Our 5 picks for carp fishing greatness in 2012

In fifth place is a clothing company that will no doubt be recognisable to a decent proportion of fisherman but in our view they can only continue to grow in 2012 so keep your eyes peeled. The key to any business is product, they have product class in abundance so they are destined for great things.

The winner for us is their amazing design, they stand out from the crowd and noone in the industry offers a combination of great forward thinking design, humour and product quality in one package like they do.

Last year we were fortunate enough to test out some of their range both here and on the continent and our recommendation could not be any higher, many people have asked where we got them from and have also loved the designs, you can buy yours here >>>

Some of our favourites in their line are the ‘stalker’ jumpers (left) and the ‘flying rats’ hoodies.

We certainly hope to see more of OCD on the bank in the near future and they certainly have all the qualities to be in every carp anglers wardrobe. For more info check out www.OCDlife.co.uk, you can also find them on Facebook.

4th Place – CCmoore’s Live System Boilies

We all know who CCmoore are, they have been manufacturing boilies, pellets and particles longer than most companies out there. They have proven success with many ranges of boilies before, the amazing Ngage, Odyssey XXX and Meteor ranges have all proved to be something special and have all caught hoardes of fish of all sizes for years but for me the Live System range is something else.

Developed using sweet yeasty aromas it literally out fishes any other freezer bait I and many fishing friends have ever used. It has all the pulling power you need all year round and its sweet smell and flavour attract carp on every venue we have used it at, I can go as far as to say that I have never had a bad session when using live system. It caught 7 fish in a week from a venue that has around 20 fish where most anglers have 1-2 runs a year, enough said.Live System boilies and extras are available to be bought straight from the CCmoore shop here

Also in the Live System range you will find everything from pellets, glugged hook baits, pop-ups, glugs and lots of other goodies infused with all the enticing live system flavours.

The Live System range is something you should try out on any venue, it really is remarkable just how much carp love these little balls of greatness! Our hats go off to CCmoore, once again.

Follow CCmoore on Facebook here >>>

3rd Place – JAG Products

Some of you may know who JAG are, if you have seen there products you will certainly remember there name. I am one of the unlucky ones who bought a competing set of buzz bars and bank sticks just before coming across there products but rest assured I will be buying some in the not too distant future.

There buzz bars and bank sticks are SECOND TO NONE, the quality, finish and the couple of tiny tweaks they have made to the traditional bank stick really separate them from the crowd and this deserves a mention. In there range you have some top quality additions and improvements on the already crowded buzz bar market that indicate just how advanced JAG are, the stabilisers are perfect, the whole range is finished with that quality feel that is almost indescribable, I can only recommend that you get down your tackle shop and start cueing up to get your hands on a set!

For more information on their products and to look at their range you can view there website here >>>

2nd Place – Korda Stow Indicators & Isotopes

So Korda have done it again, they have turned a product that was quite mundane and irrelevant into a carp fishing statement. The Stow indicators are top notch, well designed, properly good looking, do a perfect job in many situations and above all are affordable to the masses. Not since the Kaptor have I been so impressed with a product but my set is on the way and will be going every with me in 2012.

I am sure like me you saw them and instantly thought, wow, they should be on some fishing fashion walk or something, modelled by Kate Moss as Pat Butchers and Gucci’s new line in earrings. They are simply stunning and for those tackle tarts out there a must buy.

As you can see I quite like the Stow indicators (understatement), but you should have seen my child like smile when low and behold next tot he indicators in the shop were a a tiny packed that said Stow Isotopes on them, wow, at that point in time my life could hardly have got any better!

What a genius little product, I mean we all have indicators and all have seen and used Isotopes in some extent but Korda have done it again, turned a traditional piece of fishing apparatus into a fashion statement and icon in one swoop. Can anyone keep up with Korda’s ever growing line of almost Einstein-esque products? Only time will tell but be sure that the Stow indicators are around to stay, I think the only bad thing about the Stow indicators is that people will love them so much that every angler will have them, which may put some people off in the long run, needless to say that until that point they will be in a league of their own.

You can see more of Korda’s product range on there website here >>> 

CCmoore’s Northern Specials, NS1′s

Let me start by explaining something that many of you who have used NS1′s before will no doubt be fully aware of, they are THE BEST hook baits on the market, period.

Although I would love to stop there because that is all that really needs to be said but I want to attempt to persuade those who don’t have a tub of these in there tackle box that they really should have so my opening gambit is this…Myself and a fishing partner arrived at a new 60 acre reservoir a few months ago now armed with a few kilos of Live System and a single tub of white 12mm NS1′s, after checking the area we had chosen to fish, marking up and spodding over a clear patch with chopped live system, some particles we fished over the top with live system pop ups and sat back in anticipation. The bailiff was quickly on the scene and top dog on the lake had caught 3 fish in 3 days prior to our arrival and the going was tough, over the night the live system baited area out fished everyone on the lake had caught in 2 weeks, 20+ fish in one night.

So what has this got to do with NS1′s, well we fished 2 rods on the live system line and 2 rods with single NS1′s chod mounted fished 130 yards to far bank, no free offerings, no scattered boilies, no bait, nothing but 2 small 12 mm NS1′s. 45 carp later we were had run out of pop-ups! Not one single rod was cast and had to be reeled back in, everyone had a carp on the end, even a catfish at one point!

The live system area had completely destroyed the morale of every other angler on the lake, but the NS1′s had caught us more than double that of the baited spot fished as singles, what a day that was. This is just one example of the pure greatness that is CCmoore’s NS1 range of pop-ups, I could not stress how good these little suckers are, open the pot and smell them, you instantly know they are going to catch fish.

A lot of praise goes to CCmoore and Gaz Fareham for creating the northern specials range which consists of a handful of colours, shapes and sizes but for me you cannot go far wrong with the 12mm white pop ups.

If you don’t already own a pot then go and buy some now at CCmoores on line shop here, if you do already own some the go and buy some more because that pot will not last you very long! I have about 4 tubs of each variation in the range just in case the world ends tomorrow and I am the only survivor, I don’t know how I would cope without them!

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What do you think will be best in 2012?

If you have any ideas about your top picks for 2012 let us know by commenting below, we may even add to the list if you put up a strong case or many people say the same thing.

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