Keith M
Well-known member
For those of you who came into angling relatively recently and wondered why many of us old codgers still talk about Richard Walker as if he was an angling guru:
Twenty things that the young angler may not know about the master besides him once catching the largest UK Carp (Clarrisa) plus a few other record fish.
He:
1. Wrote the first bookdevoted toStillwater fishing including the specific problems associated with catching larger fish..
2. Designed and built the first satisfactory Carp rod when specialist rods didn't exist.
3. Designed and made the first net big enough to hold a 50lb fish yet light enough to hold with one hand.
4. Invented the electric bite alarm.
5. Invented the Aresley bomb.
6. Invented the single and double Grinner Knots for joining nylon line. (Grinner was the nickname of his son).
7. Devised the slow sinking balanced crust bait. (crust/paste combination) which enables the bait to gently lie on top of silkweed or soft silt.
8. Invented Vaned floats which enable the wind to take the float to the right place at distance.
9. Devised the rod rest that prevents line from being trapped between the rod & rest.
10. Pointed out to reel manufacturers that their pickups should incorporate rotating pickup rollers when not one production reel had one.
11. Campaigned for knotless keepnets until subsequentally Mr. C.J.Field pioneered their commercial introduction. (which becamea legal requirement)
12. The first to detect the vibration bite from Barbel as opposed to the usual rod-bending pull and explain how to detect it.
13. After one of his former colleagues at the Royal Aircraft Establishment in Farnborough invented Carbon Fibre he went down with Jim Hardy to see how this new material might be used in fishing rods.
14. He was the first angler in the world to catch a trout on a carbon fibre rod.
15. Discovered the best way of joining hooks in tandem trout lures, namely a treble plait of 12lb nylon monofil.
16. Discovered the causes of loss of strength in nylon monofil refuting makers claims that monofil was rot-proof.
17. Discovered that the cracking of PVC coatings of fly lines was due to the loss of plasticizer and what factors caused this and he also devised a special grease to restore lost plasticer.
18. With the aid of expert chemist Arnold Neave devised a liquid that flies could be dipped in which would thoroughly impregnate and waterproof dry trout flys which didn't alter their colours.
19. Explained to the tackle trade that centrifugal governers on multiplier reels were the wrong way round and that instead of adding extra braking as the spool speeded up it should be adding it as the spool slowed down.
20. Explained that if you half the diameter of a line it becomes sixteen times more flexible and vice-versa.
The list goes on and on. So now you know some of why he was so well liked and respected.
Twenty things that the young angler may not know about the master besides him once catching the largest UK Carp (Clarrisa) plus a few other record fish.
He:
1. Wrote the first bookdevoted toStillwater fishing including the specific problems associated with catching larger fish..
2. Designed and built the first satisfactory Carp rod when specialist rods didn't exist.
3. Designed and made the first net big enough to hold a 50lb fish yet light enough to hold with one hand.
4. Invented the electric bite alarm.
5. Invented the Aresley bomb.
6. Invented the single and double Grinner Knots for joining nylon line. (Grinner was the nickname of his son).
7. Devised the slow sinking balanced crust bait. (crust/paste combination) which enables the bait to gently lie on top of silkweed or soft silt.
8. Invented Vaned floats which enable the wind to take the float to the right place at distance.
9. Devised the rod rest that prevents line from being trapped between the rod & rest.
10. Pointed out to reel manufacturers that their pickups should incorporate rotating pickup rollers when not one production reel had one.
11. Campaigned for knotless keepnets until subsequentally Mr. C.J.Field pioneered their commercial introduction. (which becamea legal requirement)
12. The first to detect the vibration bite from Barbel as opposed to the usual rod-bending pull and explain how to detect it.
13. After one of his former colleagues at the Royal Aircraft Establishment in Farnborough invented Carbon Fibre he went down with Jim Hardy to see how this new material might be used in fishing rods.
14. He was the first angler in the world to catch a trout on a carbon fibre rod.
15. Discovered the best way of joining hooks in tandem trout lures, namely a treble plait of 12lb nylon monofil.
16. Discovered the causes of loss of strength in nylon monofil refuting makers claims that monofil was rot-proof.
17. Discovered that the cracking of PVC coatings of fly lines was due to the loss of plasticizer and what factors caused this and he also devised a special grease to restore lost plasticer.
18. With the aid of expert chemist Arnold Neave devised a liquid that flies could be dipped in which would thoroughly impregnate and waterproof dry trout flys which didn't alter their colours.
19. Explained to the tackle trade that centrifugal governers on multiplier reels were the wrong way round and that instead of adding extra braking as the spool speeded up it should be adding it as the spool slowed down.
20. Explained that if you half the diameter of a line it becomes sixteen times more flexible and vice-versa.
The list goes on and on. So now you know some of why he was so well liked and respected.
