Chris Yates The Merlin 11′ 2-piece Avon rod.
Made in 2016. In mint, unused condition.
£2,200.00
Colin says this rod is better than new. It’s been out of its bag twice since we completed it nine years ago and the varnish is nicely cured now. See what he means? A Merlin is now £2,400. Bear this in mind as you read on.
The charming gent for whom we made this rod had every intention of using it but a change of personal circumstances and geographical location has persuaded him that he’d rather let someone else enjoy using it.
We built this rod to the very highest standards. The materials -rings, corks, bamboo etc are the absolute best. It’s a beautiful looking rod with its warm, caramel coloured cane, claret silks and subtle old gold intermediate whippings. When I took it out if its bag, I nearly fainted. If I was the bloke from that pottery programme on the telly, I’d have burst into tears. Pride’s one of the deadly sins and I’ll probably be in all sorts of trouble when the time comes, but still, it’s nice to see that we’ve got something right.
The Merlin is still, to my mind, the best classic split cane Avon-style rod. We have Chris Yates to thank for it. He and I were serious about developing new rods in the late eighties and early nineties. The Merlin had to meet with Chris’s approval before he’d allow me to offer it. It took a long time to get right but get it right we did. I’ve hardly changed anything at all about its fundamentals since we started making it.
This is a sensational rod. Here are its particulars:
Precision built from flame tempered, hand split and straightened Tonkin bamboo.
24″ Flor grade cork handle with our own aluminium sliding reel bands, butt cap and shoulder collar.
Reinforced nickel silver ferrule, blued, lacquered and fitted with a hand-turned Olive wood stopper.
Amberfin butt and tip rings with hard chromed stand-off intermediate rings.
Claret silk ring and ferrule whippings. Pearsall’s ‘Old Gold’ graduated intermediate whippings. Flawless and properly mature hand-applied marine grade varnish finish.
Tailor made bag.
Suitable for 3-6 lbs reel lines and casting weights up to 1 oz.