Telescopic Fishing Rod

I have been thinking of getting a Telescopic Travel Fishing Rod to keep in the car it might be handy if I get a few unexpected hours to wet a line, has anyone had any experience with these rods?.
This might do the job NGT Trekker Telescopic Travel Fishing Rod Coarse Sea 6, 8, 10, 12ft | eBay for a bit of float fishing do you think?

Those tele holiday rods aren't much good. The handles are invariably too short for a start and there are too few rod rings. They are too short to be any good for float fishing. Those that are longer are likely to be too heavy and unwieldy.


For float fishing travel rods see if you can source a shakespeare Agility Exp. float rod. 13 foot 4 pieces. A proper rod.

Comes in a tube. There is one on ebay. paulsanglingsupplies(339318)
I don't know how to put the link on here directly.

I'll second that. :thumbs:

There was a time that I'd not have wished any type of telescopic rod on my worst enemy. Times change and there are a few about that I'd use if the situation dictated. However, though they might be fine for their intended application, the small telescopic spinning rods would not be my choice, especially for float fishing. Wrong action and too short for my liking, before you get into the more technical aspects of ring spacing and handle length.

Better to look for genuine float rods in either telescopic or multi-piece formats. The snag here is that though the odd manufacturer still have such rods in their ranges, the chances of finding one in a bricks and mortar shop are often pretty slim. Two that I can think of that are current are the Shimano Aernos Telematch and the Shakespeare Agility EXP Match. Whether they'll have a short enough packed down length and be cheap enough for your liking is another matter entirely. They'll definitely be better tools for impromptu float fishing sessions. It might be even more academic if you can't find one for sale anywhere.

I sometimes think that these things are what you make them.

I once had one of those pen rods that were all the rage at the time, bought for me as a Christmas present and it was (iirc) the 6' Grandeslam version and around 6 - 8" retracted.

I was quite baffled by it at first but took it out and used it and had some of the most fun fishing I've ever had, even netting a pike around 5lbs.

There's an article somewhere here in the archives by Jeff Woodhouse (second time today Jeff's name has cropped up) which sang their praises.

For a bit of float fishing and a tenner (equivalent brands) I reckon you'd be hard pushed to beat one and you get the reel thrown in too, I think there used to be a record weight of fish caught using the Grandeslam version and it used to be an upper double carp.

All subject to the water being fished and a bit of common sense if there are snags around, of course.

Edited to add: Yep I've found Jeff's review it's here, never mind a bag you can keep this in the glove compartment...

http://www.fishingmagic.com/fm-features/reviews/15003-des_taylor_pocket_rocket_rod.html

Further edit: At the risk of previous ridicule and comments about **** Barton and his dog Snowy (! ) here's the said rod and reel in action with a pike...



It's made me think really, I love this kind of thing and have a 6' Greys G-Lite spinning rod which rarely sees the light of day and which I've always thought would make a great two piece equivalent if I could find a way of grafting a longer handle on to it...

I feel a project coming on

mark_t said:

I have been thinking of getting a Telescopic Travel Fishing Rod to keep in the car it might be handy if I get a few unexpected hours to wet a line, has anyone had any experience with these rods?.
This might do the job NGT Trekker Telescopic Travel Fishing Rod Coarse Sea 6, 8, 10, 12ft | eBay for a bit of float fishing do you think?

Click to expand...

Yes I have used those mega cheap telescopic rods quite a few times & they are all pretty rubbish but at the end of the day its still a rod and better than nothing. They are my last resort option when I am going on say a short trip and limited to only one item of hand baggage. I can get one diagonally in my cabin bag...& if it does not quite fit I simply saw a bit off the handle !

It can actually be fun & a challenge in itself to see how big a fish you can catch on them

If you want a rod for the boot of your car your probably better off going for something a bit more upmarket like the rods others are suggesting.

Out of interest I also managed to find a travel spoon landing net with a telescopic handle and the net actually hinges in half as well. I can get that in cabin bag as well. With everything unfolded and extended its actually a reasonable net ! I had to buy it just for the novelty factor.

Not found a bedchair or Bivvy I can get in a cabin bag yet...but I am working on it ..

Around 10 years ago I bought a telescopic carp rod to take on holiday and it performed reasonably well.

It has also been used a few times in the UK and has handled barbel up to 8lb or so.

Sadly it was a bit roughly treated by some baggage handlers and is in need of some new rings....

Trying to source rings of the correct diameter for the blank with the correct ring diameter as well is proving difficult.

I will probably replace all the rings with single legged rings, but that will mean it won't telescope down as far as it did before!

There are some nice 9 ft 5 piece spinning rods around that fit into the smallest of cases!

Steve King said:

Trying to source rings of the correct diameter for the blank with the correct ring diameter as well is proving difficult.

Click to expand...

Yes I know exactly what you mean, trying to get something the right size to fit round the blank. I usually end up fishing with less rod rings till the rod breaks and I buy a new one.

The other thing you can do is get one thats slightly too big and wrap some electrial tape underneath it till it fits, then give it a liberal coating of glue.

I use two on holiday - the shakespeare agilty for light stick work and the wilson travel for those darn mullet, both are way better that any telescopic jobby. I like the agility so much i'll often use it local when i have to go to the shops before so it stows away in the boot, it can handle a big barbel and the only downside it's a tad heavier to hold for a long time than a three piece. The Wilson will do all the lure fishing no probs but is only 11ft or so so not great at casting any distance

Personally I would rather opt for a 4 piece "travel" rod over a telescopic one every time.

The reasons of a few above, being: too few rings and the rather stiff-ish action that is inherent in a telescopic rod.

The problem seems to be getting a reasonable "coarse" rod as opposed to a spinning rod

There is only one alternative that I can find, but sadly it is a very pricey, and that is the Peregrine 4 piece 11 feet Avon rod.

Remember I did say it was .. . pricey:

Custom Fishing Equipment Bath


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I have a Fishing Sense telescopic carp rod I picked up for £20 with a reel and line. I think you can buy them new for £25 with the reel as I found out later. I have used it mainly for sea fishing so far and found it good, float fishing of the jetty or a bit of spinning. Not a problem, ring spacing OK and not stiff, quite a nice action. I just fold it up after use with the trace and weight still on and its ready to go for next time. I particularly like it because it folds up into a small bag I carry with everything else in it. Just right for mullet fishing as well.
Not a float rod but just right for float/sea, just thought I would add this as they are not all bad, not a perfect thing for serious fishing but they have their place and I imagine there must be good ones or good enough at least for just a bit of casual freshwater float fishing.