Rapala Reflection Waders – Best Fishing Apparel EFTTEX 2011

Rapala Reflection WadersIt’s been a while since we saw a bold innovation like this in wader design. The Rapala Reflection Waders from Rapala’s Eco Wear range took top honours in the Apparel category at this years EFTTEX, in Amsterdam.

The innovation is two-pronged.

There’s a big tick in the box for the Eco warriors amongst us. Rapala worked with DuPont’s Cerenol technology – a first in waders – to create a highly waterproof and breathable wader using sustainable material derived from agriculture. The result is a product manufactured with 30% less fossil fuel and 35% less greenhouse gas emissions.

If saving the planet doesn’t turn you on, there’s still a big draw. The material used has reflective qualities that are said to mimic underwater light reflections, blurring angler outline and creating the perfect camouflage in certain light conditions.

Continue reading “Rapala Reflection Waders – Best Fishing Apparel EFTTEX 2011”

Rapala & Zoom top US Lure Survey

Rapala & Zoom LuresResults from the April Angler Survey undertaken by Southwick Associates in the United States reveals the following about the most purchased lures in the US:

Top brand of hard bait lure – Rapala purchased by 25% of survey respondents

Top brand of soft Continue reading “Rapala & Zoom top US Lure Survey”

The Big One Tackle Show 2010 – a great success

I attended The Big One fishing tackle show in Farnborough, on Saturday 20th February and hats off to Fishface Promotions – it was a cracker!

I haven’t seen any official visitor numbers but at times during the morning it was absolutely ram packed – hundreds and hundreds of anglers all looking for a bargain or two and taking advantage of the excellent displays and seminars by the tackle manufacturers and angling celebrities that attended.

Parking was easy and as promised there was a nice touch in that for anglers that overindulged themselves on the discount tackle (especially heavy ground-bait, pellet and boilies) there were a number of Continue reading “The Big One Tackle Show 2010 – a great success”

Tackle Discoveries in Greece

Those of you that follow my Twitter posts (Tweets) will know that I have just returned from a break in Corfu, Greece. As ever, a highlight for me in any trip abroad is a visit to a Tackle Shop – in this case I visited a couple of stores in Corfu Town.

I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of kit on offer. In terms of lures there were the expected brands like Rapala and Yo-Zuri, but also Lucky Craft, Smith and Shimano Butterfly Jigs. I also found a Ryobi Safari big game fixed spool which really is top-flight tackle. Rod choice on the other hand was a bit limited where I looked.

I had one item on my shopping list and I’m glad to say I got what I wanted. I’ve been attracted by a new type of jigging, originating in Japan. I’m not actually sure what the official name for it is yet but Shimano’s range of suited lures is named ‘Lucanus’. There are also ranges from Daiwa (Conch Jigs) amongst others. The only kind I’d managed to purchase in the UK was a Yabai Jig from Williamson – set me back a pretty penny too (£9). In Corfu I managed to purchase one of these jigs from a brand I’ve never come across before now – Alpha Tackles – the packaging says they are Japan made. I’m not so sure the quality is up to that but either way I was happy with a 100g version for 7 Euro. The model is a ‘Sea Grand – Salty Rubber Jig’. I’ll hopefully report how these perform next season. Continue reading “Tackle Discoveries in Greece”