 5000A, allowing the angler to team up matching kit but without breaking the bank. If you don’t use Emcast reels, however, the features on this still make it a great choice for spod and marker work.

If you’ve been ignoring zig rigs or simply ‘can’t be bothered’ with them, then this may just change your mind. Solar Tackle backed Darren Pearse has landed 75 carp to a biggest of 26lb 4oz in just 2 days, all on zig rigs. Experienced carp angler, and regular carp-match-competitor, Darren, presented Solar’s Seafood Take-Away pop-ups in the upper layers using zig rigs at Thorpe Lea fishery in Surrey. The hectic action meant that it was hard work to keep the rods in the water, with double takes happening on numerous occasions.

Renowned French venue Echo Pool Fishery threw up its most treasured prize in a new lake record weight. The trip had got off to an absolute flyer for John Blair who fished with Pallatrax Jungle boilies and the ingenious Stonze weights, having already banked six mirrors ranging from mid forties to over a whopping 65lb this was turning in to a red-letter session. John Continues: “Echo Pool was not content with just that, I had taken the rods out and gone of to the shop and left things alone for a couple of hours, On return the rods were put back in and within ten minutes or so the left hand rod just ripped off. The start as it turned out of one of those lifetime memories although very quickly managing to find the only snag in the lake my thoughts turned to "can the line take it" and "am I going to lose it".