bluelabel

The spa weekend jobby is always a good bet with SWMBO specially if you can afford to get one for 2 people... she can take a mate and you get mahoosive brownie points and peace and quiet for 48 hours... jobs a goodun👍

Mate.... I can fish when I want... I'm retired😎 That said I rarely fish nights now... back and knees are shot, so short sessions only with lightweight kit....

just bought my missus 2 tickets to see Hugh Jackman at the O2 in June... she's dead chuffed, one each for her and her older Sis.... a lasses night out...

Why just boilies...? There is tinned meat (spam/luncheon meat) prawns, shrimps, butter beans, chick peas, sunflower seeds, blacke eyed beans, haricot beans, bread, bread paste, cheese, cheese paste, sultanas, raisins, there are any number of spices flavours that can be used to flavour these possible baits.. some can be used in their raw state... the world is your oyster ( yup even oysters)... get stuck in man...👍

https://www.anglingdirect.co.uk/nash-scope-black-ops-rod?utm_source=Angling+Direct+UK&utm_campaign=2a98b178ee-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_11_30_08_43&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_0b18a5f5fc-2a98b178ee-290061881

Got it in my email... will look later.... on the phone at the mo

Just a heads up.... Angling Direct are doing Scope (4.5lb) spod rods for £99... I have a Dwarf spod rod... superb bit o kit, if the Scope is anything like the Dwarf it'll be brill👍

Not used a 12 footer for 6 years now... don't intend to go back to a 12 footer either... the 9' does all I need from it... the only downside I can see is if you are fishing at range then the line pick up is a bit slower on the 9' and as I fish small waters or at close range its not an issue

My young Padawan texted me yesterday and asked if I was fishing this weekend... I said "yup... got a club Fur and Feather" "oh" he said... "I dunno why you bother with all that small stuff" So I called him and tried to explain the "rite of passage, or ascension through the ranks" way us old boys did things... his response was "Bags to that, I want bigguns" some folks don't understand that Carping is not the be all and end all of fishing and there's sooooo much more to enjoy, including the wildlife on the banks as well as the fish.. Such is the attitude of the yoof o' t'day... (Frighteningly his father fishes, but he never went out with his dad till after I started coaching him... and his old man is younger than I am, he also is a "carp only" man... Go figure )

Blimey.... I just had a cane rod totally refurbished with new rings for £90...🤯 In fact I had two done for £180...

Owdo chaps... FYI the difference between Scope and Dwarf's are less resin in the Scope rods (lighter but slightly more brittle) and the rod furniture... (lighter rings and fixtures) I have the Dwarf 2's as my sole carbon setup now (9' 2.75lb ) as for worrying about playing fish on them... stress not, they'll do what you ask of em... I had a 20' on mine in Sept... it never felt stressed.... don't put Dwarf rods in Scope skins... they don't fit however Scope rods in Dwarf skins do... it's down to the reel position on the rods... the Scope has a slightly longer handle Big pits look a tad odd on a 9' rod, (that said the Shimano 10000XTE Baitrunner looks okay...) my 9 footers sport Shimano 4000 Aero X Baitrunners... sexy as.... As for the rods being fragile.... well I look after me toys and (touch wood and whistle) I've had no breakages yet, despite casting 2oz leads 60-80 yards (I'd be wary of chucking a bigger lead of say 4oz, I reckon that's where the fragility comes into play... you have to alter your style of fishing to match the rods slightly... as I fish smaller waters that don't require a big heave, I'm in the rods comfort zone... I'm on my second set of Dwarfs... I sold the first set on when I saw the new minimalist Mk II's... (fell in love with them) Tip..... a lot of the breakages come from folks trying to pull line by hand with the reel in freespool mode with the hand pulling the line down by the reel... this is a no-no for any rod and WILL break the tips on them, also set your drag a little lighter.... just because they are short rods, they are not the bruiser that everyone thinks they are... take it easy and play your fish carefully... they'll last for years... Hope this helps...👍😎

I love carp fishing... so do lots of other anglers... the problem is carping is a victim of its own success... every commercial that I know locally is stocked with carp even clib waters have had an influx of them... but there are times when I don't want to catch them... I have lost count of the times when I got a shoal of Perch on the go and the carp have moved in... bit of a bind on a float rod and 3lb line with a low double carp on the end

I think a lot of it is down to the amount of commercials that have sprung up over the years.... the guys of yesteryear like Walker Hutchinson Yates all caught big fish and a lot of anglers wanted a taste.... so commercials sprang up and instead of doing the... "Rite of Passage" shall we call it...? Folks jumped in at the deep end and started with carp... problem is you cant go gudgeon bashing with 3lb rods and Basias (well... you can I suppose) but its hard to go backwards... so they either choose a new species or a new hobby... hence the amount of second hand carp gear on the bay...

Whilst Barbel fishing at Bewdley I had a Kingfisher land on my rod with a tiny fish whose head it bashed in on my rod then flew off... I took a photo of it.. been looking for it for ages.. if I ever find it I'll scan it and post it