Korum Trilogy Triple-Top Rod Review
Nobody in these topsy-turvy times should have been too surprised that one of the warmest weeks of the year fell slap-bang in the middle of September.
The poor old fish, having finished their nuptials, saw water temperatures on the rise once again – all very bizarre!
We now appear to be getting all four seasons in one month, and the recent hot and sunny spell has seen the fish, especially the carp, all back up on the surface.
All of which leads me nicely to this week’s live test. What better to tackle anything the weather throws at us, good or bad, than Korum’s recently released Trilogy rod? Handily, the company’s first-ever triple top fishing tool covers most specimen fishing situations.
Not that multi-purpose rods are anything new – your Auntie Maud’s old Grattan catalogue used to sell them – but they were truly hideous things, claimed to suit fly, match, pike and boat fishing but rubbish at all of these.
The new Trilogy is an altogether different kettle of fish, with a steely butt section and three interchangeable tops. These are rated to 1.75lb and 2.2lb test curves, and there’s also a Power Quiver option. The carbon weave construction adds strength where it counts, and a slimline cork handle with compact reel seat is all very stylish.
The medium-fast casting action will cope with all styles of specimen feeder fishing and legering situations.
The new Trilogy rod has three interchangeable tops
I’d originally planned to run the rule over Korum’s Trilogy on the Trent, using it for chub on the float and barbel on the tip.
To be honest, there isn’t anything particularly new about multi-purpose rods for river use. Plenty of twin-tops offer quiver and Avon options, but the Trilogy offers the angler a lot more versatility than that.
So, with the sun shining, my mission was to try three very different tactics in one day. First I’d target carp on floaters. Then it would be bream, tench and anything else that came along using a Method Feeder. Finally I’d switch to pellets and a pop-up in a PVA bag rig to see if I could snare a proper unit.
My destination for this marathon was Oxfordshire’s magnificent Clattercote Reservoir just outside Banbury, home to a truckload of bad-tempered and hard-fighting carp, shedloads of bream, and some really big tench.
Once in the car park, I quickly loaded my kit on to the barrow and headed to the shallow water at the top end of the reservoir – even shallower than I’d expected - and kicked off my session.
TACTIC No1 - Floater fishing
AS I suspected, there were plenty of decent-sized fish cruising the upper layers. So my opening gambit of fishing a hair-rigged mixer hookbait on a size 12 hook, attached to a 5ft-long length of clear 10lb mono hooklength and a 20g controller float, looked nailed on for a quick result.
The Trilogy’s 1.75lb top section is ideal for floater fishing
I’d chosen the Trilogy’s lighter 1.75lb top section for my floater tactics, as its slightly tippy casting and lightish test curve are ideal for what is basically heavy float work – you could also use this section to run a top-and-bottom Avon float down a river.
At 20g, the controller float was well within Korum’s suggested casting capabilities, maxing out at 5oz (141g). To me, that’s a tad optimistic and I wouldn’t want to load the 1.75lb tip with more than 3oz (85g). It does, though, have plenty of whip and would be ideal for heavy float and light lead tactics.
TACTIC No2 - switch to the METHOD
THE Power Quiver tip does exactly what its name suggests. It has a 1.5lb test curve and is finished off with an integral 19ins solid glass quivertip that I’d rate to around a 3oz-4oz test curve, making it ideal for pretty much any feeder situation.
The use of a glass quiver is a clever move by Korum, as tips like these have a smoother curvature than carbon, with superb bite detection whether you’re on a lake or a river. I chose a 45g distance flatbed Method and a much lighter 20g flatbed for the live test, and happily the rod handled both with equal ease.
The power quiver tip is a great tool for method fishing
The blank’s fast casting action makes this a very good two-piece tip rod that will handle a variety of angling situations. I can also vouch for its distance casting capability, as it will propel a feeder or lead up to 80 yards with very little effort.
TACTIC no3 - Mid-range PVA BAG
NOW it was time to step things up a gear to the 2.25lb test curve top section. I decided to fish this with a solid PVA bag full of micro pellets, a 2.5oz bag lead, and 12mm pop-up hookbait on a hair rig.
The heavier top section does dampen down the rod’s perky, fast action and it’s not really a distance-casting top.
But it does allow the use of heavier reel lines and terminal tackle when big fish are the quarry.
For me, the rod is ideal for mid-range PVA bag and straight lead tactics up to around 75 yards out. I found the blank’s slow, almost lazy progressive action quite interesting, and concluded it would be an ideal rod for targeting big bream or tench in snaggy/weedy swims where hook-pulls often occur. The action has a dampening feel with plenty of pulling clout.
The 2.25lb test curve tip is for proper carp fishing with heavier lines and leads
What’s the final verdict?
Korum’s Triple Top is one of a kind!
THIS rod can’t be easily rated against its nearest rival, as to the best of my knowledge there isn’t one. So have the guys at Korum truly cracked the three-rods-in-one conundrum? Well, what we have here is a really clever rod that is nicely finished, looks the part and clearly has many uses in the specimen angling arena.
What’s more, it comes at a price that makes it possibleto own a pair of Trilogies for less than what you’d pay for one traditional feeder rod.
So given the trend towards multiple rod set-ups, maybe you should push the boat out and buy three!
Price: £99.99
Push the boat out and buy three, you won’t regret it!
Garbolino 9ft Synergy Picker Rod Review
Short rods have become all the rage in recent years.
A large proportion of today’s commercial lakes have the main features at between 15m and 30m range, and a 9ft tool is ample for reaching that kind of distance with ease.
The main benefit of such a short rod becomes evident when you’re playing fish. Get your quarry under the rod tip and the shorter the rod is, the more likely you are to sweep the net under the fish at the first time of asking.
With demand for rods of this length growing, it’s little surprise that ever more manufacturers are ploughing time and money into making new models that fit the bill.
Garbolino has certainly picked up on this modern trend, and its new 9ft Synergy Picker is aimed primarily at those anglers who do a lot of short range feeder and bomb work.
Priced at just under £70, it falls into the category where it will be many angler’s first serious rod. It’s going to be their pride and joy, and they’re going to expect it to perform, feel and look a lot better than the budget starter kit they purchased when just starting out. I can pretty much guarantee that they won’t feel short-changed with this little cracker!
The 9ft Synergy Picker is aimed primarily at those anglers who do a lot of short range feeder and bomb work.
Short range delight
Manor Farm Leisure in Evesham is one of my favourite fisheries, and with short-range work often the name of the game there, it seemed the ideal testing ground for the rod.
A light bomb was threaded on to the 6lb mainline and lobbed 20m out on Ash Pool. The true casting ability of a rod like this doesn’t really come into the equation when fishing at such short range. The true power of the rod would only really be tested if and when the fish played ball.
Thankfully, that didn’t take long, with a big F1 soon snaffling up the 8mm pellet hookbait, sending the reel clutch screaming into life.
It was instantly noticeable that the rod had a good progressive action, and every time the fish lunged in anger, it was absorbed.
That is an important quality when fishing at short range because your whole set-up comes under pressure the split second the hook is set.
The 3lb fish was soon beaten and I hadn’t felt under-gunned. In fact, there was definitely more in reserve should I have needed to pull back aggressively during a more intense encounter with a bigger fish.
Those anglers who prefer to fish further out are well catered for within the range because the Synergy Picker is also available in 10ft or 11ft versions.
It was instantly noticeable that the rod had a good progressive action, and every time the fish lunged in anger, it was absorbed.
All-round promise
Most 9ft rods are developed exclusively with carp and F1s in mind, but the team at Garbolino has tried to make this rod more of an all-rounder.
Three tips have been included – 0.5oz glass, and 0.75oz and 1oz carbon – to provide different levels of bite detection. Stick the lightest of the lot on and the subtle nudges from skimmers and other silvers won’t go undetected.
Three tips have been included
During the test I used the 1oz version. If you’ve ever fished the bomb and pellet at this time of year, you’ll know that you don’t need much sensitivity to spot the rip-roaring bites and a heavier tip helps to set the hook firmly in such situations.
In my eyes, this rod would be equally at home bagging hard-fighting F1s every chuck as it would be on mixed waters where a chunky skimmer could show up one cast and a double-figure carp the next. There’s finesse in its playing action, but it also has a decent amount of backbone in the slimline blank to make sure you are in charge of each fight.
It’s overall appearance is admirable too, with the mixed cork and EVA handle and graphics on the blank helping it to really look the part.
There’s also a few little add-ons that provide convenience, such as the hook keeper ring and a guide on the blank to remind you of what size feeders are appropriate for use with the rod.
The hook keeper ring is a nice add-on
If you’re new to the sport and have come to the conclusion that fishing is likely to become a lifelong obsession as opposed to a post-lockdown fling, this rod will certainly provide that step up in quality you’re after.
RRP: £69.99
This rod will certainly provide that step up in quality you’re after.
Free Spirit Hi-S 8ft Feeder rod review
This flagship 8ft rod is ideal when casts of 20m-25m are called for. Like all short rods it’s relatively easy to compress, making it super-accurate even at those tricky shorter ranges.
The Free Spirit Hi-S 8ft Feeder rod is a classy product
In fishing terms, this means you shouldn’t be afraid to cast it properly overhead as you would a normal length feeder rod.
As a top-end model it’s furnished with high quality anti-frap guides, has a cut-away Fuji reel seat that’s said to give the rod more feel, and is supplied with two unique Free Spirit hollow carbon quivers of 0.5oz and 0.75oz.
Supplied with two unique Free Spirit hollow carbon quivers of 0.5oz and 0.75oz.
Longer than standard push-in quivers, these are far less prone to movement post-cast, and they give the blank a highly distinctive fish-playing action.
I’ll make no bones about it, like other models in Free Spirit’s award-winning Hi-S range this is a classy and well-bred rod.
It has plenty of feel when playing a fish, and a casting potential that belies its modest 8ft length. It also packs more than enough backbone to dissuade a big carp from getting underneath your platform.
Price: £269
Free Spirit CTX 8ft Short Range Feeder Rod Review
As its name suggests, the CTX 8ft Feeder comes into its own when accuracy of cast is more important than chucking great distances, making it the perfect rod for snake lakes, small commercial ponds, canals and most short-chuck venues.
It’s equally useful for straight lead tactics just beyond the pole line, or as an alternative to the pole itself when high winds make other options impossible.
The unique action powers up the blank from tip to butt, and an anti-locking fighting curve allows light terminal gear to be used for big fish.
The two-piece blank is of quality carbon, with a Bi-Axis weave. Features include Fuji High Stand Off match guides, original Fuji VSS17 lock-down reel seat and a cork handle with EVA thumb grip. It comes with 1oz and 2oz carbon quivers and another glass tip of 0.75oz.
It comes with 1oz and 2oz carbon quivers and another glass tip of 0.75oz
A great all-round rod, and I wouldn’t hesitate to have one in my holdall. If you like your rods with a bit of action, you’ll love the CTX, and it’s ideal for hooklengths down to 0.10mm and small hooks.
Price: £114.99
The CTX is the perfect rod for snake lakes
Preston Carbonactive Distance Master rod review
ANYONE whose fishing trips don’t always go exactly to plan can relate to this week’s live test. And that means all of you!
Traditional match fishing lore dictates that in the chilly waters of winter we should cut right down on how much bait we use. And okay, I confess that my sixth cast in 20 minutes using a big Method feeder full of micros might have been over the top.
The truth is, I was struggling. There’d been a frost that morning, an easterly wind was howling across the water, and I didn’t really know much about the Big Lake at Bain Valley Fisheries in Lincolnshire, where I’d pitched up to put Preston’s turbo-charged 13ft 2ins Distance Master rod through its paces.
I clocked the chap two pegs away who’d turned up about an hour earlier. Perched on a tatty old fishing chair, he looked friendly enough, so I gave him that ‘who knows?’ shrug of the shoulders familiar to all anglers who haven’t got a clue what to do next.
Talk about being taken down a notch or two. Without even looking at me he muttered: “Thee can put it in, but thee can’t take it out,” alluding to the fact that I might have been a bit gung-ho with the bait.
Feeders ahoy!
I was determined to put on a show for my critic, and I figured that a mesmerising long-distance cast would surely impress. Standing up on my seatbox footplate, I adjusted the line drop to halfway down the blank and made sure I caught his eye while unleashing a monster cast.
A lightning-fast swoosh of the rod followed, using every inch of its extra-long handle. It was casting perfection, proper textbook stuff, or so I thought.
The ‘crack’ of snapping line was audible in the next county as my 45g Method feeder flew straight up through the ozone layer. After what seemed an eternity, the old boy broke the silence. “Thee’s loosefeeding feeders now then as well?”
In my eagerness to impress, I hadn’t noticed the coil of line that had worked itself around the back of the spool! Cue the arrival of photographer Lloyd, who asked my tormentor if he’d caught anything.
“No, but it’s entertaining just sitting here watching your pal,” he replied.
Casting perfection
When you need to find a fish, staring at the water can sometimes be your salvation, and sure enough, I saw one show way out in the lake.
I didn’t wish the niggly neighbour good luck as I hurriedly bundled everything back into the car, and two minutes later I was round the other side of the lake. I already had full confidence in the Preston Distance Master’s casting capabilities… it was my own that needed sorting out. Changing from a Method feeder to a 60g straight lead and a hefty 12lb shockleader, I reckoned popped-up bread discs fished as 18ins-high zig rigs would surely do the business.
The slightly thicker knot between mainline and shocker whizzed through the rod’s oversized guides as the steely mid-section kicked in, fairly sizzling the lead out well past 100 yards.
For such a supreme casting tool, the rod felt remarkably responsive and tactile, and the crisp tip section generated very little in the way of recoil or post-cast bounce. I was mightily impressed. Barely had the reel line tightened against the 2oz quiver I’d chosen to use when its eye-catching fluoro-orange tip dropped back. It was a typical bite on popped-up bread from a winter carp.
Because I was using a suspended hookbait, rather than snatching the rod from its rest, I wound down cautiously until I made contact with the fish which, feeling the pressure, bolted in a bid for freedom.
Perfect build
At moments like that you realise why all the best 13ft-plus Distance Master Feeder rods are made with short carrier sections. It enables the top section to respond with just enough cushioning to make hook-pulls highly unlikely, even from carp and bream hooked at the longest of ranges.
And there was no danger of such a thing happening with this pretty hefty carp, which I was able to lead towards my waiting net with the absolute minimum of fuss.
The Distance Master comes with 2oz, 3oz and 4oz carbon quivertips, all boasting large diameter rings, and a couple of inches of reinforcing around the top of the carrier section joint point to a rod that’s been designed by top anglers who really know what they are doing.
Make no mistake, this is a ‘keeper’ of a rod that will become a firm favourite the first time you use it. And, compared to many of its ilk, it offers superb value for money.
Price: £245.99,
www.anglingdirect.co.uk
Preston 10ft Supera SL feeder rod review
NOT all rods are designed to launch a bait over the horizon – and Preston Innovations’ two new Supera SL Feeder rods are the fishing equivalent of middle-distance runners.
Both the 10ft and 11ft versions deliver those shorter casts when bream, roach and skimmers are the target.
A soft, seamless through action prevents hook pulls that can lose you a match, yet the rods double up as the perfect winter commercial fishery tools for F1s and carp on maggot feeder and straight lead tactics.
That much I’d already been told through reading the blurb, but to confirm these claims I treated myself to a day’s live testing of the 10-footer on Decoy Lakes Fishery near Peterborough.
The famed Beastie Lake plays host to plenty of skimmers and roach, while its gravel bottom is paved, not with gold but with F1s, barbel, and a truckload of fit and fat carp. However, like many fisheries that get bashed by matches all weekend, Monday is go-slow day for the inhabitants.
I plonked myself on a peg renowned for its head of skimmers – the fact that it had also delivered 100lb of carp the day before meant I felt confident of getting a few pulls, while also getting a feel of the very rod Lee Kerry used to win the Feeder Masters final last year. I tried to ignore the weather – it was cold enough for icicles to form on a polar bear’s bum.
There are a couple of commercial fishery tactics you can rely on in the cold – a straight lead set-up with corn, or a small blockend carp feeder with maggots. Both have their moments, but the maggot feeder seems the better bet for silvers when you’re faced with cold and slightly coloured water.
Given these conditions, most matchmen favour lightweight feeder or bomb rods – normal carp or Method feeder rods don’t have enough finesse to be teamed with light hooklengths and small hooks. What you really need is a rod with a softer action – enter the Supera SL.
My session was progressing very slowly, so I began to fine down my end tackle to a point where I might reach critical mass if a decent-sized carp rocked up.
As I was pondering this, round went the 0.75oz tip, not to the delicate inquiry of a roach or skimmer but the full-frontal assault of something far meatier.
It was clear to me at this point that the rod had undergone some serious field-trialling from the talented Preston match team – the blank’s seamless action was peerless. Not only did it deal brilliantly with the little chaps, but the carp squad too. Neither overgunned and pokey, nor sloppy and soppy, it performed like an A-list celeb.
Classy Sea Guide rings are perfectly placed along its two-sectioned high modulus carbon body, while a reduced length cork and EVA handle make it manageable to cast and set up. It comes with three graded quivers of 0.5oz, 0.75oz and 1oz.
Summing up, the Supera SL is an ideal all-round winter commercial lead rod with plenty of flexibility. In its 10ft incarnation with the lightest 0.5oz quivertip fitted it’s a proper little charmer, ideal for snake lakes (naturally), small pools and ponds, in fact anywhere that demands light lines, small hooks and short casts.
Mark’s verdict
IT’S true that many matchmen use the same feeder rod both summer and winter, but these are the same people you’ll hear bawling out expletives when they lose a fish at the netting stage.
Take it from me, this isn’t going to happen when you fish with a Supera SL, and you’ll be so much more popular with the angler at the next peg. Who needs splashy dramatics from your near neighbours when there’s coin to be won?
Price: £159.99 (but shop around)
Guru 11ft Aventus Feeder rod review
FEW rods on the market can boast the pedigree of the quartet that make up the Guru Aventus Feeder range.
They were designed by Guru’s expert match team, and no stone has been left unturned in terms of quality and innovation.
That, though, is only half the story. The rods are manufactured and dressed in the UK by Daiwa, using the finest carbons and the best possible fittings, and they are engineered to a premium grade that pushes carbon specifications to their limit.
A unique double layering of multi-directional carbon fibres gives the blanks unparalleled linear strength, so they retain their tubular cross-section when the rod is compressed on the cast.
Add in a super-fast tip recovery speed, pleasing crispness and a lightweight feel, and the end result is accurate, precise casting, coupled with impressive power on the strike. In truth, the Aventus range covers all styles of feeder-flinging, whether that’s a delicate approach with thin lines and small hooks or chucking a payload to the horizon.
Three graded push-in quivertips come with each model, giving you plenty of flexibility as conditions dictate. The rod on live test duty, the two-piece 11ft Aventus Feeder, suits the better part of all your commercial feeder and straight lead tactics.
Despite its modest length you only have to have a cast or two to appreciate what it is capable of doing. Using a mini 30g Guru Hybrid feeder and giving the rod a hefty whack using 8lb mainline, the feeder hit the clip hard at 17.5 wraps (75 yards), with plenty still left in the casting locker should I have needed it.
The action of this Aventus reminded me a lot of the original and still much sought-after Carbotec Feeder. Both feel as though a ribbon of elastic has been threaded through the blank, so forgiving is it when playing a big fish.
The Aventus, however, benefits from cutting edge tech and is dressed with seriously good fittings, including oversized Fuji Alconite K-Guides. These are seemingly bulletproof, and will prevent most snarl-ups and tangles. All are ideally positioned to achieve perfect casting compression and playing action.
The Grade A cork handle is considerably longer than you’re expect on an 11ft rod and the added leverage, so I’m told, makes for longer and more accurate casts.
If there’s a tiny shadow on the horizon, it’s the price. At a penny under 400 quid it certainly isn’t cheap, but as with all things, you get what you pay for. The 11ft Guru Aventus Feeder really is as good as it gets.
Price: £399.99
Verdict
GURU’S Aventus rods have been around for a while now, and I have heard many comments about them – good, bad and indifferent. However, as a tackle editor I try to keep an open mind, taking any rod as I find it, rather than basing my judgement on its price or reputation.
The casting power of the 11ft Feeder belies its fabulous cushioned fish-playing action, miraculously married to a steely mid-section that adds to its big-fish credentials.
For me the handle was a little long for an 11ft rod, but I can see why Guru went down that road – for a little ’un it packs one hell of a cast!
GURU AVENTUS 11FT FEEDER TECH SPEC
Length: 11ft l Sections: Two
Recommended line: 3lb-10lb
Casting weight: 70g
Tips: Three – 1oz, 2oz and 3oz
Other rods in the Aventus range:
10ft Guru Aventus Feeder
12ft Guru Aventus Distance Feeder
13ft Guru Aventus Distance Feeder