If you like fishing 8' 5wt rods, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better value than a Fenwick FF805.

Agree with Fenwick FF805 being fantastic but it's relatively harder to come by and slightly more expensive than most Fenwicks. The FF 756 has to be one of the all time favourites. It will cast anything from a 5 to 7 as it has a fine tip but very strong butt - it's an extremely versatile rod. Common and therefore usually very affordable.
In general the Fenwicks represent a very good price/performance tradeoff. You can find a lot of information in this forum on individual models.

I got really lucky and my intro to classic glass consisted of Phillipson, Fenwick, and Fisher. The nice thing about all those three is you'll likely be able to pass them on via sale or trade to other FFR members if they don't suit you. I was able to sample quite a lot of vintage rods this way without spending as lot more than the shipping costs. And it's really really fun.

(PS - FF897 is the one I've held on to. Just sayin)

I'm still looking for a ff805 myself, but I use the 806 and 807 all the time......I paid $38 and $45 for them. Best deals ever, classic for sure, and they work very well. I doubt anyone will find them that cheap, but twice the price would still be a good value.

Love that term " glasshead".

Aside from being great rods, they are liquid commodities.
I've been the twice owner of Para/metric, Phillipson, and Cummings rods - certainly Fisher/SA and Fenwick fit here, as well. They find an anxious market if you need cash to fund a project quickly. The rods I sold were offered back to me, and their interim caretakers asked first dibs if I decided to sell them again.


As the market goes, good venerable rods won't be made again, so the supply side of the equation is fixed.
People sometimes soapbox over the demand side, but everything irons out over time.

Phillipson rods I would be looking for are 6-1/2', 7' and 8', especially the DFS.
Heddon T (trout) tapers and Pro-Weights are a good choice.
On the very affordable side, I have a soft spot for Shakespeare and Berkley S-glass.
If an S/A System comes up, do not pass go.
In lighter rods, Cortland glass and Silaflex don't get a lot of discussion and you may find good sleeper buys.

If you like slower rods, here are a few suggestions (most if not all have been mentioned).

Fenwick: your options are limited for slow rods, but there are some great rods.

FF84: This is the slowest Fenwick I can think of. A nice 8' 6" 5wt.
FF85-3 A 6wt

but if you are just a glass addict, FF755, FF806, FF70, FF79

Phillipson. You will have to find your own favorites. Eponite, Scotchply, Epoxite, 3m epoxite Bulldog recommended the best of them, but I also like the 8' 6" versions of the Epoxite blanks. Beside Phillipson branded models, look for LL Bean, Orvis, and many more. Even Leonard.

Cortland. There are a lot of good rods. The FR2000 is the most notable, but there are some really nice Crown models as well. Pay close attention to these. There are a lot of short-tip or damaged cortlands out there.

Heddon, There are some great heddon rods out there, but there are also some dogs.

Silaflex 222xxx or 322xxx rods

Have fun. Opening a mailing tube with a rod in it is one of the joys of life.

Affordable....that's what is nice, they are all affordable, and can be turned later if you decide. I have bought dozens and dozens of rods, cast/fished em a few times, and passed em on.

So many rods, so little time...

DavidFin, where are located? I live in Berks County PA, have 5 Fenwicks and 1 Phillipson. You are welcome to lawn cast them.

I live in North Jersey, but would love to cast anything I can get my hands on.

Thanks for all the responses guys. This thread helped me remember a time when I found a bin of Cortland and Fenwick rods, which I think were graphite, at a thrift store. Didn't pick up any of them! haha.

Actually, in a weird way this thread inspired me to finally bite the bullet an invest in Rod Building materials! Wish me luck.

Careful! It's a slippery slope and everyone on here is an enabler. I learned that the hard way.

i'd definitely be on the lookout for an 8' 2pc Parametric! i love these rods
and this is my very favorite rod length in the series! it was the fist glass
rod longer than 7'9" that i loved (and still love). i'm a big fan of the Gowdy
version too. so much so, that i picked up a 2nd one as back up just in case.

have you tried one of the 3-pc para/metrics? One I never got around to...

and don't look now (kidding, look fast), but there's a System 5 selling too cheaply on our own classifieds...