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The best all round float rod


watatoad

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I spent a good bit of time last year looking for a new all round float rod for trotting on my local river. The last 10 or more years I've been using silstar takiq which has been a great rod for chub fishing and has landed just about every thing else that swims in there as well, grayling, dace, roach, barbel........... The only reason i decided i wanted a new rod was because the roach fishing has got much better in the last few years and although it has landed plenty of them i really needed a rod with a softer tip as i/it did bump 1 or two of them off at times.

 

It would need to be able to handle up to 6lb line, be at least 13' yet be nice and light and have a soft tip. So i started looking and first i looked at the greys float rods, but that was a none starter as the power float felt like it could land a ship and standard float didn't feel to me like it was powerful enough. So i kept on looking, Shimano, Daiwa..... The Preston rods looked nice and anti lock blanks sounded good for them barbel, but other than that they didn't seem a lot better than the silstar i already have.

 

Next i found the Hardy stand, this was sure to have what i was looking for. Anti lock, endorsed by big names, nice rod tube and fancy stoppers........ So i had a bit of a play (with the fishing rods), but sadly it didn't happen for me and i couldn't see how for the extra money they were any better than the Preston rods.

 

So i was running out of ideas, but i know tigger fishes waters like me and talks highly of his normarks and there is the Harrison's that Chris plumb talks highly of. To cut it short i never did get to look at a Harrison as i PMed tigger and he forced me into buying a Normark Avenger off ebay. :)

 

Thanks Ian its a lovely rod that ticks all the boxes even the softer tip one and that dream 2lb roach hasn't a chance now. :thumbs:

 

A tiger does not lose sleep over the opinion of sheep

 

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To cut it short i never did get to look at a Harrison as i PMed tigger and he forced me into buying a Normark Avenger off ebay. :)

 

Thanks Ian its a lovely rod that ticks all the boxes even the softer tip one and that dream 2lb roach hasn't a chance now. :thumbs:

 

 

Hang on Brian I only had your arm twisted up your back....hows that forcing LOL. I just hope it does actually get you that 2lb plus redfin m8 ;):)

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I have a 14' ABU Suveran that does everything I want it to do very well ;)

Let's agree to respect each others views, no matter how wrong yours may be.

 

 

Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity

 

 

 

http://www.safetypublishing.co.uk/
http://www.safetypublishing.ie/

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The Allcock’s Wizard.

 

Mine is a 40’s model, spigoted ferrules and (it should have) a gold oval badge. The rod is a three piece 11 foot rod. The butt section being a piece of whole Tonkin cane, the middle and tip sections being split cane. The action is tippy, progressing through the upper end of the mid-section when it becomes rapidly more robust as the taper increases equally rapidly towards the butt section. The rod is delicate in feel but the power that can be exerted on large fish is quite surprising especially when you lower the rod to utilise the increased stiffness of the lower half of the rod. Criticisms of the rod that I have read are the shortness of the handle. It is 18” and, yes at times another 6” would make all the difference :rolleyes: but I’m not about to start chopping it about. I can live with it

 

The rod makes Wallis casting with a suitable reel a joy and the sensitivity of the rod means that it is a good light ledger rod as well. Personally I use a Super Wizard for ledgering/light feeder fishing. This is just a Wizard with lined low-bells type rings. I’m fortunate enough to have a Super Wizard from the first year of production (1936).

 

Allegedly the Wizard sections varied over the years, and the higher quality rods are supposedly those made pre 1950. Having said that I also have a late model “green label” Super Wizard. That is a superb ledger rod and has accounted for many decent chub.

 

Back to the Wizard. The rod is perfect for “general” float fishing purposes. I use mine for dace, grayling and chub. I would also use it for roach, perch and rudd if they were abundant on my rivers. Having said that I have landed barbel to 5 1/2lb on it and it would land bigger but I tend to use a similar style but “stepped up” rod (Ogden Smith’s “Arun”) for targeting big chub and barbel and, hopefully this year, tench!

 

I can’t compare it to a modern rod as I don’t own any modern coarse rods. One aspect of “bean stick” rods is their sensitivity to bites when ledgering. They are absolutely superb. They are, I suppose, in tune with nature!

 

Prices? Well they can go for upwards of £300 these days but if you see one for £200 or less then grab it! Mine I got for £80 about 3-4 years ago. The rod has been very well re-whipped at some point and, unfortunately the gold oval badge has gone and the whippings are not the original colour.....it doesn’t stop it from catching fish though :D

Eating wild caught fish is good for my health, reduces food miles and keeps me fit trying to catch them........it's my choice to do it, not yours to stop me!

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