Philling My Phillipson Phissure

For the past few months there has been something missing in my fly fishing life. To be more accurate, there has been something missing from my rod arsenal. To be totally pinpoint accurate, there hasn't been a Philipson rod in my quiver. I have nobody but myself to blame for that, since I am the one who sold my last Phillipson rod a few months ago. I sold it to help fund the purchase of another rod, which is cool, but I missed that Phillipson rod, which was not cool. Ever since I put the last piece of tape on the cardboard shipping tube, I've been looking for another Phillipson rod to take its place.

I have owned a handful of Phillipson rods over the past few years, and like all brands of fly rods, I have liked some and thought some left a little to be desired. My favorite was the Phillipson Royal 7' 6wt that was most recently sold. It was as smooth as butter, yet it had power to spare and a deft touch, all attributes that make a rod sweet. Another Phillipson-built rod that I enjoyed was an Orvis Golden Eagle 7' 5wt that I had a couple of years ago, although I would say it was more of a 3wt than a 5wt. I tried it with a 4wt line and it still felt overpowered. If I had needed another 3wt rod I probably would have kept it, but I already had a Scott and a Steffen 3wt, so off it went.

As I mentioned earlier, as soon as I sent off my beloved Phillipson Royal to its new owner, I started looking for a replacement. It took a few months, but I am happy to say its replacement has arrived. And it's just as sweet of a rod as the Royal was. It's an old Phillipson-built LL Bean rod labeled the "Beans Double L", and it's another 7' 6wt. It's even the same color deep red that my Royal was. I took the Double L out on the yard/snow yesterday afternoon, and it made all the casts I asked it to. The real test will come when the ice finally melts on the lakes and I can try it out on my local sunfish/bass/carps, but the way Spring is going around here that might not happen until 2036. I will let you know how it works out.