Bamboo rods advice

[Dan M]

I'm wondering if anyone out there might be able to help me choose one
of these rods. A work colleague of mine has generously offered to give
me one of his rods that he has been collecting for many decades.
Unfortunately I really don't know much about antique bamboo so I
thought I'd put it out to the collective wisdom of the forum. Below is
the email he sent me describing the three rods and his commentary. I
primarily fish for trout and small-mouth. Any guidance would be
appreciated.

Dan

1) This is a really "old school" rod, but essentially never used. It
is a 9 ft. Weber-Henshall Water Witch. 3 piece rod, with two tips,
probably 5-6 oz. Reel seat will fit most reels. There is no indication
that it has any use. Cork handle clean and reel seat unscratched.
Probably 50 years old. Medium action, probably for a 5 wt. line. Got
enough backbone for a fighter like the small mouths in Canada. Has a
collectible value because of pristine condition and Weber was a well-
known maker of quality rods.

2) Custom made for some guy named David Morgan, by Sewell N. Dunton,
Greenfield, Mass. 7.5 ft., 3 7/8 oz. Sewell N. Dunton and Sons light
action rod, with good back-bone, for a lightweight rod. 2 Piece rod,
with 2 tips. Age-several decades old. Reel seat OK. The rod has had
some use, with some discoloration of cork handle. Otherwise in top
condition. Successor company, Thomas and Thomas, still in business.
Google it.

3) 8 ft., 2 piece, 4.5 oz (no extra tip) medium action, made by
Farlows in Aberdeen, Scotland, for Norm Thompson, vendor. Very little
use and in good condition-no flaws. Probably 5 wt. line. Really
handsome honey color rod. Probably 15 to 20 years old.

[Dan M]

[Rob Pallace]

Dan,

I do not know anything about bamboo fly rods, but Dave Lambert at Urban
Angler (he usually goes by Grizzly) is very knowledgeable about split cane
rods- he even builds them.

Back in the summer of 1987 when I was still in college I picked up an old
Orvis Madison 8' 8 weight 2 piece rod- it weighed more than I did- and I
fished with it for a year. I used it as a local warm-water rod, mostly
fishing ponds & small lakes around Charlottesville VA as well as the Rivanna
and the James Rivers- it was fun to cast, definitely made me a better
caster, but I eventually sold it. I think it was affordable because it was
so heavy and it had a short reach that was trouble on the James (I paid
around $300 for it)

That said, I have heard that fishing with a light split cane rod such as
what you are looking at (the 5 weight category) would provide a wonderful
fishing experience.

Good luck with your choice!

Rob

Dan

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[Carl Zmola]

Dan,

For some reading material, check out Clark's Classic Fly Rod Forum.

http://classicflyrodforum.com/forum/

Bamboo rods can vary in quality and action. I don't fish bamboo myself,
but my advise is "Shorter is Better".

Graphite is a great material for 9' rods. Bamboo gets a bit tip heavy
for long rods. 7.5 or 8' will probably be more enjoyable than 9'.

Remember to slow your casting down. Most bamboo rods are going to be
much slower than you are used to.

Carl

[Alek]

I have a general question about bamboo fly rods.  I've inherited an unlabeled custom rod that is 6' and probably #5 or #6. Obviously it's meant to be a small stream trout rod, but is bamboo strong enough for other 6wt applications--carp, etc.?  It has a lot more backbone than my graphite 6wt, but I have no idea how strong it is when push comes to shove and I don't want to break it.

[Danny Barrett]

personally i never use any of my bamboo except for tossing little dry flies, just because mine are still original parts and don't want to risk it. but if you fight the fish right, it should be fine.

Dan Barrett

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[Dalton Terrell]

I got a cheap antique bamboo rod a few years ago, I tried a few lines on it and a 7wt seemed to be the sweet spot. When shad season came along I brought it out to Fletcher's and on the very first cast, shad hits... and WHHACCCCK! Rod broke below the first ferrule.

Supposedly the bamboo had dried out and needed some professional treatment before handling a fish. I'd try to get someone with expertise in bamboo (Griz at Urban Angler maybe) to evaluate it before you fish your rod.

Dalton

[Casey Peltier]

It's often said that most rods get broken in and around cars, or when trying to get a fly out of a tree or log. It's possible to break a rod on a very large fish, and that's where experience and care come into it: I'm told it's all in how you play it. Hope I have this problem someday! To that end, I fish my bamboo at all opportunities; no, it's not very good for Czeck nymphing, but fly suspension devices make it possible.

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Date: Fri, 31 Jan 2014 06:44:51 -0800
From: alekc...@gmail.com
To: tidal-potoma...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: {Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders} Bamboo rods advice

I have a general question about bamboo fly rods.  I've inherited an unlabeled custom rod that is 6' and probably #5 or #6. Obviously it's meant to be a small stream trout rod, but is bamboo strong enough for other 6wt applications--carp, etc.?  It has a lot more backbone than my graphite 6wt, but I have no idea how strong it is when push comes to shove and I don't want to break it.

On Wednesday, February 29, 2012 8:40:08 PM UTC-5, Carl wrote:

Dan,For some reading material, check out Clark's Classic Fly Rod Forum.

http://classicflyrodforum.com/forum/
Bamboo rods can vary in quality and action.  I don't fish bamboo myself,
but my advise is  "Shorter is Better".
Graphite is a great material for 9' rods.  Bamboo gets a bit tip heavy
for long rods.  7.5 or 8' will probably be more enjoyable than 9'.
Remember to slow your casting down.  Most bamboo rods are going to be
much slower than you are used to.
Carl

[john]

I would suggest Clarks Classic Fly Rod Forum as well I'm a member but the bamboo guys could probably give you better advice. I'm not familiar with the first two makers but I would go with the Farlows it's 8' long which is a good length for a bamboo rod. Secondly Farlows has been around since about the same time as Hardy, Sharpes, etc 100+ years so there is a long history of quality equipment, workmanship, etc they have made a lot of good bamboo rods. Good luck with what ever rod you choose.

[Richard Farino]

Grizz is definitely the guy to talk to.  As an added bonus, Jerry Kustich of Sweetgrass Rods (formerly Winston Rods) will be here Saturday – you can ask them both.

R

Richard Farino

Urban Angler VA | 108 N. Washington Street  2nd Floor | Alexandria, VA 22314 

(703) 527-2524 | fax: (703) 527-3313 | ric...@urbanangler.com    

From: Dalton Terrell <daltonb...@gmail.com>
Reply-To: <tidal-potoma...@googlegroups.com>
Date: Friday, January 31, 2014 10:01 AM
To: <tidal-potoma...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: {Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders} Bamboo rods advice

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[Bob Smith]

The Weber is the lowest on that totem pole, the Dunton the highest. I have a few Webers and they are serviceable. They were a well known maker of good value working mans rods, about the middle of the pack of the production rod makers. With that said even H&I could come out with a rod that would blow your mind casting-wise. I also have a Farlow and it's decent. The choice seems to boil down to what kind of fishing you want to do. That's a good spread of sizes and actions.

When I was doing a lot of smallmouth fishing I spent four or so years using bamboo exclusively. When I start trout fishing again I will use bamboo exclusively. I am hopefully going to fish for shad and stripers this spring at Fletcher's with a 8'6" Parker 8wt. after I get the first few weeks of going crazy on them this year.

I love fishing bamboo and it is a lot tougher than people imagine.

Have fun with whichever you choose

[Daniel Davala]

Hey John,

Good find, but please keep the Craigslist links off of the board.

Thanks,

Dan Davala

On Sun, Feb 9, 2014 at 9:55 AM, john <jmat...@gmail.com> wrote:

Looks like either you or your buddy are selling some of the rods
http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/spo/4324372464.html

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