Review - Beulah 10 wt RodManufacturer Beulah Company Specification Length 9 foot Line/weight 10 Rod Pieces 3 Rod Weight 152 g (5.36oz) Action Damn fast Price £229 2008 field test for FISH&FLY Overall appearance The Beulah 10 weight “Guide Series” is constructed from a Japanese IM8 carbon graphite blank with a continuous taper finished in a smart dark green colour. The tip top is titanium as are the snake guides throughout the rod with the first two oversize guide eyes being SIC with black inserts. Colour and components The whipping is Deep Burgundy finished with Metallic Blue on the first guide ring and the handle is made in a Full Wells design from AA+ grade Portuguese Cork with composite inserts plus composite fighting butt. The reel seat is black which locks upwards Carrying Case The rod arrives in a black sleeve protected by a cordura case of 40 inches in length with a black woven carrying strap. Field Test in Connecticut Southern New England USA 2008 My clients and I arrived at Heathrow airport for a returning trip to Connecticut on 23 rd September 2008. The team this year was Patrick Muir, Dylan Morgan, Chris Stuart and Cheryl. L Barton – their guides being Ed Mitchell, Dan Woods and Ken Perry.
Prior to leaving for the USA Steve Warner at Beulah rods and I had decided to match up a Van Staal C-Vex 912 Large Arbor reel with their 10 weight “Guide”Series. The rod is very quick and the casting stroke needs to be shortened to get the best out of it but for those of you who prefer a fast action this rod should definitely be in your arsenal. The main target species was Large Striped Bass, Blue Fish and the mighty False Albacore and if the trip was anything like the previous years we would have plenty of time to test the kit – and this we did. It took a little time to understand the rod and I feel the best way to explain this is not to try too hard on the casting stroke. The lines I had loaded on this combination were either Orvis Density Compensating Sinkers or Orvis Depth Charge lines, the latter in my opinion reacts similar to a shooting head as the majority of the weight is on the head which is spliced onto an intermediate running line which is much easier to manage than a traditional S/Head. The casting stroke needs to be short with a high delivery but don’t overcast, keep the false casting to a minimum and just let the rod do the work – this is a very powerful piece of kit and you’ll find the reward comes to those who slow their power strokes down. On many occasions throughout the trip we were presented with pods of False Albacore feeding over Silversides and Bay Anchovies and this was when the 10 wt rods really came into their own. The Beulah was matched perfectly with Van Staal’s C-Vex large arbour and this combination simply stopped big fish quickly. When the blitzing really happens the one thing you don’t need to worry about is the integral strength of your equipment – from the butt to the tip this rod stands up to some real abuse – I tripled three times in less than an hour and this is testament to the rod, reel and lines we were using. When points are at stake you have to take control of fish quickly which means full compression In a perfect world Some people would have you believe that your qualification for entering the competitive world of Salt water fly fishing is to arm yourself with a big ticket rod which comes with a big ticket price – Beulah rods have made a 10 weight in the “Guide” series which performs superbly well – my opinions are based on the Sport fish we met on our trip to Connecticut this year – 5 rods, 500 fish and 5 tired arms. Well done Beulah for producing a competitively priced 10 weight rod under £250.00 Contacts Beulah rods on 08450 510952 |