Here we take a look at the best barbel rods currently available. Finding the best tackle to suit your needs can be difficult.
Barbel are well known for their raw power. If you don’t have a suitable rod, you may struggle to land a powerful river barbel. Having suitable tackle is key to making sure you will be successful.
We have narrowed down the absolute best barbel rods, those with the best value for money and for those on a budget.
Contents
What is the best barbel rod?
The best Barbel Rod is the Drennan Specialist 12ft Twin Tip.
This specialist rod is designed with flexibity in mind for a wide variety of methods and scenarios.
- 12ft (3.66m) 1¼lb test curve Two-piece Avon tip section Quiver tip section 2oz glass tip 3oz carbon tip
Last update on 2023-05-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
What attributes are needed for a barbel rod?
Barbel are very powerful fish so you will need a rod that allows you to exert a lot of power through you rod.
As well as the barbel’s raw power, you also need to consider that you will have to battle fast flowing river currents in order to land your barbel.
You also need to consider what method you will be using. Flexibility is important as you may need to ledger in fast flowing rivers instead of float fishing.
In addition to using your rod for barbel, you should also consider getting the most out of your rod. Do you intend on utilising the rod for other uses such as carp fishing or pike fishing? Barbel rods are made strong stuff and will be suitable for large carp.
What are the best barbel rods?
Last update on 2023-05-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Drennan Specialist 12ft Twin Tip
This specialist barbel rod is designed with flexibity in mind for a wide variety of methods and scenarios. It’s a fantastic carp and barbel rod on lakes and fast flowing rivers, but is also suitable for small silvers in small ponds.
The rod really comes alive when tackling double figure carp and large barbel.
This is a two piece rod that comes with two top sections, an avon style top section with a 1.25 test curve and also a top quiver section that comes with both a 2oz glass tip and a 3oz carbon tip.
The ability to change the end section of this excellent rod from Drennan makes the rod superbly versitile for a range of methods and venues.
This is a high quality and well balanced rod and you can certainly notice the quality as soon as you pick the rod up. This rod really comes into it’s own when playing large fish.
Drennan’s specialist rod comes with a cork handle with a casting grip. This coupled with the extremely balanced rod gives superb casting control and accuracy, especially when chucking out a heavy feeder making it a fantastic barbel rod.
This rod is also available at 11ft with a 1.5lb test curve, which you can find here.
- 12ft (3.66m) 1¼lb test curve Two-piece Avon tip section Quiver tip section 2oz glass tip 3oz carbon tip
Last update on 2023-05-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Korum Barbel Rod – Our Top Pick – Best Value For Money
This specialist barbel rod from Korum is our top pick barbel rod. It offers superb all round usability and offers the best value for money when compared with similar rods in the market.
Korum is part of Preston Innovations which are well known for providing top quality tackle. Korum are well known for their specimen carp tackle and make no exceptions here with these fantastic barbel rods.
The rods themselves are targeted at big barbel anglers on fast flowing rivers. Conveniently they offer different rod lengths and test curves depending on your needs. Our pick of the bunch is the 12ft, 1.75lb rod which is a fantastic all-rounder and perfect for all types of fishing.
- 11’ 1.75lb – Perfect for commercial lakes, smaller rivers and big barbel. Maximum casting weight 5oz. Line rating 8-15lb.
- 12’ 1.75lb – A superb all-rounder. Maximum casting weight 5oz. Line rating 8-15lb. Our pick of the range
- 12’ 2lb – Perfect for casting big weights on larger rivers. Maximum casting weight 6oz. Line rating 10-18lb.
- 13’ 2.5lb – Great for casting long distances with big feeders. Maximum casting weight 8oz. Line rating 10-18lb.
All rods in the range come will full slim cork handles and with a progressive rod action. The rods have a white tip which are used for bite indication.
All of the rods handle barbel with ease. If you plan on fishing large fast flowing rivers then you need to cast longer distances with big feeders, then you should look at the 13ft, 2.5lb rod, however for most anglers the 12ft, 1.75lb rod would be the best option.
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12ft Oakwood All-in-One – The Best Budget Barbel Rod
This 12st all-in-one four piece from Oakwood is a fantastic budget barbel rod.
This is a 3 piece rod that comes with two tips. One tip for waggler fishing and another tip for feeder fishing. The rod comes with two quiver tips.
The 12ft Oakwood all-in-one is a capable rod for carp, barbel and pike as well as small silvers. It is suitable for commercials, lakes and steady rivers. It is not however suitable as a dedicated specimen hunter rod.
WIth a recommended line size of upto 10lb, this responsive and crisp rod is the perfect budget barbel rod for beginners and those who are budget conscious.
The waggler tip does take a little getting used to as it can be a little bit soft to start with, but once you get used to it, it actually performs quite well for this entry level price point.
The rod itself comes with a cloth bag to keep all the rod pieces together.
- 12ft Oakwood 4 Piece Carp Power Waggler Rod & Feeder/Barbel Rod All In One
Last update on 2023-05-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Summary
In summary, the best barbel rod is the Drennan Specialist 12ft Twin Tip. However, our pick goes to the Korum Barbel Rod as this offers the best value for money and is a very capable rod. The Oakwood All-in-One is the best barbel rod for those on a budget and for beginners.
You can also check our our comprehensive tackle and rod and reel guide.
If you are going barbel hunting, you might want to consider a Shimano Baitrunner reel.
