Newsroom - Jan 10

For Sale - £2000

I am offering for a sale a mint 7' #4 2/2 Tom Moran bamboo fly rod. This rod, serial number 844/36, was made for me in 1997/8 by Tom and has only been used a handful of times. It remains in the same condition it was delivered to me. To quote Len Codella:

One look at a Moran Rod and it easy to understand why Tom Moran’s reputation as a builder of the finest rods is as substantial as it is. One cast and you will be convinced for a lifetime!

The swelled butt blank is lightly flamed and has a crisp action with a 4 weight line. Cosmetically the rod is without peer; this rod was one of the first fitted with Tom’s own Titanium Carbide coated spring wire guides which are polished gun-metal grey to match the acid oxidised nickel-silver ferrules and reel fittings. Thread wraps are transparent with single thread wrap edging (a single green tip top thread wrap differentiates one mirror tip from the brown of tip 2!). The Cigar cork grip has finely knurled oxidised nickel-silver slide band and a reel seat of highly figured Eucalyptus (similar to pipe briar) which matches the flaming very well.

The rod also comes with its hand-turned mahogany ferrule plug, original cloth bag with stiffener, the hand made leather and aluminium rod case and the small soap block Tom gave me for the ferrules. I will also include in the sale all Tom’s correspondence as provenance. I am afraid that the closing strap for the rod tube has some teeth marks on it (see photo) as my daughter found it a surprisingly good remedy for her teething. If necessary this could be easily replaced as it is not fixed to the cap.

The wading ban on the chalk streams I now fish results in the use of a longer rod and when combined with a growing parts list for my 1966 Lotus Elan is my reason for sale.

This rod is as close to perfect as you are likely to see and will I am sure continue to increase in value due to Tom’s very limited production.

Walt Lawson - 2009

It is a year and I still miss him every time I sit at the vice.

It was with great sadness that I found out about the death of my great friend Walt Lawson at this time last year after a prolonged battle with cancer.

We must all have a similar story of a friend who willingly gave up his knowledge in order to help a fellow angler. When I was lucky enough to be posted to Alberta in 1997 I did what I always do and immediately sought out a local who would be willing to show me the local fishing holes. Walt was that local, and over the next two years we fished across Alberta, British Columbia and Montana together becoming great friends. When we were not fishing in all weathers he taught me how to tie flys properly and quickly.

Walt was ever generous with his time and I not only learnt about the merits of the Woolly Bugger but also the importance of family, 5X tippet and tomatoes. Our friendship endured over e-mail despite my move back to the UK and when I was lucky enough to be posted back to Canada we even managed to catch a few more trout; but not enough!

He is dearly missed by all that knew him for his generosity and I will always remember him gracefully casting a #6 Woolly Bugger to the big browns at Carseland as I stepped out of my depth again, much to his amus