TACKLE BAG

Platinum power

Top of the current Greys range, the Platinum is a pretty pokey customer. The 9 6" #7 fly rod is built on a slim, brown, three-section blank, fitted with two large stripping rings and good sized bronze snake rings, a full wells handle - good cork and not too plump - with an attractive wooden spaced reel seat, and small fighting butt. Build quality is excellent, subtle brown whippings, smoothly varnished, match the blank nicely. The male parts of the over-fit joints have been ground and fit snugly into their female sections. Packed in a grey canvas sleeve and a stout alloy tube, it's an attractive package.

In the hand, it's well balanced but for a rod of this length and line rating this is not the lightest rod in its price range. The handle is about the best quality cork I've had my mitt on in a review for some time. Looking at the ring specification, large, and judging by the action just waggling it, very firm, this has been designed with power and speed in mind.

A very powerful rod, with most of the casting action in the upper third, the butt section is stiff, and it throws a tight loop, generating high line-speeds. Not a forgiving rod, to get the best from the Platinum timing is important. Rated #7, with a standard WF line I found I needed a good length out before the rod felt loaded, using an Arrowhead 6/7/8 line (also under review) loading was more positive. With a firm haul and very postive stop on the delivery stroke casting to maximum range was outstanding, a full line and a few yards of backing. And that really is the forte of this rod. At short range it demands a heavier line, at medium range it asks a little more politely. Roll casting is possible but not subtle as it needs a fair weight of line out past the tip before the rod contributes much at all.

As a fishing tool, the Platinum has a powerful tip which means fine tippets could be under a lot of pressure. Playing a fish it feels very authoritative, no time is wasted. What it does do is get the fly to maximum range consistently and with some style.

Overall, not a rod I'd recommend to the beginner, the infirm or unwilling. Fishing with the Platinum means doing some work. However, for those who are willing to put in the effort and possess the skills it's a very impressive rod for long range fishing.
Price: £287. Available from Greys stockists (see 'Useful Links').
Magnus Angus

Wet and dry flies just how I like 'em

I fish mainly on rivers or small streams for wild brown trout and I am extremely fussy about the flies I use. Working for FF&FT I have seen flies tied by some of the best tyers in the world. Most are such works of art that they are never intended to be fished, but they do give you a certain desire for quality in the everyday fishing flies you own and use. This can be hard to find in some mass-produced commercially tied flies and so, as a non-tyer, I struggle to get flies I am happy to use. However, having seen a picture of Lakeland Flytying's sparsely tied spider patterns I thought that I may have found the answer.

I made a list of some 18 river patterns varying from midges to sedges. By the time I had noted down all the sizes I needed, my order came to just short of 100 flies. In less than a week they arrived, all presented beautifully - hooked neatly into foam, protected from damage in plastic hook boxes. The tyings are exactly the way I like them, the spiders and small wet flies are slim, sparse and deceptive. The Sedges are bumbling, lively looking characters, the CdC Olives are a wonderful natural colour with incredibly fine tails, and the Black Gnats are just wicked. The whole package struck me as coming from a company who took pride in their tyings and presentation, who were keen to provide really useful custom-tied flies and who knew about the insect life eaten by wild fish. To my eye the proportions and colours are correct and the ribbings are even, neat and fine; there are no duff, fat lumpy ones or badly winged ones. They are durable fishing flies too, some have already been in the mouths of several fish and they are still neat, tidy and ready for more.

The flies I ordered cost from 55p to 85p each, depending on the type of fly. Contact Nigel at Lakeland Flytying, 9 Devonshire Street, Dalton in Furness, Cumbria, LA15 8SW Tel: 01229 465753. (See 'Useful Links')
Hazel Pirie