Hot spot pole

Middy Hot Spot Margin Pole

  • Short pole for fishing the margins
  • Length 8m
  • Extends to 91/2 m with additional section
  • Two tops, top three and top two (Bully Boy)
  • Current offer: Hot Spot pole, 1.5 metre extension, Bully Boy top kit and accessories kit, £ 59.99

This is one of the new popular short poles specifically made for fishing the margins of lakes so they don’t need the length associated with a normal pole. The standard length of this pole is 8 metres, but in a special Middy offer, it comes with an additional extension section that takes it to 91/2 metres. That’s long enough to reach halfway across many canals and it will reach to many features in small lakes such as lily pads.

Many poles like this that you buy only come with the one top, but not the Hot Spot. It comes with an extra power top two, called a Bully Boy top. It’s slightly shorter than the standard top-three it also comes with, but when they are both cut to take suitable bushes they work out to almost the same length. The Bully Boy will take elastics up to 22, if required.

The pole states it weighs 540 grams at 8 metres, but I found this to be 100 grams out and in fact it weighed 640 grams. With the power top two fitted it takes it to 977 grams, but for the price that is still quite acceptable. Don’t forget, many times you will only be using a few sections to fish very close in.

Also included in the special Middy offer are the bushes, the elastics, the connectors, and the bungs. And all this for the bargain price of £ 59.99! The only items you are required to buy as extras are pole float rigs and bait.

Jeff Woodhouse’s Verdict

I’ve had a great deal of fun with this pole this year. I’ve used it on many occasions when I could have used my longer and lighter pole, because it’s a more expensive. It just seems to have been much handier to have taken.

It’s only caught me fish to around 5 lbs so far, but I have every confidence that it would handle much bigger fish with no trouble. I have written two other articles which refer to this pole. Margin Fishing Part 1, takes you through the purchase and setting up of a pole whether a margin pole or long pole. Margin Fishing Part 2 takes you through making up poles rigs and fishing with this pole.

If you fancy a change of fishing style without plunging in the deep end by spending a fortune on a very expensive pole, dip your toes and try one of these Hot Spots first. For £ 60 you just can’t get better value and if it persuades you to go on and buy a better, longer pole, you will still have a use for this one (and if by chance the tops are interchangeable that would be a bonus!).