For the last 40 years I have been searching for my holy grail! A U/L (ultra-light) type of rod that can handle, with confidence, a reasonable sized pike, and be an absolute delight to handle. As a great fan of the legendary Alexander Wanless style of light threadline fishing, plus my own personal preferences, I knew just what I wanted.

For a number of years I was reasonably satisfied with the lightest of the Daiwa Samurai range. But, with a frantic, summer caught, fifteen pound plus pike, it was inclined to run out of steam.

Then, whilst browsing in my local tackle shop I met up with both the Fox Jig Master and the Shimano Diaflash EX 2.1. Both rods, I think, an improvement, for my purposes, on the Daiwa. The Shimano won and I thought I had my 'grail'! But that was until I picked up the Ron Thompson Gladiator!!

The Gladiator is 18 inches shorter but, to be quite honest, it is a five and a half foot long rod that is lighter, and crisper in the tip, and apparently immune to lock ups. The blank is amazingly thin, yet the power is there. It's the sort of rod that once picked up is hard to put down. Lined rings, IM8 blank, cork handle and screw down reel seat, all in all a quality bit of kit. The length of the handle is just enough to transfer any strain from your wrist to your forearm. The tip can flick a lure, 2 to 7 gms, just where you want. Okay, the rod says 2 to 7, but like lots of US tackle, it is, I think, underrated. It copes with 10 gms a treat.

I'm not going to enter into the suitability of light tackle for pike arguement. Those who have tried it, with suitable tackle, such as the Gladiator, don't need convincing. My belief is that it isn't always so much the size of a lure that entices a pike, but where you, as the angler, places it.

In the U.K. there is an emerging style of lure fishing called 'Finness', the name just about sums it up! I don't advocate the use of U/L reels or pathetically weak lines just to give the fish a chance of winning. Once hooked I want to land the thing! I use an ABU Suveran 2000 loaded with 15 pound Fireline. With a U/L rod, such as the Gladiator, I have a tip action that allows me to drop a small lure just where I want. With the crispness of the Gladiator I can set the hooks in the jaw of a pike. With the powerful, yet amazingly slim backbone of the IM8 rod I can keep in control and the chance of a hook pull is minimal.

Without hesitation, I now have my 'grail'. A sensitive bit of kit that acts like a sound board to the lightest bite, be it a perch or a pike. Well done Ron, you have brought some great kit to the UK, and this must be one of the best.

The rod reviewed cost just £25.00 at the time of purchase and has seen a lot of use since.

Peter Waller