''Sledge Hammer to crack a peanut''

I had a quick look on a local canal t'other day and was amazed to see a guy fishing matching Carp rods, and big pit reels. Electric bite alarms complete with ''swingers'' I believe they are called. My mates reaction was to say, ''Do you think he believes he's at Savay.

Now I don't believe in line class records and the like, but that guy was so ''overgunned'' for the stamp of fish this particular canal holds that I could see my mates point. However better to be safe than sorry, still I feel a little sad, perhaps he wanted to look the part.

Any of you guys come across this scenario?

Not at Savay, the last time I fished it was the mid/late 50's when it was still two lakes and the carp were only a couple of pounds in weight.......

I just do not understand this fondness/ addiction to carp! As for catfish , I would rather catch a cold!

The simple fact is that some folks are severely restricted in the tackle that they can buy/store. A carper may have to make do with one set of rods and reels for every scenario. Chances are, especially with current trends in mind, that's likely to mean 3-3.5lb TC rods and big pit reels.

It's not something that I'd be happy with, but it's the reality for many. I go to the other extreme. I'll match rods and reels to the venue, species of fish, size of fish and the method being employed. Some folks give people like me stick for having too much gear.

The other possibility to consider is that he knows something about the size of the carp in the canal that you don't.

I had a walk around a POND advertised as a carp LAKE and saw a bloke actually using a bait boat to get freebies next to a lily pad at least 10 YARDS in front of him.
Must have forgotten his throwing stick!!!!!!

There's some big fish in our canals.
It's possible he knew what he was doing.
You could have had a friendly chat.

I think that TV fishing programmes lead anglers to think you need to fish every water with 3lb tc rods , pile in 3 kilo of boiling and need a golf cart to carry all their gear

Derek Gibson said:

I had a quick look on a local canal t'other day and was amazed to see a guy fishing matching Carp rods, and big pit reels.

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Maybe it's the only gear he had and was just dabbling with canal fishing.

I took a bit of flak on another fishing forum for going the other way with my pike gear. The rod was a 10 foot, cork handled salmon spinning rod coupled with either a smallish Baitrunner or a Abu multiplier. I used it on small still waters and rivers. It was fine for small dead and live baits and throwing lures.

I caught plenty of pike with the setup including a couple of 20s and none were played for an undue length of time. However, some people felt that I was under-gunned. From my point of view, I as using a fishing rod rather than broomstick and enjoyed the experience more as a result. It's not that I didn't have heavier gear, the matching 3.5lb TC rods stayed in the garage.

Yes, I think I would've gone with an opener of " nice looking rods and reels " or similar to be quickly followed by " what are you after " just to get the conversation going.....Most folk beam when tackle on show is appreciated and it's amazing what you can learn once the situation becomes relaxed !

Some half decent carp come from canals as do good eels if you fish into the night so although he looked to be over gunned perhaps he did know something. One thing is for sure - he wasn't going to lose whatever he might hook !!

I always fish to the conditions in front of me and with tackle to suit the target species. I don't want to keel haul good roach from a swim on carp tackle, anymore than I want to hook carp on a 14' match rod.
Obviously it doesn't always work out that way, but in my fishing I want to feel I'm using whatever skill I have gained over the years to land a hooked fish, and not just get it to the bank regardless. Hooking and playing a good roach on light tackle cannot be bettered in my book, but should a decent crucian or half decent perch come along, I think I can adjust to suit the vastly different style required to play those fish - and land them !

Having said that, I also appreciate some just don't have the array of tackle I have to choose from and heavier tackle has to do for the fishing they undertake over the course of a season...........

Pretty much as Sam Vimes says, although ' array of tackle ' means something entirely different to him than it does to me, I would suggest !! (add a winky smilie here ! )



I just have this vision of Sam entering specially fitted out room(s) and walking up and down racks of rods before choosing those required for the days outing.......The reels of course, would be in another room !

A young chap I see frequently during the school summer holidays at my local fishery, He fishes with three rods has a bivvy set up and his bombs sound like depth chargers hitting the water.
Days when he fishes his dad I suppose always comes around 4pm and sits with him, he seems proficient at casting.

I think you will find that this now the way that most carp anglers fish these days. I am not a carp angler but this appears to be the standard setup on the club lakes I fish.
A cheaper way of fishing, just having one set of tackle.

I quite often look at habitual carp anglers and wonder if they ever fish for other species. Still, there are fellas who chuck fluff at trout all day long and nobody gives them the same kind of stick. It takes all sorts...

robtherake said:

I quite often look at habitual carp anglers and wonder if they ever fish for other species.

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There are plenty that no longer fish for anything else. There are plenty that have never fished for anything else. I know that you can get similar stories amongst barbel and pike anglers.

Good luck to them, it maybe the only tackle they own and I would rather see them fishing the canal with over gunned tackle, than not fishing at all.

It's all to easy to sit in an ivory tower and say how things were or should be, but for my money fishing is a dying sport and Carp fishing keeps angling and especially tackle shops alive.

And who knows what lives in any canal, the ones around London hold Carp to over 40lbs and some huge Cats, so you never know.

Bob

"but for my money fishing is a dying sport"

Couldn't agree more, I don't know of anyone that as taken up fishing as a hobby in the last 10 years. I do know of others who have given it up.

steve2 said:

"but for my money fishing is a dying sport"

Couldn't agree more, I don't know of anyone that as taken up fishing as a hobby in the last 10 years. I do know of others who have given it up.

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Yes thats a terrible shame isn't it.
You will know Raphaels Park at Romford. When I was a kid you had trouble to find a space to fish in the school holidays and even in the winter there were lots of kids there at weekends.

steve2 said:

"but for my money fishing is a dying sport"

Couldn't agree more, I don't know of anyone that as taken up fishing as a hobby in the last 10 years. I do know of others who have given it up.

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I see lots of older blokes who have taken up fishing on retirement: maybe there's a shift toward people who are looking for a bit of quietude that's denied them in the hustle and bustle of modern life and the average age has gone up some. Judging by the shoulder-to-shoulder weekend anglers at commercials everywhere it's clear where everyone's gone and why the rivers and canals are so underused. Add in the fact that a goodly proportion of people are lazy and overweight - unused to walking any real distance, let alone encumbered by fishing clobber - and you see why instant fishing is so popular.

As for the young lads, they don't have the opportunities to get out there and just do it the way we had. Their parents suffer from media-enhanced paranoia and won't let them out of their sight, for the most part, and there's far less freedom to roam in any case, particularly if they've grown up in a big town or conurbation. I feel sorry for the younger generation, who'll never have it so good as we did.