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Post 11 Dec 2018, 09:42 • #1 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 03/16/08
Posts: 3540
Location: Upstate-NY
Can't have been too many of these made: Silaflex Graphite.

First I've ever seen one.
Pretty neat that the decorative spiral-wraps particular to the 'Silaflex' series stylings,
made it's way across the glass/graphite divide.

Stumbled across this while perusing a rabbit-hole on the internet. lol
Figured I'd post a few screen-captures for posterity.

Image

Image

Image


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Post 11 Dec 2018, 10:41 • #2 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/27/16
Posts: 2327
Location: US-IL
Nice i thought that lineage died with the 900? series glass rods.I have one with foam grip and all the modern components.I have a cheap browning graphite i bought 20 years ago.Not a very good rod.


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Post 17 Dec 2018, 16:11 • #3 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/11/14
Posts: 1784
Location: urban Colorado
interesting, that must have been right on the cusp of switching over to graphite.. looks a much better rod than the foam-handled horrors that came next in Silaflex glass.

my 322975 and 322990 both have plain wraps on the guides, no spirals.
I just got a 322985 that has lavish spirals all the way up and down the rod..
still working on a 322980.. tend to go over $100 these days, worth it still but a bit rich for my plebeian wallet..


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Post 18 Dec 2018, 16:00 • #4 
Guide
Joined: 04/04/13
Posts: 197
Location: Central Maryland
[quote="doug in co".. looks a much better rod than the foam-handled horrors that came next in Silaflex glass. [/quote]


Looks can be deceiving. I have one of those "foam-handled horror" that I still enjoy fishing after something like 40 years (best $19 I ever spent.) I also had a Browning graphite rod that is one of the worst rods I've ever owned. I know which of the two I would call a horror, and it most emphatically isn't the foam handled one.


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Post 18 Dec 2018, 17:16 • #5 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/05/10
Posts: 5229
Location: Mid Hudson Valley of New York
love my brownings

Image
Image[/quote]


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Post 18 Dec 2018, 17:18 • #6 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/12/07
Posts: 1292
Location: western Massachusetts
And I love those Browning Silaflex sleeve ferrules, even on graphite.


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Post 18 Dec 2018, 18:15 • #7 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/27/16
Posts: 2327
Location: US-IL
I have the 985? With foam grip.has a nice ferrule ceramic stripper.Um fished like new.I have yet to cast it.Ihavee the 7.5 older version and it is great rod.


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Post 19 Dec 2018, 14:57 • #8 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/11/14
Posts: 1784
Location: urban Colorado
redietz wrote:
Looks can be deceiving. I have one of those "foam-handled horror" that I still enjoy fishing after something like 40 years (best $19 I ever spent.)


interesting, that's the first positive review I've seen of the later glass Brownings.. My brother had one of the foam-handled ones, the 8wt for bass, and it's a slow club.. he keeps it for sentimental reasons but hasn't fished it in decades.


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Post 19 Dec 2018, 18:21 • #9 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/27/16
Posts: 2327
Location: US-IL
I would not call mine a club,i have never lined mine up but it is pretty light and full flexing and seems like it recovers fast when wiggled pretty hard.I have a similar daiwa that is translucent and also an 8wt i believe.I find these for 10 bucks or so so line costs 4x as much.I see any flyrod still intact for 10 dollars or less it's going home with me.I like giving stuff to people who want to give fly fishing a try.I have found good homes for my overstock.


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Post 20 Dec 2018, 07:52 • #10 
Guide
Joined: 04/04/13
Posts: 197
Location: Central Maryland
the hersh wrote:
I would not call mine a club,i have never lined mine up but it is pretty light and full flexing and seems like it recovers fast when wiggled pretty hard.


That's a good description. Mines a 5/6 weight, and I have on occasion been able to cast a whole line with it.


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Post 03 Feb 2021, 16:10 • #11 
New Member
Joined: 10/01/19
Posts: 2
Location: US-IL
I'd like to bring this back up if possible. From my research, the graphite silaflex rods appeared in the 1976 catalog, not sure how long the line lasted. What was the serial number on that rod? I picked one up (8ft 5/6wt) that has some variation on the cosmetics and decals. I have to say I love the action and the way it casts. It shoots line like a dream. I'd love to pair it with a Browning Waterton 3056 if I could get my hands on one. It's currently paired with a SA System 2 67-L and Rio Lightline 5wt DT. I am seriously so excited about this rod. I love the ferrule, the grip, the jet black reel seat, everything.

Would anyone have more info on this serial number though? 622980p



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Post 03 Feb 2021, 20:24 • #12 
Administrator
Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
Yes, the 522980 and 522985 Silaflex graphite rods were first offered in 1976. While they looked similar to your rod, the 522 series had a split reelseat with a cork insert. The rod blanks are very slender - typical of early graphite. The 522980 is listed as only 2.5 oz in weight.

The 1980 catalog scan below shows a graphite rod with the same styling as yours. The three fly rods models are discussed in the last paragraph, but no model numbers were given. In the same catalog, the Browning boron rods were listed ahead of the graphite models. The only fly reels listed in that catalog were Mitchells, the 754 and 758 single action reels and two automatics.

From your rod photos, the 622 series were a bit less slender than the earlier 522 series. Maybe Browning had too many broken 522 series graphite rods returned for service? The 'Twiggy style' graphite of the mid-70s had mostly disappeared by the mid-80s.

My next Browning fishing catalog is from 1988 and the Silaflex trade name was no longer used for graphite rods, only fiberglass.


Tom



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Post 05 Feb 2021, 16:04 • #13 
New Member
Joined: 10/01/19
Posts: 2
Location: US-IL
Thanks so much for the information and the catalog scan. I also wondered about the stripping guide material, is it ceramic?


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Post 05 Feb 2021, 18:03 • #14 
Administrator
Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
Yes. The 522 series rods have early ceramic guides as the stripper. These have a black aluminum oxide ring and a plastic 'shock' ring that sits between the guide frame and the ceramic. The photos of the 622980 show the same early ceramic guide for a stripper.

The catalog scan is the only information I have on the 622980.


Tom


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