I've only caught one carp on rod-and-reel in my life. I was 9, fishing with my Dad and one his friends. I was using, I believe, an ORIGINAL Zebco 33 on a fiberglass 5' rod. It made several runs, and the fight took about 10 - 15 minutes. My Dad's friend waded out to grab it, and the fish quickly circled his leg with my line, shook it's head, and popped free. That was 31 years ago, and I can still remember the fight.