Bob Moss On Spinning Rods
Dingle bassed Irish angling expert Bob Moss has recently been trying some of the new style spinning rods. - These are his views.
Bass on a Gunfish
Decisions, Decisions
By Bob Moss
Evolution’s a bitch. You just get yourself sorted and then along comes something bigger (or smaller), faster, smoother, and definitely ‘must have’; and before you know it your hand’s in your pocket again. Mind you, not all changes are for the better. I still think some of the cars I used to drive in the seventies far more pleasing to look at and a lot more fun to drive, even if they did tend to break down a lot. But with fishing tackle most, if not all of it, just keeps on getting better and better.
Not just shinier, with go-faster names, but as much an evolution in thinking as in materials and design. Take for example the rods we use for plugging. 20 years ago, we were using carp rods, and on average 11 feet long. Which was fine considering, that most of the plugs we were using back then were pretty basic cast and retrieve jobs. But as plugs became ever more sophisticated – requiring that a lot of them be ‘worked’ – it began to dawn that you can’t work these new types of plugs properly with a rod that is soft. And neither can you work them for long with a rod that is overly long.
Cue evolution – to the rescue. New materials, new manufacturing techniques and, it wasn’t long before rods began to appear with ultra-fast tapers that were light and punchy and a lot more pleasing to use. And whilst our dependence on length was diminishing, it wasn’t until very recently that we began to realise that you didn’t need it with these new rods. In fact, if anything – and if we’re being totally honest here – length in a plugging rod has always been a bit of a disadvantage. After all, you try working a popper or, better still, a ‘walking-the-dog’ lure with an 11 foot rod – or even a 10 footer – and see how long you can keep at it without your arm dropping off. Quite literally, it’s a pain. Whereas if we had something nearer to 8 feet …
Well, I’m very glad to say that our plugging rods have now come of age. Shorter and therefore perfectly balanced; slimmer and lighter, hardly noticeable in the hand; yet with enough backbone and ‘punch’ to get a plug out effortlessly as far as it’s needed. Even against a strong headwind – and with and a lot more accuracy to boot. All my life I have been looking for such a ‘wand’ and now they have arrived. And believe me, they are an absolute joy to use.
Trouble is though, because there are now several of them on the market, and each differing slightly from the other, which one to go for – that’s the thing. And how do you go about getting your hands on the one that’s right for you without buying them all!
For me, the chance came when I swapped one of my old rods for an 8’6” 15-40g Prologic Bushwacker that Norman Chestnutt brought down with him from the North. Then my mate Dave bought the 10-40g Tenryu ‘Ultimate Red One’, which everyone was talking about in the blogs. I tried them both and liked them both instantly. But I found my Bushwacker a little wanting in backbone when it came to casting into a strong headwind and in particular when using the heavier plugs like the Storm Saltwater ‘Chug-Bug’ or the Rapala Saltwater ‘Skitterpop’. So I rang Dave Box and, after a long phone conversation, I decided to purchase the 8’3” 15-50g Teklon Concept Spin from Grauvell. Well, the Bushwacker hadn’t cost me anything so I reckoned I was still owed a rod!
So with two of them now in the hall and having had a good trial of a third, I thought I’d pass on my findings to anyone who hasn’t yet made up his mind which one to buy.
Dave’s 10-40g Tenryu ‘Ultimate Red One’. For which he paid £380
Good points:
- Light and punchy but a little bit softer than the others.
- Able to handle a wide range of plugs, from a ‘Thunderstick’ to a ‘Sammy’ to the heavier, bulkier lures like the ‘Chug-Bug’ and ‘Skitterpop’.
- Good wall thickness of blank.
Bad points:
- Colour – a striking red, which makes it look like it was purchased from Argos
- Length – having already said length can be a disadvantage, 9’8” seems unnecessarily long. Although, having said that, it is well enough balanced.
- The first ring nearest the winch-fitting – the one that takes all the brunt of casting and being bent by stuffing the rod into its bag etc – is a single-leg ring. In fact, Dave has already had this ring pull out from its whipping and has had to Araldite it back into position again.
- There is not enough black bungy above the winch-fitting. It’s only 2 inches long and rather uncomfortable if holding the rod above the reel seat. Another 1 inch and it would be a lot easier to hold. By contrast, there’s 11 inches of bungy below the winch-fitting for which I can’t see any use whatsoever.
- Cost – Dave paid £380 for his (plus postage). Not everyone has this budget (or can justify such an expense to the wife) and, considering the number of bad points I’ve mentioned, I consider it to be a little bit on the expensive side.
My 8’6” 15-40g Prologic Bushwacker. Price £79.95
Good points:
- Very light and very punchy.
- Just enough bungy stuff above the winch-fitting for comfort.
- More of a ‘wand’ than the ‘Ultimate Red One’.
- Price – at around £80, very affordable.
Bad Points:
- Wall thickness of the blank is very thin.
- Whilst perfect with light plugs like the ‘Sammy’ or ‘Gunfish’, I found it didn’t have enough backbone to handle the heavier, bulkier plugs.
My new 8’3” 15-50g Teklon Concept Spin from Grauvell. Price £125
Good points:
- Straight out of the bag, a very attractive looking rod.
- Very comfortable to hold, either at the winch-fitting or above.
- Nice wall thickness of blank.
- Well able to handle a wide range of plugs from a ‘Thunderstick’ to a ‘Sammy’ and with enough backbone to handle the heavier, bulkier poppers like the ‘Chug-Bug’ and ‘Skitterpop’.
- At first, I was a little dubious of the ring spacings. However, with a fish on and under load, ring sizes and spacings are perfect.
Bad points:
· The first ring nearest the winch-fitting is a single leg.
Overall impressions: -
If you only want to use light plugs like the ‘Thunderstick’ or surface ‘walking-the-dog’ lures like the ‘Sammy’ or the ‘Gunfish’, then the 15-40g Bushwacker works very well indeed and is very good at the price. And now that they have upgraded their rods, probably even better value for money. However, the wall thickness of the blank is very thin and it lacks a certain amount of backbone. So if you want to include heavier, bulkier topwater plugs, then I’d recommend that you move up to the ‘Ultimate Red One’ or the Teklon Concept Sin. Both of these have the same ability to handle a wider range of plugs although, of the two, I definitely think the 8’3” Grauvell Teklon Concept Spin has the edge.
So there you go, for what it’s worth, an unbiased review of three out of a whole new range of plugging rods to come onto the market recently. Maybe it has helped, maybe not; but whichever rod you choose, if you think it’s going to stop there then you’re sadly mistaken. Evolution doesn’t let go that easily – oh dear me, no. Having just got myself sorted with two new plugging rods, Pat Daly from Henry’s Tackle Shop in Dublin has come up with another one, from the Illex stable, that he reckons I definitely need to own. Might be a bit dear though, at around 374 Euros, but then what the hell, it’s got to be worth a look … hasn’t it … ?
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© Bob Moss 2010 – Ballydavid, Co. Kerry
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Tenryu
Bushwacker
Teklon Concept Spin