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Wet, cold, rainy - perfect conditions to put the new pike rod from Vision through its paces. For some years now, Vision has had the topic "pike on fly" written particularly large on their chest, so we were of course especially excited about the next special rod from the Maniac series: How we liked the new Vision Pikemaniac on the water, you can see in our latest video!
As its name suggests, the Vision Pikemaniac is a modern fly rod dedicated specifically to pike fishing. And you can see that right at the very first glance: A chic, pale green from the tip top to the grippy EVA handle. And as you would expect from Vision, the Pikemaniac combines excellent value for money with outstanding performance that absolutely lives up to the brand's reputation.
Hard to tell apart: The new Vision Pikemaniac in the perfect pike costume.
Vision has pushed the limits of what a rod in this price range can offer during development. The modern 40-ton carbon blank gives the rod a strong, medium-fast action that is perfect for casting big, bushy streamers with compact predator fly lines. Thanks to the fast recovery, very fast line speeds are definitely possible with smaller flies, giving you excellent distances even in stronger winds. A very versatile, application-oriented action, that also allows the effortless casting of fast sinking lines, if needed.
Visually, as we already know it, Vision sees the topic of pike fly fishing with a little wink, but as far as the construction of the rod is concerned, the manufacturer leaves nothing to be desired: Thanks to particularly corrosion-resistant titanium guides, the Pikemaniac can also be fished in brackish and salt water without any worries. In addition, the handle is made of high-quality and high-density EVA, which allows a very good grip even when wet and does not let the fingers freeze so quickly. With a universal length of 9 ft. it can equally be used from boat, belly boat and shore and can play out its strengths well everywhere. The Pikemaniac is rounded off with the thought-through, robust aluminum reel seat with double lock nut and the length markings up to 130 cm on the rod blank.
The Pikemaniac rod was developed by Vision together with the fly line of the same name. Together they are the perfect match and form a powerful tool to send extra large flies towards the horizon. Other pike and predator lines also work great of course, such as Vision's Gand Daddy in our case.
A progressive blank with crisp recovery. Under load, incredible power reserves are mobilized from the lower part of the blank for casting and fightling fish.
In short, the Pikemaniac delivers what its name promises and will delight even the most demanding pike anglers. Its versatile performance allows for maximum flexibility and enjoyment on the water. The powerful blank offers enough lifting power to put even the Grand Mama of your pike waters in their place - because the length mark of 130 cm is certainly no joke!
The Vision Pikemaniac pike fly rod at a glance:
- Versatile, powerful pike rod
- Medium fast action
- Fast recovery
- Robust, corrosion-resistant titanium guides
- EVA handle is comfortable in hand even in wet and cold conditions
- Double-screw reel seat made of aluminum
- Handle, blank and decorative wraps in a chic pale pike-green color
- Imprinted length markers up to 130cm
- 4-piece design for easy transport
- Round Cordura tube
Our conclusion:
Once again a bull's eye from Vision and proof that the product designers are just as passionate pike anglers as the target group for which these rods are intended. Visually, Vision once again goes their own way, which we like in this case quite well, because a fly rod design could hardly look "more pikey". For our test we had the lousiest conditions: Rain, wind and freezing cold - so we were quite happy about the comfortable and grippy EVA-handle. However, we particularly liked the rod's versatile action. With smaller flies, the rod works quickly out of the tip and makes it possible to work with tight loops into the wind. With larger, wind-resistant flies and with heavier sink lines, the rod uses its progressive action under load and the powerful, lower part of the blank to bring more power to the cast and prevent unpleasant "kicking" in the backswing. This powerful action is also noticeable at the latest during the fight, and although we didn't get any giants on the line in our test, we had the clear feeling that the rod won't buckle quickly even with really, really big pike. The 130cm length marker is therefore absolutely no joke - even though, we might wish for a "real" tape measure to acknowledge the new PB on a true giant fish ;).
Alex had to brave the nastiest conditions during our rod test. Therefore, the grippy EVA-handle came in extra handy.
