STRONGER RODS

If you’ve not fished for carp for a few years, it’s the test curves of modern rods that might surprise you most on your reintroduction to the sport. Where once a 2lb test curve was a beefy all-rounder and a 2.75lb a poker-stiff beast, we use much stronger tools. Don’t be fooled into thinking modern carping is all about using telegraph poles, though. Advances in carbon technology mean higher test curves can be incorporated into much more forgiving actions. There are now 3.5lb rods that bend throughoutand 3.75lb that, while certainly designed for casting, won’t bump margin fish.