| The next bit of kit to show was his chosen rods for the day, two Shimano Technium 12 foot beasts with a 2 1/4 lb test curve. A rod made for the specimen market but one also ideally suited to this style of fishing. Steve recommends that if the Technium is not the ideal rod for you then a rod with a test curve of 1 1/2 lb - 1 3/4 lb would be suitable for a venue such as Drayton. Why the Technium then? Well it is a very soft rod able to offer some compensation when playing fish, and the rod suits Steve.
Attached to the rod was a Shimano 5000GTE aero bait runner reel offering a 4.5:1 ratio.  Having the bait runner again is a real bonus on such a venue, after all this is not a typical match venue where the general target of fish is between 2 lb and 6 lb. Ten fish here can give you an average 100 lb bag no problem. The reel was loaded with 8 lb Technium main line.  No this isn't an advert for Shimano, but when an angler is sponsored by a particular company we have to accept that the majority of their products will be used, after all why should an angler go and buy other brands when he can obtain products for nothing? I wouldn't unless of course I'm so taken in by something else and I'm sure you wouldn't either, why else be sponsored by a company? Anyway the Technium line is described as a cross between mono and braid. Whereas mono has a 32% stretch and braid nominal, Technium has 16% give, therefore showing those shiest of bites a little bit better than ordinary mono.
A swivel was threaded onto the line and a double loop formed to allow the swivel to free run on the first loop with the hook length being attached via the second smaller loop.
This was identical on both rods. The only difference between the two kits was the hook length. Both had identical line being 0.20 dia Ultegra silk shock, although Steve states that he used to use Preston powerline 0.21dia, before Shimano came into play. The hook was a Fox 2B size 10 barbless, perfect for hair rigging bait as was to be the method today, but more of that in a while. The first rod was set with a hook length of 5 feet whilst the second was set with a 3 foot length, allowing Steve to search for the fish.
Ultegra Silk Shock
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