Hello
The Water Actually Appears To Be Running Exceedingly Low.
I thought this was a question about making modern versions/copies of classic glass rod blanks.
Whirlpool may have put it best,In My Opinion if the Classic Tapers And Actions could be replicated the best of them would have been.
Quote:
I'll just say if they could replicate some of the best, they would, because there are unmatched benchmarks among them
Most
Classic Fiberglass Fly Rodders / Rod Makers Would Agree.
The Infrastructure The Original Fiberglass Rod Company's/Industry Origins Include The Development of The Chemicals And Compounds Formulated to make the rods.
They Invented and spearheaded the processes used to make the end product.
Each company had proprietary formulas and process,equipment specifically engineered for every aspect of the manufacturing of Fiberglass Fishing Rod Blanks.
Unless You Could Replicate the Infrastructural Base from where these Giants Of Industry Worked, It's Nearly Impossible To Replicate The Classics.
Yes It's True That Working With Classic 40 Some Odd Year Old Rod Blanks Can Be As Challenging, Not More Than Working With Blanks Fresh Out From The Oven.
With Classic Left Over N.O.S. Blanks You Are Limited To Working With What's On Hand,Other Important Issues Are Always Present,Reliable Supply,Quality Assurance,Storage Concerns,Packaging,Rejects,Blemished,Dirt,Contamination,Counterfeits,Price Gouging,Just To Name A Few.
Consistency is always a problem with the supply chain,be that 40 or 50 year old Classic rod blanks or Glossy New blanks being imported from Timbucktwo or Home Spun Blanks being made in the same room.
As A Rod Maker It's All In A Days Work To Meet Challenges,Overcome Them,Meet Your Goals,Produce The Best Product You Can.
I'm Glad To Be Retired and Getting Finished,My Days Of Finding A Room Full Of Fisher,REED, Or Sceptre Blanks Are Very Few and Far Between.
The Phone Calls Of Hey I have a Closet full of Sharpes Of Aberdeen Rod Kits how much can you pay ?
I was 16.
I'm sure Many of Fiberglass Blanks and Rods Being Made Today are every bit as Nice as some of the Classics.
My Hats Off To All The Folks Here In
The States Rolling Blanks !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yes I'm Going There, Isn't Anything Wrong With Made In The U.S.A.
Support Your Local Rod Maker/Builder As Well.
I'm honestly out of the loop, most of the current stuff I haven't even had the opportunity to try out,we haven't had a decent glass Clave in the Northeast for years that I've attended.
For Me A Decent Clave Is One Where You Have A Deep Representation Of Classic And New Wave FiberGlass Lined Up Ready To Cast.
Not A Commercial Agenda,An Opportunity To Make Informed Choices.
Being Able To Cast Rods Side By Side.
The Event We had In V.T., The last Time We Saw Rat Face.
We had and excellent cross section of rods.
After The Puddles Dried Up.
It Came Down to Fisher 9' 5 Weight and Anglers Roost 8' 5 Weight.
The Fisher Best Over All,The Anglers Roost Best Bang For The Buck.
Others Mileage May Differ.
Lots Of Interesting Stuff Shook Out In The Green Mountains.
People May Claim The New XYZ Matches The Classic XYZ That Don't Mean It's So.
Marketing.
Again Others Mileage May Differ.
Now I'm not well enough to get out like I once did,I can't spend the time to do all I once did for the Fiberglass Fly Fishing Community.
Besides the 100+ Classic Fiberglass Rods I brought to the gatherings,everyone would have the opportunity to try a rod before they sought one out, back when Fiberglass Wasn't Considered To Be Any Good.
Most all of those Rods Are Gone,along with them also my suit cases of reels all lined up for all those rods are nearly empty now as well.
Back in the day we really had some Crummy Fiberglass,Not So Good Fiberglass,Good Fiberglass,Really Nice Fiberglass Fly Rods and Absolutely Amazing Fiberglass Fly Rods..
John You Got Off Easy 3,2,1 See What Happens When You Try To Mind Your Own Business,I Guess This Should Really Teach Me.
Classic Rod Makers Make Classic Rods No Mater The Material !
If Your Going To Start Replicating Classic Blanks Tom, Might I Be So Bold As To Suggest You Start With Silaflex ! You Still Like Them Right ?
I Have A 7'6" 2/2 Attributed To Vince Cummings I'd Like You To Look At As Your Control Sample.
You Could Roll Them Wet And Bag Them In The Sunlight In The Driveway.
Tight Lines And Forget The Rest Classics The Best Loops
Andy M
Edited 2/7/20
Realized my original comments were slightly inappropriate,since the strokes I tend to ramble n rant a bit more than usual.