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Post 17 Jan 2015, 19:43 • #1 
Administrator
Joined: 07/17/06
Posts: 5599
Location: South Carolina
Just a heads up for those interested, that Orvis is now selling the Superfine Glass blanks for $198 each. Orders can be made by calling the Orvis Hunting and Fishing number. These blanks will be built to order and may take up to four weeks for delivery.

Image


Who's planning on building one?


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Post 18 Jan 2015, 08:41 • #2 
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Joined: 02/07/11
Posts: 750
Location: US-IL
To be honest, I was very much planning on building one until they doubled the price. I occasionally see the factory built rods brand new at a 10% or 20% discount; but even at full price ($395) you get the warranty, sock and tube. I may still end up building one, but the doubled cost has certainly made me much more reluctant. Just being honest.

I note that the graphite superfine touch blanks ranged from $110-$190 (mostly around $150) and the factory rods were $495. That price point allowed me to build and try a lot of the configurations.

If orvis is listening, I would comment that I would feel much better paying two hundred dollars for a blank (where the factory rod is $395) if the blank came with a matching factory tube and sock.

Colt


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Post 18 Jan 2015, 10:45 • #3 
Sport
Joined: 02/14/08
Posts: 31
Location: US-MA
Ditto what Colt said. The price for the Superfine glass blanks was a bit of a surprise.

Jim


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Post 18 Jan 2015, 10:56 • #4 
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Joined: 04/05/13
Posts: 618
Location: US-TX
I am right there with you guys on the price.

Very strange that the superfine factory built graphite rod is 100 dollars more than the superfine glass factory build, but the glass blank cost more than the graphite blank?

I was willing to build one and give it a try for around the 100-120 price point, but for 200, it is not gonna happen. I can get an Ijuin or J.Green for less than that, and in my opinion, both have better actions.

Just my 2 cents!


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Post 18 Jan 2015, 12:27 • #5 
Master Guide
Joined: 05/08/06
Posts: 796
Location: RenoNV/FranklinWV
I like the graphite superfines much better anyways, they are a great deal.

Orvis will eventually drop the price on these blanks too I would think they are hoping to catch the popularity wave in glass lately.


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Post 18 Jan 2015, 12:30 • #6 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
There is an economy of scale involved. Notice that the blanks are built to order. The announcement of availability will surely be welcomed by some. Other blanks are available in different price niches, but in the "New on the Market" forum, the discussion is to provide descriptions/details about the new product. I'm sure we'll see reviews and judgments about it later in the other forums.


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Post 18 Jan 2015, 17:00 • #7 
Sport
Joined: 09/13/14
Posts: 36
Location: US-SE PA
I have the 3 wt SF glass Rod and loved it. Got mine for $300 with a discount and $50 off. Paired it with the new U.S. made CFO and love it. Landed some nice sized fish on it already. Great dry fly small stream Rod.


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Post 19 Jan 2015, 02:38 • #8 
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Joined: 04/15/06
Posts: 804
Location: Fayetteville, NC
Orvis graphite blanks are built to order, too. I wonder, when they become available, if Superfine Carbon blanks will cost a lot more than the Superfine Touch and original graphite blanks (which they will still make). Compared to Sage and Winston, Orvis blanks are still a bargain, more on par with St Croix and TFO. Scott doesn't even sell blanks anymore, but when they did, they were much more than Orvis. I don't know if Thomas & Thomas sells blanks anymore, but theirs were also much higher than Orvis' when they did.


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Post 19 Jan 2015, 13:15 • #9 
Master Guide
Joined: 04/15/06
Posts: 804
Location: Fayetteville, NC
I've heard this lower price mentioned before, but Jim West told me last week that he had just been given the go ahead to offer blanks and that they would be $198 plus tax and shipping (see my post under rod building). Where is the lower price info coming from?


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Post 19 Jan 2015, 19:07 • #10 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 05/09/06
Posts: 2517
Location: US
I wonder if the cheaper graphite blanks are being rolled in house or overseas? That might explain the difference.


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Post 19 Jan 2015, 19:43 • #11 
Administrator
Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
Guys, the idea behind What's New on the Market is to find out about new products - not to bash companies for providing them. Nor is it the place to air grievances. If anyone has a question about the product, we'll do our best to get an answer.

A blank price of $195 is about half the price of a retail rod. That price is right in there with other modern quality blanks. Considering that the rods have sold well, I'm surprised the blanks are already on the market.

Tom


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Post 19 Jan 2015, 22:04 • #12 
Master Guide
Joined: 02/07/11
Posts: 750
Location: US-IL
Tom, I believe my comment may have gotten things off track. My apologies. I was trying to honestly answer Cameron's question, i.e. "Who's planning on building one?"

I must say that I love orvis and I think they make great stuff. The superfine touch series was/is probably my favorite graphite lineup. I also trade emails with jim west regularly. He is a fantastic guy and a testament to orvis' customer service.


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Post 20 Jan 2015, 09:59 • #13 
Master Guide
Joined: 04/05/13
Posts: 618
Location: US-TX
I apologize for added comment as well! It is great to have another option to build with!


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Post 20 Jan 2015, 11:38 • #14 
Administrator
Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
There was an earlier thread (viewtopic.php?f=32&t=49322) that posted a price of $95. While the price was attributed to Jim West of Orvis, apparently the information was too preliminary. Cameron, and others, posted at the time that a $95 price was probably not correct.

Let's move forward. When the factory rods came out, a lot of people were hoping blanks would be sold. Is anyone planning to build one out?

Tom


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Post 30 Apr 2015, 09:32 • #15 
Master Guide
Joined: 04/02/14
Posts: 537
Location: US- Northern CO
apologies for being a little late to the party, most of the time i am looking at the "tinkering" section of the forum or the photos for inspiration on how to build a little better. i got involved with building in the first due to the courage i gained reading what you guys had to say about it and my goal was to get proficient enough to be able to build rods for my self in order to be able to experience what a better rod felt like and still not be shelling out $400 to $650 at a time.
when i step into a crystal clear ice cold stream at dawn and the fog is still hanging heavy... for me that is it. What i have in my hand just needs to be good enough to do the job and not distract me from where i am and what i am doing. The orvis 4wt fits that bill really well. it is smooth and has enough reserve to make it versatile enough to handle what i am really there for.
Yes, no rod sock and no tube but my Steffen blank (@$200) didn't come with one either and come to think of it my Lami's did not and the Anglers Roost didn't either, in fact i never got one.
I really am drawn to the idea of building a 4wt using some tough as nails hardware that i won't mind if it gets scratched when i am working my way up some boulders. In motorcycle terms when you collect scrap parts from all around and build up a bike with no sparkle and just paint it flat black paint and tune that puppy so it works great it is called a "Rat bike" I rather like the idea of a Rat Rod with that 4wt glass in the heart of it. I have collected enough parts now to build a few rods I just need to pick some blanks, I might just build me a Rat Orvis and stick it in my Rat PVC rod tube strap on an old Pflueger and go fishing.


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Post 03 Jun 2016, 16:47 • #16 
Guide
Joined: 10/11/14
Posts: 235
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
I'm a little disappointed that I haven't seen any builds on this blank yet. If you have one, please share it. I'm thinking of building one up and would to hear opinions and see other's results.
Long days and pleasant nights,
Chris


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Post 07 Sep 2016, 19:26 • #17 
Master Guide
Joined: 04/02/14
Posts: 537
Location: US- Northern CO
topha: viewtopic.php?f=8&t=50733&p=221705&hilit=orvis#p221705

over in the photo section. loved this build, really stands out.


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Post 17 Nov 2017, 12:34 • #18 
Master Guide
Joined: 02/19/12
Posts: 351
Location: Legnago (Verona) Italy
I recently read in a local (Italian) f.f. forum all blanks sold by Orvis, SAGE and so on, are 2nd choice products.
I personally don't think well known Companies take the risk to damage their reputation selling a non perfect product.
I'd like to know your opinion about that. Thanks a lot.


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Post 17 Nov 2017, 13:37 • #19 
Master Guide
Joined: 11/11/13
Posts: 774
Location: US-CA
Hello, I have never known that to be the case. Usually if a blank is a second the maker will say so and sell it at a discount


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Post 17 Nov 2017, 14:07 • #20 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/12/16
Posts: 4093
Location: USA-CO
I doubt if the blanks are second quality. That story was around back in the '90s, too. I've built an Orvis SFG rod and couldn't see anything wrong with the blank. Maybe they're tested for flex (force/deflection etc.) after production, and some fail, but again, the company's reputation would be at risk if those would be sold without disclosure.


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Post 17 Nov 2017, 21:55 • #21 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 01/26/07
Posts: 1385
Location: Ada, Oklahoma
I was hearing those rumors about second quality blanks back in the 90's also; never made much sense to me that a reputable company would do that.

Larry


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Post 19 Nov 2017, 13:34 • #22 
Master Guide
Joined: 02/19/12
Posts: 351
Location: Legnago (Verona) Italy
thank you my Friends.


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Post 21 Nov 2017, 21:37 • #23 
Master Guide
Joined: 04/15/06
Posts: 804
Location: Fayetteville, NC
Despite being a "big deal" in the fly fishing world, Orvis is still a small volume maker. They roll each and every (premium line) rod blank by hand, one at the time, in a small shop. I've bought many blanks from Orvis over the decades, and every one was made after my order, not pulled from some "seconds" bin. They do offer budget line rods that are made in Asia, but I've never heard of them offering blanks of those rods.

Rumors of seconds blanks may have originated as far back as the 60s and 70s, when Orvis sold a few levels of bamboo rods, the lowest being the Madison grade, which were single tip with simpler, but still quality fittings and un-tipped wraps. These were first quality functionally, but often showed very minor cosmetic flaws in the cane, like water stains. The bamboo blanks Orvis sold back then were Madison grade. I built a couple of rods from those blanks, and you'd be hard-pressed to find any cosmetic flaws, and certainly no functional ones. My point is, buy with confidence.


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Post 22 Nov 2017, 00:25 • #24 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/06/15
Posts: 1249
Location: Central Oregon
Cross Creek wrote:
Despite being a "big deal" in the fly fishing world, Orvis is still a small volume maker. They roll each and every (premium line) rod blank by hand, one at the time, in a small shop..

I've toured the shop. They were rolling glass blanks that day, but my guide had graphite splinters in her fingers.


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Post 01 Jun 2018, 19:47 • #25 
Sport
Joined: 05/22/18
Posts: 48
Location: US-CA
Try (if you are rich or missing some marbles) breaking a glass rod or blank. Then do the same with graphite. You probably won’t like running your finger on the jagged edge of the graphite.


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