The Loomis SAR1265C has been my favorite magnum plugging and herring rod since 2003. Shimano now has a similar 10.5' stick in the CENNAN line of salmon rods.... got one as a gift the other day.

Pretty rod... the outermost graphite fibers appear to be woven in irridescent brown diamonds the full length of the rod. Nice components. Lifetime warranty. Mounted a reel with 65# PowerPro and stuck it in a FOLBE rodholder for the "wait-till-the-line-peels" flex test.

Action very similar to the SAR1265... perhaps a little more meat. Rod tip moved about 6-7 feet before the line peeled. Seems to have plenty of butt.


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Well, I did a little side-by-side testing of the long Loomis and Shimano sticks today. The Shimano is definitely a heavier rod... I'd say about 15% bigger caliber for the entire length of the rod. Action is definitely "meatier" as well, but still a nice smooth progressive load into the butt section.

I hung an 8 oz cannonball from each, and the deflection of the rod tip measured 22.75" on the CENNAN and 31.25" on the Loomis. With 20 oz, the deflection measured 54" on the CENNAN and 62" on the Loomis.

I tied off to a 5# hand-weight and the Loomis will lift it off the floor, but there is precious little reserve left... the rod feels like it's probably within ounces of exploding. The CENNAN will lift the same weight off the floor and still have a considerable reserve in the butt to "bungee" the weight up and down another foot.

Another workhorse to add to the line-up. I like it!