Fred ... I've been pining for one of your rods but the "lemon drop" series has got me thinking a four weight would be nice ...

Uh oh, another yellow glass rod. . . We're in trouble.

Can't wait to see the finished rod, Fred!

! That looks AWESOME.

Good lord man, you're killing my financial solvency.

Yeah those kids always seem to get in the way of new gear purchases ...

Fred,

Better than they look! A compact casting stroke and a little double haul ... they do no wrong from 5' to 60'. The taper is very smooth without line shock, nice aerodynamic loops that stay on target.

Lugan123 - I don't like to label the rod action with medium or medium fast ... progressive, parabolic, etc. Both of my current series, the dark brown and lemon drop, cast a line smoothly without shock waves. For the dark brown series, they have a sweet spot for each one. They can cast a further line, but the caster has to time the rod a little more. The brown series casts themselves, they lean back, so to speak. The loops are tight, but rounded. This is due to the butt working a little more than the lemon drop series. You can force them a little, but the brown series like to cast itself ... like bamboo. They cover the right fishing distances for their respected line weight.

The lemon drop series forms a tight, pointed loop. This series can be pushed a little more. The pointed loops are aerodynamic and precise. Both series are very good casting rods. They both benefit from a caster who keeps his elbow tight to his side and has a compact casting stroke, with a double haul. The caster, like in both series, has to work the cast with a little more wrist for real in close work. The lemon drop series can be pushed, and are quite capable of reaching out a good distance for their line weight. I feel the lemon drop series is easier to cast well for the average caster.

I haven't had a lot of time with the lemon drop series, they haven't been as close to me as the brown series yet. For me, the dark brown series has seen a lot of use from me and they have become one with me. It's kind of like blonds and brunettes ... For me, the blond is fun to take out for the night on the town ... the brunette is the one I want call again ... The most important part in the design for both series was to make them accurate, and present a fly well, whether it's a dry, wet, nymph, streamer, etc. My tapers are a little different than what's currently available today in fiberglass. The dark brown series has received a lot of praise. The lemon drop series is new, as I attend shows and conclaves ... I can get more feedback on them.

Lugan123- definitely not for graphite casters only ...

Nothing against redheads!

if you ever reach the point where you offer the lemon drop as a blank-only option, i would definately order one.

As a quick note ... I have started to update my website with new information. I have also listed a couple of Christmas specials in the "Available Rods" section.

For 2011, I have started to make a lot of the components myself ... the next rods will have my own snake guides on them. Making snake guides is time consuming and probably more effort than its worth, but MAKING the components is important to me. (please don't ask if the guides are available ... with the time I put into them, I can't compete with the snake guides available on the market)

I have started my own reel seat hardware, this will be showing up on rods in the near future ... I still have exclusive hardware from Joel Lemke and some hardware from Kineya Tackle as options.

I will be starting tip tops and possibly rod tube hardware soon ... this would leave the only components that are not built by me; the blanks and the stripping guides. I have no intent to make my own glass blanks, the manufacturer that I have make my blanks has a state of the art facility. For the stripping guides, I just haven't sourced what I would need to make what I want ... maybe in the future.

My changes to the appointments has not changed anything with the current rods that I have on my order list. I will be contacting my customers soon for options and details ... a new delivery of blanks is in transit now to me. The changes will be effecting future orders, the prices will increase slightly. I will quote prices to customer orders. I will have to quote pricing until I have sorted out all the details and options that will be offered on the rods. This will slow down my production of completed rods a little, the number of rods per year will be less and when my order list fills ... I won't take more orders until the following year. The list now is expecting delivery into spring. I will leave a little room in the build list for rods to build for shows and events.

Besides the lemon drop series, the dark brown series will have a 8'0"-#4-3pc. added to the lineup.

Cameron - more photos to come ... have a few rods in work now, and I have starting cutting an ferrulling some lemon drop blanks.

Here's a quick look at a snake guide ...


They are blued and formed from different wire diameters for the appropriate guide size. They start from this ...


As Bill Phillipson wrote in the 1962 Phillipson catalog, "A fine fishing rod is more than just a manufactured product. It is created from the love for the art of fishing, and the devotion to the principle of perfection."
My efforts to bring back that old fashioned pride in craftsmanship, I hope to not disappoint.