Sometimes I buy this or that model of rod to compare it with those I already have. The rods which can’t meet the competition I immediately give them away. This approach may drive you into bankruptcy that’s why before buying anything I recommend you to ask yourself a question: “What do I need this rod for and how can I choose more correctly?”

The consumer requirements are clear and obvious:

• • You need a certain length to cast the lure into the necessary place;
• • It’s desirable that it should have the minimal weight and a good balance system;
• • It should be secure so that you could successfully overcome an unexpected fish, at a pinch the line may break but the rod should survive;
• • It’s quite desirable that the rod should be rigid and didn’t move from side to side in the side wind.

And, of course, I’d like the price correspond to the quality. I’d also add to this list the possibility to exchange the product if it turns out to be damaged during the transportation from the factory.

There’s no sense in buying the rod with extra length or power.

Extra length means extra line. After winding the sagging line will get additional windage in the stream, you hooking will be delayed, it will be more difficult to control the tackle, or more often even impossible. It’s unavoidable that the line should be getting tangled more often during the casting as well as after hooking.

Every additional joint will increase the weight of the rod, Your hand is getting even more exhausted with every move of yours. It’s getting even worse, that the longer your rod is, the bigger the minimal weight of the rig is, otherwise you just can’t cast it, especially if it is a head wind. Also, you shouldn’t forget that the longer your rod is, the higher its price is. That’s why rods come in series.

There are several suchlike series in Briscola products. First of all, there’re powerful Forza rods, which are very comfortable to hunt for large fish with, using a heavy and secure rig.

Another specialized series is Fantasma. These rods were designed for angling, or speedy and extremely active fishing with light rigs. Personally, I can cope with 2-kilo carps, using a 9-meter Fantasma with the line diameter of 0,13-0,15 mm. but the main purpose of these rods is standard and quite wide spread fishing of roach, perch, bleak, silver bream and small bream. The accurate casting of a sensitive and thin rig give you the opportunity to fish quickly and effectively.

Just between these two specialized series of rods, obviously, there are two amateur constructions – Favilla and Fiamma. There’s nothing wrong about the word “amateur”, quite on the contrary, these rods are just ideal for fishing in different conditions, because they are universal.

Touching upon the power and durability of the middle group rods, my wife, for example, pulls out carps up to 3 kilos with a 6-meter Favilla (2-4 g rig, 0,18 mm line), without any difficulties. I could tell the same about Fiamma rods. Moreover, the heavier the rig is, the less difference there’s between them.

But the number of anglers, who start using light rigs in a delicate style if fishing, is continually growing. Cautious fish make them do so, and strong lines which have been recently created help them to make this decision. You can’t use light rigs with this or that rod when the weight of the rig becomes less than 1,-1,5 g in the line up to 0,12 mm. As long as I almost always use extremely light rigs for certain conditions, it is easy for me to compare these two 7-meter models – Fiama and Favilla – in practice. The reason for that was an ordinary case when I needed a secure, light and Fast 7-meter rod, and my friend needed the same rod but a bit more flexible. The results were clear and predictable. Both rods are formally the same according to their action and power. But dynamically, especially when you cast light rigs, a less flexible Fiamma is much better.

The designers managed to achieve it quite easily. They took Favilla and strengthened the butt end joints a bit, which increased their dynamic rigidity, it became heavier, but the balance system changed just a bit, and here we have Fiamma. As long as the critical section is situated a bit higher than the border of butt joints strengthening, the rod remained as secure as Favilla.

And another simple piece of advice. If you put the rod on the stand, you should choose Briscola Favilla and Forza. And if you hold the rod in your hands, choose Briscola Fiamma, or even Fantasma.

Andrei Yanshevskij

Moscanella Web-site