+ Reply to Thread
Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 29

Thread: ENTITLEMENT? - Ladyfisher - March 7, 2011

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2002
    Location
    Bothell, WA, USA
    Posts
    2,122
    Blog Entries
    1

    Default ENTITLEMENT? - Ladyfisher - March 7, 2011

    ENTITLEMENT?

    About this time of year there are a bunch of sporting shows around the country, some with quite good fly fishing aspects to them. That of course gives the manufacturers a place to show off their new products. I?m as curious as the next guy (and maybe more) so I?ve always enjoyed not just attending the Spring shows but in casting the newest and latest fly rods, handling and ogling new reels and in general seeing whatever the new goodies are.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    shamokin, pa.
    Posts
    938

    Default

    Ladyfisher,

    I have mentioned this elsewhere, but will repeat myself because you are specifically addressing this subject. I personally have reached the apex of what I can do with a fly rod - any fly rod! I have absolutely no need for anything that has been developed beyond a rod that is the equivalent of say a Loomis GLX, or a GL3, for that matter. I am just as guilty of encouraging this kind of "gotta have the latest and greatest" by buying the next generation (which may have been a time frame of a year or less, between them!) before I've even gotten proficient with the one I already have. I love new stuff - don't get me wrong, but I'm starting to think that I may have needed "intervention" at one point.

    Here's what I found out about rods - for me - YMMV. My first rod was a nice Montague boo rod. Liked it alot! My second rod was a fiberglass Wonder rod. This was an 8wt. and an abomination (steel girder) to cast. Maybe I was too young for it? My third rod was an 8 1/2 ft Fenwick (brown glass) - 1980?. The Fenwick was a joy to cast compared to the Shakespeare Wonder Noodle. Anyway, I recently purchased an Eagle Claw rod (graphite) for 1/3rd the cost of the Fenwick, at a major retail store. This rod will cast circles around any of the previous rods mentioned. If this was the only rod model I owned today, I could easily live with that. I would want it in a few different weights, but that would be it. For day to day trout fishing, this rod will do it all, and in style. It is a well made rod with some half-way decent components. I am strictly talking about performance. My emphasis is not on the cost (although imported) it may be assembled from U.S. parts? Don't know - didn't ask.

    I don't have any disabilities that affect my casting ability now or in the past - there's probably an experience factor, but I am also comparing this EC rod with rods with names like Loomis, Cortland, Hardy, Scientific Angler, Orvis, Diamond Back, H.L. Leonard (graphite), Pflueger, and various Boo rods, all of which I currently own. This EC rod is not that far behind most of these rods and in fact is ahead of a few - in the casting and components department.

    Now, this really isn't about this Eagle Claw rod per say, it is more a testimonial to the quandary some of us find ourselves in. For myself - unless I see a sweet custom made rod - which I recently have, or are looking to get a rod to donate - I'm done buying rods. What would I do with the next generation rod if the ones I own now, do all I can make them do? The most "advanced" rod I own now, is the Loomis GLX. This may now be considered a museum piece! LOL!!

    Here's another analogy (at least in my pointy head!): The latest military fighter jet is supposed to be so advanced that the next generation fighter will be beyond the ability of a human being to fly it. I think we have exceeded that threshold when it comes to fly rods. Interesting thread, it will be interesting also to hear others view points. My position is not set in stone, and can be modified by any good "argument". I do have a "ceiling" that I would pay, for any commercial graphite rod, unless it is a "collectors model", and then my pocket book will be the deciding factor!

    Hope you brought plenty of popcorn with you before you started reading my OPUS/TOME!! LOL!!!

    Best regards, Dave S.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    White Bear Lake MN
    Posts
    1,054

    Default "new & improved!"

    Just celebrated my 62nd birthday in February, and now getting ready for the upcoming Minnesota Fishing Season. I have all my fly rods clean and ready to be used, as well as all my fly lines, reels, and fly boxes refilled for specific species of fish that I might be fishing for.

    Manufacturer's always have a new line of products to sell every year, and there is always something "New & Improved" to cause you to forget whatever you already have, to go out and buy this "New & Improved" product to replace something you already have that works just fine....
    • I have a Cortland "CL" series 6 wt....that I bought in 1995, for general fly fishing, broke off a 6 inch section off the tip of the rod, and just cleaned off the new tip end and put on a new tip-top guide. The Cortland is even better now then before I broke the tip section...
    • I have a Gatti 3 wt..... that I bought in 1999, still is a great fly rod for catching trout.
    • I have a 5 wt St. Croix graphite for Smallmouth Bass.
    • I have a 7 wt St. Croix graphite for Largemouth Bass.
    • I have a 7 wt. South Bend Split-cane with a Cortland Sylk Line, that is also for Largemouth Bass.
    • I have a 8 wt South Bend Fiberglass, for Pike.
    I have all that I need, and I take care of my stuff, so that, it will last longer than I will... ~Parnelli
    "Everyone you meet in life, give you happiness! Some by their arrival, others by their departure!" ~Parnelli

  4. #4

    Default

    I still miss that old 1 wt
    Please, support Project Healing Waters....Thank You

  5. #5

    Default

    Let us face some disturbing perceptions about our sport. Two of the biggest ones:

    Fly fishermen are wealthy elitists that judge others not by their fishing skills, but by the gear they are able to pruchase.

    Owning that 'new' rod (or reel, waders, vests, etc.) is not about how it fishes, but how it 'looks' to the people who see you fish.

    Basically, what these two 'perceptions' indicate, whether true or not, is that the image of fly fishing has become similar to the one of Hollywood celebrity. Seeing who can out shine their peers on the red carpet.

    I'm all for effective marketing. Economies don't thrive from saving money, but by spending it. The folks who build the high end rods have learned that they have to keep the cycle going, or they won't make money. If it was more profitable to just keep making the same rod for years, they'd happily do so. They don't do it for the same reason that car makers don't. 'New and improved' sells.

    I'm sure that many of us here are done with 'new' rods. We are happy with what we have (I know I still have blanks I want to build on, when I get the time, but they are already on the shelf here). We find all the hoopla over the 'new' rods a bit tiresome and maybe even a bit funny.

    It's a fact of the human condition that we tend to think that our opinions and concerns are shared by the majority of others. This is almost always an erroneous belief with regard to the smaller concerns of our lives. So while I might, and you might, believe that most fly fishermen think as you do, the fact of the matter is that fly fishermen are a diverse group of individuals. Opinions and buying patterns are not consistent with any one philosophy.

    There are certainly as many folks who want that new rod as there are folks that feel they have all they need. Otherwise, Sage and Scott, et. al., would be broke.

    You can, if you choose to, just ignore all that advertising hype.

    By the way, I completely disagree that any significant number of people will buy a new rod because they thingk it will improve their fly casting skill. Anyone who has ever cast a fly rods either knows better or is hopelessly doomed to a life of mediocrity and poverty. A new car doesn't make you a better driver, and a new golf club won't improve your swing.

    Buddy
    It Just Doesn't Matter....

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    shamokin, pa.
    Posts
    938

    Default

    Buddy Sanders,

    Agree, and that's why I try to remember to specify that my opinion is "my experience" and that YMMV!!

    Best regards. Dave S.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    shenandoah valley, va
    Posts
    638

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Buddy Sanders View Post
    Let us face some disturbing perceptions about our sport. Two of the biggest ones:

    Fly fishermen are wealthy elitists that judge others not by their fishing skills, but by the gear they are able to pruchase.

    Owning that 'new' rod (or reel, waders, vests, etc.) is not about how it fishes, but how it 'looks' to the people who see you fish.

    Basically, what these two 'perceptions' indicate, whether true or not, is that the image of fly fishing has become similar to the one of Hollywood celebrity. Seeing who can out shine their peers on the red carpet.

    I'm all for effective marketing. Economies don't thrive from saving money, but by spending it. The folks who build the high end rods have learned that they have to keep the cycle going, or they won't make money. If it was more profitable to just keep making the same rod for years, they'd happily do so. They don't do it for the same reason that car makers don't. 'New and improved' sells.

    I'm sure that many of us here are done with 'new' rods. We are happy with what we have (I know I still have blanks I want to build on, when I get the time, but they are already on the shelf here). We find all the hoopla over the 'new' rods a bit tiresome and maybe even a bit funny.

    It's a fact of the human condition that we tend to think that our opinions and concerns are shared by the majority of others. This is almost always an erroneous belief with regard to the smaller concerns of our lives. So while I might, and you might, believe that most fly fishermen think as you do, the fact of the matter is that fly fishermen are a diverse group of individuals. Opinions and buying patterns are not consistent with any one philosophy.

    There are certainly as many folks who want that new rod as there are folks that feel they have all they need. Otherwise, Sage and Scott, et. al., would be broke.

    You can, if you choose to, just ignore all that advertising hype.

    By the way, I completely disagree that any significant number of people will buy a new rod because they thingk it will improve their fly casting skill. Anyone who has ever cast a fly rods either knows better or is hopelessly doomed to a life of mediocrity and poverty. A new car doesn't make you a better driver, and a new golf club won't improve your swing.

    Buddy
    Its not just fly fishermen/ladies. I played golf two weekends ago and EVERYBODY had the new Taylor "white" driver, at $499 a pop. Maybe some folks can hit it better, but.....
    The parallels between golf and FF equip really are evident - the "fast" rod and the "stiff" shaft - some people are skilled enough to use this equipment, and some are not. I'm sure the avg golfer couldnt hit Tiger's clubs - and I wonder if I could cast Lefty's fav rod? These special people have the skills to use the special equipment.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Penticton BC
    Posts
    2,948
    Blog Entries
    2

    Default

    Last Spring I was with about 30 people for a long weekend camping trip up on my favorite lake. I took my buddy Stanley out in the boat with me. I anchored the boat by both ends parallel to shore and we proceeded to fish within easy sight of our camp. The air was calm as can be and If I do say so I was on top of my form with nice tight loops and laying the fly down gently each time. My buddy was slapping the water on his back cast with large nasty looping forward casts, His fly was making a big ole plop on the water as it splashed down. It was not pretty to watch but the fish didn't care and we were both catching lots of them and having fun. He was decked out in all new gear and at the recommendation of a flyshop salesman had purchased the most expensive 5 wt he could find. He asked me if I thought that the expensive rod and reel were a good buy. It was a Winston and when I saw it I began to drool. I have a medium priced sage which I really love but since 2007 when I cast one I have always coveted a Winston. I cannot cast farther with a Winston than I can with my Sage but still I wanted one. Alas He has mondo bucks and I do not.

    We fished till noon and kept 4 good sized trout between us for camp lunch and headed back to shore to cook em up.

    The comments floating around when we got back were, how come your casts aren't as nice and round as Stanleys? Most people agreed that my casts didn't look as good as Stanleys did.
    When I said well they were longer casts by about 20 feet or more there was disbelief from most of the onlookers. Stanley who knew perfectly well that His casts were not up to par said " don't blame Roger He has a really old rod and He did his best, My rod brand new, plus it cost more. That seemed to satisfy everyone. The reality of the situation didn't matter it was the perception that won the day. Stanley snickered and gave me that Ha ha I got yah look.

    Instead of casting as we had done in the morning We spent the afternoon trolling around the lake , I made Stanley row. What goes around comes around.

    I have underlined the most important things from that mornings fishing.
    For God's sake, Don't Quote me! I'm Probably making this crap up!

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jun 2009
    Location
    Littleton, Colorado
    Posts
    2,256
    Blog Entries
    3

    Default

    For the vast majority of us, the equipment is better than we are. It's a fact. That's just the way it is.
    Kevin


    Be careful how you live. You may be the only Bible some person ever reads.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    shamokin, pa.
    Posts
    938

    Default

    Kevin,

    You've hit the proverbial nail squarely on the head with that very astute observation! Hey, I resemble that remark! LOL!!! Which only means one thing - I still have plenty of room for improvement and the enjoyment of discovery. Can't beat that!

    Best regards, Dave S.

+ Reply to Thread

Similar Threads

  1. Replies: 27
    Last Post: 11-19-2023, 06:21 PM
  2. FIRST TRIP - 2011 - Panfish - March 28, 2011
    By rtidd in forum Readers Voice
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 03-28-2011, 04:29 PM
  3. SIMPLE? - Ladyfisher - March 28, 2011
    By rtidd in forum Readers Voice
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 03-27-2011, 10:46 PM
  4. SIGHT SEEING - Ladyfisher - March 14, 2011
    By rtidd in forum Readers Voice
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 03-14-2011, 03:03 AM
  5. THE SNOW IS GONE! - Ladyfisher - March 1, 2010
    By rtidd in forum Readers Voice
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 03-07-2010, 04:10 PM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts