Continuing on my quest to become literally the first fishing tackle millionaire without my wife knowing, this week I thought I’d introduce you to a lovely little ‘travel’ spin set I picked up a few weeks back – again this one isn’t for the faint hearted.

As I have only used both of these items for a quick chuck around, to be fair this review will be more of an appraisal than an in-depth review. However, neither Sage’s rods nor Shimano’s Stella reels need reviewing – both sell themselves well enough by word of mouth because their quality is second to none.

Taking long one and two piece rods on planes has almost become a thing of the past. Most British rods do not really suit that many overseas destinations and with the invention of multi-piece travel rods that pack down into suitcase/travel bag length protective tubes - the latter is definitely the way to go!

I’ve had a few brands of travel rods up to now and all have been fine, but in recent years, when overseas, I find one of my most used rods is a 7ft 8-17lb line rated spinning rod, which many standard sea fishing manufacturers just don’t make. After searching around through Google, I found that it is something that is readily available from many fly fishing companies and I finally settled on a SP470 from fly tackle giant, Sage.

If you’re familiar with fly fishing, I’ve no need to tell you how big Sage are and what quality of rod they produce. Lets just say they’re top of their tree and to go with a top class rod, I felt I also needed a nice little reel which was on the special side as well. To pair with my Sage 8-17lb spin, I didn’t have to think for a second “which reel” because they come no highly recommended than Shimano’s Stella range, of which the 4000FD loaded with 15lb Spectra braid, would suit my overseas needs and Sage rod, just perfectly.

The Sage SP470 is a 7ft, 3 piece travel spinning rod rated for 8-17lb lines and for casting lures between 3/8 to 5/8 of an ounce. To be honest this is a pretty pokey, fast action spinning rod (Sage power rating 4) that will actually handle a small live-bait and rig quite easily. This rod is both light and responsive but still retains the power to do battle with the mightiest of opponents.

The build quality of this Graphite 3 rod is above excellent. The finish, and the cork handle, can only be described as awesome – the reel sea is Fuji and the guides are Sage’s own Titanium framed and Nanolite (whatever that is when it’s at home) ceramic lined!

To sum up… this little 7ft travel spinning rod is super built and super sexy!

Like Sage, Shimano are a company that does not need any introduction and neither does their top of the range Stella reel series.

The Shimano Stella 4000FD is simply a reel that has been designed to withstand more punishment than many other reels and yet still operate like the day it was new, and this suits me perfectly for my travels. The last thing I want is a reel that’s going to fail me when I’m away. The Shimano Stella 4000FD features Shimano’s patented SR System components, a screw-less magnesium body and 13 ball bearings. This reel is a front drag and for it’s size, will hold an amazing 260 meters of 0.25 diameter line, which is more than I’ll ever need.

In Shimano’s own words, the Stella 4000FD Reel “doesn’t come smoother or sexier than this...ultra lightweight and oozing with high specification!” and from what I’ve seen so far, I’d have to agree!

My view… one sexy travel spinning rod from one of the world’s top rod manufacturers and one sexy reel, from one of the world’s top reel manufacturers!

It seems a shame to keep this set up packed away until my travels, so this year I’m also going to use it for some of my bass fishing too.

Since this review was produced the Shimano Stella 4000FD has been discontinued for 2011. It’s replacement is the Shimano Stella 4000SFE, which has an RRP of £699.99 (inc VAT @ the 2011 20% rate) and the Sage SP470 8-17lb travel spinning rod has an RRP of £279.99 (inv VAT @ the current 2010 Rate)

I purchased both items from www.sportfish.co.uk

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