As a keen specimen angler, targeting mainly pike and carp, the concept of mobility has always been of interest to me. In recent times my young daughter Leah has done some fishing with me and 12-13ft rods with big pit reels are just too cumbersome for her. Add to this boat fishing and long handles on the ‘bank rods’ getting in the way, and I had different sets of rods for carp and pike.
I first heard of Nash Scope and Dwarf gear whilst on a carp angling holiday in Gran Canaria with Dave Beecham, and I first used the Pocket Pod whilst fishing with him on Lake Chira. I was so impressed I bought one myself when I got back home.
My good mate Damien Wood had purchased a set of Dwarf rods and associated equipment and was made up with them. Leah and I paid a visit to a tackle shop and had a play about with the rods and some of the other equipment. It looked impressive, so the initial investment was made in the 3½lb Dwarf rods and the 4½lb Spod rod to use for carp fishing. That weekend we went fishing, and Leah opted for the island swim with a cast of around 100 yards. I had not even used the rods and was unsure of their casting ability, but I hit the 100-yard cast with ease, bang on first cast. Leah also liked the rods as they are much easier to handle for a nine-year-old.
If you don’t know of the concept, basically the butt section of the rod is telescopic, with the upper part pushing down into the handle. With a shorter top section, this all makes the rod much smaller when folded down, easier to transport, etc. The rest of the range follows the same compact/mobility theme. I decided to invest in some more of the range and purchased the Rod Slings and Sleeves, Bivvy, Rucksack and various other items. I also purchased some of the 10ft 2¾lb Dwarf rods for margin fishing.
The proof is in the pudding, as they say, the rods have served me very well, landing numerous carp to just shy of 30lb and a good number of 20lb-plus pike. I’ve used the rods at multiple ranges for both species on a variety of venues and do not miss my 12-13ft rods one bit! The Dwarf rods handle and cast very well, and are a pleasure to play fish on. The fixtures and fittings are all very well made and robust, and also look the part. The reel seat is big enough to accommodate a big pit reel and the slim Duplon handles are hardwearing.
The Scope Rucksack is an excellent bit of kit; lots of pockets and very comfortable to carry, which is very important to me. Both the Scope and Dwarf Rod Sleeves and Rod Slings are excellent and very compact; the lead pouches are a very good idea, and the ones I’ve got fit big pit reels. The Pocket Pod is extremely stable and the carry bag fits your bite alarms in, which is very handy. The Pocket Pod carry bag fits snugly into the Scope rucksack to save carrying it separately – a lot of attention to detail has gone into the range.
On the waters I fish 100 yards is possibly the maximum I will ever need to cast, and I’ve learned from experience when baitboating that it’s the power as opposed to the length of the rod that matters to set the hook at range. I decided that I no longer needed the 12-13ft long range carp and pike rods I had, so I sold them.
I realise that the Nash Scope/Dwarf range will not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I can assure you it’s far from just another gimmick, fad or flash in the pan. I’m suitably impressed with the Nash Scope and Dwarf range in particular the rods which are a very useful innovation, in my opinion this compact range has a big attitude and ability being an asset in the specimen anglers Armoury.
