I was also on the same quest, and the one I found was not under $100, it is about $130. The maker? Loop! This is the rod Loop calls "the Black Rod." Which in itself is a new and interesting concept. The rods are color coded. The Yellow Rod was a little bright for my taste, but I do like the concept. The Black Rod is the entry level rod, and I think, casts a bit better than the Red.Fly! I tend to like a little faster rod, and for a person new to fly fishing, I think the combination of the Loop Black Rod, with the new Wulff line would be a world-beater! Not within Castwell's guidelines, but I sure like the way it cast.

Our friends from Reel-Easy Winder were there too. Both of the gents are older, and bring a nice touch to the hype of these shows. They are laid back, just doing their thing. We like their EZ-Winder, and another product which we haven't said much about. Time to fix that. They produce a line cleaner. JC and I have been using it for two years. 303 Protectant is just super stuff! It comes in a bottle as a spray which you can spray right into your reel, or little disposable packets with a thin piece of sponge. It cleans lines, doesn't make them 'gummy' seems to repel crud from becoming attached to your line, does nothing to degrade the line, and doesn't have to be burnished! I actually pulled a line in off the water at the show and cleaned it as I stripped it in. It was wet! I handed the rod to a potential buyer and he was amazed to be able to throw nearly the whole line. I sent him over the the EZ-Winder booth when he left us. It comes in packets with 8 of the little foil packets, retail price is $4.95. We gave away lots of them, hope they show up in a shop near you!

Another product we did not have an opportunity to is try Hard as Hull, a head cement. It seemed to have an extreme hardness. Which should be super for 'toothy' fish especially. We'll try and get more info on it and let you know.