Graphene is known as the miracle material for a reason: it is 1 million times thinner than a strand of human hair and 200 times stronger than steel.
That is why a world-champion angler from Scotland recently teamed up with a former NASA engineer to create what they claim is the world's first graphene fishing rod.
Scott Mackenzie, an angling legend from Inverness, and Gary Savage, who used to build heat shields for space shuttles and create designs for Formula One, are selling the graphene fishing rod at the premium price of £1,000 ($1450.90).
Even at this price, the orders are reaching an outselling capacity, The Herald Scotland reported.
"We have taken the best of everything we have learned in Formula One to create the best fly rod ever made," said Savage.
Avant-Garde Fishing Rod
The pair of experts built the Mackenzie FX1 rods, which were 13 to 15 feet, by rolling into minute tubes one-atom-thick honeycombed graphene sheets. These tubes transform into woven and bonded threads.
Graphene stretches up to 20 percent of its length, but it is also one of the stiffest known material. It's also 15 times stronger than diamond and 30 times stronger than the Kevlar. It was discovered in 2004 by two Nobel Prize-winning scientists, Sir Konstantin Novoselov and Sir Andre Geim.
Considered as the world's most advanced fishing rod, Mackenzie and Savage hope that the avant-garde technology will revolutionize angling techniques.
The duo took advantage of graphene's lightness and strength properties, adding precious yards to the casting abilities of typical salmon fishing rods.
Mackenzie said this was an incredible opportunity for them to take the art of salmon fishing to a whole new level.
"The results are proving spectacular," said Mackenzie.
He believes the fishing rod is a game-changer for both professional and amateur anglers.
How does the fishing rod work? Mackenzie said it flexes deeply at the start of the cast and flattens again forcefully, which gives the person the distance. It also preserves the "feel" that salmon fishers need in order to adjust accuracy and technique.
Mackenzie said he has fished the River Ness and hundreds of other rivers in many countries all over the world, but he had never dreamt of producing the world's most advanced fishing rod.
