Movies of Grant Casting.

[Morsie]

A mate has sent me some pages from Jock Scott's Fine and Far Off. What a great read it is. Grant must have been an extraordinary caster. Does anyone know of any footage of him casting a 2 hander? Some of the distances he threw are really unbelievable (although of course I don't doubt them). Sunken lines, no shooting - 67 yards.........bloody hell. Imagine what he would have done with modern tackle. Seems he used lines with interchangeable tips way back then too. Maybe tucked away somewhere in some archive there will be some kind of wider images of his loops rather than the close-ups of him casting.

The other point from the book is the way the Brits so easily develop such terrible snobbery about what others do (like shooting line into a cast for example - terrible - shocking - outrageous). I have experienced this snobbery first hand, but being a coarse colonial can instantly tell them to "fuck off".

[Viking Lars]

Alexander Grant was certainly an exceptional caster, and one thing was what he could do in tournaments and on grass, but there are even a description of him hooking and landing an 8lbs salmon, on a 4/0 hook with a speycast at a distance later measure to 47 yards! And of course his record cast was made with a 21ft greenheart rod - I can't even begin to imagine what it's like casting one of those beasts...

And I don't even think anyone is capable of speycasting a 4/0 iron to 47 yards today :-).

I've never heard of any live footage existing, but I seem to remember that in "Fine and Far Off" are pictures of Grant, executing his cast, and they may actually have come from rolling footage, but I'm not sure.

Lars

[Lasse Karlsson]

And I don't even think anyone is capable of speycasting a 4/0 iron to 47 yards today :-).


Lars

I think there would be plenty capable of speycasting a 4/0 iron to 43 meters using a 21 foot rod and suitable line today

Cheers
Lasse

[Morsie]

I have seen those pics Lars, they came through on the copies I received. Unfortunately they don't tell you much. In the bit I read, as I recall, he executed a measured 67 yard Switch cast with a 14 foot rod.............that's 61 meters in Eurospeak or over 200 feet........

[nicholasfmoore]

Hi Peter,

Can't comment on Grant i'm afraid but i did like the last point.

The other point from the book is the way the Brits so easily develop such terrible snobbery about what others do (like shooting line into a cast for example - terrible - shocking - outrageous). I have experienced this snobbery first hand, but being a coarse colonial can instantly tell them to "fuck off".

I'm appalled at the level of snobbery in our sport (over here). I've witnessed someone actually shout at another angler for using a New Zealand indicator on a still water. What he didn't know is the guy didn't have a left thumb, had arthritis, and i think his wife passed away the day before. Just goes to show that you should always treat people with respect. I can't remember if he told me the last thing, it was quite a long time ago! Don't get a trout angler started on salmon flies, that's not 'fly' fishing

All the best

[Lasse Karlsson]

I have seen those pics Lars, they came through on the copies I received. Unfortunately they don't tell you much. In the bit I read, as I recall, he executed a measured 67 yard Switch cast with a 14 foot rod.............that's 61 meters in Eurospeak or over 200 feet........

And yet his record cast was 65 yards with a 21 foot rod

http://www.salmonjunkies.com/2010/03/22 ... der-grant/

Cheers
Lasse

[Boisker]

A mate has sent me some pages from Jock Scott's Fine and Far Off. What a great read it is. Grant must have been an extraordinary caster. Does anyone know of any footage of him casting a 2 hander? Some of the distances he threw are really unbelievable (although of course I don't doubt them). Sunken lines, no shooting - 67 yards.........bloody hell. Imagine what he would have done with modern tackle. Seems he used lines with interchangeable tips way back then too. Maybe tucked away somewhere in some archive there will be some kind of wider images of his loops rather than the close-ups of him casting.

The other point from the book is the way the Brits so easily develop such terrible snobbery about what others do (like shooting line into a cast for example - terrible - shocking - outrageous). I have experienced this snobbery first hand, but being a coarse colonial can instantly tell them to "fuck off".

Nothing like sweeping generalisations....

A thin red line and bit of cold steel should sort it out

[Boisker]

Hi Peter,

Can't comment on Grant i'm afraid but i did like the last point.

The other point from the book is the way the Brits so easily develop such terrible snobbery about what others do (like shooting line into a cast for example - terrible - shocking - outrageous). I have experienced this snobbery first hand, but being a coarse colonial can instantly tell them to "fuck off".

I'm appalled at the level of snobbery in our sport (over here). I've witnessed someone actually shout at another angler for using a New Zealand indicator on a still water. What he didn't know is the guy didn't have a left thumb, had arthritis, and i think his wife passed away the day before. Just goes to show that you should always treat people with respect. I can't remember if he told me the last thing, it was quite a long time ago! Don't get a trout angler started on salmon flies, that's not 'fly' fishing

All the best

Respect and snobbery are two different things
I could post that Americans have “no regard for fish welfare”... having witnessed countless video’s of them being ‘lipped’, white fish referred to as trash etc etc
But I would suggest that also isn’t true...
There are morons the world over, the UK has no more or less than elsewhere..

[Morsie]

You are right Lasse, 65ft with a 21 footer is what was mentioned in the book, I thought I'd read that he'd beaten it some years later. Have you cast a 21 foot rod like these, I'm guessing they were greenheart.

[sms]

And I don't even think anyone is capable of speycasting a 4/0 iron to 47 yards today :-).

Quite doable. And quite easy actually in favorable wind if you are a successful competition spey caster.
We had a competition where we all cast a skagit setup:
- deep wading in stillwater
- min 90 degree angle change
- perry poke and snap t to be done from both sides
- fly was about 15cm long thick bundle of slinky with terrible aerodynamics
- 4,5m tip made of SA's 18+ Express (so 'T18') and I think the tippet was about 2m
- 650gr skagit head
- 12'7" DH rod

Me and Kevin were able to cast this to 38-38,5m in the 6 minute window we had. We have been using skagit for fishing in Canada quite a lot so we were comfortable with the gear even thou it was a bit extreme, especially without any current helping to lift the tip from the water. I had not cast the setup at all before the competition. Anyway, it was surprising how far it went. I would say that if we had a bit of tailing wind, 40 would have been quite ok. And also some weight and better aerodynamics in the "fly", 40 would have been broken. So, even with this kind of gear 40 is doable. I would say that the line length becomes an issue more or less after that.

Have ever cast a fully dressed classic salmon fly? I have. They are great to cast. They go like a bullet. Much, MUCH easier to cast than tube flies with fox wing.

15' rod, a long or longish head spey line or shooting head and conditions that are not against you and 43m is piece of cake with 4/0 classic salmon fly.