myfishcasting.com

[Keith White]

well, where you look when you want to do something new.
The best place is to get someone to listen to your idea's
and then if at all possible, make it a reality.

Casting rods,fishing rods, OTG rods, Flat Arc rods, High Swing
rods ?, the list goes on and on and on.

People perception is very random and unreliable. I might like this
action, you might not, one may find an action perfect for one style
, whilst you might not.

Rods are after all not built purely for casting yet as testers, we
tend to emphasise casting as a be all end all graph to performance.

Well, it ain't that simple.

I can bend this, you can bend that. This is too soft, this is too stiff ?
What a nightmare.

So, earlier this year, we did tests with rods like the Century TTUL and
Zziplex's profile finding in the process that these rods were far and away
more capable than previously imagined.

But, they did lack something.

Each had unique qualities. Low diameters, equal sections and bendable
butt were common to both designs. Not handling an OTG cast well was
another common flaw in such a design.

The butt on the TTUL was lacking a stop point and had a very soft mid section
whilst the Profile feels powerful and raw when you get low into the butt.
The tip feels fragile and it candy canes in fast lateral tide. The TTUL
just doesn't handle big lateral tide at all and folds up.

Listen, I want....
A rod that casts all styles, casts a big wide range of weights, is slim
, is portable, is good from the rocks on mixed ground, will protect
worm baits at full tilt and will pretty much be a stick I can just take
out fishing OR casting or both.



setup even from the rocks, the rod keeps you on your feet



175g nice and relaxed crosstip or Xcast. 120-130 meters no problem.


This is what I asked Century to produce when I went up there to see them.

Tall order ?

Maybe so, but, they reckon they are good, lets see how good.

What we have right now isn't finished but I can tell you this. Even in
the prototype phase we've got a rod that is VERY slim, 2 piece, gearboxed
(3 phase) uses a glass core material in some way in the tip that works !!
feels well balanced and is VERY strong.

It handles fast lateral current, casts effortlessly weights from 100g to 200g.
I've tested weights to 280g !! and it didn't break. Remember, these weights are
for test purposes only and this rod would most likely be rated 75g 175g to allow
for bait loads but again I'm not exactly certain of this and that may
ultimately change.

We tested theories in the factory and put them into practice on the test grounds
here and in the UK. A few people have cast and played with this prototype and
the response is extremelly positive.

Nothing such as cosmetics, a name, a release date or even if it will be released
have been finalised. I have made this unprecedented decision of making the
prototype loop and development process available publically. Some might think this
is just an attempt to generate topic from nothing but in reality I was hoping
to give a clearer insight into the amount of input applied at all ends by
designers, testers, anglers, casters, market research, financial risk, materials
etc.



Tom Phillips loves powerful stiff blanks yet aknowledges
the versatility and usefulness of this blank. He has one on
pre-order.



175g this time.

To the end user this stuff is generally unimportant. They want a rod that works.
They might not care that this latest and greatest material gives a faster 1/100th
recovery, or we save 12g in the tip or this makes performance more affordable.
They want to go fishing or casting and they want a rod with a good reputation
of reliability and one which performs.

What is performance ?

Is it casting ?

Sure, that is part of it, but not all of it.



Beautiful loading rod. Really easy to use yet has underlying
power in abundance.


If i'm casting, then one way performance is of paramount consideration. Now
I appreciate that fishing around our coastline can be hard but, sooner or
later you might hook up. You do need to deliver a rod that works.

So, that said, when we do get that bite, that big smoothound or decent ray
or perhaps a cod of a lifetime, the last thing we want to worry about is
the damn technology built into the rod. The fish don't care. The guy stood
next to you won't go "wow, look at that awesome rod" when you are stood there
cradling that 20lb cod or 15lb smoothie will they ?
No the focus is the fish, so, we have to ensure we get the fish to the shore.

To do that, we need a rod that is invisible. By that I mean, a rod so much a part
of your setup that you forget about it. It doesn't need to cost £750 so you
are scared to use it. It doesn't need a cosmetic shiny finish that
shows the lightest of scratches. No, we want a rod that works no matter what.

Personally, I like a sensitive tip that doesn't fold in a fast tide yet still
folds away during a pendulum cast and doesn't cause a slack line bounce on the
inswing outswing phase. I like a rod that moves a weight fairly quickly when OTG
casting. I like to cast sometimes softish baits to ranges exceeding 120 meters.

I like a rod that feels comforatable to hold with a bigger reel like a slosh20
on board so I can still get a decent left hand grip. I fish with the wind. I don't
want a larger diameter rod getting blown around because it acts like a sail.
Thinner diameters don't suit everyone, that's fair enough. But, we have a good
acceptable range of larger diameter powerful or not so powerful rods already
on the market.

This is different.

To the best of my knowledge, this rod, if unleashed on the public would be
the lowest diameter most powerful, strongest rod in it's class but....
still able to be cast with the full spectrum of styles by anyone !
10 1/2 stone through 14 stone through 17 stone, it shouldn't matter.

Sounds too good to be true ?

Maybe, but it does exist and I have it here right now.



Not available yet, maybe never. Keep your eyes open though for
more news on this one. Not an out and out casting rod, but a
performance rod unlike any other so far.


We haven't done absolute distance tests yet. That is relative anyway because
I might cast further than you or indeed less depending upon ability and
indeed conditions at the time.

I will say that so far, the rod looks like 250 meters plus 150g plain
sinker wouldn't be an exaggeration and the rod is built for such
performance.

It hasn't been done, or attempted. I'm basing this on feel and the design
and comparing that to the blanks I have in a similar vein.

The future is possibly looking very bright from what I'm seeing here.
Of course, like all things, people will differ in thier opinions and I can
only give mine and leave the interpretation upto you.

The big thing in this rod is it suits a slow loader and it also moves a
weight well from static whether OTG or even uni-tech.

Not a specialist rod but a versatile rod and one I would recommend
to anyone looking at short-long range casting, great handling and
ability to be a bit of a chameleon when it comes to swapping and
trying new styles.

Planned is a lighter de-tuned version for 28-75g but of course, I would
still expect this rod to handle 100-125g with consumate ease by a good
smooth caster and at range too.

Just by how much we de-tune this version remains to be seen and I would
expect it to be aimed at range flat-fishing rolling sinker application, range
Bass fishing, medium clean ground hounds and rays wheras this model
I currently have is going to excel in slightly tougher circumstances without
sucking any of the fun out of catching smaller fish and more subtle
techniques like rolling sinker for shore Turbot are ideal because I've done
it and it feeds back bottom topography like no other I have used to date.

please feel free to ask any questions or even suggest things that we may
try during testing.

close up shots will not be made available YET due to the fact that we aren't
finished either cosmetically or materials wise.
The action though, is pretty much 100% finallised and no matter what
I have asked for this to retained as a premium consideration.

more later....
_________________
--
Keith White.
www.jerseybassguides.com (guided trips and skishing)

For the best in casting fodder visit http://www.auctiva.com/stores/viewstore2.aspx?id=498687&styleid=66

[zippie]

the mind boggles bigman !!!!!
_________________
"never let it be said that i let failure go to my head"

[jon abbott]

So this is what Lew was on about yesterday when he was grilling me about how i rated my TTUL

[Keith White]

[Smartie]

Will it have the balance weights as part of the package, like the top end Japanese Kisu rods.
_________________
http://store.auctiva.com/SmartrigUK
http://smartrig.webs.com/
New Email address smartrig@sky.com

[Gillbo]

Me wantee!
Sounds to good to be true though all this in one package? I don't mean to be cynical but the wide and diverse range of applications this one rod covers sounds like about 5-6 different rods i carry in my holdall and to casting events. i can't wait to see the outcome though and look forward to updates.

[Crab Paste !!!]

Sounds ideal for round here Keith.
The LD is nice but the tip's a bit of a let down for fishing imho.
I'm guessing this could become part of a new Tip Tornado range
Good report and very interesting.

[jon abbott]

will producing a rod that covers so many applications have a negative impact on sales of other rods ?.

[Tima]

Keith

The rod sounds great: let’s hope my wife understands when I order two!

Seriously though shouldn’t Century get some of us sub 200 yard casters and the 100 yard overhead thumpers to try them too?

Tim

[Keith White]

ok, this is what I know.

There IS a Tip Tornado upgrade due.
Whether THIS rod will be part of that line up IS debatable.

What has been discussed is very open to change and I have felt very
privledged to be included in the loop.

I have addressed the issue of the "rod so versatile it negates others in
the range" with Simon Chilcott who simply stated that....

"We intend to continue to improve the product irrespective of ......"
He went on to say they can only move forward and ackowledged
mistakes could indeed be made along the way but....

This is why they are involving casters and anglers in the design/testing
loop because they want us to get what we want.

From a business standpoint that is intelligent. If we are happy with
something we may tell people, who may buy, who may tell someone
etc...

Also, they have thier fingers well on the pulse and know full well that
the North East requires different tools to East Anglia and the Channel
Islands...the list goes on.

But, whilst we have rods well suited to the rock enders and the big hitters
we often struggle when we get guys in the sub 200 yard arena over grass
who want to improve. Moving to something like an SS might well be the
right thing to do for some but, for many it isn't.

These rods will perform sub 200 on the field and still bend. The gearbox
is such that you will only dig into the part of the gearbox you need for
a particular application but......
unlike many more coventional rods that stay long effectively, these bend.

now, they aren't soft...

they bend, bend and then tighten right up just as you apply the power.

It doesn't collapse.

Many rods, like the profile and TTUL collapsed under a 175g OTG.
Even a primo synchro will too some extent because of the way the rod
is constructed.

This is different. the tip is quite bendy but it takes a long bend rather than
a sharp "J" tip when stressed. this in turn feeds the butt section pretty
much straight away.

It moves a sinker OTG and gets it airborne within 3-5 degree's of body
rotation. the rod bends a little, leaves the sinker where it is, tightens up,
then moves it. all rods do this but some...snatch at the sinker. This one
doesn't.

This rod was designed to tackle fast direction changes under the rod tip
by smoothies etc and, because of the effective length coming down
you will have the leverage in your favour which is pretty important
when standing on wet slippery rocks.

I'm going to test the rod on the smalleyed, big wrasse and hopefully the
hounds will oblige shortly. It's that time of year when a nice 3lb + shore
bream could show it's teeth too.

I envisage this rod will be perfect for triggers, bream etc as well as the
standard application of hounds rays.

for heavier ground, buy a Kompressor. Thats what they are there for
whilst still having the ability to handle cleaner ground. However, IMHO
this new type of rod will be much more fun on mixed fishing trips.

Like I said, there could, COULD be 2 rods of this type put out.

There will be a TT upgrade.

There ARE some other very interesting things in the pipeline that
won't be anywhere near stepping on the toes of these new developments
and prior ones.

I'll update you as they update me.
_________________
--
Keith White.
www.jerseybassguides.com (guided trips and skishing)

For the best in casting fodder visit http://www.auctiva.com/stores/viewstore2.aspx?id=498687&styleid=66