Saturday, 8 June 2019

Vision Tool 13' #8

This post follows directly from the review of the Vision Onki 13 footer, which saves me having to repeat all the background and contextual information.  If you haven't previously read the Onki 13 post you would find it useful to do so before starting.

Although the Tool and Onki share a common parentage in the original Vision Catapult, they are distinct in design intent and outcome.  Nevertheless there is overlap between them.  For example, while the Onki has a forgiving through action that is ideally suited to novices, less experienced anglers and ordinary casters, well established fishermen would enjoy using it.  Conversely, the Tool is sufficiently forgiving to allow less experienced anglers to use it with pleasure, although it will be less tolerant of their faults and limitations.  The Tool requires more casting proficiency than the Onki, especially if you are to get anywhere near the best out of it.

I can best explain what I mean by analogy.  Just about everybody will be familiar with the BMW 320 saloon car, which is widely acknowledged as the leader in its class.  It's very easy to drive, has excellent handling and its general behaviour flatters its users.  The M Sport version (not the full spec M3) looks very much the same to the untutored eye, and if you're just pottering about, feels much like the original.  However, once you push a bit harder the differences, especially in the 'feel' of the car, become apparent.  If you've added the right options there is an additional athleticism in the dynamics of the steering, suspension and response.  Of course there are thousands of people who pay an extra 20% to buy an M Sport variant for reasons other than the driving feel, and probably never explore its limits - which of course is difficult to do legally on British roads.  Moreover, in the hands of the average user under normal road conditions, the difference in time from A to B between the two models is unlikely to be significant.  But in any event the difference in feel is undeniable.

So it is with the Tool.  When you pick it up for the first time, it has a distinct 'feel' that is athletic and purposeful, which sets it apart from the relaxed and reassuring Onki.  Old time salmon fishermen might have expressed it in terms such as 'heft' or 'yar'.  The word heft has its roots in old Norse.  Not all axes are the same, ask a Norwegian: differences in head weight and shaft length and shape impact their character, usability and 'heft'.  My father explained to me as a child that 'heft' was an essential quality in all things that you used with your hands, which expressed the quality of their dynamic balance and fitness for purpose.  The same is true of salmon rods.  'Yar' is an American term (derived from Old English) used in relation to the handiness of sailing boats, well explained by Tracey in the musical High Society (showing my age again!) as responsive, quick to the helm and taut.  It applies equally to salmon rods.

The Vision Tool has long had an outstanding reputation as a formidable casting weapon, capable of delivering anything up to Admiralty anchor chain.  In this evaluation I did not set out to explore that aspect, not least because I lack the casting skill to explore its full envelope, but rather to assess its worth in practical fishing use in the hands of a moderate user.  Would it meet my notions of heft and yar?


Tool Overview

At £550 the Tool is squarely mid-field amongst premium salmon rods, in a -/+ £100 zone bounded by the Guideline LPXe below and the Hardy Jet above, that also contains the new Mackenzie NX1.  It's certainly a high quality product.



The Tool arrives in the same WAG styled triangular cordura tube as its little switch brother.  I've long since got used to the colour scheme and I do like the triangular section, which stops it rolling about in the car.  Inside the 4 sections are contained in a plain black cloth bag.








The aesthetics are understated, with unpainted blanks and modest counter-point whippings.  The rings are high quality, probably PacBay but not labelled as such.












The reel seat is a simple down-locking design that exposes the blank beneath.  The locking held secure throughout the 2 days, with only one check.

The cork is average for this price point and well finished with composite butt cap and endings to increase durability.  The grip thickness is somewhat larger than suits my small hands but it didn't cause me difficulty.





The balance test indicated an optimum reel weight in the range 220-240 grams.  The Rulla shown here is at the light end of that range, but produced acceptable balance for the purposes of the test.



Test Conditions


The conditions were exactly the same as those for the Onki: two days on the Tweed at Rutherford in very low water, with an awkward swirling downstream wind.  The need to stay out of the water, or at most restrict wading to ankle depth, had more effect on the Tool than the Onki, for reasons I shall explain later.  During the test I employed the full range of casts (inexpertly) from both shoulders.

I tried 3 different Rio Scandi heads - 34, 37 & 39 grams.  While the Tool handled the heavier heads with ease and the 37 gram produced excellent loading, for me the sweet spot was at 34 grams, which produced the ideal combination of loading, communication and aerial performance.  It was so nice and well suited to the conditions I didn't bother with the 50' head in the car box.


Tool Impressions


Tail of Lovers' Leap
Tweed at Rutherford



As I noted earlier, from the moment you first pick up the Tool you are struck by its 'feel' - athletic, purposeful and most definitely 'heft'.  Nonetheless I had a frustrating start, because on Friday afternoon Lovers' Leap was a pale shadow of its normal character: I'd been looking forward to opening my shoulders (left handed) but rather was faced with a series of streams between awkwardly located rocks.  It wasn't fun as I had to expend all my concentration on fishing the fly briefly in each runnel before rapidly extracting it to avoid snagging and to cover another.  In terms of fishing the conditions were hopeless.  It certainly wasn't fair on the rod.


Between the Caulds
Tweed at Rutherford
Day 2
What a difference: Day 2 was overcast and gloomy, which made even shallow water seem more fishy.  On Between the Caulds I was fishing the left bank, right handed for the Single Spey when the wind permitted, and left handed for the Double and Snake when it didn't.  However, the need to stay close to the bank brought the luxuriant grass behind me into play, thereby restricting the D loop for the left handed casts.  Although the water was very low, the fishing width was the same as that at higher levels, which meant that whenever the wind dropped enough to allow a Single or C Spey I could load up the Tool and let fly.  And fly it did.  Over the years that Tony has kindly hosted me at Rutherford I've fished this run several times at +12" with a variety of 14 footers (including the Loop Classic, Cross S1 and Hardy Marksman).  In broad terms the Tool 13' was covering the same acreage of water with no greater effort.

The communication and rod feel during casting was clear, albeit not amplified to the extent of the Onki.  In this respect the Tool is better suited to a more experienced angler.  It loads all the way down to your hands, even at 60-70% effort.  It most certainly is not some kind of tippy Scandinavian shooting head launcher, but rather a properly integrated through-action fishing rod with serious sinewy muscle - Lasse Viren comes to mind - that brings the energy of all 4 sections into the action.


Island in the sun
Friday
After lunch I moved up to Island, where I'd fished the day before in blazing sunshine.  On Saturday it was gloomy and rainy, with a rising wind.  These conditions darkened the water, made everything look fishy and increased my confidence and focus enormously.  The wind wasn't helping my casting with either hand but the Tool made short work of the challenges - point and shoot.  As my MCX Dark #10 swung into the V-seam holding area below the second croy a nice fish took and headed off downstream towards Kelso.  Having been dissuaded from that option by a good bend in the Tool, it then made a bid upstream for Peebles.  It wasn't large but it was certainly energetic, putting in some nice runs and a little aerobatics for good measure.  I was much more forceful than I had been with Friday's larger fish and so brought it to the net still full of beans.  Indeed, Michael had no sooner got the hook out and it was off between his legs and away like a rocket before I could get the camera switched on.  Michael Farr reckoned it was about 6 lbs and had been in the river 8-10 weeks.  The Tool had shown that it was an effective fish-fighting weapon, with enough flex in the top to absorb shocks and good power throughout its length to get the job done quickly.


We then dashed down to the Slap in a desperate bid to cash in on my lucky streak and catch a third fish before tea and the drive back to Yorkshire.  I had one firm tap about 6-8 feet downstream from where I caught the fish on Friday but didn't get a hook hold.  Casting left and right handed I explored all the water, sadly to no avail.  One point I took from the casting was that the Tool wasn't as easy as the Onki in rolling short lengths of line.  Another was from extracting line into the back cast of the Single Spey that had sunk in the back eddy, which the Tool managed in short order.  I concur with Alan Maughan's view that extracting a sunken line efficiently - especially sinking heads - is a real test of design coherence.  Through action rods do it best with least effort because all 4 sections are involved in the process.  Some years ago I had a very prestigious rod but only its top 2 sections took part in extraction: as a result it was a complete pig to use with sinking heads, which persuaded me to sell it.  Vision have certainly appear to have got this right with the Tool, and I should have loved to have given it a real workout in big water with an S3/S6 to confirm my views.

Summary

The Tool is not just a first class casting machine but also an excellent all round fishing rod.  It has a delightful athletic feel in your hands - near perfect 'heft'.  I really liked the way in which the action brings every inch of the blank to bear on every activity - extracting, casting and fighting a fish.  It matters little whether you call it full, through or whatever term the marketeers might coin, this type of action makes life easier for the user while exploiting to the full all the energy stored in the blank during casting.  As  Yorkshireman I have difficulty with the notion of paying for 4 sections of expensive carbon when only the top two do the business and the role of the bottom pair is limited to adding altitude to the top ring.  Putting all 4 to work feels like much better value for money, and for me it's certainly more pleasurable.

Two days with the Tool on the Tweed was a most enjoyable experience.  It's a great rod that I can recommend to any competent angler and caster.  You will be able to cover acres of water with minimal effort and without fatigue. However, if you're not confident in your casting, stick to the Onki, which will suit you better.  But if you fish for more than just one week a year, have the skills to match and are looking for a 13 footer, then the Tool is a 'must try' option.

It certainly has great 'heft' - someone did a first class design and development job to achieve this sort of feel.  But is it 'yar'?  Its 11' 6" little brother is certainly yar, but bearing in mind that the sailboat that Tracey was describing was named True Love, I must confess that at 13 feet, it's the MAG that's most yar.




Tuesday, 4 June 2019

Vision Onki 13' #8

Despite my new-found state of retirement, it was quite difficult to find the time to write this post.  That's largely owed to the leisured days I've devoted to the Rye's trout in order to enjoy the peak time of the season.  However, with strong, cool winds and low temperatures, the level of activity has been somewhat disappointing.  That said, I did have 3 very nice fish in a 2 hour session early on Friday evening, after spending the rest of the day babysitting one of my grandsons (recreational lawn mowing).  Now that daughter, son in law and their boys have returned to London, and the rain has driven me in from the garden, I've finally got some time to write.


13 Footers

On many rivers that I fish the 13 footer is my rod of choice.  Provided the river isn't too big (perhaps < 35-40 metres wide) or the water too high (thereby demanding large flies and sinking lines or tips), a good 13 footer will meet 90% of your requirements.  It's light, handy and so easy to cast that you can fish all day.  And with the right head you can cover ample water.

Back in 2014-15 I undertook a methodical selection exercise to find my perfect 13 footer, using a combination of catalogue searches, user opinions and practical testing.  While many people would find that approach boring and a denial of the pleasures of buying, I found it valuable, informative and interesting.  The salient points included:

  • Most of the sales promotion text written in catalogues and on retailers' websites about rods is completely unhelpful.  In the absence of a standard lexicon of terms, the words can mean whatever the reader chooses.  in the worst cases they are meaningless in relation to the rod, because they are purely designed to stimulate you to buy the product.
  • The advertised rod line ratings comprise a very broad church.  Across a sample of 8-10 rods nominally rated as #8, I found optimum head weights from a low of 28 to a high of 38 grams.  In simple terms they covered everything from #7 to the upper reaches of #9.
  • Most of the 13 footers I tried were nice to use.  Manufacturers seem to find it easier to get things right at this length than at 14 feet, where I've encountered rods that I really disliked.  Of course it's all a matter of personal preference, but I repeat the point I've made several times before - there is no absolute consistency between rods of different lengths in the same model or make.  You need to try before you buy.

At the end of my selection I had fallen for the Vision MAG 13, which 5 seasons later remains my No1 favourite salmon rod.  Unfortunately, I had no sooner recommended it to all and sundry, than Vision took it out of production.  My research and review thereby rapidly became a matter of historical record rather than useful information (although in 2017-18 several of my regular readers took advantage of Uttings' clearance sale to pick up MAG 13s for £200).  I was increasingly conscious of the lack of value of an obsolete post and wished to offer something more up to date.  With retirement looming I sensed an opportunity, and duly nagged my local Vision dealer to lend me a couple of 13 footers to evaluate and write up - the well known Tool and the new entry-level Onki.  An invitation from Tony the Master Netsman to spend 2 days with him at Rutherford on the Tweed at the end of May provided a welcome opportunity to fish with both rods. 


Test Conditions 


I must stress that this is not an exhaustive test by an expert with a creel full of AAPGAI casting qualifications, using a wide range of different lines.  It's my impressions based on 2 days' fishing with the line and leader most appropriate to the very low water conditions (gauge at 0"), in this case the Rio Scandi head, a plain 13 foot fluorocarbon leader and a #10-12 MCX Dark double fly.  The water was so low and clear that to avoid disturbing the fish I had to stay as far back as possible from the edge, which often curtailed the space available for a good D-loop.  A longer-headed line would  have been an encumbrance, while the shorter head of the Scandi allowed me to work the fly through a useful area of water.  This didn't matter too much as there were only a few places where I needed to cast any great distance.  On both days we had a swirling and often blustery south westerly wind, which required me to use every cast in the book from both shoulders.


Disclaimer

As I have previously stated, I have no connection with Vision.  Nor do they offer me any inducements or benefits that would in any way influence the opinions in this evaluation, which are entirely my own.

Onki Overview


With the demise of the Vipu range, the Onki is now Vision's entry level double handed rod.  However, with a price tag of £450 it's certainly not a budget item pitched to compete with the likes of Shakespeare, the  Airflo Delta and the basic Greys.  Its price puts it head-on against the market-leading Guideline LPXe (£499) and £100 below the Tool (and the old MAG).  This places it firmly in the premium £400-£800 bracket, in which the competition is intense and the quality generally high.  You don't get the very latest resins and carbon weaves, or the most up-market rings, reel seats and cork, but the trickle down of the previous generation's goodies does work to the customer's advantage.

I'm not privy to Vision's marketing strategy, but the evidence clearly indicates that they regard the Onki and Tool as very different products, with the choice between them determined by preference rather than price.  The launch of the £1,000 XO range marks a new development in their market positioning that appears consistent with a preference over price doctrine.  You can see where Vision has reduced costs to bring the Onki in £100 below the Tool - rings, reel seat and rod bag most visibly - but they haven't compromised in the areas that really matter.

The first thing that strikes you is the unusual colour.

Within an hour's use I ceased to notice the colour.  It's actually quite easy on the eye, and in a salmon fishing world with yellow rods, electric blue ones and all manner of distinctive shades, it's not that eccentric.

In this photo you can also see the single leg intermediate rings, which are neat and tidily whipped with translucent materials.






The reel seat is a plain workmanlike down locking design, with a slim lock-nut and a gunmetal finish.  At the end of 2 days' fishing it was as tight as when I started, and it required no attention whatsoever.  I'm not a fan of ornate reel seats - my favourite is the American ALPS - and I much prefer something simple and functional, so the Onki's (quite similar to the LPXe) got my vote.






The cork is about average for this price point.  The handle is a nice diameter - not as slim as the MAG, but still well within a comfortable range for my small hands.

The butt and ends of each section are of reinforced cork composite, which is nicely finished.







The balance test indicated an optimum reel weight in the range 220-240 grams.  On the test I used my old Lamson Guru 4, which by chance was a perfect match.











The Onki travels in an unusually modest (for Vision) light grey compartmented tube.














Onki Impressions


There's a certain cheerful eagerness about the Onki.  It's light and easy in the hand, and balanced with the right reel, does not have the inertia that influences the movement of longer rods.  Extending the line single handed was delightfully easy.

Vision describe the Onki as Medium-Fast and 'deep' actioned.  Both terms are unusually accurate.  The Rio 34 gram Scandi was absolutely on the sweet spot: it was so nice I didn't even try the 31 and 37 gram options.  With a full D loop deployed it loads progressively right down into the butt during both back and forward casts.  It tells you everything that's going on during the cast, which is exactly what novices and inexpert casters need (and I enjoy).  Over the years I've concluded that the best test of a rod's communication is the left handed single Spey: you don't have the same muscle memory as on the right side, so things are less automatic and require more thought.  The first pool I fished (The Slap) was right bank, left hand up.  There I was with a brand new and unfamiliar rod, on my first proper day's fishing of the 2019 season, casting rusty, and cack-handed to boot.  Good rod communication was of the essence if things were to get off to a decent start.  



The Slap
Tweed at Rutherford
The Onki made it delightfully easy.  I started on the rocks in the foreground with a series of left handed rolls to work the water closest to me, gradually extending the line before moving down the bank.  How a rod performs when lightly or under-loaded is quite informative, as it tells you how well it will perform in the short range scenarios that are common on small and medium sized rivers, and with the associated ad hoc casts.  You don't spend the whole time at maximum range shooting handfuls of line, so this flexibility is important.  Tip-biased shooting head or Scandi rods are less good in this domain.  In contrast the Onki was excellent.


Once I had extended the line I set off onto the pebble bank and down the pool.  When the wind permitted (downstream and slightly behind at 10-15 mph) I used either left handed single or C Spey, or right handed double Spey.  With the double the height of the pebble bank (about 5'/1.4 m), the impossibility of wading and the acute angle between the casting line and the shore together precluded the formation of a full D loop.  Nevertheless I could cover the full width of this pool, about 25 yards at the head, with ease.  As fish often run up the easier water beyond the centreline it was essential to cover the full width.  


12 lbs springer
estimated to have been in the river 8-10 weeks

Within 10 minutes I was fully settled with the Onki, happy, confident and casting respectably.  Then providence intervened: this nice solid fish, booked by Michael Farr at 12 lbs, took the little MCX Dark shortly after its arrival near the far side.  This gave me an unexpected opportunity to test the Onki's fish-fighting characteristics, which are entirely satisfactory.  As it was my first fish of the year and statistically significant for Rutherford, I didn't hurry the process.  But when the time came to bring it to the net there was plenty enough muscle to finish the job efficiently.



Island
Tweed at Rutherford
It's entirely possible that this stroke of luck - in brilliant sunshine and crystal clear low water - would influence my opinion of the Onki.  Well, so be it: you'll just have to estimate how much discount to apply to my opinion.  I then went on to fish Island, which in the bright sunlight was ultra-clear, which limited wading to no more than a couple of yards.  Here the wind was at 45 degrees downstream and into my face, and rather turbulent and variable, which made it difficult to settle into a single type of cast.  The requirement here was for a much more oblique presentation to maximise the time the fly spent in the narrow main flow-line, and hence a longer cast to cover the water.  It was, however, a far cry from the last time I fished this run in driving rain, near gale-force wind and high water, with a 14' Hardy Marksman, fast sink tip and a weighted tube fly!



Mill Stream (tail)
Tweed at Rutherford

The next morning the wind had dropped when we fished Mill Stream.  This gave me the opportunity to develop a full D loop and  cast a respectable distance with a right-handed single Spey.  The Onki responded enthusiastically, but even here I was nowhere near the limits of its capability.  Stripping in the running line allowed me to work the fly over a lot of water - there were fish in the pool - but sadly to no avail.

After a full session of fishing none of the untaped joints had moved, rotated or loosened.  A quick check of the 2 top sections showed good spinal alignment of the carbon cloths.


I din't try the Onki with a Skagit line, which would have been inappropriate in such low water conditions.  However, my impression of its full action suggests that it would perform very well with a Skagit, which Vision say was an essential part of their design brief.  They suggest a Skagit head of 580 grains, and noting that their recommended Scandi head weight of 34 grams proved to be absolutely spot-on, they're most likely to be correct.  Vision don't make a recommendation of weight for a conventional Spey line, and in the circumstances I didn't have an opportunity to test the 50' head in my car box.  I was so delighted with the 34 gram Scandi that frankly I felt no need to try anything else.


Summary


Doing an evaluation on your first day of the season when your casting is rusty is a stern test of a rod's user friendliness and communication.  The simple fact is that the Onki made the job not only easy but also a real pleasure.  Experienced casters could use this rod in their sleep because the feedback through your hands tells you everything you need to know during the progress of the cast.  The action is delightfully full, just the way I like it, with enough flex to reduce the effects of "the trout fishing top hand".  But it's most certainly not soft or sloppy: in essence the Vision designers seem to have taken the Cult action and just turned the firmness up by a couple of clicks.  The result is a delightful rod that I really enjoyed using and can recommend without reservation for a wide swathe of anglers.  In particular, if you're a novice who's now sufficiently committed to salmon fishing to want to graduate from an entry-level rod to something better; or someone who true to this blog's title, fishes just one week per year, is as a result a less than expert caster, and wants a rod that makes it easier; or like me are an OAP with the usual range of creaks and limitations who appreciates a really easy-casting rod, then the Onki will suit you admirably.


In my next post I shall be writing about the Tool 13', which in my view is different in design intent, and therefore optimised for more experienced and expert users.  There isn't a clear or wide dividing line between the Tool and the Onki at this length, rather a reassuring overlap, as I will explain in due course.


Of course all this begs the question of shall I be exchanging my MAG for the Onki?  The answer is no, because obsolescence notwithstanding, the MAG is still near the leading edge in design and materials, while at the personal level, after a 5 year love affair it's become an extension of my fishing hands.  But it's a telling comment on the Onki that at no point during the 2 days at Rutherford did I have the urge to take the MAG out of its tube in order to feed my soul.  For me at least the Onki was that good.