Wednesday Review... Sonik Gravity Surf Rod

This entry was posted on 18th May, 2016

As an out-and-out 13ft multiplier man, I do enjoy the manly glow that a decent pendulum cast gives me. It makes me stand a bit taller and puff my chest out, but in all honesty I don’t do as much shore fishing as I’d like. Although you don’t ‘unlearn’ a pendulum cast once you’ve learnt it, it’s not so easy to hit one with full confidence if you’ve been away for a while.

With that in mind, I started to get quite interested in longer rods and fixed-spool reels.

A simple casting technique, braid line for distance, no worries about tuning the reel up, it’s all good.

But which rod to choose? After all, there are loads out there.

I eventually decided to give the Sonik Gravity Surf rod a shot and went for the 15ft 4in version - go big or go home, as they say in Australia. I’d had a good waggle with the Gravity at recent trade shows and was very impressed. I didn’t want an out-and-out Continental-style match rod, and the Sonik Gravity appeared to have a more UK look to it, making it a bit more versatile and user friendly.

It’s available in the 15ft 4in size or the 14ft 4in, both built on very slim but quite powerful three-piece blanks and a nice carrying case is a bonus to prevent damage in transit.

The rod is built for fixed-spool use and I spooled up my big Penn reel with 30lb braid and a 60b shock leader to give the rod a thorough testing.

My first impression, when I’d put everything together and clipped a lead onto the rig was, ‘This is a very big rod indeed.’

Looking back and upwards in preparation for the first cast, the rod just seemed to on and on! It did cross my mind that the 14ft 4in might have been an easier choice to get the grips with.

Casting was by the simple overhead-thump technique.

I didn’t want to try anything outrageous and I wanted to see what the rod could do with this simple style of casting - after all, thats what the extra length is intended for.

Well, as things turned out, my impression of the 14ft 4in being the easier option was quite well founded.

Going up from a 13ft rod to one of 15ft 4in is quite a jump, and that extra length does take some getting used to. It’s mainly down to muscle memory. I do cast the 13-footer overhead from time to time and I’m used to releasing at a certain point in the cast. It was a tough job to find the best release point on the longer rod. Put simply, it need a bit of practice.

Thats a good tip to anyone thinking of going for a very long rod - give yourself a bit of time to get used to it!

Those early casts repressed a steep learning curve, but this rod is so good that you want to stick at it and get the best out of it.

It’s slim, light, looks great on the tripod and is capable of casting a long way when you get everything right.

As an all-round fishing rod it’s a very good choice for UK conditions, especially if you do a bit of match fishing. It’s versatile enough to handle very decent fish while being sensitive enough to do a job with smaller species on smooth to semi-rough ground.

That extra length gives you the opportunity to keep a lot of line out of the water when conditions allow, and that longer lever, once you get used to it, will put a lead out impressive distance.

If you are used to longer rods and fixed-spool reels I’d advise you to give the Sonik Gravity a try. Forget about going home, just go big!

Buy The Sonik Gravity Surf Rods