Here's something you might find at a garage sale that could help. Get a copy of Gierach's Trout Bum. He has a good chapter on cane rods. The fact that the book is over 20 years old is a help not a hinderance. It was written that much closer to a time when a lot of bamboo rods were around. Gierach did a lot of shopping too. I was surprised to see that companies like Shakespeare (the ugly stick people) turned out some premium rods. you have to know which ones because they also had high volume production rods too. The prices he mentions will break your heart unless you adjust for inflation.