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New member in Belgium
Post 18 Jul 2021, 15:55 • #1 
New Member
Joined: 07/01/21
Posts: 2
Location: Belgium
First of all, my thanks to everyone who post here regularly. I have learned to much from you from lurking over the last month, this post is not just an introduction, but mainly a thank you.

In June this year, I realised I was going to start flyfishing again after a 30 year "pause". (It wasn't really a decision - it just kind of happened). I took down my old rods from the attic when visiting my parents in Northumberland, UK, but decided to leave them there - they seemed too cumbersome, and in the case of the split cane, too precious/fragile to transport. Plus everyone seemed to be using carbon fibre now in longer, lighter configurations...

When I got back to Belgium, where I now live, I spent an afternoon at the wonderful Allfish tackle shop, where Patrick let me try out close on a dozen rods in different lengths and weights. I thought I had reached a decision - then another customer, who was sharing the session with me, offered me the rod he had come to buy as an experiment - an 8' 4wt fiberglass rod. As soon as I felt the line snaking out of the top ring with only a foot or so to work with, I was hooked! I felt I had been making myself "like" the carbon rods, but THIS was actually something I could enjoy spending time with. And when I had 10 yards out, that feeling was only more certain. I tried some great rods that afternoon, but this was the only one that made me smile.

There was only one of them in the shop, so in the end I had to order one from Poland, which arrived just in time for the holiday I had planned in France. So I finally got to take it out on a river this morning for the first time. And not any river: the Risle, where Charles Ritz spent so much of his time. I didn't catch anything - wrong time of day, wrong time of year... But still, I spent a couple of hours confirming what I felt in the shop - that this smoothness is what I want to experience when I go fishing.

So thanks to everyone on this board, whose discussion of different rods, lines, fishing strategies, etc, I have been reading for the last few weeks, and which confirmed my sense that wherever I may end up in ten years' time, fiberglass is where I want to start:-)













And the rod is ... A Traper Elite, a Polish S-glass rod that is new this year, and one I have not seen mentioned here so far. I would have ordered one through Allfish, but Patrick told me that there was a six-week delay, as Traper had sold all the stock and were waiting for the factory to deliver more. You can read more about them here: https://bogdangawlik.com/product-eng-20 ... y-Rod.html

Looking forward to learning more from you all over the coming years - and to maybe getting to the point where I have something to contribute in return.
Peter


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Post 18 Jul 2021, 19:42 • #2 
Master Guide
Joined: 08/03/14
Posts: 945
Location: central AR
Welcome Peter, and thanks for the cool pictures.

Tim


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Post 18 Jul 2021, 22:32 • #3 
Master Guide
Joined: 12/11/20
Posts: 378
Location: Dallas, TX
Peter,

Welcome aboard and thank you for sharing information about your new glass rod from Poland. I’d like to know more details if you are able to share.


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Post 19 Jul 2021, 12:46 • #4 
New Member
Joined: 07/01/21
Posts: 2
Location: Belgium
Dave,

I'm not sure I'm well placed to describe this rod, having not fished in so long, and having so few points of comparison... All I can really say is that I first tried it after having spent a couple of hours casting with carbon fibre rods (Trapers, but also a Scott and a Gatti), and the difference was amazing.

With the carbon fibre, I needed to draw 6 foot of line or more by hand, to begin to be able to mobilise the line against the rod. With the Elite, I had six inches out of the top ring when I started wiggling the rod, and the rest of the line just seemed to flow out as if it had a life of its own, until it was ready to start casting...:-)

Traper have a full range of fly fishing gear, but this I think is their first venture into glass. The range is small - 7'6 3wt, 8' 4wt, 8'6 5wt. They also make an Elite reel to match and balance the Elite rods, which is what I have. Patrick who let me try the rod says that in general, the Traper gear is the best quality proposition he has found so far at that price point (the carbon fibre rods cost EUR 200-400, depending on the model).

There is more information about the Traper flyfishing gear here: https://www.traper.pl/en_US/c/Fly-Fishing-Rods/14

easternffer may be able to tell you more, as he is from/in Poland, and I believe uses their gear.

Hope this helps,
Peter


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Post 03 Aug 2021, 14:58 • #5 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/20/11
Posts: 1880
Location: US-MD
Welcome indeed!


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