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ECHO Glass Series
Post 20 Jul 2013, 14:41 • #1 
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Joined: 07/17/06
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I've been talking with Tim Rajeff about their soon to be released ECHO Glass Series for the past few months and last week this series was introduced at IFTD. These fly rods should be in fly shops in the coming months.

The ECHO Glass Series will consist of the following models ...

6'3" Two Weight
6'9" Three Weight
7'4" Four Weight
7'10" Five Weight

The ECHO Glass Series will be priced at $199.00 and will be available in four lengths and line weights. These will be three piece models with downlocking reel seat hardware and likely a cork insert if I remember correctly. These fly rods are made in Asia in case anyone is wondering.

http://thefiberglassmanifesto.blogspot.. .. eries.html

Check out today's TFM post for a link through for a video from Gink & Gasoline who were at IFTD and interviewed Tim Rajeff about the series. Tim's first fly rods, which he ended up winning casting competitions with, were fiberglass so it will be interesting to cast and fish his take on what he thinks a glass fly rod should be.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 22 Jul 2013, 09:44 • #2 
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Joined: 09/02/12
Posts: 829
Location: Upstate NY
Just revived an email from Jamie over at echo he said they should hit the market around December.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 26 Jul 2013, 20:46 • #3 
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Joined: 06/02/13
Posts: 8
Location: US-CA
I can't wait to get one!.

Mr. Rafeff makes great rods!

Mark F. :smokin


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 27 Jul 2013, 09:57 • #4 
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Joined: 12/27/11
Posts: 435
Location: US-MA
I don't need any more fly rods but I think I'd buy Echo glass just to get a feel for Tim Rajeff's take on fiberglass fly rod design. Him being a world champion caster in both distance and accuracy makes me think the rods will be nice. another fiberglass fly rod who's lineage includes the GGACC.

One of my favorite fly rod quotes comes from a podcast Tim did with Zach Mathews several years ago. "You pay a disproportionally large amount of money to get that last bit of performance." So true.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 27 Jul 2013, 11:42 • #5 
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Joined: 09/18/09
Posts: 5561
Location: Relocated to the Drought Stricken West.
a f Baker wrote:
I don't need any more fly rods but I think I'd buy Echo glass just to get a feel for Tim Rajeff's take on fiberglass fly rod design. Him being a world champion caster in both distance and accuracy makes me think the rods will be nice. another fiberglass fly rod who's lineage includes the GGACC.

One of my favorite fly rod quotes comes from a podcast Tim did with Zach Mathews several years ago. "You pay a disproportionally large amount of money to get that last bit of performance." So true.

Wrong Rajeff. Brother Steve Rajeff is the distance caster. He was associated with Loomis for a while, but I am not sure if he still is under the Shimano managment.

Tim runs Echo rods. However I agree that I will want to cast an Echo fiberglass rod.

Carl


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 27 Jul 2013, 13:54 • #6 
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Joined: 12/27/11
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Location: US-MA
While Steve Rajeff has participated in competitive casting far longer and has held and holds more records than his brother, Tim Rajeff did set the distance casting record in 1984 and has won and still holds records in ACA casting accuracy events. Not as well known as his brother Steve but Tim is certainly one very talented person with a fly rod.

http://www.rajeffsports.com/about.php

http://www.americancastingassoc.org/cas. .. ajeff.html

http://www.americancastingassoc.org/ass. .. y_acc.html


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 27 Jul 2013, 14:48 • #7 
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Joined: 06/02/13
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Tim has come to our Long Beach casting club for demos of his rods, and Steve has cast in ACA tournaments at our club.

Both really great guys!(just my opinion).

Mark F.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 27 Jul 2013, 14:53 • #8 
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Joined: 09/18/09
Posts: 5561
Location: Relocated to the Drought Stricken West.
It's great to know that Tim also holds records.

Thanks for correcting me.

Carl


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 28 Jul 2013, 03:22 • #9 
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Joined: 12/26/09
Posts: 1106
Location: Richmond, TX
Tigermidge wrote:
Tim has come to our Long Beach Casting Club for demos of his rods, and Steve has cast in ACA tournaments at our club.

Both really great guys! (just my opinion).

Mark F.

Mark,

My Dad and I were members of the LBCC for several years when we were living in Seal Beach in the late '60s through the mid '70s. I remember Steve as a teenage casting phenom, and watching him at the LBCC pool. (I met again a few years ago at a shallow water fly fishing show in Houston at which I was wearing a LBCC hat. I agree with your opinion. My son was in awe of his casting demonstrations.) In addition to my Dad and grandfather, I credit the LBCC and its members with my formative fly fishing education (including the fly tying class). Many great memories.

Andrew.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 28 Aug 2013, 22:27 • #10 
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Joined: 12/29/11
Posts: 510
Location: US-CA
Tim Rajeff is a world class caster, but he just doesn't compete in tournaments anymore. He also designed rods for Loomis and is an excellent rod designer, so I would expect his glass rods to be very good, especially for the price. He started casting with glass, so is very familiar with the material.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 20 Dec 2013, 00:28 • #11 
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Joined: 10/30/13
Posts: 479
Location: US-MA
By comparison to some other glass "name" rods those sound like a real bargain. I too am not looking for another rod just at the moment. Trying to sell some - duplicates just different names on the blanks or butt caps. If I free up some space, however, those would be the first I'd take a serious look at - except they too would be duplicates of what I already have. Now if they came in Steelhead configuration ... maybe. But honestly, I'm covered there as well.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 20 Dec 2013, 20:17 • #12 
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Joined: 01/26/07
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Location: Ada, Oklahoma
Looks like I'm going to get a chance to try out one of these Echo rods as soon as they are available in February. I received a text message, and then later a phone call, from my fishing buddy Kurt last night. He was one of the winners of an Echo glass rod from TFM's 12 Days of Christmas giveaway. He was, to say the least, ecstatic about his win. Kurt, like me, already has a lot of nice rods, but as we all know, there is always room for one more.

Larry


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 22 Dec 2013, 05:48 • #13 
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Location: US-PA
What do you do if you hate screw locking seats, long cork grips and hook keepers on 6'-3" glass rods? Are blanks available?


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 22 Dec 2013, 07:51 • #14 
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Joined: 11/30/10
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6footrod wrote:
What do you do if you hate screw locking seats, long cork grips and hook keepers on 6'-3" glass rods? Are blanks available?

Buy it and strip it down ... HA!


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 23 Dec 2013, 23:47 • #15 
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Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
6footrod wrote:
What do you do if you hate screw locking seats, long cork grips and hook keepers on 6'-3" glass rods? Are blanks available?

The Redington Butterstick rods are evenly split between screw locks and dual rings on a cork reelseat. Don't expect blanks to be available for any of these in the short term (unless you 'harvest' one from a factory rod like Shane suggests!)

Tom


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 24 Dec 2013, 07:10 • #16 
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Joined: 01/27/12
Posts: 210
Location: US-PA
Shane wrote:
6footrod wrote:
What do you do if you hate screw locking seats, long cork grips and hook keepers on 6'-3" glass rods? Are blanks available?

Buy it and strip it down ... HA!

I've done that before only to find out the blank under the cork grip was compromised during the original build so you end up using the same length over sized grip to hide the "sucks".

Although the short Butterstick rods have a cork grip and seat they are both way oversized IMHO. To me (and Ed Shenk), nothing looks better than a properly proportioned grip and seat on a short rod.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 25 Dec 2013, 11:03 • #17 
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Joined: 03/14/06
Posts: 427
Location: US-TX
"To me (and Ed Shenk), nothing looks better than a properly proportioned grip and seat on a short rod"

I agree Marty.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 25 Dec 2013, 13:23 • #18 
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Joined: 10/30/13
Posts: 479
Location: US-MA
I agree. Nothing "looks" better.
Love my little sweeties.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 09 Jan 2014, 13:26 • #19 
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Joined: 02/23/10
Posts: 784
Location: SF Bay Area
I stumbled across this video of Rajeff casting the 7'4" 4wt Echo. Looks to me like fans of moderate action glass will be happy with this one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRmiPtDlelc


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 09 Jan 2014, 16:49 • #20 
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Joined: 04/20/07
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Thanks. No surprise, that is very nicely done, both in description and in demonstration, showing how that rod casts and, more generally, the comfortable pace of casting 'glass, and even the finer points such as the reason for a downlocking seat. Shown with reel RHW even, and for an audience of predominate LHW users. Now that is pushing the envelope!

Wouldn't it be great to see the 4 and 5 weights flexed and cast next to the classic SA System 4 and System 5. Probably as a result of his take on the material and action type, the Echo models are very similar in length, SA also having chosen lengths they considered optimum for the line weight and optimum action of a 'glass rod.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 09 Jan 2014, 19:47 • #21 
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Joined: 10/30/13
Posts: 479
Location: US-MA
The length is just right. Wow. That action couldn't be improved - seems perfect for all around small stream applications.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 09 Jan 2014, 22:03 • #22 
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Joined: 06/21/06
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Call me crazy, but I'm actually pretty excited to get my hands on one of these.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 09 Jan 2014, 23:21 • #23 
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Joined: 10/30/13
Posts: 479
Location: US-MA
Me too. One of about a half dozen I am drooling over ... St. Mungo give me strength!


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 10 Jan 2014, 02:32 • #24 
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Joined: 12/29/11
Posts: 510
Location: US-CA
Terrific video that shows that Tim Rajeff understands glass rods and their appeals. Having learned to cast with glass he's obviously comfortable casting glass as well as graphite. Nice explanation of the thoughtful details of his Echo designs.


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Re: ECHO Glass Series
Post 10 Jan 2014, 05:06 • #25 
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Joined: 10/30/13
Posts: 479
Location: US-MA
I was amazed watching it.


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