Here’s one great example of Mike McFarland’s work. This is built on a white translucent blank that has been dubbed by others the “Dirty Martini”.
interesting. What materials does he work in?
http://www.mcfarlandrods.com/dsp_the_rods.php
Graphite and fiberglass.
i have a 9’3", 3 piece 5wt. built by apachetrout (lanny de rose) using a mcfarland fiberglass blank. lanny did a superb job and if i was better with a camera, i’d post some pics. the rod is a joy to fish. would love to have another mcfarland rod. also itching to get my hands on a sage circa, but that will have to wait until i win the lottery:D
Well that’s easy. There’s two rods that I would love to get my hands on. The first one is a 10ft 7 weight Hardy Angel T2. I would use this one as my Atlantic Salmon rod as I call the Miramichi river in New Brunswick, Canada my home river. The second is a 9ft 5weight Hardy Artisan that I would use for trout fishing on my favorite mid size river. This river holds 5 and 6 pound brookies, hence the reason for trout fishing with a 5 weight. I presently fish a Hardy Zenith in these sizes and I can tell you all that these rods are worth their money in gold!!
What part of ONE rod did you not get…LOL just teasin’
LOL! You know what, I tried the One as I was a shop and the Sage rep came in with a demo just when the rod was launched. I tried a 9ft 8weight and it didn’t do much for me. Fly fishing is all in the feel and I just didn’t seem to connect with this rod. The Zenith, on the other hand, suits my casting style to a T. Plus they’re a nicer rod:cool: LOL!
I too have a Zenith - 9ft 5wt. Really like it.
But, have you noticed it to be a bit noisy???
Byron
The one is a little quicker than I am use to, but, if a manufacturer was to give me ONE rod, I guess I would look for the do all rod. The One is light, sensitive, can cast big and small bugs, can cast in wind. But rethinking, I would like to change my choice to Orvis Helios 2. in a midflex 9’ 6 wt…( like my Carp)
Sage SP 8’9" 5pc. 5wt. Been in love with that rod ever since the first time I cast it. Only problem, it isn’t mine.
One of these, in an 8 foot 3 piece 5 weight.
Hey Byron, I can’t say I have man…???
A cam sigler offshore rod in 14 wt.
My dream fly rod would be a 8 ft., 4 wt, St.Croix I can only dream…
I don’t really know rods that well lol
I would use ANY 4wt rod combo with reel-backing-line included…
i would like a rod with orange backing on the reel, i hear it helps with the casting thingy.
I have always wanted a Sage LL in either 3 or 4 wt. Everytime I try bidding on one they run right out of sight. I have also found that Sage SLTs fit my casting stroke perfectly for Dry flies. I think I need to acquire a few of those.
I’ve had three days of each year for the past few years to cast a plethora of rods at a local fly fishing show with one day being set-up day allowing lots of play time and another of the days being Sundays which always seemed to slow down. Lat year the Sage One was the rod of choice. It shot like a lazer… far and right on target.
This year two rods won me over more so than the One, the Orvis Helios 2 and the Hardy Zenith. To answer your question, send me the Zenith. An awesome rod in every respect.
As for bamboo… it’s okay but after 100 years of trying to incorporate all of the features of graphite they are still not there. I’ve cast one or two that felt very nice but usually in a very limited range or distance.