We're on the same page then - glass isn't automatically slower than graphite. If you get a glass blank that is slower than a graphite blank it's not due to the material, it's due to the design being slower to begin with.

.................

Speaking from a fishing and building stand point, Terrys blanks are second to none. The unique part about the blanks are they were built to fish. The rods will load quick for close in casts, 10 to 30 feet, they will also handle a reasonable amount of line for a long cast, 30 to 60 feet, well beyond most small stream fishing. The glass blanks are not made for a distance contest, that is what fast action graphite is for.

The modern glass is very light, well built and a pleasure to fish with. Your casting stroke is more relaxed, your presentations are very soft and since the fish seem to be getting smaller with each passing year, the slower action glass make small fish more fun. The folks who use glass tend to be into the experience of of the fishing trip, that into the fluff and flash of the latest and greatest. Speaking of the blems for sale, the "blem" is a slight color difference between the tip and butt sections. Most of the green SG Glass were not blems, just close outs.

As far as cost goes, Quality is Quality, if you purchase a 12 dollar graphite you get a 12 dollar imported graphite, if you purchase a Tom Morgan you get a Kerry Burkheimer rolled blank manufactured in Washington State and imported to the State of Montana. Steve you should contact the guy who is selling the blanks and see what he has to say.

Mike

You get the same thing in graphite by using a heavier line. They rate graphite for lighter lines for the same power and that is why they feel stiffer. But they only feel that way. If you overline by one or two they will load the same as glass rods do. Try it sometime.

I agree with Mike... Terry Johnson is one of the most talented rod builders you can find. I have one of his graphite rods and I know what a perfectionist he is
Larry



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/22/2011 10:51PM by Larry Snyder.

Mike... you are correct... Terry's rods are not designed for distance, but Joe Mahler (aka MarkerJockey.com) who did the logo for my website claims he was able to double haul a TL Johnson 8' 4wt fiberglass rod 90 feet. He said that it's not meant for that distance, but was pleasantly surprised that it can. I guess it helps to be a FFF certified casting instructor.

Larry

You can get plenty of distance out of them by just dropping down a line size or two. Folks tend to forget that fly line weight changes as you move more or less of it beyond the tip. Here's something folks may find interesting: [www.common-cents.info]

Any rod, will cast any line, at some distance.

..............

John, this might be the case but it defets the purpose of the "lite" presentation. Many glass rods are for lite and delicate dry fly work. If you put a 6wt line on a 4wt rod to toss a 28 midge on a small spring creek it might cast nice but not the real tool for the job.

Some folk like the way glass rods cast, some like the way bamboo rods cast and some like graphite. Can't we just let folks spend "their" money on what they want?

I do not do much small stream fishing anymore but man do I like a slow glass rod on small streams! Just a nice slow casting stroke, very enjoyable to me.

Ding ding ding! For that man goes the prize. Good job Eric!

Let's back up a minute - what is a "4-weight" rod?

A glass rod rated for a "4-weight" line and a graphite rod rated for a "4-weight" line may not possess the same stiffness to begin with. If both rods did have the same stiffness/power, then they will both cast the same line just as easily. Glass rods aren't typically rated the same way graphite rods are - that's where most of the difference lies. It's not the material that makes the difference.

In John's defense, you can effectively do what he mentions, but you have to back up and come at it from the other end. You'd want to pick a graphite rod that has the same power as the glass rod. That might require what the maker calls a "2-weight" or "3-weight" and then with a 4-weight line on it and then you'll have something that works very much like the 4-weight glass rod and casts just as delicately.

Everybody likes what they like (I own glass and bamboo rods and like them), but we don't want to spread the notion that graphite rods are hard to load or can't be cast delicately - they can do so every bit as well as a bamboo or glass rod. The trick is in selecting the right line for the amount of power the rod has, or the right amount of rod power for the line you intend to use. Sadly, many fly fishermen do not understand this relationship and it leads them to some false conclusions about the material their rod is made from.


................

What Tom just mentioned is a place for custom builders to shine if they use their heads. The same thing these makers are doing with these glass rods you can do with graphites if you stop and give it a little thought.

I almost NEVER use the mfgs rod rating number. If a customer tells me he wants a graphite rod for close in small stream fishing with a #4 line, I find a blank with an ERN of about 2.7 to 3.5 and put NUMBER 4 LINE in lettering on the side of the rod. The first time the customer tries it he believes he’s got the sweetest, most easily loading graphite #4 rod on the planet.

The rod rating is whatever the mfg, or YOU, decide to put on the side of the rod. If you do this wisely your customers will think you’re a rod building genius when in reality all you're doing is the same thing the glass rod makers are4 doing. If I had to say, I would think that matching the right line to the right blank for what the customer wants to be able to do is what makes one person a custom rod builder and another guy just an assembler of rod parts.

Well said Ken!

Walt Natzke
Ripon, CA