These are the detailed pages designed to accompany items on show at Fly Fest Scotland 2018.
Hardy of Alnwick 3 piece, two tip Split Cane
Hardy’s entered the scene in 1872 and have never left it. They even claimed to have invented the six-strip bamboo rod. The truth is they “reverse engineered” an American made rod, but do seem to have been the first to produce wholly split cane rods in the UK. We can date this rod exactly, thanks to Hardy’s excellent production records. It is from 1904 but has many features many of Hardy’s patented innovations from the previous century. Hardy “Lockfast” ferrules were patented in 1881 and their “bridge” guides followed in 1883. Hardy’s made these items freely available through their catalogues and as we will see, they were used and indeed imitated by many other makers.
The rod is six-strip split cane in three sections with a spare tip (one of which has been broken). It makes up to a 10’ rod and sports the American-style nickel silver reel seat seen on Hardy “Tournament” rods, though it is not marked as such.
The rod is six-strip split cane in three sections with a spare tip (one of which has been broken). It makes up to a 10’ rod and sports the American-style nickel silver reel seat seen on Hardy “Tournament” rods, though it is not marked as such.