In any sport, including fishing, there are “secrets” of those who started practicing a long time ago and which, as is right, they keep jealously hidden: a terminal , a bait recipe, a stake.
But often, new carp anglers don't need this classified information to catch their first carp. They don't need wiretaps to learn the latest flavor that's killing carp (assuming it exists, and here's a legitimate doubt).
I say this from experience, after years of "education" in the carp industry. It would be enough if carp anglers, novices I mean, had the necessary information to properly use the products they buy, which, if used incorrectly, have the opposite effect: they make you capsize.
The “unspoken” information
Now, you're probably wondering: what is this essential information that "they don't say" ?
I'm referring to those basic notions—so basic, so basic, that carp anglers take for granted. However, they're useful if you're starting fishing in 2025 and, for example, are using a product released 20 years ago.
Yes, because many of the products currently on the market were designed and marketed during a historical period (precisely between the 1990s and 2000s) in which (in my opinion) there was a great proliferation of "visionary" figures who designed "solutions" that are still in use today and have not undergone changes over time, except in the packaging.
An example: PVA retina
When a new angler enters the wonderful world of carp fishing, they immediately notice a unique element that isn't found in any other fishing technique. PVA , or to the uninitiated "that thing that dissolves in water" or to those accustomed to chemistry "Polyvinyl Alcohol (CH₂CH(OH))-n".
Call it what you will, but PVA has completely revolutionized the way we fish.
When we first saw Danny Fairbrass create little sausages filled with flour and pellets and soaked in oil and then placed them exactly on the hook, we enjoyed it like crazy.
Before then, you could put the groundbait on the lead or directly on the hook, but it wasn't the same, I can swear to that on anything.
The net has the dual purpose of protecting the hook from snagging and providing ultra mega super precise baiting.
The Difference: Hexmesh and Micromesh
Wait, with this article I don't want to talk to you about the retina and its properties, but about a distinction between two types of retinas that, most likely, you've ignored until now.
You should know that some manufacturers, when purchasing PVA mesh, allow you to choose between two formats: Hexmesh and Micromesh .
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Of course, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that the Micromesh version is the one with the tightest weave and the smallest holes.
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While the Hexmesh has larger and more hexagonal holes.
You might think I'm crazy, but choosing the "wrong" version can penalize you... and quite a bit.
Is there really such a thing as “wrong”?
Before explaining how to choose the right shirt for your fishing sessions, I want to spend a few lines on that term in quotation marks “wrong”.
There are few things that are absolutely wrong in fishing. For example, one thing that is wrong and defines an error without any rebuttal is "fishing out of water." I'm sure no one will argue with this statement.
Instead, for most statements, there is never an “absolute wrong” for two reasons:
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many people learn to use products in the wrong way, but they manage to personalize their use so much that it becomes captivating;
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we define it as “wrong” when a product is used in a way different from that for which it was produced, thus going outside the canon (which is different from “non-captivating”).
When to use Hexmesh and when to use Micromesh
Now let's get to the heart of the matter: when should I use a Hexmesh mesh and when a Micromesh?
At this time, I don't feel like "locking" a product into a specific set of cases because, as I myself have seen, over time new subcategories of fishing techniques emerge that could completely change the way a product is used, even many years after it was invented.
A bit like what happened with Viagra, which was produced to solve heart problems and… we know how that ended.
Here are some practical examples:
Case 1: Deep baiting
If you want to reach depths greater than 4 metres, use Micromesh because, having more PVA yarn, it takes longer to dissolve.
Case 2: harsh winter
PVA has a direct relationship with water temperature: the warmer it is, the faster it dissolves. In winter (or in cold water), the Hexmesh version is better .
Case 3: loose flours
When you want to use flours (krill, tigernut, anchovies, etc.) as the filling for the sausages, Micromesh is the most suitable: by compacting the mesh better, it facilitates its dissolution.
Case 4: soaked sausage
If you're the type of carp angler who dips their nets in liquid attractants (those that don't dissolve PVA), then I recommend the Hexmesh version . Thick liquids slow down the dissolution, so a larger mesh is needed.
An important awareness
As you can see, depending on the fishing situation we can choose the most suitable pattern, or the one that has been "codified" by carp anglers over time as the most suitable.
The problem arises when no one explains to you that these two types of plot exist and they deliberately let us get it wrong until someone (me, in this case) points it out.
For many carp anglers, this information is banal, obvious, repetitive, and unworthy of mention. But I put myself in the shoes of a young man new to the world of carp fishing and faced with thousands of products that, on the surface, all seem the same (a bit like walking down the detergent aisle).
Why I created a specialty shop
For this reason (but not only) I created a shop specialized only in carp fishing small parts .
The reason is simple: there are so many products and so much information to provide that a generalist site struggles to get into the details. If you sell rods, reels, tents, bedchairs, bags, bait, you inevitably have to overlook certain aspects.
But let's be clear: anything goes, but carp fishing small items are at the top of our list.
You may sleep poorly on a bed, you may cast less with a rod, you may not like the smell of a boilie, but if you choose the wrong small tackle, how do you expect to become a good carp angler?
€1,000 tents aren't enough, nor are steel rod pods. I realized this many years ago, and I hope you'll soon embrace this mindset, too.
In conclusion…
I wanted to conclude our discussion on PVA by telling you that not all manufacturers offer two versions, or just two. Every company is a world unto itself, and if you feel lost, don't worry; we at Carpela are here to help you sort out any uncertainties.
👉 Enter the Carpela PVA department now by CLICKING HERE
Valentino (what a plot) by Carpela
P.S.: The title of this article is a playful pun on "plot" and "plot of the retina." Don't worry, no one wants to harm you (here).
