Rods

Shimano produced the original big-pit carp reel many moons ago in the form of ground-breaking Long Cast Baitrunner, which has always been the preferred reel of many specimen anglers. The XT-A is the new modernised version of its predecessor, which is just as reliable and as much of a bombproof workhorse as before, with a few additional features that help to improve on what was an already great product. The slow oscillation helps achieve an even better uninhibited line lay to aid distance and accuracy when casting. Constructed from modern materials and with a more up-to-date design, the XT-A Long Cast has been reworked to improve durability and the internal gears redesigned to increase the cranking power.

Big-pit reels have always been seen to be the jack-of-all-trades but the Avid Air Range Spod is certainly the master of one! Designed with spodding in mind, the team at Avid Carp has produced the Air Range Spod reel. Unlike previous dedicated spod reels, which also doubled as marker reels, this one has no clutch system, meaning that it’s really a job-specific spodding tool. The removal of the clutch makes perfect sense because this eliminates any of the dreaded spool slip, which can inhibit casting and result in failure to hit the required distance and end up in a wild bird’s nest. Furthermore, it reduced the overall weight of the reel dramatically to a mere 680 grams, which is key on a reel that is often used over long and constant periods of time.

I used the previous incarnation of the Ultegra 5500, lovingly christened the ‘baby big pit’ although that one didn’t boast Shimano’s unique Front Baitrunner system. When Shimano asked me to upgrade my test set to this, the latest model, I wasn’t sure that I wanted to switch, although I thought the Baitrunner might be a handy addition. I should never have shown any hesitation and, somehow, Shimano has managed to make the 5500 even better. The number equates to the size of the reel – there’s a 14000 version for you out-and-out distance anglers – and it sits between compact and big pit in terms of reel bodies and capacity.

• Mid-sized reel in the XTR-RA Baitrunner range • Balanced, double handle• Supplied with a spare anodised spoolPrice: £194. 99Website: www. shimano. com.

Nano Technology is very much the buzz word in carp-rod design right now, and Greys has spent three years perfecting its own to create what looks like an extremely decent range of wands. Its Toreno composite technology claims to create a rod with a stronger and lighter blank but with no compromise in terms of action and performance. We don’t really need to delve any deeper into the science of it all, but in layman’s terms you could say that the result should be a terrific carp rod with all-round performance. Just about every rod on the market claims to offer casting performance with sustained playability, but the reality is that only a handful probably actually deliver on this promise.

It’s been a very long time since I used any rods apart from my own, which I have owned for three years. Although my rods have a 3. 5lb test curve I have always found them less than beefy and my casting has been restricted to around the 100-yard mark. However, having used these for some time, I can testify to their casting prowess.