Pye are Squared ?

The Dennis Pye rod needed a good outing , so I loaded it up with a Cardinal 66 and took it along for a trip up the river .

I must admit the rod did not immediately feel right ! In fact I would go so far as to describe it as a stick : even if it is a bamboo one .

The casts it produced resulted in the paternostered tackle baits , leads and floats doing all sorts of loops and wobbles in flight . I am no scientist but something was amiss !

I was using a Dave Lumb P2 on the other rod with exactly the same end gear . That landed in the water with no issues . However a slow underhand cast seemed to work better with the DP rod .

The river was lovely and the weather beautiful . An 8lb fish soon snaffled one of my deadbaits but unfortunately on the P2 .

I then decided to have a go with the DP rod and a centerpin reel . The idea being that an underhand lob , rather than a cast might assist in the " whiplash " cast issues .

So I partnered the rod with a JW Youngs " Seldex " .

The traditional casting seemed better with no " whiplash " issues .

Very soon the float disappeared and the result was a feisty 8lb Pike to the DP ! ( Please excuse the silly hat ! ) The rod is great to play fish on and with a centrepin , the whole set up seems complete .

Jeff took pity on my attempts at Wallis Casting ( Thats what I called it , it was more like a Wally Casting ! ) and suggested casting direct from the drum of the reel .

Well blow me down ( the wind nearly did ! ) it worked . An underhand lob and the reel was spinning , the bait looping out to the far bank 10 meters or so away . Hurray !

My initial views on the DP as a "stick " might have been a bit harsh , but it did seem to work better with a 'pin .

I have a few Seldex reels after a mistake on E Bay ( Doh ! ) so I might have a go with them for a few other species . Now a Season on the 'pin . Now there is a thought !