David Preston bags Single Scale at 53lb

Just a week after banking a 44lb 10oz mirror from the ultra-tricky Ashmead Carp Syndicate, David Preston has banked the lake’s largest resident known as Single Scale at 53lb.

The Preston Innovations boss stuck with scaled-down tackle approach and after seeing a large fish show at close range he cast out a 10mm Avid High Lite hookbait on a simple pop-up rig tied with a Captive coated braid hooklink and a prototype hook.

“The carp are extremely cagey in the lake so I used backleads to keep my line pinned down,” said David. “This did the trick and it wasn’t long before my alarm screamed into life. Ashmead is made up of narrow channels, spits and small bays, so the fight was an experience to say the least. Following a lengthy scrap and a few last-minute lunges, I eventually bundled the mirror into the net.”