A clear advantage of this cradle is the padded knee pad they have included. This is rarely seen on other cradles and helps to provide some added support for your knees on hard ground.

A carp cradle is relatively simple to use. Firstly, ensure that you place the cradle on level ground, to prevent the fish sliding out of it. Gently place the carp in the cradle, ensuring that all of it’s fins are flush to it’s body, preventing breakage. When you’re finished with the mat, you basically fold down the walled section and sit it inside the flat mat. The whole thing is then clipped together into one big bulky square.In terms of the base, this cradle has a soft padded section with more than enough protection on the hardest of ground. The inner sections are all constructed from a fish-friendly, wipe clean PVC material as you would expect. Roll up design Throughout the centre of the cradle, the same PVC fish friendly material has been used. It sort of moulds to the carps body shape, providing a safe haven during the unhooking process. Pros: A no fuss cradle that self inflates, is light and portable and promotes fish safety. What else is there to say? Features include a mesh base so water can drain away as you keep the fish calm by pouring water over its gill areas. Each leg can be adjusted to suit terrain that is uneven, so keeping it level further ensures fish safety and water drains efficiently as you unhook and prepare to weigh.

The cradle folds up similar to that of a pop up tent. Simply remove the padded base and you’re left with a lightweight frame that folds together figure of eight style.Again, we selected to review the Avid Carp Stormshield standard model– but there is a large cradle available for anglers seeking something larger. Carp anglers after a bundle deal will enjoy what we’ve found here – a cradle, scales and weigh sling set from DNA leisure! To find out more, I would strongly advise on watching the video below to get more of a feel for this clever cradle and scales system.