The Gentle Art of Angling

Following on from the Barbel thread “ Has Barbel tackle gone to far” it seems to me that this could be written about most forms of angling now. It seem that rods, reels and poles are now built for power in order to drag fish in rather than play fish in gently.
You only have to read the name like Yank and Bank, Beastmaster, Power this and power that. Massive reels holding miles of line. A few years ago I did an experiment; I only did it once just to see how quick I could land a fish. Using a large bait runner reel and a 2lb rod I was able to wind an 8lb carp straight up to the net without giving line. Rods and reels now have even more power so now we can just drag fish out of the water if we want to and unfortunately that all that some appear to want to do. I have seen large fish dragged across the surface in matches using these tactics.
What ever happened to the gentle art of Angling?

The belief that it is fish friendly to use heavy tackle,so as not to lose fish,or prolong fight times,doesn't cause line damage to flanks and mouths though eh,might be a case for being stressed out being dragged in as well,they might shoot off when returned,but so would I,if that had just happened to me,i'm just pleased that I do what I want to do,to give me the experience I want from fishing,that would change if I suffered losses,but that isn't happening,so life goes on,enjoy...:w

steve2 said:

Following on from the Barbel thread “ Has Barbel tackle gone to far” it seems to me that this could be written about most forms of angling now. It seem that rods, reels and poles are now built for power in order to drag fish in rather than play fish in gently.

You only have to read the name like Yank and Bank, Beastmaster, Power this and power that. Massive reels holding miles of line. A few years ago I did an experiment; I only did it once just to see how quick I could land a fish. Using a large bait runner reel and a 2lb rod I was able to wind an 8lb carp straight up to the net without giving line. Rods and reels now have even more power so now we can just drag fish out of the water if we want to and unfortunately that all that some appear to want to do. I have seen large fish dragged across the surface in matches using these tactics.

What ever happened to the gentle art of Angling?

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I was thinking similar the other day, what bought it to mind was finding a length of braid someone had left behind and a pigeon got caught up in it. After extracting the pigeon it made me think you could probably tow a small car on the thickness of that braid.
I was always taught lighter tackle gave good presentation, which then taught me how to play a fish.

And pleasure Rich,something that we are supposed to get,a sporting pleasure,that the fish should have some chance of escape,a sporting chance,not none,i've been slated before for saying that,but for all that I would leaving a hook in a fish,is more favourable than having tackle that can't be broken trailed behind fish,with all the safety accessories that come with it...it sounds like i'm angry when reading this back,but i'm not,i'm just at a loss to where we're heading as a SPORT...

I couldn't agree more Steve . . . . which is why so many of us prefer to use older tackle, and rods and reels to get back to those kinder and more gentle days for our fishing.

Given a Mk IV Avon split cane rod and a centre pin reel you simply cannot "yank and bank" fish of any size . . . . . .

I know it is not for everyone, and each to their own, naturally, but it does give you a super sense of the days gone by and also makes you little more appreciative when you revert to modern tackle.

The rod company that named one of it's rods "Armalite" and started a trend has a lot to answer for, lol.


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It would be be fair to say the majority of 'Gentle Art' anglers are from older generations. You see folk after their first Barbel and it's always carp gear/style and when you see them after their first Grayling it's an awkward affair to say the least. Why? Because they've learned their skills on commercials with instant success.

I know it's just a bit of fun and each to their own but the finesse side of things is getting rarer by the day as is the 'lets catch anything and have a nice day' ethos. Seems it's a more 'big fish or blank' mantra

It's got to the state where you're getting criticism for fishing light or losing fish which isn't good.

With respect the name tackle companies put on rods and poles is not to enable anglers to fish in such a manner. I believe they are nothing more than a marketing ploy.
Yank and bank is typical as is drag N net, both poles built for margin fishing. The name to my mind is to denote the strength of the kit rather than how they should be used.
Certainly there are the odd loony inexperienced fishers that may think that is how to fish, even these anglers soon get the message that if you try to over do it when landing fish far too many fish are lost. Braided lines are not generally allowed on commercials.

Of course fish on commercials get damaged mouths, my thinking is that when fish of double figures are mixed with newer stock anglers get the idea to drag theses smaller fish from the water because their tackle is strong enough to do so. I'm more amazed that some anglers don't carry a disgorger so that could also be a reason for damaged mouths or cuts that rarely recover.
Nothing to do with the name of the tackle, just anglers who care next to nothing for fish they catch. bigger fish get more respect because they need or feel they need to land them.

Braid is generally used by specimen anglers, I have no reason to believe they would drag fish over the surface either. I reckon specimen anglers think more about the fish they catch than any other angler, they just about all carry one care kit or another to treat wounds caused by hooks/lines. Place their catches on unhooking mats, put them in sacks to recover or to take pictures at a better time.
They even name them as if they are children

I'm sorry but I can't believe anyone could drag a carp across the surface of any water. I know I have never seen it happen when fish of any size have been hooked.
I just wonder how fast an angry carp has to be winched in to keep it on the surface.

I realise my thoughts appear to be different from others on this topic, I must also add it is not to elicit an argument.

By large I am not talking double figure fish I am talking about match-sized fish of 2/3lb. I sat next to an “angler “ in a match that was doing just that for speed fishing.
I never carry fish care kits simply because if I was that worried about damage and welfare of fish I wouldn't fish in the first place and shouldn’t all fish carp or not no matter what size also be treated as well after all these are your future big ones.

Daft names on rods mean very little. There are quite light rods out there with macho b/s names on them. Blame marketing men, but don't assume that a Beastmaster rod really is. The next thing worth remembering is that a fish can only be dragged out, regardless of how heavy the gear being used is, if the angler chooses to drag it out. You can play fish on inordinately heavy gear if you choose to do so. The fact that it may be a rather dismal experience is another matter entirely.

As a bland statement, it's perfectly true that I often trot with ten pound braid on my centrepins. I know that will leave some apoplectic. It's not the full story though. I fish heavy braid mainly because it's rather difficult to buy lighter. Lighter can actually be too flyaway to be any use. I'm also using rods and hook links that many would consider too light.

Passing judgement and making assumptions based on marketing b/ s and bland figures taken out of context or misunderstood is a rather dangerous game. Test curve ratings and stupid names are both red herrings that many seem as desperate to cling to as a drowning man to a life preserver.

I'm looking forward to when all the marketing trends change in favour of finesse and I'm proudly marching along the bank with my six foot flea spanker

So Sam,when you buy a set of carp rods,do you not look at the test curves before checking them against other like rods,before making your final decision,specialist type rods have to be given a rating,some are sticks of rhubarb,others are pokers,that doesn't alter the fact that a starting point is required,Danny Fairbrass uses 3.75lb Infinity's,wow,anglers use whatever gear they like,trouble with that is that when it becomes standard practice,people on lighter gear get chastised...As for 'playing' fish on heavy rods and tackle,why,what is the point,the only person being fooled is the angler imv...A good friend of mine landed 3 different 40lb carp on 6lb mono(he used this for casting purposes with a shocker),no problems whatsoever,2'75lb t.c. rods.A question i'm keen to ask,I take it your trotting for barbel with the braid Sam,is that for responsive reasons?

Sam vimes has it bang on, tackle brand names can never be blamed for bad angling or using tackle inappropriately.
It seems some folk can't use anything without instruction. What happened to common sense.

There's a balance to be struck. A slightly famous angler once said that he'd rather have several average scraps and a good battle with a better fish that ended up in the bag than several excellent fights followed by a titanic battle resulting in the loss of the prize. I err on the heavy side because a lack of practice inevitably results in disaster if I go too light, though my idea of heavy is still a fair bit lighter than what has become the norm.

I just wonder sometimes why some are so interested in the way that others fish, as long as the fish comes to no harm why bother what rod or line strength anyone uses? if anyone that fishes is so concerned for the fishes welfare stop sticking bits of metal in them and join p***

I could afford a wooden rod nevermind use one but others can and do enjoy owning and using them, there are lots of things within angling that I wouldn't use/do, I just do my own thing and if someone wants to use whatever for there angling good luck to them its nowt to do with me.

whitty said:

So Sam,when you buy a set of carp rods,do you not look at the test curves before checking them against other like rods,before making your final decision,specialist type rods have to be given a rating,some are sticks of rhubarb,others are pokers,that doesn't alter the fact that a starting point is required,Danny Fairbrass uses 3.75lb Infinity's,wow,anglers use whatever gear they like,trouble with that is that when it becomes standard practice,people on lighter gear get chastised...As for 'playing' fish on heavy rods and tackles,why,what is the point,the only person being fooled is the angler imv...A good friend of mine landed 3 different 40lb carp on 6lb mono(he used this for casting purposes with a shocker),no problems whatsoever,2'75lb t.c. rods.A question i'm keen to ask,I take it your trotting for barbel with the braid Sam,is that for responsive reasons?

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Test curves alone tell you very little about a rod. I may take note of them to give me a rough idea of what a rod might be capable of casting, but that's about it. I have numerous rods. I have 1.25 test Avon of various types. Some bend to the corks for their rating, others barely or more than flex the top third for the same rating. I have carp rods and barbel rods that are just the same. You can end up with wildly different rods if you buy on the basis of test curves alone. Test curves in isolation are a waste of time. People's obsession with them borders on the ridiculous.

As for my use of braid when trotting, sometimes I'll be fishing for barbel with it. As often as not I won't be. However, I use it with rods and hook links (invariably mono or fluoro) appropriate for whatever I may be fishing for.

As for the rest, I couldn't care less what Danny Fairbrass uses. I don't much care what anyone else uses. However, I won't go down the road of castigating anyone that doesn't conform to the way I fish. Nor will I make assumptions based on the style of fishing they're doing or the name on their rods.

sam vimes said:

Test curves alone tell you very little about a rod.

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Taper, thickness of blank, material used, weight of rings even what manufacturer, just some of the things that can affect how a rod performs.

I'll love to add some comments on this thread but last time i stated that i used 6lb line and a 1.25 Avon rod i was slated on another forum. Some said i was cruel to the fish i target as i can't drag them straight in. I think it cruel to drag them in fast belly flopping on the water. That's match fishing, not pleasure fishing. Am now waiting to be slated again.

If we all liked and used the same rod, the same line, the same reel there would only be one manufacturer and what a boring world that would be! The same can be said about cars, holiday destinations, food, language , in fact any commodity, hobby or item you care to mention.

Not everything is determined by google

---------- Post added at 18:21 ---------- Previous post was at 18:17 ----------

iain t said:

I'll love to add some comments on this thread but last time i stated that i used 6lb line and a 1.25 Avon rod i was slated on another forum. Some said i was cruel to the fish i target as i can't drag them straight in. I think it cruel to drag them in fast belly flopping on the water. That's match fishing, not pleasure fishing. Am now waiting to be slated again.

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If my fishing consisted of "dragging"in fish after fish after fish, I would have given up 12 months ago. I am happy for the fish to have a fair chance and indeed but for dozy bream one could say I am far too laissez faire with most species I am thrilled when a 1lb roach really puts a bend in the rod and puts up a real struggle. Such an opponent deserves respect!

iain t said:

I'll love to add some comments on this thread but last time i stated that i used 6lb line and a 1.25 Avon rod i was slated on another forum. Some said i was cruel to the fish i target as i can't drag them straight in. I think it cruel to drag them in fast belly flopping on the water. That's match fishing, not pleasure fishing. Am now waiting to be slated again.

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The reasons why you shouldn't be have all been said before, only you know where, how, and what you are fishing for any criticism would be based on what the angler doing the criticising does not on what you do. All I will say is a responsible angler wont put his quarry in danger if they can help it.