Saturday 21 December 2013

hPa Popper Roll - simply the best way to carry your GT lures.

by Mark Harris

I have been using the hPa Popper Roll for more than a year now and it has become an integral part of my GT fishing gear.  Therefore when the Ebbtide crew asked me to write a short review of the product, I was more than happy to oblige.

hPa gear is designed in France and made under strict controls in their own factory in China. It has a real sense of quality about it, backed by a ten year warranty.  The design, the material used, the stitching and functionality all scream "quality".

The Popper Roll is designed as a lure day bag for GT anglers or those using similarly sized lures. It consists of ten lure pockets which are clear vinyl faced with a Velcro fastening flap and webbing at the top and bottom to allow easy drainage.  There is an additional wider compartment which is multi-function.

Ten pockets loaded with 20 substantial GT lures. The utility pocket is empty on the right hand side.

Rolled up with the same 20 GT lures inside
The ten lure pockets can easily take two thick GT lures each, or three if you are using lures at the slimmer end of the GT spectrum.  So a minimum of 20 lures can be easily carried. That is certainly more than enough for every eventuality on a single day of GT fishing!  The lure length limit to be able still close the pockets is about 280 mm but you can carry longer lures accepting that they will stick out from the pocket. I do that with super long pencils like Fisherman Long Pen and Adhek Ocean Lady for example.

The utility compartment could used for a few more lures, it could hold jigs or you could use it for bagged terminals. I do not use it
for terminals as I always have trays with me but I have frequently
washed down and hung up to dry
utilised this compartment for smaller light tackle lures.

Once the roll is loaded with lures it is simple to roll it up and fasten using the adjustable straps and plastic belt clips.

Due to the material used, cleaning is a breeze - just remove the lures and shower it down.  The meshed pockets allow easy draining and it so straightforward to rinse off any saltwater residue. This is now a ritual for me after every day of GT fishing.  Hang it up after a wash down and it dries quickly.

The popper roll also flat packs down very efficiently. this is important when going on an oversea trip. I simply flat back mine in the bottom of my bag and it takes up little room. Once you are ready to fish, it is designed to perfectly fit into the hPa fish box.

The only very minor thing I would change is to remove the four metal eyelet rings or change them to plastic. The owner of hPa has informed me that these have already been changed to plastic in the current production.

this metal ring is now plastic in the current production.
  hPa have produced a real winner here and no GT angler is going to be disappointed by this product.