Graham Whatmore
Senior Member
This is turning out to be a very valuable and informative series for both the novice and shall we say the less practiced pool fisherman, excellent Mark.
One thing I would add about buying poles is, never ever buy a pole without first trying it out, first at full length to test how stiff it is(and theres no such beast as a perfectly straight pole), but also with one or two sections taken off. This is to check the balance of the pole, sometimes a slightly heavier one will feel lighter because it is better balanced and the only way to check this is to try it sat down as though fishing, its no use standing up and wafting it about, that tells you nothing.
One thing I would add about buying poles is, never ever buy a pole without first trying it out, first at full length to test how stiff it is(and theres no such beast as a perfectly straight pole), but also with one or two sections taken off. This is to check the balance of the pole, sometimes a slightly heavier one will feel lighter because it is better balanced and the only way to check this is to try it sat down as though fishing, its no use standing up and wafting it about, that tells you nothing.