Thomas & Thomas DNA 14ft Spey rod.

T&T DNA 1409 5 piece double handed fly rod

Ally fishing the R Dee with T&T DNA 1409 rod

There can be lots of reasons to love a fly rod but first of all like any good partner you must "get on" with it. Strange to talk about an inanimate object in such a personal way, perhaps I should be wondering about my sanity? On reflection not so, I think that all fly fishers have favorites, rods that you enjoy taking out of the case because you anticipate a comfortable and enjoyable day ahead. Firstly of course you must get it into a case. Aeroplane baggage can be a problem for fly rods but not for this one because it fits snugly safely concealed inside my large Mountain Equipment duffle bag. That alone is a great reason to own the 1409 but that's not its best attribute, so what is? Like all T&T rods it tracks like a laser, dead straight, no unintentional curve casting! Build quality is superb, the joints fit perfectly (but like all carbon ferrules a thin lubrication of paraffin wax does no harm) so perfectly in fact that I never tape them but I do check tightness from time to time. Incidentally taped joints can also slacken so its wise to check tightness even after taping. Its also good practice to carry a pair of rubberized gloves to improve your grip when dismantling rods.

Ally with a large salmon R Rynda, Russia, rod T&T DNA 14ft

I'm never quite sure about describing rod actions this one I would describe as "very nice". T&T describe DNA as having a "progressive action for for today's two-handed casting styles" and I'm happy to go with that and I'll tell you exactly why. I fish in lots of places and often travel a fair distance not knowing what conditions to expect at the other end. I may have to fish deep and slow with large flies, maybe using a sinking line or a Skagit type. I may have to fish a floating line "fine and far off" in greased line style with small flies. Not knowing what's needed means that I try to carry a selection of lines and shooting heads that will perform to suit conditions. This is where my 1409 really scores because it has coped admirably with everything. A little adjustment on my part to suit the line because for example you can't expect to cast a Skagit in exactly the same manner as a triangle taper floating line and the rods performance is remarkable. My travelling kit includes a selection of Rio Scandi shooting heads rated 9/10, 550 grain Skagit and Skagit Iflight with up to 12 ft. of T14 tip, Royal Wulff floating TT Spey 9/10 and a Rio PowerSpey multi tip line 9/10. I have used a number of other lines on the 1409 and there are many suitable alternatives to these in my current travel kit. As always my bottom line on choosing a line is that if possible borrow the line for a few casts before buying even with a tremendously versatile rod like this one individuals will inevitably express a preference.

Being able to handle a variety of lines is only one of a rods attributes. Another is that it has to be able to stand up to the task of fishing and playing in the case of a salmon rod fairly large fish in some pretty rough water. My DNA 1409 has certainly proved itself landing decent sized fish from rivers in Scotland, Norway and Russia.

For further details on this and lots of other products see the Thomas & Thomas web site.

Fly fishing tackle reviews

1. Introduction to reviews
2. Teton fly reels
3. Semperfli fly fying threads
4. Snobee XS-Plus Distance Floating Fly Line
5. Thomas & Thomas DNA 15ft 5 piece Spey rod
6. Thomas & Thomas DNA 14ft 5 piece Spey rod
7. Patagonia SST wading jacket
8. Partridge Supreme dry and wet fly hooks
9. Partridge Patriot double & Heavy single hooks
10. Rio Hover sub-surface fly line
11. Joan Wulff's NEW Fly-Casting Techniques book.
12. Spey line discussion
13. Weight Forward Spey lines
14. Rio AFS shooting heads
15. Lee Wulff Triangle taper Spey lines
16. Double taper lines
17. Choosing shooting lines
18. Seaguar and Grand Max Soft Plus Flurocarbon
19. EyeTie fly leader threader
20. Snowbee Delicate Presentation Fly Line
21. Wychwood Presentation fly line