Ranger: The Affordable Landing Net for Trophy Carp Fishing

The picture above is of my American Made in the USA Tournament Series Landing Net by Detroit's very own Ranger Products.

I have tried a few other of the budget priced Euro style landing nets in my almost 4 year obsession with carp fishing and they have all fallen by the way side. I am not saying they were bad products at all. But I am saying they are only good to a point.

They are acceptable for landing a few small carp from time to time on waters with level bank areas and without any steep inclines that require a lot of leverage to lift carp up to 30 pounds 4 or 5 feet to the landing mat.

But if you want to purchase 1 landing net that will do the job, do it well, and not bend, break or warp when you need to lift fish up onto the bank, then you want a Ranger net.

The net in the picture above has a 48" extension handle, 30" hoop, and is very heavy duty. It is the flat bottom tournament series model 9855FB that is popular with muskie fishermen.

I purchased it for about $70 at Dick's Sporting Goods. I liked it so much that I bought another one recently. The knotless nets are rubber coated. I haven't had any trouble with the nets snagging carp fins, which is more than I can say for the Euro style nets I have owned.

The only downside to these nets is the heavier weight that makes it a little less convenient to land carp when fishing alone, but it's not a deal breaker by any means. I got the hang of landing carp within this net after catching a few fish.

Trakker EQ 42" Carp Landing Net

My struggles to find a reliable carp landing net are well documented on the Michigan Carp Blog. I've also written about it extensively on the CarpAnglersGroup.com forums.

Few things in carp fishing are more important than the landing net, but it's the weak link for most beginners starting to catch carp. It's understandable. Carp fishing isn't cheap. It takes different equipment to land 12 - 15 pound carp than it does to catch 1 - 2 pound bass and crappie; and that equipment isn't something you can pick up at the typical discount big box store around the corner.

Many online store fronts selling carp equipment have a "budget" landing net for sale in the $30 - $40 price range. I've bought those and others up to $70 and they didn't get the job done for me.

My next carp net is going to be the Trakker EQ 42" carp landing net pictured below.

From Trakker Products the 42" EQ Landing Net

Selling for around $130 it's outside of the low budget price point, but it could actually save you money, time and frustration in the long run. Buying quality never goes out of style either.

Basic Carp Fishing Gear on a Budget

This time of year a lot of the fishing equipment web sites place items on sale that offer the opportunity to save some money. Whether for Christmas promotions, clearance, inventory reduction or a last ditch effort to implore some who haven't quite been able to pull the trigger on a purchase due to the various price points it really doesn't matter because it's a nice opportunity to pick up some of the basic equipment to help you get started fishing for someone more experienced to accumulate some gear to get a spouse or child started out in carp fishing.

There are a lot of opinions about what is "basic" gear. My basic might be a $40 reel and $40 rod, but there are others who believe a "basic" rod and reel cost upwards of $300. The list below is my suggestion and my opinion for how to started carp fishing with a minimal cash outlay.

LW 60 reel for $24.95
Black Phantom Classic rod for $29.25
GSP Black Alarm for $18.95
Unhooking Mat for $14.95
40" Landing Net for $39.95

For approximately $220 plus shipping, you can have two rods, two reels and two bite alarms and the basic items needed to catch, land and release carp effectively. I picked items that are all available from www.bankfishingsystems.com so that you only have to pay for shipping once. You can mix and match from different sites, but you will need to take shipping into consideration.

Of all the items on the list, the weakest link is the landing net. A quality landing net is essential to ensure that carp are landed and released with the least amount of stress for the fish. But I will offer a warning - you will need to be careful with the landing net and pick up the fish by-the-net and not by-the-handle. If you don't you will have a high probability of breaking the net the first time or two you use it and then you will have started your new hobby off with a huge disappointment. (I speak from personal experience on this topic.)

For slightly more money, you might opt for a Wychwood Signature 36" landing net priced at $81.49, a Sonik SKS 42" two piece landing net for $94.95 or a Trakker 42" EQ landing net for $120.99. (If I buy a new landing net at some point, I am going to buy the Trakker model.)

Lastly, I'd suggest buying a few cans of flavored corn/maize from either World Classic Baits or K-1 Baits. A can of the flavored corn will last you for 4 or 5 weeks of fishing easily. You don't have to re-bait with new corn every time you cast. I've caught multiple fish on the same few kernels of corn many different times.

• Keep a lid on it.
• Keep it out of the direct sunlight.
• Refrigerate when storing the corn at home.

It will last several weeks this way and you won't need to keep purchasing more and paying more shipping costs.

Whatever items you decide to purchase, please try to relax and have fun learning a new hobby. I hope you find it as enjoyable as I do!

If I can help you in any way, just ask.

My Lessons in Carp Fishing Supplies

I'm sure many who are just starting to learn about carp fishing make many of the same repeatable mistakes I did in the beginning. Having some experience fishing for bluegill, bass and catfish in farm ponds as a teenager, I had no idea what type of equipment that I would need to consistently land 10 - 20 pound carp in a hassle free manner that wasn't too hard on the fish.

An average sized carp in Michigan

My first mistake was making the assumption that I could use bass tackle to catch carp. I headed out the local big box store and purchased a 6 ft. light action rod and inexpensive spin casting reel.

I tied on a method feeder, hair rig and mixed up some oats. And I went fishing. Luckily I didn't catch anything because it would have most assuredly broke off and left me in a lurch.

Next I bought a medium/heavy action 10 ft. rod and a bait feeding reel. This was definitely a step in the right direction, but still a little off the mark. I actually caught 10-12 carp on this set-up, but lost twice that many to hook pulls. The rod was fine for casting out 3 or 4 oz. leads and method balls, but the stiff action was a little too aggressive for the tender mouthed and lipped carp.

Next I purchased an inexpensive net advertised as a carp net. The very first carp landed with the net broke the net in half.

I purchased a bunch of boilies as bait. A bag of boilies will last a long time for a beginning carp fisherman.

I didn't start out with bite alarms. They are not needed and I consider them more of a nice to have item.

At that point I had spent more than $100 on my initial carp fishing items.

I now know that I'd my first purchase should have been a high quality net. I also now know that you can't get good one for less than about $70 -$90. The better ones are in the $150 - $200 range.

Next I should have prioritized the purchase of a rod capable of casting 3 or 4 oz. lead and method balls; but with enough play to gently fight the fish without yanking and jerking the hook right out of the carps mouth within seconds of the initial run. Several acceptable rods are available for between $40 and $60.

Thirdly I should have purchased a bait feeding reel. A basic reel to do the job costs in the $50 range.

Fourth and fifth, I should have purchased a carry sling and landing mat. This helps ensure the fish is not dropped or mistreated during weighing and picture taking process and that the fish is safely returned to the water to live another day to be caught by another carp angler. These can be had for about $25 each.

For bait, I should have stuck to plain old panko and cream corn for the method ball; and then an inexpensive flavored maize for the hair rig. I have caught 140 carp this past year on flavored corn and about 6 on a boilie. I do spend more on panko and cream corn that I'd like, but you can't catch the fish if they are not attracted to your hook.

Adding all those figures up for three rods and reels, bank sticks, fishing line, bite alarms, etc. uses every bit of $600 if you buy everything new. (Acceptable bite alarms can be purchased for less than $20 each.) Buying used equipment puts the bill down in the $300 range to start out. At this point, after 2 years of carp fishing I've spent about $1,000 on equipment and supplies.

Can you spend less and still catch fish? Yes.
Can you spent much more than that? Very easily.

For me it's money well spent because I love getting outside and catching big fish from bank without a boat. I'd much rather catch a 20 pound fish than a 2 pound fish any day of the week.

Ranger Landing Nets

I have been very disappointed in the quality of carp landing nets that I have purchased so far. I have looked around at various options and determined that I need to buy something that is not a typical Euro-style carp net. There are a few options for heavy duty nets that are reasonably priced. I have decided to go with a Ranger net.

I found a Ranger Tournament Series Big Game flat bottom rubberized knotless net locally this morning. I wanted my wife to test it out to make sure it's not too heavy because she does most of the netting for me.

The Ranger net is stronger built than any carp net I've ever seen, it's made in the USA and it's a Detroit company. I wanted to look at their catalog before buying, so I just checked it out online and I'm going back later to get it.

Originally I thought I wanted a bigger one, but any bigger would be too heavy I think. The model 9855TFB has a 54" handle extendable to 84", a 34" head and a 24" deep sack. My current net is similar in size, but it's beginning to show some wear tear to go along with landing 104 carp this year.

Photo courtesy RangerNets.com

Review of the Metallica Net from PSFishing.com

While conducting a mental inventory of my carp fishing gear a few weeks ago I decided to upgrade to a larger and stronger landing net. I conducted a quick survey of my favorite carp fishing group on Facebook to solicit recommendations. Based on several positive comments regarding the Metallica Net,  manufactured by Balzer, I purchased one from PSFishing.com.

I've fished with it a couple of times now. Based on my experience with the net so far, I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone looking for a quality landing net for a reasonable price.

• The net has rubberized mesh 1/2" in size.
• The net is 110" when extended for fishing and 42" when collapsed for transport and storage.
• The rubberized mesh helps cut down on odor as well.
• The head is 35".
• The net extends and collapses with ease.
• The handle extends easily and it's easy to grip.

The only drawback I've seen so far is the handle length. Ninety percent of the time, the handle will be fine, but I can think of a few occasions where I might want to fish over a railing on a pier or walkway. For those particular situations, the handle will likely be too short. Lucky for me, I don't fish from piers and walkways with high railings very often at all, but some people do that on a regular basis.

Like most nets that are popular for carp fishing, the aluminum handle will not allow for picking up a 20 lb. carp with the handle in a horizontal position. But with proper technique, the net is plenty strong enough for daily carp fishing use.

Linked from PSFishing.com

PS Fishing Carp Net

Last week I decided to upgrade my carp landing net for the upcoming season. After careful consideration, I decided to order the Metallica Net, manufactured by Balzer, from PSFishing.com. I purchased a similar net from Resistance Tackle last year, but I think I need something a little more "heavy duty". I particularly like the folding mechanism. It appears well built for the job.

Here are a couple of pictures:



From order to my door in less than 1 week

110" length, 35" head size and 1/2" rubberized mesh

When I took it out of the box for the first time, my first thoughts were, "I'm going to need to start catching some bigger fish."

I haven't fished with it yet, but I'm looking forward to catching some Michigan common carp that can fill the net properly.

Carp Fishing Landing Net

I have been shopping for carp landing nets today. I have a basic landing net I purchased last year, but hooks snag on it easily, it's fairly small, and kind of "delicate".

I ordered a new one today from www.psfishing.com