Snowbee’s affordable Deep Blue Charter rods are fresh additions to the excellent DB range. Priced between £54.99 and £64.99, Des Westmore was keen to get a real handle on them.
Good kit doesn’t cost the earth these days, and if clear evidence was needed to underline this then Snowbee’s Deep Blue Charter rods are case in point. The DB Charter rods are fresh additions to the existing Snowbee Deep Blue range that already deliver on both quality and price.
I had the 20lb version for testing and Snowbee have got this spot on for my money. The rod is three-piece with wide appeal to experienced anglers, newcomers and casual anglers alike on the grounds convenience of transportation/storage in the first instance.
The fittings are good quality with a generic plastic reel seat, and no less than ten lined rings plus the tip. The guides are nothing like the heavily braced monstrosities I regularly see thrown on rods in this price bracket. Crucially, the generous number of guides guarantee the line never touches the blank in use, which is an issue commonly symptomatic of many sparsely rung and lower priced rods.
The Snowbee rod bag is open meshed on one side so that the rod will still dry naturally if stowed away wet. The excellent design feature goes a long way to avoiding ring-rot and tarnishing which are regular end results of storage in standard non-breathable cloth rod bags. A great idea, and I think all rod bags should be formed like this.
High Marks for Action, Fishing Feel and Durability
The blank is 7 feet, 6 inches long and the plug-in joints produce a positive fluid curve under load of fish. I haven’t managed any huge specimens on the 20lb DB Charter rod yet, but strings of hard fighting pollack bent in the 20lb version well enough to provide and a good insight into the blank and what it promises in other more testing fishing situations. From bite and through the fight the 20lb Deep Blue scored well. High marks would be awarded for action, feel and the quiet ability to stick it to bigger fish or multiple hook-ups should any need arise.
Charter skipper, Greg Woodford has the full range of DB Charter rods on his Lymington based, ‘Southern Star’, and they have been hammered by his hire rod customers since autumn 2010. Greg reports no problems at all. Any gripes I have are minor ones. My only niggles were that the gimbal cover was a bit loose fitting – it kept getting left behind in the bag, while a bit of white or fluorescent paint on the tip would have added a little additional polish.
Deep Blue Charter rods are vailable in 12, 20 and 30lb classes. Very competitive RRPs range from £59.99 to £64.99, and at that price, it is very difficult to criticise. For more information on the Snowbee website.
