Got my new 1265 from Saltheart in time for vacation in Sept. Beautiful wraps- to the extent that I was a little reluctant to bring it out on the rocks with me at Montauk, but figured it was meant to be fished with. Threw 1.5 Habs and 2.5 darters a ton. Could toss an unweighted sluggo too. Enough butt to stop a 10lb. fish in its tracks and could dead lift 6lb.ers. Thanks Mike.

Thanks for the report RichS. I'm glad you like the rod and got some fish on it.

That is one of the prettiest rods I've ever made. That's the one with the crested "fade " pattern. Wait till you see how beautiful that pattern t gets after a couple of seasons exposed to light.

The 1265 is rated 3/4 to 3 OZ and will just kill 2 OZ. Might very well be the absolute best casting rod around for 2 OZ. Guys in hatteras call it the "Spanish Buster" and throw 2 OZ sting silvers a mile with it cahsing Spanish mackeral.. John M says its his favorite casting rod and he has lots of rods! :)

A word of caution. I would recommend against dead lifting any size fish with any rod. That's how they break. Use a long leader and pull the fish up with your hand on the leader. I see more rods broken on the West Wall in the spring than anywhere else. Its guys dead lifting fish only 14-16 inches long. I see a few every single year despite the miniscule size of the fish being caught. .

As the angle you have on the fish changes as you lift it up , even a two pound fish can suddenly apply force to the rod in the wrong direction and snap it. The other thing that happens is a small fish kicks while the line is tight. This raises him up and unloads the rod. Gravity pulls the fish down again and the momentum of the falling 2 pound fish breaks the rod!

Anyway , that rod is just too pretty to take any chances. :)

Also--if the 1265 is designed like the 1266--it ferrules in the middle, not down towards the butt like Breakaway's 1 piece/ 2 piece blanks. Dead-lifting a fish could put a lot of stress on the ferrule, causing microscopic fractures that will give way totally in time.

Saltheart caught a fish on the new rod last night. Sweet. Everyone keeps asking about it, when they see how far I can cast with it. Then when they get close up, I have to wipe the drool off. :D ;)

What rod you get Specialist?

a fishing rod geeeez ! not a skin flute !

If You guys like the 1265 you have to check out the 1267 it is a really nice 10 1/2 foot rod for plugging. the butt section is beefed up a bit and the tip section has a parabolic action to it that allows it to load over the length of the tip section. great action for working big bottle plugs. This rod lends itself to plugging but can be used for jigging up to 3oz. Big Dave

I got a light rod I believe it is a lami sh961mt 8' great for mambo minnow castmasters, and small poppers.

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