Question:

 I find a 6 weight rod is a supurb compromise in that it is not worth a damn for either. You go Big Dale. Best gawdang advise posted here in months. A 6wt, imo, is the  ultimate all-around weight rod for flyfishing. From nc small-stream trout, to cedar key redfish, a 6wt is the best all- around weight rod any flyfisher can have in his arsenal.

Bullshit, a six weight is the most useless weight to own for any fly fisherman who owns more than one rod. Get a 4/5 and then a 7. Too damn big for MOST trout and pan fishing and too damn small for MOST sw and fw application. There’s a reason I only own one six weight <g — Wayne Knight Expert in creating tailing loops and windknots Otherwise Fishless in Kansas Before you buy.

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if the drag on your reel is of sufficient quality, and if your tippet is sufficiently strong, and if you have sufficient experience, then landing a 100lb tarpon on a 3wt should be no different than doing the same thing on a 9wt, *assuming you can deliver the fly to the fish*.  

You could probably kill a tarpon with a 3wt, but I doubt you could lift it to the boat with a 3wt. Bigger fly rods have purpose other than delivering bigger files. FWIW — Charlie…

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Bigger fly rods have purpose other than delivering bigger files. FWIW

Sounds like you may already own that ultimate rod RW was talking about. Does it deliver Chinese food and pizza as well? <g –Steve

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- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text –  I find a 6 weight rod is a supurb compromise in that it is not worth a damn for either. You go Big Dale. Best gawdang advise posted here in months. A 6wt, imo, is the  ultimate all-around weight rod for flyfishing. From nc small-stream trout, to cedar key redfish, a 6wt is the best all- around weight rod any flyfisher can have in his arsenal. Bullshit, a six weight is the most useless weight to own for any fly fisherman who owns more than one rod. Get a 4/5 and then a 7. Too damn big for MOST trout and pan fishing and too damn small for MOST sw and fw application. There’s a reason I only own one six weight <g — Wayne Knight Expert in creating tailing loops and windknots Otherwise Fishless in Kansas

ehh? please allow me shuffle my feet and to clarify…. *if* I only had one rod available to me, *and* i wanted to fish many different situations, a 9′ 6wt would be my choice, lines down. that is the advise i received when i first started flyfishing down in FL and it, imo, was very good advise. it allowed me to fish in many different waters with very little monetary outlay. now that i own many different rods for different fishing situations, the 6wt is rarely used any more. however, it will be dusted-off very soon for chasin’ chromers. walt fellow expert in creating tailing loops and windknots otherwise up-to-my-knees-in-trout in God’s Country <g

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8<…. if the drag on your reel is of sufficient quality, and if your tippet is sufficiently strong, and if you have sufficient experience, then landing a 100lb tarpon on a 3wt should be no different than doing the same thing on a 9wt, *assuming you can deliver the fly to the fish*.  let me repeat that:  *assuming you can deliver the fly to the fish*.  of course, in the real world, that is a rare assumption. wayno

wayno, with all due respect, fighting a 100 pound tarpon "properly" would destroy a 3wt rod. i say "properly" in the context of releasing the fish unharmed in a timely manner so that the fish could live to return to his environment, "unchanged", or more aptly stated, "wild." the length of time it would take to land a 100 pound tarpon on a 3wt, imo, would kill the fish either by exhaustion or by shark attack. that said, if you had said "hook" vs "landed" i could have agreed with you….it would be possible to deliver a thinly-dressed streamer using a 3wt to a cruising tarpon. why anyone would choose to do so is dahlwhinnian…. to clarify, hitch a ride with zimbo tomorrow am and i’ll put you on a mountain-version "tarpon" with your 3wt. <g –kamloopy wataugan waldo — Ezflyfish.com: http://www.ezflyfish.com Blue Ridge Book Gallery: http://users.boone.net/wgw/brbg.html

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Bullshit, a six weight is the most useless weight to own for any fly fisherman who owns more than one rod. Get a 4/5 and then a 7. Too damn big for MOST trout and pan fishing and too damn small for MOST sw and fw application. There’s a reason I only own one six weight <g — Wayne Knight

and I have four (counting the mix & match East Branch) and it’s my most frequently used weight.  - diffferent folks, different strokes. (8′, 8′ 6", 9′ 6", & 10′6") Peter Visit The Streamer Page at http://members.home.net/pcharles/streamers/index.html

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I’m looking to building a fly rod this winter just for yucks.  I’ve done several casting rods in the past, but this would be a first. Can anybody recommend a good blank to use – expense isn’t really a factor, so any recommendation would be appreciated. Thanks.

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I’m looking to building a fly rod this winter just for yucks. … Can anybody recommend a good blank to use …

You’ll have to tell us more about yucks. — Ken Fortenberry

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I’m looking to building a fly rod this winter just for yucks. … Can anybody recommend a good blank to use … You’ll have to tell us more about yucks.

He is my evil twin.      :)

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I’m looking to building a fly rod this winter just for yucks. … Can anybody recommend a good blank to use … You’ll have to tell us more about yucks. He is my evil twin.      :)

Ah, so you want to build a rod capable of tossing a bottle of scotch 60 feet and landing a 185 lb twin. Definitely a 12wt. — Ken Fortenberry

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He is my evil twin.

Oh shit, not another one of those!   <g For a cheap intro to rod building, I’d still stay away from anything too crummy.   After all, when you’re done, you do want to be proud of it and fish with it.   My first few rods were built on higher end St. Croix blanks. Well below $100 each.   I also just started on one that’s a discontinued Loomis blank (IM6) I bought off Ebay for about 40 bucks.   There are also some dealers out there who have a supply of discontinued blanks.   D&E Rods (www.danderods.com) is one.   I have a nice 3 wt. Loomis IMX blank from them awaiting my attention (don’t remember that price, but it was cheap enough that I bought a blank I don’t need.) Either way you go, I recommend a decent blank.   The hardware cost and time invested are too much to put it into a practice stick.   Even if you screw it up cosmetically, it will still fish well (I have one or two that fit that category.) Joe F.

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The range and type of fly-rod blanks is very extensive. You will need to give us more information about what you wish to fish for, and under what circumstances, before we could be of any real assistance. TL MC — "Where fishing is concerned, most anglers are basically manic excessives" http://www.mikeconnor.de – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I’m looking to building a fly rod this winter just for yucks.  I’ve done several casting rods in the past, but this would be a first. Can anybody recommend a good blank to use – expense isn’t really a factor, so any recommendation would be appreciated. Thanks.

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If anyone out there disagrees with me then I’ve got an only-once-used 6wt 3-piece Diamondback rod and matching Hardy reel I’ll sell at a very fair price –Steve

See below.  I’ve already got a 3 pce Diamondback 6 wt. with a Hardy reel but who knows, I might need a spare some day. $10.00 ?  <g Peter

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Good for you. There are whores, and there are whores.  The main thing is to make sure you live happy, and if possible die in the same condition. TL MC — "Where fishing is concerned, most anglers are basically manic excessives" http://www.mikeconnor.de Yes, I’m a whore. My first fly rod, a Martin 6wt with matching martin 6 wt

<SNIP

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You go Big Dale. Best gawdang advise posted here in months. A 6wt, imo, is the ultimate all-around weight rod for flyfishing. From nc small-stream trout, to cedar key redfish, a 6wt is the best all-around weight rod any flyfisher can have in his arsenal. Huh??? What happened to the *real* Walt Winter?? Not only would the real Waldo never recommend owning only one rod, but the real Waldo wouldn’t get caught dead on an NC stream *or* cedar key with a 6-weight rod.

        i don’t know what the hell this has to do with anything, or whether it makes any difference to anyone who might read this sort of thing (what *are* we doing discussing fly rods on roff, anyway?), but in my damn near fifty years of fishing with a fly rod, i have never owned a 6 weight rod.  in fact, i have never cast a heavier line than a 5 for trout, even when we girded our loins for the fabled big water and high winds of montana.  i think the issue is almost completely controlled by the question of what the size and weight of the fly might be.  if the drag on your reel is of sufficient quality, and if your tippet is sufficiently strong, and if you have sufficient experience, then landing a 100lb tarpon on a 3wt should be no different than doing the same thing on a 9wt, *assuming you can deliver the fly to the fish*.  let me repeat that:  *assuming you can deliver the fly to the fish*.  of course, in the real world, that is a rare assumption. wayno

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You go Big Dale. Best gawdang advise posted here in months. A 6wt, imo, is the ultimate all-around weight rod for flyfishing. From nc small-stream trout, to cedar key redfish, a 6wt is the best all-around weight rod any flyfisher can have in his arsenal.

Huh??? What happened to the *real* Walt Winter?? Not only would the real Waldo never recommend owning only one rod, but the real Waldo wouldn’t get caught dead on an NC stream *or* cedar key with a 6-weight rod. I say buy two rods. A 7′6" 3wt for trout and (if you must) a 9′ 7wt for bass. If cost is an issue then buy two inexpensive rods. If anyone out there disagrees with me then I’ve got an only-once-used 6wt 3-piece Diamondback rod and matching Hardy reel I’ll sell at a very fair price –Steve

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- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – You go Big Dale. Best gawdang advise posted here in months. A 6wt, imo, is the ultimate all-around weight rod for flyfishing. From nc small-stream trout, to cedar key redfish, a 6wt is the best all-around weight rod any flyfisher can have in his arsenal. Huh??? What happened to the *real* Walt Winter?? Not only would the real Waldo never recommend owning only one rod, but the real Waldo wouldn’t get caught dead on an NC stream *or* cedar key with a 6-weight rod. I say buy two rods. A 7′6" 3wt for trout and (if you must) a 9′ 7wt for bass. If cost is an issue then buy two inexpensive rods. If anyone out there disagrees with me then I’ve got an only-once-used 6wt 3-piece Diamondback rod and matching Hardy reel I’ll sell at a very fair price –Steve

Yes, I’m a whore. My first fly rod, a Martin 6wt with matching martin 6 wt reel, was last used catching a steelie here in NC. It was first used catching bass on watermelon pond and it has also been used catching more species than any other rod in my inventory. Reminiscing, it has caught largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, suwanee bass, sunshine bass, peacock bass, many varieties of panfish, specs, redfish, black drum, snook, trout, stripers, weakfish, bonefish, gar, pickerel, barracuda, shad, tarpon, cobia (damn near lost it on that bad boy), mackeral, crevalles, ladyfish, and of course, that gorgeous chromer last winter in the company of that fine southern gentleman, Tom Brown. The butt of this rod  is still used daily as I use it as a reel "holder" when I manually load reels for sale. This rod is as much a part of me as my soul, as a matter of fact, blasphemously, one could say it is part and parcel of my soul. but i digress. my affliction spread like the plague. i acquired numerous rods and reels to fit certain needs, some psychological. although i suck at it, i even took up tying flies. i still was far from being satiated….. so, i opened a "flyshop". i now have more gawdang gear than any sane person should be allowed to possess. hundreds of reels and of rods, seemingly, enough line, leader & tippet to circumvent the earth. yet, be still, the fire burns hotter. my fervant desire now, as all invoices are paid, is to retire with all of this cool stuff. mine, all mine <g i, waldo, am a whore. ww — Ezflyfish.com: http://www.ezflyfish.com Blue Ridge Book Gallery: http://users.boone.net/wgw/brbg.html

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 I find a 6 weight rod is a supurb compromise in that it is not worth a damn for either.

You go Big Dale. Best gawdang advise posted here in months. A 6wt, imo, is the ultimate all-around weight rod for flyfishing. From nc small-stream trout, to cedar key redfish, a 6wt is the best all-around weight rod any flyfisher can have in his arsenal. –walt Ezflyfish.com: http://www.ezflyfish.com Blue Ridge Book Gallery: http://users.boone.net/wgw/brbg.html

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[snip] All good advice and I’ll add just one little bit more.  You can get away with a 7 or 8 wt. for small fish if you can find a short, slow action version and build it with a standard trout handle.  I lucked into an old 8′ 6" Orvis Green Mountain with a slow – moderate action and a small handle (no fighting butt.)  I’d have no difficulty using it for anything.  I’ve caught smallies under a pound that put a decent bend in it yet it’ll toss a 2/0 streamer about 80′.  I’ve tried a Fenwick HMGF 8′6" 7 wt. that also impressed me as a good all-round rod. Peter Visit The Streamer Page at http://members.home.net/pcharles/streamers/index.html

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Ken wrote snip:Like I said, it’s a tough call, maybe some of the other warmwater guys in the group can recommend one and only one blank for both bluegill & bass but I’m afraid you have me stumped.

I think Ken is correct. I love my little 3 weight rods for bluegill and I take my fair share of bass on them, but they are all small bass. I don’t think I have landed a bass of over 3 pounds on one of them. There is no way in hell I can use a 3 weight to cast the flies that work best for large bass with a rod that small. I most often use  a 7 to 10 weight rod when I am fishing for sizable bass.  I find a 6 weight rod is a supurb compromise in that it is not worth a damn for either. Big Dale

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RE choose a rod blank for "pan fish to bass?" Sandy’s treatise on blank choosing with an angle: A 6-weight rod is generally considered the most versatile trout rod. With a 6-weight you can cast anything from an itty-bitty mayfly on a 7x tippet to a #2 woolly bugger on 0x tippet. But if you want to cast pike flies, bass worms or extra-bushy bass poppers, you will probably want a 7 or 8 weight rod. I like 9′ rods. But some people think they have more control over shorter (8′) rods. Once you have the size down, you still have to zero in on cost and action. Some guys (actually) like soft, slow action rods, like many built by Orvis, Winston or Powell. Slow action rods are easier to cast, more graceful to use. But they don’t handle heavy flies, wind or distance casting very well. Orvis, Winston and Powell make some moderately fast rods too. The fastest, most powerful casting canons I know of are made by Sage and Loomis. Someone told me Scott makes a powerful rod, but I never tried one. Cost? The most expensive rods are the best. But how much better are they? Not a whole lot, I don’t think. I have some fly rods that cost almost $600 bucks. They’re damn good rods. But I have a few (Sage, Loomis and Cabelas) that (for finished rods) cost $180 to $220. And they’re damned good rods too. Who makes Cabelas blanks anyway? It’s Loomis isn’t it? There are some really cheap graphite fly rods showing up now, like those made by Eagle Claw. Has anybody tried those? If you like soft, slow action rods, I can’t see any reason to buy an expensive one. What you get–with more money–is casting power. — /* Sandy Pittendrigh   –O0  * http://cns.montana.edu/~sandy/  */

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That’s a tough prescription to fill, Tom. I like a 3wt for bluegill and a 7wt for bass. Logically then a 5wt would be your blank of choice but I don’t think you’d be happy with it in either situation. Not that it wouldn’t work, I used an old 8′ Garcia Conolon 7/8wt for years as my one and only flyrod for bass & bluegill in the days before I knew any better and I caught a lot of fish and had great time with it. The other consideration besides rod weight is action. I like a slow action for most situations, my canoe bluegill rod is a 9′ Winston 3wt, but for tossin’ big, wind eatin’ bass bugs a faster action works better for me, something along the lines of the discontinued Sage RPL series. Like I said, it’s a tough call, maybe some of the other warmwater guys in the group can recommend one and only one blank for both bluegill & bass but I’m afraid you have me stumped. — Ken Fortenberry

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Yucks,  slang, corruption of middle English, German Jux. =For fun TL MC — "Where fishing is concerned, most anglers are basically manic excessives" http://www.mikeconnor.de – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – You’ll have to tell us more about yucks. — Ken Fortenberry

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The range and type of fly-rod blanks is very extensive. You will need to give us more information about what you wish to fish for, and under what circumstances, before we could be of any real assistance.

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In which case, I at least, am unable to help much. I have never fished for such species. Someone else will doubtless be able to help you with regard to weight length etc. TL MC — "Where fishing is concerned, most anglers are basically manic excessives" http://www.mikeconnor.de – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – The range and type of fly-rod blanks is very extensive. You will need to give us more information about what you wish to fish for, and under what circumstances, before we could be of any real assistance.

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Question:

Looking for pattern for streamer called Howdy Doody. I believe that is the name of the fly. Seen it on a fishing show, so I haven’t heard of it before.. Can anyone help me…..

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I tried an internet search and found no references to it. So feel free to make up a pattern and name it "Howdy Doody" Paul

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Looking for pattern for streamer called Howdy Doody. I believe that is the name of the fly. Seen it on a fishing show, so I haven’t heard of it before.. Can anyone help me…..

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I tried an internet search and found no references to it. So feel free to make up a pattern and name it "Howdy Doody"

Be sure it has bright red dubbing, freckles, and big ears.

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Question:

Phew. All kinds of generalities there, probably none of it of much help. But at least I didn’t skewer you ;^)

Actually, since he didn’t specify the conditions he would be fishing or his casting style, you sort of did by making him read yet another post about preferences<g. — Charlie…

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I just read through this thread hoping to pick up some reasoning for what would be the virtue of a slower action rod and I have to tell you I found almost zero usefull information.  Would you guys consider starting a new group alt.love_lost.2.old.rod?

Uh uh uh. Don’t taunt the bears! Wouldn’t be prudent. Or better yet, tell me why (and where) a slow rod beats a fast rod.

I believe that’s mostly a matter of casting style and/or experience. For many folks, especially less experienced ones, slower rods telegraph their loaded point louder than fast rods do, so a slower rod can be easier to cast – or learn to cast. The faster the rod the less obvious that same loaded-point becomes. One could make a case, I suppose, that a slower rod is easier to use in tight quarters (small streams, etc) regardless of casting style or expertise. I don’t have any wicked-fast small stream rods, they’re all moderate action or even a bit slow. I do have some real telephone poles for stripers and bluefish, however (eg: 9wt IMX, 7wt RPLX) as well as a couple of moderate-action rods (eg: 9wt IM6, 7wt IM6) and for fighting wind over the ocean I like casting the faster rods – which throw a tighter loop (very useful when casting side-arm to get down under the worst of the wind). I still have a couple of glass rods but really hated fishing saltwater with them. Too damned slow, not as much backbone, and casting a wide loop side-arm can be really risky business ;^) Phew. All kinds of generalities there, probably none of it of much help. But at least I didn’t skewer you ;^) /daytripper

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Aw c’mon Ken, the quality of free advice just wasn’t up to his standards.

I just don’t like whiners. I mean, I read his post hoping to find a really good borscht recipe. That damn post mentioned nothing whatsoever about borscht, but you don’t hear me whining about it. — Ken Fortenberry

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I feel the LL is one of Sage’s best creation.  It is one of the nicest rods to cast a line with.  I have a 389-3LL and use a Stillwater taper for most of my lake fishing.  I’ve even gone as far as using a type 2 uniform sink from SA.  It actually casted fine.   My buddy has a 489 and uses all different sink rates of lake lines on it.  You will need to make subtle changes to your casting stroke in order to make up for the slower action.  What rod do you have? Thanks, — Forrest http://www.FlyFishingREVIEW.com FlyFishingREVIEW.com win any SAGE rod! Before you buy.

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I’ll register in on the love side.   I’ve always preferred the softer action of the LL series, and the 490 LL is my absolute favorite rod ever. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Any fans of the Sage Light Line Series out there?   Or for that matter, anybody hate the series? Personally I love it’s medium action and can’t believe they are discontinuing them (at least that’s what I heard).  Has anyone tried casting this rod with a sink tip or a wet line?  If so I’d particularly like to hear from you. Thinking of getting new lines for this rod but want to hear some comments/suggestions from others that have tried different line combos on this rod before rushing out to waste money.  Reason why I’m hesitating is because its light weight plus medium action might make this rod a nightmare to cast with sink tips or wet lines. Thanks!

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I also fall on the love side of the spectrum.  I think the LL and the RPL were the best rods Sage has made.   I currently own a SP+ which I use on the big open lakes and rivers out here in WA but I just bought a 2 pc. 3wt LL blank off of ebay for fishing the creeks and smaller waters.  I can’t wait to get it built.   Hopefully Sage will relearn the lesson that power isn’t everything and return to making these fine rods. Mike

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I currently own a SP+ which I use on the big open lakes and rivers out here in WA but I just bought a 2 pc. 3wt LL blank off of ebay for fishing the creeks and smaller waters.  I can’t wait to get it built.

I saw that blank and damned near went after it myself to build my wife a rod; but I just have too many rod projects in the works for the present. (Fixing my son’s epoxy & repairing my broken 9 wt.)   I’m glad I didn’t drive the price up for you.  :-) Joe F.

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I own a 9 foot 4 weight LL and love the thing. I am sick of fast action rods that stop a trout in its tracks. I also have an RPL+ 10 foot 7 weight and this is really a salmon rod. I caight a 14lb 2oz rainbow on it the other day and after a couple of minutes, the fish put its fins in the air and came quietly. Shame. I broke my big Sage in May, which is why August saw me fishing the Teifi at night for sea trout with my LL. I hooked, played and netted a fish of 5.5 lb and the fight was tremendous. So glad it wasn’t my RPL+. I have just bought a 3 piece 9 foot 6 weight SP and am dying to get out there with the thing. Softer action too, although not like the LL. The LL range is being continued, I understand, although only in a 3-piece and at a higher price. Bugger (woolly and otherwise)! Caspar – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Yep, I own 3 of the LL series…….2/4/6 wts.  Love ‘em.  I would class their action more as slow to medium, than strictly medium.  My casting style (if one could call it a ’style’, more like a grenade toss) is more suited to the slower action.  And no, I don’t use sinking lines on any of them because they are just not suited for throwing weight.  Having said that, I sometimes use a short piece of sinking leader to get the fly down if fishing in current or deeper water, but it is not a comfortable thing for me to do. If I’m tossing weighted buggers or need to use a sink tip, I switch to my St Croix medium action rods.  BTW, as to lines, I use SA Mastery or AirCell Supreme WF stuff.  FWIW- Frank Church Elkhart, IN USAF RETIRED Any fans of the Sage Light Line Series out there?   Or for that matter, anybody hate the series? Personally I love it’s medium action and can’t believe they are discontinuing them (at least that’s what I heard).  Has anyone tried casting this rod with a sink tip or a wet line?  If so I’d particularly like to hear from you. Thinking of getting new lines for this rod but want to hear some comments/suggestions from others that have tried different line combos on this rod before rushing out to waste money.  Reason why I’m hesitating is because its light weight plus medium action might make this rod a nightmare to cast with sink tips or wet lines. Thanks! Frank Church Elkhart, IN USAF RETIRED

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I have cast a LL and am seriously thinking of getting a 489.  How do you think they compare with an SP or SPl?  Any comments would be greatly appreciated. Chris Brown

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Any fans of the Sage Light Line Series out there?  

I have a 490-4 LL that I’m quite fond of. I’ve tried several DT & WF floating lines on it, but no sinking lines. What works best for me is a Wulff TT 3/4. — Ken Fortenberry

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I own a 9 foot 4 weight LL and love the thing. I am sick of fast action rods that stop a trout in its tracks. I also have an RPL+ 10 foot 7 weight and this is really a salmon rod. I caight a 14lb 2oz rainbow on it the other day and after a couple of minutes, the fish put its fins in the air and came quietly. Shame.

[snip] Some people would say that was a good thing.

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Chris, I like the SP action and use it for the most part.  I have a couple SP+’s and in the wind and for long casting, prefer them.  I fished a SPL last spring for a week and found it just too much like a noodle.  Too slow for me. Regards, Mike – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I have cast a LL and am seriously thinking of getting a 489.  How do you think they compare with an SP or SPl?  Any comments would be greatly appreciated. Chris Brown

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I’ve had three LLs, one SP, one RPL and two RPs.  The LLs were always my favourites and my current 590 LL (an older graphite II model) will cast a type V sinktip with no problem.  Just have to open up the loop a bit, that’s all.  I do a lot of streamer fishing so all of my trout rods have to be able to throw sinktips as well as floating lines. Slow action doesn’t necessarily mean less power. Cheers Visit The Streamer Page at http://members.home.net/pcharles/streamers/index.html

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The Sage 389LL was one of the finest small-stream dry fly rods ever created.  It was originally produced in graphite II, and is one of the few blanks that survived a transition to graphite III without problems or substantial reworking.   Interestingly enough, it won a FR&R Kudo as a 2 weight – the slower action allowed it to load effectively with a 2 or a 3.  I fished mine (lost in the fire, alas) with a Triangle Taper 2/3, and it was superb.   I sorely miss it.  Since the fire, I bought one of the new SPL rods to replace it, but it just isn’t quite the same…….                                         Michael – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I currently own a SP+ which I use on the big open lakes and rivers out here in WA but I just bought a 2 pc. 3wt LL blank off of ebay for fishing the creeks and smaller waters.  I can’t wait to get it built. I saw that blank and damned near went after it myself to build my wife a rod; but I just have too many rod projects in the works for the present. (Fixing my son’s epoxy & repairing my broken 9 wt.)   I’m glad I didn’t drive the price up for you.  :-) Joe F.

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I picked up a 490-4 LL blank on ebay recently (a major relief for me – I thought I’d lost that rod forever).  It was being sold by Drake Rod Co. – the lady told me that she had a couple of them in stock, and I believe that she also had a 490-3 LLB as well.  If anyone’s interested in contacting them drop me an email and I’ll see if I can scare up the contact info.                                 Michael Roegner – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Any fans of the Sage Light Line Series out there?   I have a 490-4 LL that I’m quite fond of. I’ve tried several DT & WF floating lines on it, but no sinking lines. What works best for me is a Wulff TT 3/4.

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I got a 356 LL 2 years ago ( Yep, 5′-6") and absolutely love it for the small creeks I fish. I can cast under the canopy, cart it around in the bushes without getting hung up, and it casts up to 50′ with no problems, though it’s rare I see that much open space where I use it. I understand it was discontinued last year.         Steve

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I have the 490 3LL and I absolutely adore it.  I plan to get some new lines for it soon but wasn’t sure how well it would cast heavier lines like sink tips and wet lines. After hearing from a few people that’s actually tried sink tips and full sinks, I think I will give it a try.   Afterall, I like the rod so much I want to use it for most, if not all, of my outtings, both stream and lake. Thanks for the info. Ken. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I feel the LL is one of Sage’s best creation.  It is one of the nicest rods to cast a line with.  I have a 389-3LL and use a Stillwater taper for most of my lake fishing.  I’ve even gone as far as using a type 2 uniform sink from SA.  It actually casted fine.   My buddy has a 489 and uses all different sink rates of lake lines on it.  You will need to make subtle changes to your casting stroke in order to make up for the slower action.  What rod do you have? Thanks, — Forrest http://www.FlyFishingREVIEW.com FlyFishingREVIEW.com win any SAGE rod! Before you buy.

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(Flyfis4fun) writes: I also fall on the love side of the spectrum.  I think the LL and the RPL were the best rods Sage has made.   Hopefully Sage will relearn the lesson that power isn’t everything and return to making these fine rods. Moral of the story, if you find a rod you love, buy at least three of them cause sooner or later they ain’t gonna make em no more.

Oh Mister Gear Whore, you’re my HERO!

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(Flyfis4fun) writes: I also fall on the love side of the spectrum.  I think the LL and the RPL were the best rods Sage has made.  

{snip} Hopefully Sage will relearn the lesson that power isn’t everything and return to making these fine rods.

Moral of the story, if you find a rod you love, buy at least three of them cause sooner or later they ain’t gonna make em no more. Wayne Knight (remove nospam to respond via mail) Expert in the creation of  wind knots and tailing loops.

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I just read through this thread hoping to pick up some reasoning for what would be the virtue of a slower action rod and I have to tell you I found almost zero usefull information.  Would you guys consider starting a new group alt.love_lost.2.old.rod?  Or better yet, tell me why (and where) a slow rod beats a fast rod. Mike

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I just read through this thread hoping to pick up some reasoning for what would be the virtue of a slower action rod and I have to tell you I found almost zero usefull information.  Would you guys consider starting a new group alt.love_lost.2.old.rod?  Or better yet, tell me why (and where) a slow rod beats a fast rod. Mike

How in the hell can you read a newsgroup with your head stuck up your ass like that ? — Ken Fortenberry

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I just read through this thread hoping to pick up some reasoning for what would be the virtue of a slower action rod and I have to tell you I found almost zero usefull information.  Would you guys consider starting a new group alt.love_lost.2.old.rod?  Or better yet, tell me why (and where) a slow rod beats a fast rod. Mike How in the hell can you read a newsgroup with your head stuck up your ass like that ?

Aw c’mon Ken, the quality of free advice just wasn’t up to his standards. What do you expect him to do, an internet search for articles or something? I mean, after all his vast contributions it seems he deserves better than this<g. — Charlie…

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I just read through this thread hoping to pick up some reasoning for what would be the virtue of a slower action rod and I have to tell you I found almost zero usefull information.  Would you guys consider starting a new group alt.love_lost.2.old.rod?  Or better yet, tell me why (and where) a slow rod beats a fast rod. Mike

Let me take a minute here to wipe the sarcasm off your post, then I’ll try and answer your question.  First off, It isn’t a case of slow vs. fast, rather that each has it’s own characteristics that you can exploit in different situations. The biggest determinant is personal preference; some people love ‘em others don’t.  For the rest of the list of characteristics, these are generalizations and there are plenty of exceptions.  For sake of argument, assume that I’m comparing a slow Orvis Superfine 5 wt, to a fast Sage RPL+ 5 wt. Slow rods (Orvis Superfine) Loads easily with only a little line Short cast, mend and roll cast well Tend to be tolerant of under and over-lining Less fatiguing over a long day of fishing More delicate presentation Fast rods (Sage RPL+) Handles the wind better Stiff butt section gives better lifting power Easier to cast long Tighter loop control Pinpoint accuracy is easier But having said all of that, a good caster can be pinpoint accurate and handle the wind with a Superfine, or lay down a delicate cast with an RPL+ so we end up back with personal preference.   But there’s another determinant that you should keep in mind.  Some rods have a progressive action while others have more radical action. By this I mean that a progressive rod will simply work further down into the butt, the longer you cast and the more power you apply.  The relationship between power and distance on the one hand and how far the rod works into the butt on the other, is more or less linear. Casting a progressive rod doesn’t really take a change of casting stroke to cast long; merely lengthen the stroke a bit and apply a little more power.  Radical actions change between tip and butt so you may have a soft tip married to a stiff butt that requires a change in your casting stroke when casting long.  Radical actions try to combine the merits of slow and fast action rods in one but you have to pay a price by altering your casting stroke to accomondate the transition between slow tip and fast butt as the casting distance lengthens. Here’s a comparison – if you took an old Sage RPL 8 wt. and a Loomis GL3 Megataper 8/9 wt., and deflection tested them with identical weights, you may find that both delfected about the same amount so they would both be considered fast.  But the Sage would be bending well into the butt while the Loomis would accomodate most of the bending in the tip. So when casting, you’d find the Loomis will short cast easier but the Sage would be easier to cast over the full limits of its range.  The Loomis action was intended for flats fishing where you’d pick up a short bit of line with the tip, load quickly then bang out 60′-70′ with the butt, all in one casting motion.  The RPL would probably need one false cast to do the same. Next time don’t be so sarcastic and I won’t make you read as much.  :) Cheers Visit The Streamer Page at http://members.home.net/pcharles/streamers/index.html

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Yep, I own 3 of the LL series…….2/4/6 wts.  Love ‘em.  I would class their action more as slow to medium, than strictly medium.  My casting style (if one could call it a ’style’, more like a grenade toss) is more suited to the slower action.  And no, I don’t use sinking lines on any of them because they are just not suited for throwing weight.  Having said that, I sometimes use a short piece of sinking leader to get the fly down if fishing in current or deeper water, but it is not a comfortable thing for me to do.  If I’m tossing weighted buggers or need to use a sink tip, I switch to my St Croix medium action rods.  BTW, as to lines, I use SA Mastery or AirCell Supreme WF stuff.  FWIW- Frank Church Elkhart, IN USAF RETIRED – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Any fans of the Sage Light Line Series out there?   Or for that matter, anybody hate the series? Personally I love it’s medium action and can’t believe they are discontinuing them (at least that’s what I heard).  Has anyone tried casting this rod with a sink tip or a wet line?  If so I’d particularly like to hear from you. Thinking of getting new lines for this rod but want to hear some comments/suggestions from others that have tried different line combos on this rod before rushing out to waste money.  Reason why I’m hesitating is because its light weight plus medium action might make this rod a nightmare to cast with sink tips or wet lines. Thanks!

Frank Church Elkhart, IN USAF RETIRED

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Any fans of the Sage Light Line Series out there?   Or for that matter, anybody hate the series? Personally I love it’s medium action and can’t believe they are discontinuing them (at least that’s what I heard).  Has anyone tried casting this rod with a sink tip or a wet line?  If so I’d particularly like to hear from you. Thinking of getting new lines for this rod but want to hear some comments/suggestions from others that have tried different line combos on this rod before rushing out to waste money.  Reason why I’m hesitating is because its light weight plus medium action might make this rod a nightmare to cast with sink tips or wet lines. Thanks!

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Question:

Thanx for the help~!

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I am kinda new to fly fishing and new to this group. I do lots of fishing but not very much fly fishing. I got a fly rod 2 years ago and just put line on it today. I have some "No-tie" things that you put into the line that holds the leader into the backing. Is there an easy way to get the no-tie on there?? I am having trouble. Thanx

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I am kinda new to fly fishing and new to this group. I do lots of fishing but not very much fly fishing. I got a fly rod 2 years ago and just put line on it today. I have some "No-tie" things that you put into the line that holds the leader into the backing. Is there an easy way to get the no-tie on there?? I am having trouble. Thanx

So we’re talking about the same things the backing goes on the spool first. The backing connects to the fly line and the leader attaches to the fly line. By "no-tie" do you mean the braided loop connectors that go over the fly line or the metal eyes that you stick in the line? If it’s the latter the best thing to do is loose them and tie the backing directly to the flyline and then the leader directly to the fly line. In almost every box of fly line there is a little booklet that shows the knots to use to attach backing to the spool, the line to the backing and the leader to the line. Learn the knots – they can save the day as well as your equipment. The braided loop connectors are a good alternative to tying the backing and the leader to the fly line. These slip over the fly line and use a piece of heat shrink tubing to anchor the end to the line. When the loop is pulled the braid cinches down on the fly line and holds tight.  Now with the loop on the fly line and a loop tied in the leader and backing you can quickly connect the three lines together with the loop to loop handshake knot. When you tie a loop in the backing make it’s big enough that you can make the connection with the flyline while it’s still on the spool it came on.

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Question:

any body know of some good fishing in north west colorado?

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Try fishing at Yampacola res., nice rainbows and good fly country.

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—–BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE—– While in non-compliance with local decency ordinances the world over, any body know of some good fishing in north west colorado?

It’s more west-central, but the Black Canyon of the Gunnison River in Gunnison and Montrose counties is pretty nice. The fish are a little temperamental, though. Some days you can catch anything with an Adams and a mediocre presentation, and other days perfect presentation and a long and thin leader and perfect hatch matching will leave you skunked. The fishing is great. It’s the catching that’s sometimes a little iffy. —–BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE—– Version: 2.6.2 iQEVAwUBNu3zDpdiUzdLFqlpAQGlegf+L+2nnxmFnkfV8hwx9n2681hZcAvgSQn6 wDwh2ghZoQtGVvZHlYsONMMY0gOfNb52dgwd3uUi9ohZtyc0d9XIue3FHSa0vBa5 Sk4voCNo6BaPfMukXKUK9NiLaFjWZLF75rka/1pZqZnQqCm4ogPT5RJdJKiou+uv ONNOFeIuWLhayy44Ck9uziAlwtqJcWaoHdFdQQCY/Zwv5fBka+/MRhNchKTx+8T4 0Bh80zzGXFSYvBQPTww9eivH0PmecZhAwdhAT0EzvcDYry2cLynZgBPdpbLOr00x IATrJ1eBVpU9awukFCu4nFIcHXkrznq37t65RmbjE1WZkiU7p4+LIQ== =ifOk —–END PGP SIGNATURE—– Mike S. Medintz, http://www.grapevine.net/~medintz "I can try to get used to what she likes, but if I hear that ‘From This Moment’ song one more time I’m-a gonna go postal."                            "I love Topeka," by T.J.J. Williams

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If I found myself in northwest Colorado I extend my travels a bit further to northeast Utah…The Green Rive & Flaming Gorge. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – any body know of some good fishing in north west colorado?

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If I found myself in northwest Colorado I extend my travels a bit further to northeast Utah…The Green Rive & Flaming Gorge.

Good advice if you want one of the crowded "hot spots."  NW Colorado is a big area.  If you’re going to the Grand Junction area, Grand Mesa is a beautiful area with lots of streams and natural lakes. Willi

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Question:

Hi all      I am a Newbie to news groups but I have a few years Flyfishing in Oregon Just want to say hi to everyone And wish ya luck on your next time on the water.                Bob

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Hi all      I am a Newbie to news groups but I have a few years Flyfishing in Oregon Just want to say hi to everyone And wish ya luck on your next time on the water.                Bob

    Welcome, we here in Fl. don’t need luck by the way. Just opertunity. Have fun                                                               John Popp                                                        in Sanford Fl.

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Welcome Bob,    Where do you live in Oregon and what kinds of fish do you fly fish for? — Ernie Harrison Remove NOSPAM to send E-mail GO TO http://users.ccnet.com/~emh FOR TRAVEL TIE BOX PLANS – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi all      I am a Newbie to news groups but I have a few years Flyfishing in Oregon Just want to say hi to everyone And wish ya luck on your next time on the water.                Bob

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I am a Newbie to news groups but I have a few years Flyfishing in Oregon. Just want to say hi to everyone And wish ya luck on your next time on the water.    Welcome, we here in Fl. don’t need luck by the way. Just opertunity.

And a good spellchecker! ;^) /dave (Just kidding!)

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Question:

I have only been posting to this group for a few months but have been a loyal reader for a couple of readers (just didn’t feel comfortable posting quite yet) The C&R vs. C&E debate has been flogged to death! [snip] Please let’s get back to what we are reading this group for in the first place. "Catch & Release everything you legally have to, or don’t want to eat"

Ya know, your entreaty would probably go down a lot easier if you didn’t tag it with that parting shot… /dave

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- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I have only been posting to this group for a few months but have been a loyal reader for a couple of readers (just didn’t feel comfortable posting quite yet) The C&R vs. C&E debate has been flogged to death! [snip] Please let’s get back to what we are reading this group for in the first place. "Catch & Release everything you legally have to, or don’t want to eat" Ya know, your entreaty would probably go down a lot easier if you didn’t tag it with that parting shot… /dave

Its my foolish attempt at being politically correct. I knew it would be upsetting to someone, but then I like the bumper sticker that said         "Nuke the unborn gay whales" Cheers

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I for one cannot imagine anything finer than a crisp fall morning, solitary stretch of river and a screaming reel attached to 15lbs. of fury. Please let’s get back to what we are reading this group for in the first place. "Catch & Release everything you legally have to, or don’t want to eat" Consider it done.  I had my fill. Question is; who’ll volunteer to tell "you know who"? Peter

I believe that Tim has ceased posting for a while. (We all need to catch our breath every now and then) I’m sure he’ll be back with a vengeance crusading against yuppies, Orvis and the rest of the sport-ute crowd. Any way, to begin discussions about our quarry, This year (fall 1997)the Thompson river in B.C.(river of the champion steelhead ) experienced a very late return that almost shut down the river to all sport fisherman (Fisheries thought that they were not going to return at all). This fishery has experienced unbelievable hardship over the past 10 years and this year’s return was less than 1000 spawners! The one bright spot in the last 10 years was fall 1996, when escapement was estimated at between 3500 and 4000. It must be mere coincidence that 1996 was also the first year in recent memory when DFO had the balls the cancel the Fraser river Gillnet fishery for sockeye and chum salmon. It was also the best returns for chinooks in the Vedder and Chehalis rivers. I had the best year at the Thompson ever and every one else I fished with also had a very good year. My point is this…. WHEN WILL OUR APPOINTED "EXPERTS" FIGURE OUT THAT THE GREATEST THREAT TO THE RESOURCE IS THE COMMERCIAL BASTARDS THAT CONTINUE TO RAPE THE RESOURCE? All sport anglers must unite to eliminate this form of fishing. On the west coast of Canada, Commercial fishing is a NET LOSS to the economy. The cost of all activities associated with the commercial catch and subsidies and employment insurance to fishermen actually is greater than the value of fish caught. Yet our Federal government continues to support this destruction. By comparison the Sport fishery is a BILLION dollar boost to B.C’s economy and harvests less than 10% of the stocks. While the American and Canadian governments squabble over the percentage of harvest for each country, the stocks dwindle, and the only ones who really suffer are the fish. Its time for all anglers to quit our minor petty arguments and fight the real threat…the commercial rapers. It doesn’t matter if your C&E or C&R, Fly or bait, Green or purple, write a letter to your elected offical (on both sides of the border) and lets put some pressure where it will really help the resource! Boy do I feel better! "Catch and release everything you legally have to, or don’t want to eat"

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I have only been posting to this group for a few months but have been a loyal reader for a couple of readers (just didn’t feel comfortable posting quite yet) The C&R vs. C&E debate has been flogged to death! None of you will change the minds of the other side and each is as much a barbarian as the other. Let’s get back to the true nature of this group and discuss techniques and quarry. I for one cannot imagine anything finer than a crisp fall morning, solitary stretch of river and a screaming reel attached to 15lbs. of fury. Please let’s get back to what we are reading this group for in the first place. "Catch & Release everything you legally have to, or don’t want to eat"

Consider it done.  I had my fill. Question is; who’ll volunteer to tell "you know who"? Peter

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Please let’s get back to what we are reading this group for in the first place. "Catch & Release everything you legally have to, or don’t want to eat"

        by god, steve, i think you’ve got it!  these two sentences should be required reading for the whole goddam bunch.  turn the obvious intellectual and literary talents of the whole crowd to other pursuits, and this newsgroup would be a source of constant wonder. otherwise, it’s just about as much fun as watching samson turn the miller’s wheel, while delilah laughs offstage; the bitch.

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: a screaming reel attached to 15lbs. of fury. Please let’s get back to : what we are reading this group for in the first place. OK, you start. — Rick T. Rick Fletcher   –   http://www.chem.uidaho.edu/~fletcher/ Associate professor of chemistry  |  That’s Idaho, not Iowa.    | ad hominem University of Idaho               |  Upper Left Hand Corner.    | ad hominem Moscow, ID 83844-2343             |  No, I don’t grow potatoes. | ad hominem

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I have only been posting to this group for a few months but have been a loyal reader for a couple of readers (just didn’t feel comfortable posting quite yet) The C&R vs. C&E debate has been flogged to death! None of you will change the minds of the other side and each is as much a barbarian as the other. Let’s get back to the true nature of this group and discuss techniques and quarry. I for one cannot imagine anything finer than a crisp fall morning, solitary stretch of river and a screaming reel attached to 15lbs. of fury. Please let’s get back to what we are reading this group for in the first place. "Catch & Release everything you legally have to, or don’t want to eat"

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Question:

Hi Jess, I  couldnt agree more, I grew up in England a long time after the depression, but I can appreciate your sentiments entirely. I enjoyed your article as well ! Keep up the good work ! Mike – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text –

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With the prices of new, state-of-the-art graphites approaching $600, I would say that we are entering a period of reverse bamboo snobbery! For $600 you can get a hell of deal on a used, 7 1/2-8 ft bamboo of good lineage.  You just have to pay attention to the used tackle lists. –Rich

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– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -Hello, The fishing news groups are quite new to me.  As I browse and read the messages, I find that some feelings exist against flyfishing and flyfishers, and more particularly against the users of bamboo as being somehow snobbish or elite.  I don’t want to offend anybody, but would it be okay if I say something about this?  If you don’t want to read it, please just skip it now. I’m an old guy who grew up poor, without complaint then or now, during the depression.  I had a paper route, did odd jobs, shoveled snow, mowed lawns. In 1940, when I was 14, my first fly rod cost me $1.67 at a Coast to Coast hardware store, and with it I bought some cheap gut leaders.  Nothing snobbish about that or the way we fished.  After Navy duty in WWII, I first tied flies with supplies bought by mail from old George Leonard Herter.   Nothing snobbish about George Leonard.  Not no way, not no how.  In 1947, with blank sections bought from old George, I made up a bamboo rod, to save a buck and have some fun.   For me, yet, at 71, to go out with a bamboo rod makes me feel a bit like the kid with a stick, off to try to catch a fish.  I don’t even mind (please forgive) if somebody calls a bamboo rod a "fishpole."  "Let’s get our poles and go fishing."  "When?"  "Now!"  Nothing snobbish about that. Bamboo.  It’s fun to say.  Like "greenheart," another word that’s fun to say.  Unlike, to me,  "fibreglas"  or "graphite."  Further, it’s fun to fiddle with bamboo, with thread,  guides, tiptops.  Fun, even, to scrape off old varnish.  Yes, and to put it all together and wave it around and get the feel of that stick.   It is, after all, just a bunch of sticks glued together into one stick, isn’t it? Certainly, much science and technology goes into the making of a fibreglas or graphite rod.  Largely it’s a mystery to me, maybe to most of us.  On the other hand, I can somewhat understand the making of a bamboo rod, and I admire and respect the handwork, the craftsmanship that goes into its initial construction.  Not many people do much with their hands any more. Maybe it’s just a feeling for tradition.   Probably because of that feeling, I admire the warmth of wood, of bamboo. Admire it, maybe even, to……caress it.  I haven’t yet caressed a fibreglas or graphite rod.   Well, I have a pretty good Browning graphite (60 bucks) and a (wow) 80+ dollar IMG with a beautiful reel seat, made in Taiwan, and I’ve almost caressed it, but…..not like bamboo.  I recognize that a kid or teenager today, first used to graphite, may well have the same affection for his or her "new pole."   Moreover I realize that a fibreglas or graphite rod delivers more "power.’ It will not rot or come unglued or take a set.  You can’t slam the car door or close the trunk lid on it, but it will stand some abuse.  You have to give more care to bamboo.   But that was for me a good learning process.  You can’t treat bamboo like the horse that was "rode hard and put away wet."  You must wipe it off, dry it, keep it dry.  You don’t stand it in a corner or against the wall or bang it around.  You nurse it, gentle it, dare I say, respect it?  But that’s a good lesson to apply not only to a flyrod (or to any kind of fishing equipment), but to bicyles, clothes, cars, even…..to people. With this background, it never dawned on me that flyfishing or bamboo had anything snobbish about it, or that it was for any kind of elite.  If I had felt that, I would have known that I didn’t belong.  So it does bother me somewhat that in recent years flyfishing has given the impression to some that it has gone "high class" or Hollywood-ish, and that is has probably in fact drawn some snobs, or that some feel snobbish about their place in it. At the same time, I don’t begrudge those who can pay for expensive lessons, hire guides, buy thousands of dollars worth of equipment.  A couple years ago, at a shop in Livingston, the owner’s son told me that they had just sold a $1,600 Ovis rod over the phone, to mail out.  I can only blink at such goings on. Not to go off into rapture or anything like it, but to me one of the beautiful things about flycasting lies in the curve that a flyline makes when you throw it.  Have you seen Winslow Homer’s painting of the guy in the canoe, moving his flyline through the air?  Nature, if this is correct, has no straight lines, and the graceful flow of a flyline seems somehow alive.  Actually, I’d say the same thing about any kind of line flowing from any kind of rod or reel, for it’s not restricted to fly casting, and I do enjoy all kinds of fishing.   Like water that’s too high and gone off color, some things still rile me. But then too, as you grow older, you generally grow more respectful of the way others go about things.  So it seems to me that the world has room for the kid with a stick, for the guy in between who just wants to get off somewhere and fish a bit, and for snobs as well.  Who knows but what any of us might be a snob, if we just had the money. I hope with this bit that I haven’t touched anybody off.  If so, please ignore it.  It’ll pass quickly.  And you could have just skipped it.   Jess Thompson

Hi Jess, You have not missed anything. In fact you got to fish when it was still wild in America. Today much of the wild feeling is gone. Streams are crowded and stocked with hatchery fish. You were lucky to have been born when you were.  You really appreciate what you have and the good memories. I have memories of my youth that are good also ever though I was born in 1945. I have a bunch of old fish buddies that are now 70 to 80 years old. They have told me lots of great tales of the fishing when you and they were young. I feel that the youth of today are missing out on the simple fun that once was. Even though you remember the depression, you were born at the best time in America for a good life. Bill Kiene Kiene’s Fly Shop Sacramento,CA,USA 800/4000FLY

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- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – = Hello, The fishing news groups are quite new to me.  As I browse and read the messages, I find that some feelings exist against flyfishing and flyfishers, and more particularly against the users of bamboo as being somehow snobbish or elite.  I don’t want to offend anybody, but would i= t be okay if I say something about this?  If you don’t want to read it, plea= se just skip it now. = I’m an old guy who grew up poor, without complaint then or now, during = the depression.  I had a paper route, did odd jobs, shoveled snow, mowed la= wns.  In 1940, when I was 14, my first fly rod cost me $1.67 at a Coast to C= oast hardware store, and with it I bought some cheap gut leaders.  Nothing snobbish about that or the way we fished.  After Navy duty in WWII, I f= irst tied flies with supplies bought by mail from old George Leonard Herter.= Nothing snobbish about George Leonard.  Not no way, not no how.  In 194= 7, with blank sections bought from old George, I made up a bamboo rod, to = save a buck and have some fun. = For me, yet, at 71, to go out with a bamboo rod makes me feel a bit lik= e the kid with a stick, off to try to catch a fish.  I don’t even mind (please forgive) if somebody calls a bamboo rod a "fishpole."  "Let’s g= et our poles and go fishing."  "When?"  "Now!"  Nothing snobbish about tha= t. = Bamboo.  It’s fun to say.  Like "greenheart," another word that’s fun t= o say.  Unlike, to me,  "fibreglas"  or "graphite."  Further, it’s fun to= fiddle with bamboo, with thread,  guides, tiptops.  Fun, even, to scrap= e off old varnish.  Yes, and to put it all together and wave it around an= d get the feel of that stick.   It is, after all, just a bunch of sticks glued together into one stick, isn’t it? = Certainly, much science and technology goes into the making of a fibreg= las or graphite rod.  Largely it’s a mystery to me, maybe to most of us.  O= n the other hand, I can somewhat understand the making of a bamboo rod, a= nd I admire and respect the handwork, the craftsmanship that goes into its initial construction.  Not many people do much with their hands any mor= e. Maybe it’s just a feeling for tradition. = Probably because of that feeling, I admire the warmth of wood, of bambo= o. Admire it, maybe even, to……caress it.  I haven’t yet caressed a fibreglas or graphite rod.   Well, I have a pretty good Browning graphi= te (60 bucks) and a (wow) 80+ dollar IMG with a beautiful reel seat, made = in Taiwan, and I’ve almost caressed it, but…..not like bamboo.  I recogn= ize that a kid or teenager today, first used to graphite, may well have the= same affection for his or her "new pole." = Moreover I realize that a fibreglas or graphite rod delivers more "powe= r.’ It will not rot or come unglued or take a set.  You can’t slam the car = door or close the trunk lid on it, but it will stand some abuse.  You have t= o give more care to bamboo. = But that was for me a good learning process.  You can’t treat bamboo li= ke the horse that was "rode hard and put away wet."  You must wipe it off,= dry it, keep it dry.  You don’t stand it in a corner or against the wall or= bang it around.  You nurse

(remainder of good stuff snipped) Jesse:  I really enjoyed your little essay.  Thoughtful and correct (and I obviously agree with it! Mark Faulkner

Response:

You might want to rethink that statement and read up on the genetic research on telemeres that has been reported in the last week.  You may have enough time left to PAY OFF a bamboo rod!!!  ;^) George – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Jessie, Every thing old will become new again except of course you and I Jessie. — Remove NOSPAM to send E-mail Ernie Harrison

Response:

Jesse One of my personal disappoints is that I came to flyfishing late, about nine years ago, when bamboo rod prices had already begun heading for the stratosphere.  In the early sixties, a good friend of mine had a bamboo spinning rod that his dad had handed down to him.  We would ride our bikes down to the canal to dunk worms for sunfish or throw spoons for pike.  He could always out cast me, especially considering the broomstick I was using. I had a paper route and I saved my coin to buy a Shakespeare Wonderod and a Mitchell 300 after my old rod broke.  I just knew that I would be able to outcast him once I got it.  Well, you guessed it, he could still throw a red devil 20′ further than I could.  We switched rods, and the bamboo still out cast the newfangled fibreglass. Having never owned a bamboo rod, I still lust for them.  Whenever I go into an old fishing shop, I always look around for an old bamboo that may be hiding in a corner.  Haven’t seen one yet, but I’m still hoping.  Funny enough, I still have the Wonderod and the Mitchell.  I hope to have a few grandkids in the next few years and I’ll be needing a good worm dunking rod. That was a very nice post, and considering some of the uninformed vitriol that is tossed around here, it’s a very pleasant change. Peter

Response:

Hello, The fishing news groups are quite new to me.  As I browse and read the messages, I find that some feelings exist against flyfishing and flyfishers, and more particularly again

Jesse, Wowwww waht can I say. All that I wanted to say about Bamboo but was to ignorent to do so. I have been fishing with Bamboo for the better part of 35 years now, and I would not change my rods for anything. I do not own glass, graphite or any other type of rods, just Bamboo and like you said, I caress them and yes I do respect them. They have serve me well over the years.  Please post more of your insight in fly fishing, I really enjoyed your post. Michel Lajoie http:www.titan.qc.ca/moucheux

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hello, The fishing news groups are quite new to me.  As I browse and read the messages, I find that some feelings exist against flyfishing and flyfishers, and more particularly against the users of bamboo as being somehow snobbish or elite.  I don’t want to offend anybody, but would it be okay if I say something about this?  If you don’t want to read it, please just skip it now. I’m an old guy who grew up poor, without complaint then or now, during the depression.  I had a paper route, did odd jobs, shoveled snow, mowed lawns.  In 1940, when I was 14, my first fly rod cost me $1.67 at a Coast to Coast hardware store, and with it I bought some cheap gut leaders.  Nothing snobbish about that or the way we fished.  After Navy duty in WWII, I first tied flies with supplies bought by mail from old George Leonard Herter. Nothing snobbish about George Leonard.  Not no way, not no how.  In 1947, with blank sections bought from old George, I made up a bamboo rod, to save a buck and have some fun. For me, yet, at 71, to go out with a bamboo rod makes me feel a bit like the kid with a stick, off to try to catch a fish.  I don’t even mind (please forgive) if somebody calls a bamboo rod a "fishpole."  "Let’s get our poles and go fishing."  "When?"  "Now!"  Nothing snobbish about that. Bamboo.  It’s fun to say.  Like "greenheart," another word that’s fun to say.  Unlike, to me,  "fibreglas"  or "graphite."  Further, it’s fun to fiddle with bamboo, with thread,  guides, tiptops.  Fun, even, to scrape off old varnish.  Yes, and to put it all together and wave it around and get the feel of that stick.   It is, after all, just a bunch of sticks glued together into one stick, isn’t it? Certainly, much science and technology goes into the making of a fibreglas or graphite rod.  Largely it’s a mystery to me, maybe to most of us.  On the other hand, I can somewhat understand the making of a bamboo rod, and I admire and respect the handwork, the craftsmanship that goes into its initial construction.  Not many people do much with their hands any more. Maybe it’s just a feeling for tradition. Probably because of that feeling, I admire the warmth of wood, of bamboo. Admire it, maybe even, to……caress it.  I haven’t yet caressed a fibreglas or graphite rod.   Well, I have a pretty good Browning graphite (60 bucks) and a (wow) 80+ dollar IMG with a beautiful reel seat, made in Taiwan, and I’ve almost caressed it, but…..not like bamboo.  I recognize that a kid or teenager today, first used to graphite, may well have the same affection for his or her "new pole." Moreover I realize that a fibreglas or graphite rod delivers more "power.’ It will not rot or come unglued or take a set.  You can’t slam the car door or close the trunk lid on it, but it will stand some abuse.  You have to give more care to bamboo. But that was for me a good learning process.  You can’t treat bamboo like the horse that was "rode hard and put away wet."  You must wipe it off, dry it, keep it dry.  You don’t stand it in a corner or against the wall or bang it around.  You nurse it, gentle it, dare I say, respect it?  But that’s a good lesson to apply not only to a flyrod (or to any kind of fishing equipment), but to bicyles, clothes, cars, even…..to people. With this background, it never dawned on me that flyfishing or bamboo had anything snobbish about it, or that it was for any kind of elite.  If I had felt that, I would have known that I didn’t belong.  So it does bother me somewhat that in recent years flyfishing has given the impression to some that it has gone "high class" or Hollywood-ish, and that is has probably in fact drawn some snobs, or that some feel snobbish about their place in it. At the same time, I don’t begrudge those who can pay for expensive lessons, hire guides, buy thousands of dollars worth of equipment.  A couple years ago, at a shop in Livingston, the owner’s son told me that they had just sold a $1,600 Ovis rod over the phone, to mail out.  I can only blink at such goings on. Not to go off into rapture or anything like it, but to me one of the beautiful things about flycasting lies in the curve that a flyline makes when you throw it.  Have you seen Winslow Homer’s painting of the guy in the canoe, moving his flyline through the air?  Nature, if this is correct, has no straight lines, and the graceful flow of a flyline seems somehow alive.  Actually, I’d say the same thing about any kind of line flowing from any kind of rod or reel, for it’s not restricted to fly casting, and I do enjoy all kinds of fishing. Like water that’s too high and gone off color, some things still rile me. But then too, as you grow older, you generally grow more respectful of the way others go about things.  So it seems to me that the world has room for the kid with a stick, for the guy in between who just wants to get off somewhere and fish a bit, and for snobs as well.  Who knows but what any of us might be a snob, if we just had the money. I hope with this bit that I haven’t touched anybody off.  If so, please ignore it.  It’ll pass quickly.  And you could have just skipped it. Jess Thompson

Hi Jess, I really like what you wrote above. One friends of mine, an old carpenter, he has made cane or bamboo rods from bar stock and ..well whatever you would call it. One of his biggest dissapointments getting older is not being able to make them anymore let alone casting. I do like those rods and have some of my own. My first memory actually was from an American friend of my fathers when I was 6 years old. He had a cane rod, brownish with lovely action. He is in one of my very short stories I once wrote about the grayling, lady of the stream, in my home river. Also one of my cherished memories are from Finland and Lapland there I for some nights during one summer had my 7 footer. Had anyone seen me grinning like I did, rollcasting and catching white fish, one after another, they would have thought me somewhat funny I think….<*)(((<( Cheers and thanks again for your nice piece. Harry Salmgren http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/6392/ http://www.savsjo.se/Forening/Hemsida/Sfkhugget/ ps tried your email also, but didn

Question:

I am interested in learning more about flyfishing for stripers in fresh water.  I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and would like any information that pertains to fishing the SF bay delta area as well.   I would like to know of good books to read and local quides to contact Thanks Stu Booth

Response:

Good places for stripers in the SF area are Franks Tract in the Delta; you will need a boat, and the O’Neill Forebay of San Luis Reservoir which is accessible by canoe, float tube or boat.  The O’Neill is right at the intersection of Rte. 152 and I-5 near Los Banos jsut as you come down out of the Pacheco Pass into the Central Valley.  Although I haven’t caught one yet, there are reported to be a nice population of big stripers in this small lake. There are also stripers to be found in the main reservoir too, but it is a much more formidable piece of water. Pick up a copy of California Fly Fisher.  There are always ads for guides for striper fishing the bay and Franks tract in the back. Good luck–Crashjibe

Response:

Question:

Never had a problem with Bass Pro Shops.  The worst thing that happens is that something(s) is backed ordered and you get it in dribs and drabs, but they will tell you what is back ordered on the phone.  They have a good selection too.  The other catalogs have the same items in them, though Cabela’s seems to have a lot more "kits" (i.e. Small Plano type plastic boxes with an assortment of lures like Power Worms, Slugos, etc.). * Sony Electronics        phone: (201) 930-7039               * * Sony Drive – MD#3D2     fax:   (201) 930-6361               * * Park Ridge, NJ 07656    http://www.sony.com                 *

Response:

I would like to know what the general concensus is about Bass Pro Shops catalogs. What is the selection, service, pricing and other info about this catalog.   How does this compare to Cabela’s and Gander Mtn? Thank you and good fishing. Dan

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: I would like to know what the general concensus is about Bass Pro Shops catalogs. : What is the selection, service, pricing and other info about this : catalog.   : How does this compare to Cabela’s and Gander Mtn? I order stuff from Bass Pro several times per year. They are excellent, about equal to Cabela’s, it’s been a very long time since I ordered anything from Gander Mountian so I can’t compare them. I grew up in Springfield, Missouri, Bass Pro is an instituation there. Dave Fortner

Response:

I would like to know what the general concensus is about Bass Pro Shops catalogs.

I have been more than pleased with their service.  I recently ordered an assortment of tubes that was supposed to be in a metal tin. When I received the tubes they were in a plastic container.  When I called back to complain, they told me that the tins were discontinued. They let me keep the lures for free ($10 value) and sent me a $10 refund for the product that I was supposed to receive. Not too bad!

Response:

   I too order a lot of stuff from both Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s.  I find that both are extremely good and the prices can’t be beat.  I’ve never had to return anything from either place so I can’t comment upon that from personal experience.  However, a friend of mine recently returned some Gore Tex rain gear to Cabela’s after having had them for over a year.  I won’t go into the whole long story but, despite some initial reluctance, Cabela’s gave him a complete refund.  Given the competition between the two companies, I would expect BPS to be fairly equitable on their refund policy if you have a legitimate gripe.    Most of the ordering that I do from BPS is actually throught their Offshore Angler catalog because they have a vastly larger selection of saltwater equipment than does Cabela’s.  Cabela’s has improved their saltwater gear a lot over the last few years but still can’t compete with BPS.    Dennis

Response:

:    I too order a lot of stuff from both Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s.  I : find that both are extremely good and the prices can’t be beat.  I’ve : never had to return anything from either place so I can’t comment upon : that from personal experience.  However, a friend of mine recently : returned some Gore Tex rain gear to Cabela’s after having had them for : over a year.  I won’t go into the whole long story but, despite some : initial reluctance, Cabela’s gave him a complete refund.  Given the : competition between the two companies, I would expect BPS to be fairly : equitable on their refund policy if you have a legitimate gripe. I’ve found that Bass Pro’s return policy is a lot more liberal than Cabela’s. I’ve returned things to Bass Pro just because I didn’t like ‘em, they have always accepted the return AND PAID FOR THE RETURN SHIPPING (this is AFTER the items were USED)! This spring I tried to return a pair of expensive fishing pliers I bought from Cabela’s and order the ones with the serated jaws, they gave me a hassle about it and they were gonna make me call their customer service department to get authorization, etc, etc. It turned out that one of my fishin’ buddies dropped ‘em overboard before I could get authorization to send ‘em back, but I was a little peeved that they were giving me a hassle about it. Dave Fortner

Response:

I fished with a guy for several years who used to by merchandise from most of the larger catalog sellers and after a year or whenever he got tired of the merchandise, he would send it back for a refund.  Some placed made him work for his money, but by and large, he always manage to cheat the seller out of his merchandise. I know he did it with Bean, Orvis, Cabela’s and many local merchants who operate on a shoe sting.  I even saw him buy a used fishing reel and send it back to Orvis for a full refund.  He received about a 200 refund after investing seventy dollars in the used reel.  Skumbags like that will ruin it for the honest person who may experience some difficulty with some piece of merchandise.  Bad business ripping the merchant off and if we are all not careful even the compitition will not protect us from this privilage being revoked. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text –   I too order a lot of stuff from both Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s.  I find that both are extremely good and the prices can’t be beat.  I’ve never had to return anything from either place so I can’t comment upon that from personal experience.  However, a friend of mine recently returned some Gore Tex rain gear to Cabela’s after having had them for over a year.  I won’t go into the whole long story but, despite some initial reluctance, Cabela’s gave him a complete refund.  Given the competition between the two companies, I would expect BPS to be fairly equitable on their refund policy if you have a legitimate gripe.   Most of the ordering that I do from BPS is actually throught their Offshore Angler catalog because they have a vastly larger selection of saltwater equipment than does Cabela’s.  Cabela’s has improved their saltwater gear a lot over the last few years but still can’t compete with BPS.   Dennis

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Response: