It sucks that you had to cave in, knowing that Sage could out spend you in the legal system to win that test of endurance. While I live near Sage HQ and have owned a few of their rods in the past, I'm kinda getting sick of them (mostly their wild marketing claims), and this just piles onto that loss of goodwill.

I don't buy sage anymore, haven't for a long time. But I won't buy it ever again!

The " " process is nothing new ... look at split cane with aligned power fibers, Phillipson's use of uni-directional glass, and CTS' rolling process with graphite, they have been aligning fibers this way for years ... The resins change over time ... and, of course, the fly rod technology is enhanced ... The oldest rod in the world is last years model to marketing.

We as fisherman, just want to get away from the everyday doldrums, absorb the scenery, and catch a few fish! We can do that with most any rod ... and preference of a rod is what each person has chosen individually. There are so many good rodbuilders and rodmakers out there, they have a passion for their craft. Their biggest rewards are when a customer shares their memories that are remembered through a rod the builder or maker made.

My first split cane rod as a maker was donated to a disabled veteran, to get him out of the hospital and on the water. To me, that is far more important than a name of a rod, trademarks, and marketing ...

It's the experience of getting outdoors and becoming a part of it all ... not the equipment. It's a pleasure to have nice equipment that has been built with care, but the time on the water, the friends you meet along the way, and the memories are the true way to enlightenment.

Let me say I own Sage rods and Freds rods. Enjoy fishing them both, and enjoy all levels of the industry from the big guns that drive R&D to the small one man shops. With that said, feel I need to defend Sage a bit on this one.

Trademark and Copyright law are a critical function of the free market. It is as good for the consumer as it is for companies. Thousands and thousands of people rely on Sage for employment. That local fly shop you love, they can't keep their doors open selling $.99 flies, they need to sell some high dollar rods now and then to survive.

It's easy to hate big business, and often they deserve it. In this case, Fred was first so Sage was wrong. But how is Sage to know this? All they know is they have a Trademark and most likely anyone else using the name copied it from them. If Fred named his next custom rod "LL" or God forbid "Z-Axis" would Sage not have legal remedy? If Fred was a scoundrel, built his rod to look exactly like the Sage One, sold it as such, wouldn't the industry suffer as a result (Sage and the consumer). Sage has to assume the worst and protect their products as silly as it seems in this situation.

And the end of the day, I will continue buying from Sage as well as from Fred. Its a tuff market out there, global recession, a shrinking fly fishing industry. The silly marketing Sage does just to turn rods out, its necessary I'm afraid, thousands of American Jobs hang in the balance. And one never knows, Sage just may come out with an unforgettable fly rod someday that actually turns the industry and we all benefit.

Hell, Jerry Siem has to retire someday. It would sure be a hoot if Fred took his job ))

Now that I feel guilty for defending Sage, I will have to buy one of Freds rods in the near future so I sleep at night ...

JB

p.s. not trying to offend, just offering a different perspective

My post was partially in jest of course, I am not necessarily against sage protecting the name they came up with regardless of who came up with it first. If Fred had locked in the name and cared enough about it to legally protect it and Sage attempted to bully him out of it that would be one thing. I find the descriptions of any rod that include a bunch of made up technological jargon is hilarious. Basically all major manufacturers do it because people buy in to it. I am not saying there isn't anything new either, I am sure techniques and materials have improved over the years, I would expect that. It is the space-aged, Konnetic technology and advanced modulus positioning system (AMPS?) and High Compression Molding (HCM?) ... I guess the end result is impossibly lighter rods ... Until next year ... Is that possible?

Pete,
Well we can agree on one thing, I would also prefer Freds glass over Sage's graphite!

On Trademarks, I respectfully respectfully disagree. I don't come to this forum to win arguments, nor to lecture on Free Market Capitalism and the importance of Trademarks. I felt Sage was getting an unfair shake so I spoke up. I already regret it and feel that I am taking something away from this thread by continuing to do so.

Fred, I love your work, keep doing what your doing.

JB

I got it: Fred can one-up Sage and avoid ruinous litigation by calling his rod "The. 99"

How about "The 1%"?