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Post 02 Feb 2021, 21:55 • #1 
Sport
Joined: 12/04/06
Posts: 47
Location: US-MI
So I got lucky a couple of weeks ago and was able to buy a couple of Wanigas glass rods. One of them was an 8' 5/6wt Deluxe that needs a little work, so I sent it off to Mark McKellip for some repairs. Mark used to wrap rods for Art back in the day.

The other rod is a model I've never heard of before - a "Superlite". The rod is in beautiful condition with one major exception... the tip is 6" short (bummer!). Originally 8' 6" long for a 6/7wt line. I talked to Mark about it and he hadn't heard of that model before. Was wondering if anyone else knew anything about it? Both the Superlite and the Deluxe have brass Super Z ferrules that were painted black, which led Mark to say that they are fairly old rods for fiberglass. I'm uploading photos of the Superlite for folks to look at.

I also am looking for catalog info on the Deluxe rods. While I've seen other Deluxes several times, I haven't seen them listed in any of his old catalogs, including the ones on this site.

Thanks in advance for the help.

Jim











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Post 03 Feb 2021, 02:48 • #2 
Administrator
Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
Those wraps are elegant. Plain black, even with spirals, doesn't usually stand out. That little gold trim band really does the trick.

The bronze SuperZ ferrules were produced in the mid to late 50s. The strong pattern to the fiberglass suggests the same time frame. According to Vic Johnson's Fiberglass Fly Rods (p. 171), Mr. Neumann worked with blanks from NARMCO (Conolon), Grizzly, then Phillipson. Without the Wanigas shop records it would be very difficult to determine which company produced the blank. Perhaps NARMCO - I have one or two Conolon rods with bronze SuperZs. Grizzly sold one piece blanks that could have been ferruled by the Wanigas shop. Probably not Phillipson as he often provided his customers with blanks fitted with Phillipson ferrules.

Have you had a chance to cast the rod? Even without the last 6 inches of the tip, the character should be apparent.

Hopefully the Deluxe is full length.


Tom


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Post 03 Feb 2021, 08:43 • #3 
Piscator
Joined: 08/10/05
Posts: 19078
Location: downtown Bulverde, Texas
:like


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Post 03 Feb 2021, 09:05 • #4 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
If you go with the Conolon educated guess, which does seem most likely, it will be very easy to find a thrift shop Conolon/Garcia or two in 8 1/2' length that has a matching, or almost matching tip section. Stripped of its color finish and rewrapped, it will work well and look as good as that one.


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Post 03 Feb 2021, 14:59 • #5 
Sport
Joined: 12/04/06
Posts: 47
Location: US-MI
When I spoke with Mark, he thought they could be NARMCO as well. I have a Namco Conolon Fanwing that has brass stamped Super Z ferrules, so that probably makes sense. With the paint on the ferrules it's impossible to see if they are stamped ones or not. One interesting thing is that the Superlite is a lighter shade of brown than the Deluxe. Perhaps that indicates different manufacturers? Not sure.

I only got to cast the rods a short while before the cold weather drove me back in doors. From my limited casting I would say that the Deluxe appears to be a faster rod than the Superlite, which has a more medium slow tip. It has plenty of power, just throws a more open loop. Of the two, I prefer the Deluxe, but again that is on an extremely small sample size of casts.

And yes, the Deluxe is full length.


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Post 03 Feb 2021, 18:58 • #6 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
It would be astonishing to get a match in the brown tone, but you can have a beautiful matching appearance of the 'glass weave if the rod turns out to be Conolon. Lot to lot variations alone, even at the time, would result in some variation in the brownish tone. Now add half a century or so, plus removing a baked on finish.

But you can get very close so as not to be noticeable in natural light, especially if an amber-hued spar varnish is used. The outcome on a refinished tip will appear to match with depth and character.

This is not to create a rod represented as a Cummings original and no reputable hobbyist or shop would represent it that way. A beautiful, traditional fiberglass fly rod to fish would be the outcome.

Someone with a bunch of 8 1/2' Conolons--again, assuming that's the right i.d.--will be able to get quite close. It doesn't matter what ferrule was fitted since a comparable set can be fitted if the original female is not re-usable on a newly made tip section. I don't know if it's work Mark M would take on, but someone who can spot Conolon blanks can measure up tips as to wall thickness, tip diameter, ferrule diameter and so on, as well as observe its flex profile relative to the broken section. A similar if not identical one--but almost certainly of identical tip diameter and pretty-darn-close diamter at the ferrule--could be found.

Whether it's worth it to have a quality builder like Mark M do it is up to you. It would be an irresistible hobby project.

Take a look here (and search Garcia and Conolon further in the rodbuilding section) for the general appearance of a stripped and varnished Conolon blank.

Image

Along with pics of a refinish outcome, this thread has a lot of pics of a known Conolon blank that might help an experienced builder see telltales that confirm or eliminate the Conolon identification.

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=16547&hilit=another+Conolon


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Post 03 Feb 2021, 20:04 • #7 
Master Guide
Joined: 09/29/09
Posts: 906
Location: US-MI
Jim,

Great vintage find. Had not seen a Wanigas Superlite before. Classic blank color.

Mark's efforts will get the Deluxe in great shape.

Wanigas Au Sable at rest attached. Later blank than your rod shown.



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Post 11 Feb 2021, 18:43 • #8 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/23/05
Posts: 4966
Location: US-MT
Beautiful pictures, TY

It is simple to take 6" off a donor tip and put it on the short section. I "collect" junker rods just to salvage the last few inches of tip for projects. You can use a piece of graphite or a piece of spring wire for the stent, and can often put the repair underneath a snake guide wrap and it disappears from sight.


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