Hardy Sintrix Zenith 15'1 Test

Its not often that a rod comes along that there is so much hype about.  I was really keen to test this new rod from Hardy, the trout rods are great, but this new flagship rod from Hardy is truly amazing.  Ease of use is the main advantage, plus its ability to cast really tight loops.  The action is quite fast, but it flexes deep into the butt.  The cosmetics and build quality are very good, much better than has been coming from Hardy in recent years, and this really is a huge step in the right direction. Ian Gordon was over at our demo weekend last year, and he was raving about the prototypes of these rods.  I thought that this may be hype, but after testing them yesterday, they are very impressive! I tested it using a Mach 2 55ft head # 10 and it did seem a bit light on it, such is the power of this rod.  However it worked amazingly well with a shooting head setup. I tested it using a Rio AFS 10/11 (42g) clear intermediate (2ips) head with a 3.9ips poly leader and a 0.35 in (blue) rio running line.  It cast all the running line with ease!  I was up on a casting platform which is a huge advantage, but I really want to try this rod on the river, so looking forward to getting one in my hand for the start of the season. The rod is not cheap (€1150) and will not be for everyone, but having said that it is an amazing piece of equipment.  I believe that this is a little more than the latest fad as it feels very solid and powerful in the hands, yet incredibly light. The rods will be available from the beginning of December. [gallery link="file" columns="4"] Ian Gordon testing the rod below