A special barbel rod by Andrew Davis
Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2015 5:52 pm
Master rod builder Andrew Davis makes some superb rods for barbel and one of the best is the renowned 'Senior Wizard' as the posts on this site will testify. But I'd been nagging Andrew for a while to build me a rod that could deal with the Trent in an angry mood where 3oz or 4oz leads might be needed to hold bottom and my rod would be pointing to the sky all day in a current battling curve. And should I hook a double in the flood I wanted it to be strong enough to play a whale on 30lb braid but soft enough not to cause a hook-pull - and after all that I wanted to go home with it as straight as a needle.
The expected sentence ending 'off' never came (he's too much of a gentleman) and as we met on the river over the year we discussed the possibility of how such a rod might be built. Or to put it another way I just told him what I wanted and he designed a rod which met my every requirement beyond what I thought was possible. The 'Autumn Glory' was born.
This is a rod designed for a specific purpose. Where I fish on the Trent many of the swims are festooned with boulders and it's necessary to keep as much line out of the water as possible - back leading is not an option and hence the need for a tip section with enough resilience to deal with the rigours of casting heavy leads and holding against the fast currents. I wanted a shorter handle than would be expected on a 12ft rod and an extra guide on the butt section to aid gathering line for casting in tight spots. All guides are lined, built cane top and middle joints with good strong ferrules to deal with the stresses described.
I picked the rod up from Andrew at Redditch and was amazed how he had managed to make such a powerful rod look so elegant. The handle is slim, the finish exquisite, the handling reassuring. It wasn't as heavy as I'd thought it would be and will be more than suitable for those days when I'll be holding it while touch legering on those occasions when bites are fickle. But generally speaking I'll be using it in high or fast water when sensitive indication is just not an issue.
Bob Brookes and I headed for the Trent on the only dry day last week. There is no better man to put you on the fish than Bob and his results this season have been absolutely incredible so I was right to feel confident that the new rod would get a bend in it. The river was high and chocolatey and I was pleased to find the extra guide did it's job as I launched two lob worms under the trailing branches of a nearside willow. 'That's the spot' remarked Bob and he left for his swim further upstream.
Ten minutes later I was playing a good fish which was making the most of the heavy current and had that slow determined pull of a good double. The rod was up to all demands and I had plenty left in the middle section if necessary. It was a good fight and I was delighted how the rod performed and whatever the compound tapers are Andrew has worked some real magic.
A lovely deep fish of 9lbs 6oz that made the ancient Aerial sing.
But I really like this shot of the fish taken by Bob (well I suppose he's had plenty of practice!)
Tight lines
The expected sentence ending 'off' never came (he's too much of a gentleman) and as we met on the river over the year we discussed the possibility of how such a rod might be built. Or to put it another way I just told him what I wanted and he designed a rod which met my every requirement beyond what I thought was possible. The 'Autumn Glory' was born.
This is a rod designed for a specific purpose. Where I fish on the Trent many of the swims are festooned with boulders and it's necessary to keep as much line out of the water as possible - back leading is not an option and hence the need for a tip section with enough resilience to deal with the rigours of casting heavy leads and holding against the fast currents. I wanted a shorter handle than would be expected on a 12ft rod and an extra guide on the butt section to aid gathering line for casting in tight spots. All guides are lined, built cane top and middle joints with good strong ferrules to deal with the stresses described.
I picked the rod up from Andrew at Redditch and was amazed how he had managed to make such a powerful rod look so elegant. The handle is slim, the finish exquisite, the handling reassuring. It wasn't as heavy as I'd thought it would be and will be more than suitable for those days when I'll be holding it while touch legering on those occasions when bites are fickle. But generally speaking I'll be using it in high or fast water when sensitive indication is just not an issue.
Bob Brookes and I headed for the Trent on the only dry day last week. There is no better man to put you on the fish than Bob and his results this season have been absolutely incredible so I was right to feel confident that the new rod would get a bend in it. The river was high and chocolatey and I was pleased to find the extra guide did it's job as I launched two lob worms under the trailing branches of a nearside willow. 'That's the spot' remarked Bob and he left for his swim further upstream.
Ten minutes later I was playing a good fish which was making the most of the heavy current and had that slow determined pull of a good double. The rod was up to all demands and I had plenty left in the middle section if necessary. It was a good fight and I was delighted how the rod performed and whatever the compound tapers are Andrew has worked some real magic.
A lovely deep fish of 9lbs 6oz that made the ancient Aerial sing.
But I really like this shot of the fish taken by Bob (well I suppose he's had plenty of practice!)
Tight lines
