Fiberglass

[troutguy 0]

I belong to the Carolina Fly Fishing Club. It is a FFF club. Last week we had Cameron Mortenson from http://thefiberglassmanifesto.blogspot.com/ as our guest speaker. It was interesting to see the rebirth of fiberglass. I have always been nostalgic about them and a fan.

 

I started fly fishing around 1959 or 60 with a fiberglass rod. My first major fly rod purchase was a Fenwick 9ft 7wt in 1969 or 70 from playtogs in Middletown, NY to fish the Big Beaverkill and the Delaware at nght. I still fish that rod. Not often enough.

 

The new fiberglass blanks were interesting.

 

I like seeing the fiberglass rods people make here.

 

I still have my original rod and my mother and father's rods. One day I will rewrap them.

[Gene L 0]

I've got a couple of glass rods, a 4wt I wrapped myself and a Browning Silaflex 5wt rod that's as good as any rod I have. I was on the Fiberglass Rod website, but haven't been there in a while.

 

They're good rods, glass. During most of the glass age, I was fishing bamboo or spinning rods.

 

When I was on the USS America, I checked out a book on wrapping glass rods and that got me back in the mood for glass...which I resisted for a long time.

[mikechell 0]

I remember a little about fiberglass.

I remember they were heavy.

I remember a broken one has long splinters that hurt more coming out than they did going in.

 

The only one I've tried recently was a "bust" in my opinion. Still too heavy, and no redeeming feature that I considered "superior" to any of my other rods. But, it wasn't a "New" rod, just newer than the ones from my past.

 

I am not "close minded" about fiberglass, I just don't see a reason to veer away from my light, snappy, great, MODERN rods.

[prairiedrifter 0]

Mike,

If you "don't see a reason" you'll never "get" it.

[skeet3t 0]

Go to www.rodbuildingforum.com and do a search for fiberglass. You will see some outstanding rods being built. I don't think that fiberglass is any heavier than bamboo. I have 8 ft. rods in each material. To me, 'boo is heavier.

[Steeldrifter 0]

Glass rods are a nice casting rod that suits most peoples casting style for dry fly/nymphing and small to medium size flies. Streamers or windy conditions/long distance casting then graphite usually is the best choice when that comes into play. Modern day glass rods are much nicer than they use to be. Back in the day they were of pretty thick wall construction and did not have much tip recovery (buggy whips) and some even had metal ferules which made for an over all bulky feeling rod. Now a days most glass blanks are much lighter, more responsive tip recovery, yet still have the nice smooth relaxed easy casting stroke that makes a good glass rod a joy to cast. Might not suit everyones needs but I enjoy casting both graphite and glass just depending on the situation.

[skeet3t 0]

Steve, how about posting a couple? Or have you? Can't recall. Suffer from CRA (can't remember anything).

[FlaFly 0]

I've never used anything except glass, and I don't see why people think it's heavy. Maybe they need to do a little weightlifting. When you don't have any experience to compare it to, it isn't all that heavy. In fact, for other reasons, if I get around to getting a 3 wt, it'll be glass for sure.

[Gene L 0]

Mike,

If you "don't see a reason" you'll never "get" it.

"Get" what?

 

I like a lot of rods. If they don't seem heavy to you, you've not cast a modern good graphite rod. They're great rods, but they tend to be a bit heavy and a bit slow compared to modern graphite. If that's important, which it is to most folk: the ascendancy of graphite has to do with some real benefits.

 

I like glass rods but understand that with any rod, you have to give up something. I'm willing to accept this, for what reason I'm not sure other than getting back to the Good Old Days...and that ain't bad. I've got every rod material but steel. A modern 9' graphite rod will likely weigh about as much as a 7'5 glass and less than a 7.5' bamboo. I don't know this, but I suspect it.

 

Which isn't a manhood test for most of us. Glass has its strong points as does bamboo as does graphite. They're all good though distinctively different.

[islander727 0]

Someone gave me a Tru Temper 1255 with a Pflueger 1495 Akron made reel attached to it. That got me started! I love fishing those things. I built an inexpensive 5 wt that casts just as well as anything else in my collection, graphite included! Unfortunately, the guy went out of business. I was going to build another for saltwater use, as 5's are en vogue these days...

 

Given the choice, I'd take glass and bamboo over graphite any day!

 

Would like to see your mother and father's rods!

[Dave G. 0]

I have an old South Bend glass fly rod I learned how to fly cast on ( caught my first trout on a fly with that rod, using level line and on a brown tent wing caddis). I fished that and then upgraded to a StCroix in iM6 that was pretty new stuff at the time and never looked back.

 

I have a 7' stream fly rod in 3/4 that is made of GF 1000 graphite. It's some iteration of graphite that I don't know a whole lot about but the rod performs very well. One day I suppose the grip and or guides will wear on it and I'll just re wrap it. The rod has a nice mid range casting capability with a mid bend moderate to slightly fast action. Makes me think of glass a little bit. I see that Lamiglass still sells blanks in GF 1000 material, not sure if this is the same stuff or not.

[DavidR 0]

I fish mostly graphite rods ...but since I acquired my first glass rod there is feel that slows the whole process of fishing down for me when using it.

[prairiedrifter 0]

Gene,

I have been fly fishing for over 40 years. My first rod was glass, followed by bamboo. Then the graphite craze hit. I fished graphite for years. I then returned to bamboo. I even began making bamboo rods. I then got interested in glass again. It harkens back to my youth and simpler days. I fish to relax, to escape.

 

So to say I've never fished modern graphite is incorrect. It's just not my cup of tea, fishing a rod that's marked a 3wt but should be cast with a 5wt.

[Nate 0]

I love the feel of the new glass rods out there. Epic, Echo and a slough of others are fantastic. I have started replacing many of my graphite with fiberglass. Mike who complains about splintering glass must not have crushed a graphite one yet...that too is a pain in the wherever it enters. Many people WANT a fast action rod because of they hype...many cannot cast a fast action rod. Glass is soft, forgiving, and easy to fish. Find what you like and roll with it. Its true that many manufactures label a rod 3 wt and then say that you have to overline it for it cast correct...CCS data on many of these will back this statement up "It is actually a four weight rod and the consumer will never know"

[mikechell 0]

Mike who complains about splintering glass must not have crushed a graphite one yet...that too is a pain in the wherever it enters.

I've had a couple of my rods break, but they've always broken fairly clean. Just a snap off, rather than a long splinter shattering.

 

Anyway, that is the least of my concerns, as I haven't broken that many rods, period.