My very first rod was an 11ft Tank Aerial with no makers name at all, so probably home made and given to me by an uncle.
Only my brother in our family was remotely interested in fishing so I learned from him as a nipper . . . .
Later I inherited his 9ft solid glass spinning rod and his wooden tackle box as he moved on to more "adult" kit.
My first "proper" fishing rod however was a Mk IV Avon rod in slit cane, obviously, that I lusted after for about a year while working a Saturday job in the local greengrocers shop and saved every penny.
I used to see it all the time in the window of old "ma" Bennet's tackle shop when I'd go in to buy six pennyworth of gentles, and I well remember the heart skipping moment when I first saw the price tag of, £5 17/6d
Those same rods (refurbished) today sell at between £375 and £600 . . . . .
Only my brother in our family was remotely interested in fishing so I learned from him as a nipper . . . .
Later I inherited his 9ft solid glass spinning rod and his wooden tackle box as he moved on to more "adult" kit.
My first "proper" fishing rod however was a Mk IV Avon rod in slit cane, obviously, that I lusted after for about a year while working a Saturday job in the local greengrocers shop and saved every penny.
I used to see it all the time in the window of old "ma" Bennet's tackle shop when I'd go in to buy six pennyworth of gentles, and I well remember the heart skipping moment when I first saw the price tag of, £5 17/6d
Those same rods (refurbished) today sell at between £375 and £600 . . . . .