old rod advice needed

hi i have a split cane rod built by a e rudge & sons of redditch its a octagonal shape 11 foot long and named the the derwent. its in its original case which says by appointment to the late king george v. hardys the worlds angling specialists alnwick eng any one got any idea what sort of fishing it would be used for and what it would be worth. any advice would be most welcome

Rudge and Hardy are two different firms, so it isn't the original bag.

11' suggests either a salmon fly rod or a float rod. The most obvious differences would be the reel fittings and the rings. A float rod would normally have quite high stand-off rings, and reel fittings free to slide the full length of the handle, whereas a salmon fly rod would have low stand-off rings - possibly even snakes - and the lower reel fitting fixed in place near the bottom end of the handle.

Value will depend entirely on condition, the bag may be worth more than the rod. Look through "completed listings" on ebay or old "Mullock and Madeley" catalogues for an idea.

The only Derwent by Rudge that I've seen was a 12' 4" (?) coarse rod, possibly this is also a coarse rod - as Alan states, among other things, the handle will give it away as to it's use.
Jerry

thanks for the advice lads the rod is in very good condition it has full sliding reel fittings and it has surface rust to the eyes but is still usable also it has green whipping around the eyes and every inch apart the full length of the rod.
i think the top eye has been put back on at some time as the wipping on that is red or maybe the rod was broken at some time but it measures 11 foot from tip to the end of the handle. i was thinking of using it for barbel & chubbing but did'nt know if it would handle them.anyway thanks for the advice and tight lines mick.
ps it a 3 piece rod all sections are the same length except the top joint is an inch shorter

Top joints often were, partly for safety in the bag, partly because they had neither female ferrule nor rubber button. If the cane of the tip is the same as the cane part of the middle, I'd say it's full length. Another sign, if you replace the top ring, is to look for the sides of the tip being planed flat, to whip the arms of the tip ring on.

thanks for your advice alan the top and bottom eyes are both glass the rest of the eyes are just plane im going fishing in the week so may give it an outing. it belonged to my wifes grandfather who gave it to me about 15 years ago i put it in my garage and forgot all about it . untill i was sorting out my tackle the other week and she remembers him fishing with it when she was a small child many thanks mick ps all sections are the same split cane and octagonal

Agate eyes, although common for the end two were usually at extra cost on most rods if you required them throughout (about 10s on a £8.10s BJ rod in the 50's)
Jerry