Looking for info on a Rod

[Talon]

I busted my rod, , on a trip last week. I have been looking for a new rod and a friend showed me a 30 year old graphite rod made by Abercrombie and fitch. It only says Safari pack rod on it. not line weight or anything else. He wanted to give it to me as he does not fly fish. I told him I would make a fair trade if I could find out more about it. An internet search revealed nothing. If anyone has any thoughts on this I would enjoy hearing them. I am not a collector but would like to fish the rod. I just want to make my friend a fair trade.

Thanks for any and all input.

Talon

[LadyFisher]

Need a little more info on this please - how many pieces? AC&F sold one in a very small case, rectangular, which was also called the "Passport" rod. That one however was not graphite it was fiberglass.

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LadyFisher, Publisher of
FAOL

[grumps]

talon

i just got off the phone with a friend of mine who was a manager at abercrombie and fitch in manhattan. he has some old catalogs squirreled away and will try to go through them tomorrow in an effort to get some info for you. they also sold a 5 pc rod called a passport and to the best of his memory they were made for a & f by a company called phillipson. as soon as he gets back to me i will repost to you.

mike

[saltydancindave]

Page 39 of the 1968 The Big Little Book of Fishing by A&F has Safari pack rods, with a 7' ,4 1/2 oz fly rod for lake or stream #20-103 that listed for $27.50. The rod is fiberglass with 5 pieces, 4 at 15 1/2" plus the reel seat handle. Might have to look in the Fly Fisherman annual tackle issues to find when they started with graphite Safari rods.

[Talon]

Thanks all! I appreciate all the responses. It is a 5 piece with the handle being one of them. Darndesnt thing I ever saw.

It may be fiberglass, I really cant tell by looking at it.

It would be a 4wt? or a 5wt? Gosh this is confusing...lol

It is in a aluminum round case. Appears to have been made or sold in 1969.

[grumps]

talon

i am going to e mail you a scanned image of 3 safari model pack rods. the fly rod appears to be 6 pieces including the handle and the rods were sold in a padded vinyl case. perhaps the tube was added after purchase. is there any label on the tube or sock.

let me know. my e mail address is in my profile if you would prefer to use it instead of posting. also if you have a digital camera try to e mail me a photo i am getting some more catalogs from my buddy and that would help.

good luck

mike

[Talon]

Thanks Mike,

That is it exactly. SaltydancinDave, I think that is the same one you described as well. Thank you all very much. I dont know if I should put a 4 or 5 wt line on it, but I am interested in trying it out. My friend has a reel somewhere that he is gong to try and find, I am interested as it is a uniquely designed rod.

Thanks All!

[saltydancindave]

There is no line designation in the catalog, but they do state Safari Pack Rods are superior fiberglass, carrying case in vinyl with padded lining. At 4 1/2 oz,the A&F Featherweight fly rods table has that weight rod for a # 6-7; but a 7' rod at 3 1/3 oz is rated for a #5. You might try a #4 or #5 & see how well the rod loads. One should be faster than the other in casting & not flex the rod to the ground with 30 feet in the air.