Mikee your right. Glass appears to have moved away from an esoteric interest of retro appeal with a limited group of enthusiasts, into the main stream. The FFR membership can take pride in having been at the head waters! I believe it has been a primary promoter in developing a renewed interest in glass among the general population of anglers with a love for fishing with "angle and fly".

Excellent news. Hopefully I'll have the TFM demos soon. There is already a waiting list on most models.

Just ordered the 4 weight; Only 5 weeks before the opening day ...

Arnaud

Great dpenrod. Looks like Echo has done a good job in introducing and distributing these.

Once you and others have some user experience and critiques, please post them in "Fishing Fiberglass Rods" or "Glass Tech."

Tim Rajeff emailed yesterday that the TFM demos are en route. I should have them available soon for demo.

I got mine (a 2 weight) last Thursday ... I think it's a gem to look at. Nice features (dots, guides, reel seat etc). I really like the color of the blank and wrappings. Great golden honey with olive ... Looks like a classic rod ... There ends the comparison with the older glass rods. It is (for glass) a pretty fast recovering rod ... No wobble or spaghetti at all. Actually it can produce real good line-speed and (most important for a #2 rod) it has a nice soft presentation. Line pick-up seems pretty good for this rod. I tent to try it with too long a line, but it does the job. I really want to try it fishing ... I love the deep action and would love te feel the first fish bending my little rod ... All in all ... I'm still a happy angler ... (could well be that one or two other weight find their way to Holland to ... )

Ooh, bring one out to the Pleasanton show!

Thanks for the laugh. That was FUNNY!

The Bear's Den has the full line up, or at least they did when I showed up yesterday. I cast the Echo 5 weight alongside the Orvis Glass 5 weight. They are both different animals and I can definitely see an argument to own both. The Orvis is a great rod that reminds me of the System rods, a smooth progressive action with latent power.

However, I fell in love with the Echo with its deeply flexing action. I tested the Echo for accuracy at aproximately 40, 50, and 60 feet and it was pinpoint 100% of the time, and with such a soft presentation. In testing for distance, the cast held together very well beyond 70 feet and it continued to maintain its accuracy. As for appearance, the Echo has such a classic glass look to it; and in addition, it has a downlocking grip. Needless to say, I bought it. After I brought it home, I found another great thing about it, it balances perfectly with a Medalist 1494.

I purchased the 5wt and will fish it this weekend.

Chips

I got an up close and personal look at the Echo glass line today at a local sporting goods shop and I was impressed. I like the color of the blank and the thread wraps. Looks nicer in person than in any photos I've seen. The reel seat and cork, not so much. To me the reel seat hardware look cheap and the grip shape is just OK. I liked the full-flex action/feel of these rods. Next time I stop by I'll have time to cast one or two of them out behind the store.

The ECHO Glass TFM Fly Rod Loan Program demos arrived on Friday and I started going through them this morning. No time to cast them in the yard or on the pond yet but did snap a few images to share here and on TFM as well.



Overall I am very impressed with the looks and feel of these fly rods. They certainly seem worth $200.

I have been looking at the BS and Echo. I have owned Redington rods and have no experience with Echo. From what I have been reading I am leaning towards the Echo and am interested in trying something new but I know how good of a value Redington rods can be. The past few years I have sold most of my rods and have only been fishing 3 wts. The Eagleclaw being my only 5 wt just because. Interested to hear a comparison between the 4 & 5 wt. If the 4 wt would be a decent all rounder (for me) that might be the one for me and may get more use but a decent 5 wt is never a bad thing.