These ready-made Dacron pole connectors are being supplied at a price that makes sense by Ashley Francis.

Personally I have gone back to the Stonfo type of connectors for soft elastics of No5 and lighter, but for anything bigger Dacron is my favoured choice. They take the rig loop nicely away from the elastic and I’ve not had one let me down.

Ash is making them using stiff fly backing and soft helicopter beads. The Dacron loop is about 5.5cm long with a knot in the end which has been flamed to seal so the backing doesn’t gradually unravel over time, and over which the rig loop sits. He can make them to any length you ask for though.

The finished connector is very light and if you preferred to use them on all your elastics, even the light ones, it wouldn’t be an issue unless you set them very soft.

You could of course make them yourself, but Ash is selling them for only £2.50 for five including postage and packaging. Ashley can be contacted through Facebook, which is how I got hold of him, but his number and email are below.

* Gareth Purnell, Total-Fishing.com

Product: Ashley Francis Dacron Pole Connectors
Cost: £2.50 for five, including postage
Contact: Email ashleyfrancis41@msn.com or call 07402 417594