Often overlooked and yet so important in landing that big one that always seems to get away is the landing net . Over the years I have had a variety of nets from the el cheapos , virtually a broom handle with a wire ring and some netting stapled to it , to the all stainless steel custom made Catch em Brand , a $235+ net .
For the last 5 years or so I have been using the Black Magic Telescopic net . A bit of back ground regarding Black Magic . They are a New Zealand based company and when Berkeley Tri Max co polymer line ceased to be available I tried out their co polymer line , liked it , and currently all my surf caster reels are spooled with it .
After I sold my Catch em net 
I went down to see Mick at Hooked on Bait and Tackle and sort his advice on a replacement net . He advised the Black Magic . It has served me well and as far as bang for bucks go is right in the sweet Zone . I picked one up this week for a friend (The net shown in the picture ) for $65 . Price varies from $65 - $95 . They are usually DEARER online .
The netting they used is rubberised and soft so it is ideal for catch and release fishing situations . Also the netting being 600mm deep is deeper than most so the risk of a fish spilling out is minimised . Fully extended the net retains handle rigidity and I have landed 7 KG fish with ease .
Just a little fishing story . Recently a friend I fish with hooked onto a large carp . He had an el cheapo Ebay dime a dozen net . He tried to net it and the head snapped off the net . I grabbed my Black Magic and netted and landed the fish to be weighed . It was a PB for him 5.7 KG Euro Carp . He asked me to get him a Black Magic .
I have lost good fish with cheap nets . Black Magic , Berkeley and other name brands have good nets available at a reasonable cost . For all round use though I think the Black Magic is hard to beat .
Net specifications are shown on the photos .
