Preston Pro Type 510 fishing pole 16m

PACKAGE

16m pole

Four Roller Pulla Power Kits

One match kit inside pole

One Kupping Kit

One half extension

PAY AROUND

£849.99

The eagerly-awaited second generation of Preston Innovations’ Pro Type poles has arrived.

The new 210, 310, 410, 510 models – plus a dedicated carp pole – boast many impressive new features, while retaining many of the positive characteristics that made the originals so popular among match anglers. These latest poles are lighter, stiffer and more responsive than these, and are said to be stronger and even more rigid. Anglers will welcome reinforced butt sections, section alignment arrows and an Easy Slide finish, while an improved spares package includes pre-fitted PTFE top kits, roller bushes and protective tubes.

The 16m top-of-the range 510 model on live test duty comes in at under a thousand quid, with a suggested price of £849.99 – not to be sniffed at for a 16m pole these days – and having surfed the net I can confirm that it’s available even cheaper if you shop around a bit. It’s got a comprehensive spares package, and comes with enough top kits to make it multi-venue- friendly straight from the holdall.

You get a spare Match kit, ideal for light elastics and silvers, as well as four Roller Pulla Power kits for normal commercial fishery use. To that little lot you can add a Kupping kit with Kups and a handy half extension. Ideally suited to the keen club angler, this pole is very much at home on the smaller ponds, pools and snake lakes that most clubs favour for their matches, where match-sized carp, F1s and silvers are the targets.

With that in mind, the new 510 was taken for its day’s trialling to the picture-postcard Monkhall Fishery (www.monkhallfishery.co.uk). Set in deepest Shropshire, its five lakes are carved into the south-facing side of a rolling valley, with a superb scenic backdrop to your fishing. If you want a day away from road noise, walkers, bikers, boats and general irritations, this is as peaceful a venue as you will find. It also has a café and a small caravan park, and caters for bed and breakfast guests.

Anyway, back to the real reason for my visit. The 10-section 510 pole comes in three pieces – a 13m butt section containing seven sections, including the Match kit which comes with it, plus 14.5m and 16m parallel extensions. During the trial all joints fitted together really well, and came apart without fuss first time, every time. This was despite the wet weather, which often proves the undoing (or the reverse!) of many new poles.

Fished at its longest 16m length there were no annoying knocks, squeaks or cracking noises, and every one of its section arrow- aligned joints felt strong and reliable for the long haul. The Easy Slide finish was clearly evident and played its part in the wet. Shipping damp rain-spattered sections often proves sticky and tricky, but not this time. The 510 handles with a silky smoothness that belies its lightweight price.

At its 13m length it’s fairly stiff and certainly quick enough to hit fast-biting F1s and silvers. However, I wouldn’t be telling the truth if I said it handles as sweetly at 14.5m and 16m as it does at 13m. I did, though, fish quite happily with it at 14.5m for most of the live test.

If I owned this pole I would choose my elastics with some thought to the length of its top kits, especially when coupled with hollow elastic. From a size 14 upwards there’s a slightly top-heavy feel reflected in the handling, especially when you have a pot sitting on the top kit. But if you aim at hollows from a size 12 and under, and solids above that, you won’t go far wrong. I haven’t checked with Preston's about the Pro Type 510 maximum elastic recommendations, but I’d have no qualms about threading a solid 16 through one of its Roller Pulla top kits.
 

VERDICT

A great improvement on Preston’s original Pro Type poles, this new top-of-the-range 510 boasts plenty of key add-ons such as section alignment arrows and an Easy Slide finish. Absolutely bang on the money for the keen club match angler, it’s usable at its longest lengths and would be every bit as good at bagging carp as it would at snatching silvers. What’s more, the spares package doesn’t need further investment to make the pole compatible with a host of venue types. 

Mark Sawyer