Anyone who has read my articles will know that I’m not much of a match fisherman, but I used to fish matches in my teens – and I do still have the odd dabble now and again – so I do know what to look for in a match seat box.
The RX3 from Cyprinus is a lightweight aluminium box comprising a generous main storage compartment and a shallower top compartment beneath the comfy seat cushion, which is the perfect size for holding a lot of rig winders! Between these lidded compartments is a pair of front drawers and a side drawer, which are both deep enough to take shot dispensers, spools of line, catapults, etc.
The box comes pre-fitted with a set of independently adjustable aluminium legs with large, pivoting mud feet and the adjustment screws are easy to grip and turn. Many universal-fit attachments such as rod supports, brolly brackets and bait bowls and trays will fit onto the square legs and the footplate has a further two adjustable legs at the front, which are ideal for attaching universal feeder arms and keepnet arms.
So, if you like to have your fishing station well-organised with everything close to hand, the RX3 is perfect. The footplate folds up against the front of the box for ease of storage and it’s completely removable should you not deem it necessary.
I think the seat cushion is of prime importance on a seat box of this kind because the more comfortable you are during a match, the better you’ll be able to concentrate, which should result in a bigger bag. This model features a very deep, comfortable cushion with a pole-butt recess in the front. I fished a match at Roy Marlow’s Glebe Fishery during the summer and once everything was adjusted and set up on the RX3, I was comfortable for the whole match.
I added my own feeder arm and umbrella and keepnet attachments to the legs of the RX3 and it remained stable and sturdy throughout the match, despite the really soggy ground beneath me (we’d had so much rain prior to the match, the concrete peg platforms were two feet underwater in the margins!)
To open up the main two compartments you make use of the ingenious combination hinges/clasps. Two of these are fitted at the front and two at the rear of each compartment and their design allows you to open the box from either side. When the clasps are closed, they act as a hinge so that the box can be opened from the opposite side! This is a tremendous design idea, although it’s worth remembering that these components are plastic, so care must be taken whenever you open the box (especially when full of tackle), because if the lower section is opened too quickly the weight could overwhelm the hinges; if the box is opened with care there is no fear of this happening.
The box comes with a padded, adjustable-length shoulder strap which clips on and off and a pair of stout grab-handles to help with lifting it in and out of your car when the box is full of tackle and bait.
The RX3 Match Seat Box with footplate retails at £199.99 but it is available from the Tackle Discounts website for just £79.99 and a smaller version of the box – the RX2 – is also available.
