favorite bamboo fly rods
- This topic has 22 replies, 7 voices, and was last updated Mar 7, 2007 at 6:29 am by
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I am reseachering a line of bamboo fly rods to carry in the fly shop at the Lodge I work at. I unfortunately know little to nothing about bamboo fly rods. I would love to hear what everyone on this board likes when it comes to bamboo rods and why. Please be as specific as you can.
Thanks in advance for your help! 🙂
Joel
Most bamboo fishermen don’t just buy a rod off the shelf of a fly shop. Bamboo and production as in graphite rods don’t go together in the of view of these prople. Unlike in the 1950-1970’s when factory bamboo was common (Orvis, Philipson, WM).
Today bamboo rods are ordered at indiviual makers. The problem here is the waiting time. The well known makers have a waiting cue of 1 year and more. I think not acceptable for a fly shop?
The only ‘production rods’ that might still get accepted by these folks are Winston & Scott. You might consider Sweetgrass rods too, but again long waiting time (2 years?).
Jay
What would you think of dealing in used cane, Joel? It would eliminate the wait that Jay was speaking of, and provide you and your clients a broader variety of tapers to choose from. You could keep a small inventory of good working rods on hand and maybe one or two sticks with real collectors’ value, like a Howells, Payne, some of the old Winstons, or something by one of the highly sought after, more contemporary builders like Mike Clark or Walt Carpenter.
Bryan
Jay I did consider Sweetgrass as they are built right here in Montana. Super nice people, but they are at least 2 years out on orders at this point. I just thought it would be nice to display a couple of rods for people to look at and cast before taking the two year waiting game plunge.
Bryan, how would one go about dealing in used? For instance, my father in law has over a hundred old bamboo fly rods (no lie) but I would not even no where to begin when it comes to picking one out. I do know he has an older Ovis one that is numbered that I imagine is worth a few bucks. Then the other thing that I have noticed with these old bamboo rods is that most of them don’t have a line weight written on them. How would one figure that out? As you can see I am very green on this subject. :-[
Joel
Joel while I’m a relative puppy at bamboo rods, I can tell you becoming proficient at the used rod market takes a great deal of time and research. In addition, with the advent of E-bay, the market values can change quite rapidly. An example is a Heddon #17, or Black Beauty. Five years ago this rod was bringing close to $1000.00. Today you can easily cut that in half.
Your idea of having a few new rods on hand for customers to try may be a little easier to implement. Sweet Grass, (the former Winston builders), is a good idea as it brings something “local” to the client. As you say, they are booked out for at least two years and most people who are going to spend in excess of $2400.00 will most likely not buy from a store. Typically they want to discuss specific needs/likes, such as action and hardware with the actual builder.
You may want to check out some lesser known contemporary builders and approach them with your idea. Pricing should probably be between $700.00 to $1200.00. This price level seems more suited for a walk in customer and you should probably be able to move a few. You’re in the business of making money so selling them would be nice. The current trend in bamboo is 7’6” in the 4 to 5 weight range, either in a traditional hex or a quad.
If you’re just looking to have a few around for display and moving the inventory isn’t as important, I would suggest Grangers. They are a western, (Colorado), production rod and enjoy a good reputation.
Good Luck and let us know how you make out.
Rolf
Moosedog,
There are a number of catalogs listing used rods for sale that you can subscribe to for a nominal fee. The internet is free and a simple Google search will lead you to dozens of sights dealing in used cane. I’m not sure when it was published, but there is a spiral bound book titled The Bamboo Rod Restoration Handbook that is a pretty good reference for determining value based on manufacturer, condition, etc. (not present day market value); and, will also explain the old lettering system of identifying line size. But it sounds like your best resource for getting started would be your father-in-law. I’d approach him about buying two or three from his collectioin. I would think, too, that anyone who owned over 100 bamboo fly rods would know a little bit about the subject. Just a few notable manufacturers to look for in his collection would be Granger, Heddon, Phillipson, Wright & McGill, Orvis, even some of the old Montagues and South Bends were good fishing tools.
I’m no bamboo expert, but have owned and cast enough rods to have figured out that while knowing what I like/would like to fish with is no different than graphite, the wading through all of the variables to get there takes a lot longer. Taper is so important, so too is whether or not the cane was baked, flamed, impregnated with some kind of resin, treated with ammonia, finished with varnish or polyeurethane, or what kind of glue was used to hold the strips together. But, all of that stuff is what makes the learning fun–even if you just half-ass do it like I have :-/.
Bryan
But it sounds like your best resource for getting started would be your father-in-law. I’d approach him about buying two or three from his collectioin. I would think, too, that anyone who owned over 100 bamboo fly rods would know a little bit about the subject.
Bryan[/quote]
Split shot you would think this to be true, but the fact is that he is just a collector of old stuff! He believes anything that is old has value so he buys as much of this stuff at rumage sales and then resales it on ebay or when the time is right. Thank you for the resources that you mentioned. I will check into those and see if he has anything that is worth having.I am going to be dealing with a very high end cliental and really just want to know more about boo than I do so that I can maybe offer it to them.
You can find a great list of “modern day values” here.
http://mysite.verizon.net/vze2h7gi/fishnbanjossliceoflifeincyberspacecopy/index.htmlZach also did a podcast with Santo (who runs the site), which is well worth a listen.
Joel:
T&T’s new website is about rolled out. You might visit it at:
http://www.thomasandthomas.com/Their bamboo links are working. I have no idea what their wait time is. Their classic series with one tip is the most afforable.
Scott
PS For those that don’t know, T&T started out almost 40 years ago as a bamboo rod maker. Tom Dorsey, one of the original Toms, still runs the company.
“…the fact is that he is just a collector of old stuff! He believes anything that is old has value so he buys as much of this stuff at rumage sales….”
Oh, no. You’ve got me thinking you might be the son-in-law I never knew I had.
Andrew is dead on about Fishnbanjo. Another link to the site he moderates is:
Sorry Scott, but T&T bamboo was never ‘affordable’… Not then, not now.
The waiting time is generally 4 years+.$1800 for a one tip Classic bamboo rod can’t hardly be called affordable? For JR Ewing it is…
But they are darn fine looking rods. Haven’t cast a lot of T&T’s but the ones I’ve cast so far weren’t ‘heaven splitting’.
Jay
Bryan is right about this link. You may wish to pose your question there. WARNING!!! Stand back after that. I would venture to say you may get more advice than you planned on. On the other hand, you may also get some builders to contact you. Good Luck!
Rolf
Look into AJ Thramer Rods. Great rods based on older tapers. They’re in the $800 – $1000 range. DiamondBack has a new cane rod out, it looks nice, I believe it’s Asian Made but it’s also about $600! There are MANY cane rod builders, they all have waiting lists so that does make it prblematic. Again, going with a Diamondback or Headwaters, Sierra Rods or other overseas rod would help you there. It’s a fickle market so be prepared. Clarkes is a very helpful board, careful though, there are a couple of sketchy people there.
Good Luck!
Maybe you should commision a young and driven local bamboo builder to make a half a dozen rods in the most common lengths & weights (7ft – 7.6ft – 8ft – 8.5ft) rods. These new makers will probably charge somewhere between $600-800 a rod. Get them prominently showed in a nice wooden rod stand behind glass. This always adds some extra magic to it.
Maybe you can get a better deal if you guys are his showroom.
Jay
That’s a great idea Jay! Anyone know of any you driven boo builders in the Northwest?
JT
Here you go!
Metolius Bamboo Rod and Fly Fishing Fair — Saturday & Sunday, July 21-22, 2007
The 6th Annual Metolius River Fly Fishing and Bamboo Rod Fair will be held on Saturday and Sunday, July 15-16 at the Black Butte School, in Camp Sherman. The two-day event will be hosted by Roger and Kathy White of the Camp Sherman Store. Visitors may talk with contemporary Northwest bamboo rod builders, view examples of their work, and have a rare opportunity to cast over 200 of these wonderful rods. Rods are available for purchase at the show, or special order your own customized rod. Contact: Camp Sherman Store, 541-595-6711 or e-mail: roger@campshermanstore.com.
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