Sonik Xtractor Carp Sling Review

Name: Sonik SK-TEC Floating Weigh Sling

Website: Amazon/Angling Direct

Sling Type: Carp Sling

Price: £45 – £50

Rating: 9/10

Sonik Carp Sling Overview

Hi there, welcome to another review here at Lake Amenity. In this article, I plan on giving you a full rundown of the Sonik Sk-TEC Carp Sling. As usual, To start off, I will explain the key features of this weigh sling, I will then go into more detail about certain aspects of the design and my overall thoughts on this product.

My goal here is to fully present the strengths of the product and also highlight its potential drawbacks as I do in most of my reviews. I will also aim to find some considerations to take into account when searching for a product like this. so, with that said, let’s get started.

Key Features

Lightweight Sling

Having lightweight kit like this is a must, considering the amount of gear you end up lugging about on your angling sessions. This makes transportation less of a headache when walking long distances or hiking to remote fishing locations. The reduced weight contributes to overall portability, allowing you to take your gear wherever your angling adventures lead.

Reinforced Handles with Webbing

One of the main factors with a piece of fishing tackle like this is its durability. The Reinforced handles on this sling are clearly designed to withstand the stress and weight associated with lifting and carrying heavy fish. Carp, in particular, can be heavy as you may already know, so having handles made from heavy-duty fabric is always a must.

Reflective Strips

Reflective strips on the carp sling enhance visibility and safety, particularly in low-light conditions or challenging visibility conditions. This is the perfect feature if you are an angler who engages in fishing during early morning or late evening hours, as well as night fishing sessions like me. It allows you to locate and identify your sling when present in the water.

5m Retaining Cord with Bank Stick Attachment

This feature goes hand in hand with the reflective strips. The Sonik Sling comes with a handy 5-meter cord which is housed in a small side pocket located on the zip-up section. Its primary purpose is to retain and secure a caught fish while it recovers from the fight and before weighing or photographing.

Once again, this ensures the fish’s safety and well-being by preventing it from swimming away prematurely or injuring itself. The length of 5 meters provides ample space for the fish to remain in a controlled environment within your chosen swim.

Floating Design

As the name suggests this weigh sling has the floating capability. This is a must-have in my opinion also. The most significant benefit of a floating carp sling is the fish’s saftey, as it’s essential to minimize the time the fish spends out of the water.

Secondly, a floating sling allows you to keep the fish submerged during the weighing process. This reduces stress on the fish and minimizes the risk of injury. To add to that, this will also help keep the fish calm after the fight, hopefully making it easier to handle safely for photos.

Features, Pros & Cons

Pros

Well-made
lightweight
Fish Safe

Cons

Sling depth

On the standard-sized sling, which is the one I have, the height of it from vertical top to bottom is only 50cm. Now, this may be nothing to be concerned about, but if you plan on using this sling for catches above 45/50 lbs + then it may be worth opting for the Sonik sling in the larger size. I have added the full dimensions of both sling sizes within the next section.

Dimensions, Capacity & Design

Dimensions

Sonik Standard Sling

Size = L 110cm x D 35cm x H 50cm
Packdown Size = L 110cm x D 10cm

Sonik Large Sling

Size = L 130cm x D 40cm x H 65cm
Packdown Size = L 130cm x D 10cm

Capacity

As I briefly touched on earlier, I would say the standard-size sling is good for fish upwards of around 40 lbs. If you need a sling that accommodates fish larger than this then I would certainly choose the larger size.

Up to the date of writing this article I have yet to catch a Carp anywhere near that size, but there is a reason that they have two different sizes in this model of sling. The sling is a relatively new purchase for me and has only been used a handful of times. I have had a couple of high teens held in the sling which proved to me that there is ample room for much larger fish up to the recommended weight if necessary.

Design

Materials

Sonik has used a lightweight polyester for the top zip-up section so that it dries out quickly and strong mesh for the main body of the sling. Just by looking at it and how it feels to the touch, there is no doubt it is a top-quality product built to last like most Sonik Products. Using my first-hand experience to give you a correct assessment, I believe the materials used are…

Polyester
Polymesh
PVC

Pricing

Standard Size

The Standard size Carp Sling generally retails between £45 to £50. Again I have done my research and £44.99 seems to be the going rate for this Carp Sling which is in fact the exact amount I paid for mine.

eBay = £44.99
Angling Direct = £ 44.99 (When on Sale)

Large Size

The Large Sonik SK-TEC sling seems to have more discrepancy in terms of price. The two cheapest places I have managed to find are listed below.

Overall Assessment

I would say that this sling has all the attributes needed for any angler., I have quite a few bits of fishing gear from the Sonik brand and I’m happy with all of them. In my opinion, Sonik has very fair pricing for the quality you receive on pretty much all of their products, so my rating for this particular product would be 9/10 because of that.

Reviews

Below I have listed some reviews found on Amazon regarding the Sonik Sling. I have chosen these to give you further insight. After searching I have actually struggled to find any bad reviews from other anglers about this sling which doesn’t come as much of a surprise if I’m honest as I have found it hard to come up with any downfalls myself. So, for now, I have added some of the most relevant ones I have found online.

Alternatives with Good Reviews

Now, I will list a few alternatives that not only have good reviews but also land around the same price range. I only recommend alternatives that are made by brands that I have previous experience with through other products.

Trakker XL Retention Sling

Firstly, I have chosen this sling made by Trakker. I have a few quality Items from this brand, so I would expect no less from this Trakker Sling. Trakker is up there with the best of brands. This particular sling has all of the features similar to the Sonik Floating sling. The only thing it lacks is Hi-Vis strips on the floating section.

I have personally viewed this sling in person and it’s a lot bigger than the standard-size Sonik sling that I have reviewed in this article. You can get this in multiple sizes, this specific one, (XL Version 2) is around £45 and has the following measurements.

Dimensions: L 130cm x W 30cm x D 70cm

NGT XPR FLOATING WEIGH SLING

Secondly, we have a sling designed by NGT. The reason I have chosen this one is because, again, it has all of the same attributes as the Sonik SK-TEC sling but for an even friendlier price. Some will argue that although it’s cheaper the quality is not as good, but in my honest opinion I have bought many NGT products and I don’t have too many bad words to say about the NGT tackle that I own.

Some examples would be the Carp Cradle that I have, and the Rod Pod, both of these have faired me well up to now, so I am confident that this NGT sling would be a great purchase for a great price. This Sling can be found on eBay for just under £30 with the following dimensions.

L 125cm x W 35cm x D 50cm

Review Conclusion

In this review, I hope I have provided you with a comprehensive overview of the Sonik SK-TEC Floating Weigh Sling. We have highlighted its key features and how it can be a great addition to your fishing tackle. Should you have any pressing questions or feel that the review is in need of more information, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below. I’m here to address your inquiries and provide further insights where applicable.

For more product reviews and similar content, please explore the sections referenced below or navigate to our review section on the website. Thank you for reading.

martin@lakeamenity.com