GRAPHENE ?
Graphene was discovered in 2004 by Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov at the University of Manchester. The discovery won them a Nobel Prize in physics in 2010. Graphene is a carbon allotrope that is a single molecule thick, arranged in a honeycomb lattice.
Graphene is light in mass and stronger than diamond. It is 100X stronger than steel of the equivalent mass. It is the next big innovation and a true revolution when it comes to fly rods. It allows us to build a blank that is lighter, significantly stronger and with an almost immediate recovery rate.
This is the APEX.
GRAPHENE REVOLUTION
Reel Fly Fishing is the first South African fly fishing company to utilise graphene in their fly rods. We began working in February 2019 on the next big leap in fly rod technology, this ultimately lead us to Graphene.
Graphene provides a host of immediate benefits in the design of a fly rods recovery rate, action profile and physical weight.
For years fly rods have been getting faster to the point where you need extremely overweighted lines just to load them accordingly to maximise the stiff blanks action profile.
Making a fly rod stiffer generally results in a better recovery rate at the detriment to feel and casting ease. Graphene changes all this due to the molecular structure of bonds (its elasticity) within the material. The Apex 9′ 5wt is a fast profiled fly rod but an extremely manageable action that provides immediate feedback to the angler at all stages of the load, cast and pickup. The physical sensation the APEX provides translates into a very easy casting rod that is pin point accurate at all distances.
RECOVERY RATE
One of the key advantages of the APEX has over graphite rods is its dramatically improved recovery rate to a stage that is rated as ultra-fast recovery. This almost instant return to rest state is what provides so much feedback and power without needing to have that extra stiffness like graphite rods. A more flexible action results in vastly improved tippet protection even on a 9′ fly rod.
STRENGTH IN GRAPHENE
Graphene is strong, in fact its the strongest molecule ever discovered. Strength to weight ratio plays a key role in producing a blank that is light in hand but can be pushed to its limits. Graphene has allowed us to produce a blank that is thinner, lighter and stronger than a graphite equivalent. Our Apex 5wt 9′ in hand feels much more like a 4wt and has the swing weight to match.
Reel Fly Fishing is so proud to be able to offer South African fly anglers the opportunity to experience a graphene fly rod with the APEX 9′ 5wt.
We have designed, tested and produced a truly next generation fly rod.
Further reading on graphene can be found here
SPECIFICATIONS
Line Weight – 5
Length – 9 foot
Action – Fast
Fighting Butt – Small Crushed Cork
Sections – 4
Physical Weight – 97 grams
Black – Graphene Powered
Finish – Raw unsanded blank with unidirectional weave
Reel Seat – Double Up-locking With Graphene Themed Components And Skeletal Design
Alignment Dots – Graphene Molecule Inspired
Guides – High End HTIP Korean Ti-Grey Guides And Strippers
Rod Tube – Extra Thin 50mm Cordura Tube
Rod Bag – High Quality Black Cotton With Two Draw Strings
Designed, Developed and Tested in South Africa By Shaun At Reel Fly Fishing
Willem Verhoef (verified owner) –
Purchased APEX graphene on 05.11.2021
Just for the record….
Of all the rods I own … Hardy, Orvis, GLoomis, Sage, TFO, Xplorer, the Apex is my absolute favorite! Great build Sir!!!
I’m being dead honest here, I got exactly what I asked you for! I fished a 200grain intermediate for most of the weekend and a SA Amplitude Infinity floating line for the last hour and both were absolutely seamless!
Will also be picking the Apex first when it comes to Sterkies.
Brian Clark (verified owner) –
Purchased on 08-02.2022
Afternoon Shaun,
I received the rod on Friday and I am impressed.
What I like:-
• The action, reminds me a lot of my old G Loomis GLX #4, one of the best casting tools ever made.
• The unsanded blank. Always stronger and more fracture resistant than a sanded blank.
• The Hardy type spigot joints.
• The general finish and cosmetics are good, especially at the price.
• The price, is less than half of the price of an American top-end rod.
What I do not like:-
• Basically nothing springs to mind. I may have preferred the exposed blank under the reel seat to have been in the natural blank colour and not in Silver, but that is just a personal preference.
Overall, a great rod.
Kind Regards,
Brian Clark
shaun (verified owner) –
The 5wt Apex cast onto a dime despite the wind, just like the one I had tried on the casting day. I put an 18-foot leader into 7x on it for a fun test in the wind and also picked up a decent fish on your InSight line and a dry dropper rig. Congrats on building a really great rod. I hope you have the freedom to continue to design some more super products.
Brett Leslie – Owner of Apex 9′ 5wt and TechNymph pro 10′ 4wt
05 – 12 – 2022