Fishing Republic Theseus Carp Cradle and Weigh Sling Review....

Hello and and welcome to this product review of the Theseus Carp Cradle and Carp weigh sling currently on sale from Fishing Republic.   These products where sent to me a few weeks ago for me to use and review on the blog.  After extensive period of use across many different types of fishing please find the review below of both products and a review video i have posted on the blogs you tube channel.

Youtube video review:

Theseus Carp Cradle and Carp Sling Review..

Product info:
Name: Theseus Carp Cradle
Dimensions: 115cm long x 55cm Wide x 26cm high
Link to Product: THESEUS CARP CRADLE LINK
Price: £25.00


Product Info:
Name: Theseus Carp Sling
Dimensions: 125cm Long x 60cm Deep x 45cm Wide
Link to product: THESEUS CARP SLING LINK
Price £25.00


Review

The Carp Cradle -

When the carp cradle first dropped on my doorstep and i opened it up i was genuinely shocked at two aspects of this product from the outset, one was how light the carp cradle was and two i was really impressed with how neatly it was all packed away.  My expectations all week had been for a large heavy and quite bulky product.

The actual cradle comes in two parts, a padded base and then the cradle with a mesh bottom and both fold in half and are held securely in place by two straps at either end which wrap completely round both produces when placed side by side to hold them securely.  I will go more into this feature later as this i found hugely beneficial when transporting both products together.

The water i chose to put this item through its paces was a local pool with a good head of small carp and a few bigger originals into double figures.  This pool i had fished for the past few years and i had used a small cheap unhooking mat during that time and i had found it really difficult from a blogging point of view to "process" the carp from catching them to unhooking them and then keeping them under control on a slippery mat with no side. at times it certainly made for a frustrating experience.

"From a Blogging point of View the Cradle has been a God send"

The biggest compliment i can pay this product is how it has revolutionised my experience on the bank fishing for carp and blogging.  The fact the fish can be placed inside this padded cradle and i feel confident the fish can come to no harm encased inside its sides.  The fish has plenty of space to move and the well padded bottom and sides ensure no damage to the fish.  As a blogger it makes the process of unhooking the fish and holding it up for a photo a very smooth process.

As regular blog readers will know i am not a angler who is going to catch a 20 to 30lb carp any time soon but i wanted to also show how this sling can be used in other ways and with that i went down the road of using it as a piece of apparatus that has its uses in match fishing.  On a recent session on Cheshire Fishery i knew i was in for a decent net of carp so i brought the cradle along for the final net shots to show the catch.

"My fishing might not see me put a 6olb carp in the cradle so i filled it with 60lb of carp"

Again from a blogging point of view this kit came up trumps again for me.  Many times when i have large nets and a good days fishing i can find dealing with the net at the end very hard work and the true scale of how good a session i have had can be hard to capture.  On this session i had over 60lb of carp and the cradle and the sling made light but quick work of the final nets.

The matt had more than enough room to fit all the carp and its high sides and fish friendly material ensured no damage to the carp when i took this quick photo.  This certainly could have benefits for those anglers looking for good shots at the end of their commercial fishing sessions.

The final good point i found with this kit was the material it was made from.  We all get it in the ear when our kit comes home smelling of fishing but this material meant a quick trip to the hose in the garden when i got home and it was easily cleaned and did dry quite quickly.

The Carp Sling -

This piece of kit i feel completes the package and I do feel to get the most out of them you do require them both.  The sling fits perfectly into the cradle so when i had a fish i knew i wanted to weigh the sling sat nicely over the edges of the cradle and the recess in the middle was created for the carp to sit in the middle.

The material inside the sling felt of a high quality and the mixture of mesh and material with holes in ensured the water drained quickly when you wanted to weight the fish and also the holes and mesh meant that water could completely fill the sling and allow a flow of water through the sling when it was submerged with the fish in the margin.

"With Plenty of Holes and mesh it allowed for the free movement of water through the sling for resting the fish"

A complete wrap round zip ensured the fish could not escape and although i never night fish so did not ever need the rest a fish in the sling for any amount of time to get pictures i did testing and the floatation tops on the sling ensured the sling held in place.  A huge amount of space in the compartment to hold any size fish you are likely to encounter i tested the sling with weights up to 60lb and straps coped with it easily.

Again as a package the sling slides in between the base of the cradle and the cradle to make the package easy to carp and transport to the bank.  I like to be mobile when fishing and these two going together so easily made it easy to move around swims and never felt like i was over burdened and not wanting to move with a view of the gear being a problem.

Final thoughts

All in all two products that really surprised me, i am not going to lie it presented some real challenges to incorporate it into my fishing but with a little thought and imagination i found products that dovetailed nicely and will certainly be a piece of kit that will feature in many more of my photos and sessions for both carp and pike.  Being a blogger i saw huge benefits in me dealing with fish on the bank and having more control of the fish when on the Matt, the camera set pics where obtained or video pieces recorded in quick time.  One bloggers life made a lot easier, now to catch a carp to fill them both :-)

Check out the video review for more info.