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The whole B. James cult thing has obscured the fact
that several other manufacturers also made The whole B. James cult thing has
obscured the fact that several other manufacturers also made whole-cane-butt
barbel rods. I believe that several of these makers’ rods every bit as good
as the Avocet, and some, better. Such rods were made by Martin James Rods,
Milwards, Eggington of Merton, Priory Rods of Bournemouth, Sowerbutts,
Homers, and many other excellent provincial firms. The ‘Senior Wizard’ made by the London firm of Judd, is
probably the finest of all, but it is even rarer than the Avocet. I have seen
only three examples, two eleven footers, and a twelve footer. Small makers
sometimes made such rods to order, and these obscurely- named examples can
prove to be gems. The large diameter butt Avocet type by Chadderton of Kent
is an excellent example. Look at the
rod, rather than the name, and bear in mind too that behind an apparently
faceless rod, may lurk the genius of a great split-cane maker. If you can find a Southwell-made rod, you can’t go
wrong, but they have all sorts of names on them, disguising their true maker.
For instance, Precision Rods marketed an absolutely marvellous barbel rod
called the Avon Festival. It had compound taper split cane sections, and a
whole cane butt. To my eyes it is clearly a Southwell blank, despite the fact
that Precision Rods were miles away, in Redditch. I cannot explain this. Many
small London firms used Southwell blanks. I was told by a man who should know
that Judds used Southwell blanks, but the Senior Wizards I’ve seen were
certainly not Southwell-made: I wish they were. A Senior Wizard taper made by
Southwell would rank alongside the Holy Grail. Let’s hope they didn’t all end
up as firewood. If there is a downside
to Southwell split cane, it is that it is more brittle than most, so anglers
who have stuck their rod-tips into unyielding tree-trunks have often
shortened their rods by a foot or more. Whole cane butt rods really are the nicest. Fifty
years ago Bernard Venables wrote that the whole cane butt was superior,
‘because it steadies the action’ of the rod. To me, they just look and feel
right; which may be another way of saying the same thing as the great
Venables. But, there are many, many more rods available made entirely from
split cane. Excellent rods were made by Constable, Priory, Chapmans, and
others. Eleven footers seem to be favourite, but consider 10’6” rods too.
They are often lighter to hand, and a good compromise between the stocky Mk
IV types, (which to me feel all wrong for barbel fishing) and the powerful,
full-blown, eleven footers. For those seeking something less meaty, perhaps for
little barbel, there is little to beat the wonderful Allcocks Wizard, but the
for all its well-connected history, the Wizard is not really a barbel rod.
Wizards used for light legering really should be re-ringed with low cradle
rings, and they should have a couple of additional rings too (four or five
intermediate rings on the tip, and four on the middle section). For what it’s worth, my own choices are: for occasions when a big
barbel may be encountered, a Judd Senior Wizard; and for weed-free winter
barbel, an early B.James (Southwell) Avocet. I keep my wonderful Wizards for
less strenuous duties, with lighter float tackle. To return to the rod/wife analogy, and to borrow from South Pacific, another Rogers and Hamerstein
musical: once you have found her never let her go. When you have your rod, go
fishing, and forget all else. The vintage tackle collection craze has blinded
many to the fact that we are, or perhaps should be, anglers first and
foremost. I believe unshakably that my wedded bliss with ‘traditionalist tackle’
has given me an essential compatibility with the world of British (I feel
here that I should be saying English) freshwater fishing. My cane rods seem
to sit well in the picture before me. They bend and blend to the crease of
the current where who-knows-what? may dwell. They require my care, and repay
me with boundless pleasure in their company. I do not spend my days on the
river dwelling on the necessity to acquire the latest, the greatest, the
strongest, the thinnest, or the one with the highest modulus. My rods were
not made with the aid of a degree in chemistry, but by a man with a big piece
of Chinese bamboo, and a sharp plane - and
that somehow makes it right: it’s nature within nature. I just sit
with my happy partnership established, understood, appreciated, and valued.
Nice, isn’t it. Barbel rods for sale are included in the main list |