I used touchdown korda and soft steel fox years ago.

Shock leader on both casting seemed fine. But hit a fish and they just stretched for ever.
Both lines lasted one session. I think I'd have had more control fishing with 100mtrs of no 20 pole elastic.

That's when I changed to the sadly gone cm90.

In reply to Post #81
Squeezy bottle

In reply to Post #80
Get a small sweety bottle a few drops of washing up liquid and the water. The put it on the spools n leave for a few mins before you cast.
It will break down oils or the like from production and greases from the lake surface.
Used to do it all the time when waggler fishing at distance.

I went out a number of years ago in a September storm forecast gusts upto 40mph.
Saturday afternoon with heavy rain I could not see the tree's 120yds away on the far bank at times. It was a white out.

I checked on the weather and it was now 65mph gusts. Ended up sat on my bed along with my bags as the bivvy flooded. Saturday night about midnight a huge crack sounder like a shotgun right behind me. Then a huge thud and my bivvy shook. 2ft behind me a huge branch about 8-10inch thick had landed.

Just be careful if you are out.
Tight lines if you are.

In reply to Post #1602
Me too but such a wired thing.

Only thing I do know is I didn't have a spare ring the next morning.😀

About 7yrs ago fishing Layfields in Norfolk late Oct early Nov.

So I have the lake to myself low cloud about 100ft and a slight mist on a flat calm lake. So it's about 10pm had my meal and on my last can for the day. It's time to make sure the rods are fine before bed and my last smoke of the day. Out I go and light up and all of a sudden it seems lighter than it was. First though just my eyes adjusting.

Then all of a sudden the light moves and I look up to see a very bright light above the cloud. I would say the main beam was about 18inc wide then spread out. But no sound at all and then it starts to zig zag above me for maybe a minute. Then all of a sudden lights out dark sky and still not a sound.

A couple of minutes later about half to a mile away bingo the light switches on stationary to start with again. I'm now thinking alien abduction and I hope she's fit. Then the zig zaging starts again. Ok it's a drone and someone's having a laugh. Then after a couple of minutes it's lights out again. So thinking I'll have another smoke while wondering what I'd seen. All of a sudden the lights on again right above my head then after a minute or 2 the zig zaging again. About 5 mins this time and then nothing. I sat out for about an hour and even phoned a mate and told him but nothing else.

So yes a drone I guess but private? With GPS or heating seeking? Also a huge search light on it. Or military or just the aliens didn't fancy me. Or did they an implant this memory.

Hoping some of you have some spooky memories or even pics to share.

In reply to Post #19
It's the spomb/spod they won't dive on. I use dark green j braid and they won't drop on a spomb.

In reply to Post #12
If the peregrine had been hungry it would have seen it off. Like most animals it only kills to eat.

Harris hawks are used by falconers to scare birds from airfields and other places where birds are a problem.

Oh seagulls will attack humans if they think there young are at risk. As a mate in yarmouth found out on a ladder trying to clear his guttering one summer.

In reply to Post #6
Meeting was not as long as I thought.

So a number of yrs ago I lived in GT yarmouth and did some work for a bird of prey sanctuary. Walk round town with a bird on one arm and a pot in the other collecting.

So on regent's rd as pedestrian and the busiest road. The chip eagles (gulls) became clever. If you was walking and eating chips or burgers they would swoop in over your shoulder so you dropped the food. They would then swoop back settle and eat whatever you had dropped.

So this one afternoon I'm starving and got a burger. Barn owl on my left arm burger in my right hand walking up the road.

Then all of a sudden the chip eagle swoops in over my shoulder. It's now face to face with the owl. It poos its self and an almighty screech and it hits the deck. Yes it did poo as it was down my jeans

In reply to Post #5
A 12 bore.

Oh and birds of prey (got a funny storey on this when I have a little time I'll put it on here)