Tackle Collecting

Originally written by me and some friends 2002-04 for the Virtual Fly Shop, Flyfisherman Magazine Online. The Cracker Barrel has been published in book form with the limited first edition hard cover sold out and a paperback version will be available early 2011.

Moderators: Ken M 44, fishnbanjo

Locked
User avatar
fishnbanjo
The Canefather
Posts: 4282
Joined: 03/21/04 19:00

Tackle Collecting

#1

Post by fishnbanjo »

Welcome to the Cracker Barrel. Last week we brought you 2 articles about Silk Lines which was written by Reed Curry. For those that remember there were 13 Cracker Barrels written by myself and several Bobs (members of the Brothers of Bamboo) on the old VFS Board.
These can be found from this link http://www.flyfisherman.com/wa....html which is available on my website http://mysite.verizon.net/vze2....html unfortunately the Cracker Barrel Links do not include the discussions that occurred after the initial posting which often ended up being as informative as the Cracker Barrel post since much discussion followed. The Cracker Barrel was originally formed from ideas posted on the old VFS Board in 2002 and one of those suggestions was for articles about bamboo rods, their makers, history and tapers be presented in such a manner as to be informative and educational.
It would also allow for questions about the postings content to be discussed and as I said often ended up segueing into the next segment or becoming an offshoot of the post. This segment wasn't at all planned as the past week has been hectic at work, in life and I really just didn't have the time to sit and write one. Due to an experience I had concerning a bamboo rod of great historical and monetary value I decided to write one this morning. My normal method in writing the Cracker Barrel segments entails writing it and without proof reading what I wrote I send it out to my list of BoB's for comments. This will not be the case today since this is about a personal experience and while some of the BoB's know about it they have not seen what I have written and as is the case for me I never proof read what I write until several days removed since I feel it gives me the opportunity to review the writing and detach myself from it so I can be critical to details that I've either missed or didn't come across as intended so please excuse anything that may be somewhat out of focus, or at least more so than normal. Well the coffee pot has gotten my attention telling me the coffee is ready so while I stoke the old pot bellied stove and pour myself a cup why don't I let you review the latest Cracker Barrel.
Collecting Tackle and things that go bump in the night. OK, I admit that is a rather peculiar title but I think one that will become rather apparent as I weave the experiences of the past week and you'll have a better understanding.
During the past 2 years of the Cracker Barrel segments we've covered how to chose a rod, buy a rod and I've also given some input to the many dealers available through catalogs, the www and of course eBay and how to determine what a seller is saying and what questions you should ask, or at least have answered from the items description. The previous week had me working with a dealer on a trade which involved a couple of rods from my collection and some money toward a rather desirable rod made by the FE Thomas Rod Co. That rod being an 8' 2 piece 2 tip FE Thomas Special Fairy in original condition with bag, tag and tube. The Fairy rods made by Thomas, and several of the Catskill School of rod makers, are rather scarce and very cherished by collectors due to their scarcity and delicacy as they were made to use 3 and 4 WT silk lines with unmatched accuracy and delicacy. As luck would have it the Fairy rod model came up for discussion on another board I frequent and moderate and as is the case with me I never enter into a conversation if the item being discussed is something I'm trying to obtain since I've lost several items after it became known it was of interest to me. Don't get the wrong idea about what I just said, realize that I am often seeking scarce items that just do not present themselves all that often and if I'm in pursuit I try to keep the knowledge of that private as there are others out there in pursuit also and when the occasion arises that I have ended up losing the item I'm pursuing it's generally due to someone I know on the other forum and it would be suicide on my part to tip anyone of the existence of the rod. Due to the discussion one gent had stated he'd just purchased an 8' Fairy and found it remarkable and as luck would have it another forum member posted that the dealer I was trying to work the trade with had one listed as well. As luck would have it the gent contacted the dealer and had cash at the ready so he ended up flat out purchasing the rod.
I don't fault anyone but myself in the loss of this rod due to my items and cash combination not really meeting the needs of the dealer and I was taking my time and looking over my options when the gent came up with hard cash and grabbed it so it's not a case where the dealer and I had a commitment either so it was a tough lesson in dragging my feet. Knowing the Fairy model is so scarce I figured it would be a year or more until the next opportunity would present one for sale so I thought nothing more about it.
Monday is a special day for me as I sit down, when given the chance, and I review the Cracker Barrel from the weekend and make notes as to what will be the next topic. Once I establish what that is I simply write the segment and email it out to the BoB's for their comments and then make any necessary adjustments and save it in MS Word where I will copy and paste it in however many parts it needs to be in order to fit the forums word requirements. I set aside some notes in a cardboard box on the floor up in my sports room Monday evening and lit a few candles and incense and closed the door to allow the fragrances to build so they would fill my senses when I returned to write the segment. I came downstairs to grab some other material and my glasses and went upstairs to do some little things and then I heard it, the smoke detector went off with that ear piercing ring and the light within it illuminating the stairs. A quick run into my room and there on the floor where I'd left my notes with the cardboard box was now a fire. Within minutes I was able to extinguish the whole thing and lost my notes and some other things in the box, the hardwood floor was scorched and my wife was horrified and my cat a traumatized mess, needless to say it wasn't a good evening. So here I was with all the windows in my house open to air out the smell of fire, there's the white telltales of fire extinguisher material all about the room, I'd scared myself, my wife and our cat half to death and my stash of rod tubes was all within 6' of the fire and I'd just lost the Fairy! After spending a good deal of the night trying to reclaim the room and rid it of the smell of smoke, which did nothing for my clothes, I obviously didn't get much sleep due to the realization of how close I had come to a tragedy far outweighing losing a missed opportunity with the Fairy. Tuesday shined a new day and with it my head still reeling form the events of the previous evening and then I found a few minutes to cruise eBay and there it was. Beyond my widest imagination another FE Thomas Fairy, only this time an even more remarkable specimen in that it was a Thomas Special Mahogany Fairy in 7'2" 2 piece format. Elegance in the most desirable style and so historically correct and original it was almost enough to make me forget the past 24 hours. I immediately post my bid and became the high bidder but not meeting the RESERVE. I eventually got outbid and the RESERVE was met by a Japanese bidder and doing a little research I found he'd bid on, and won, some very desirable rods in the past 30 days and the prices were rather robust. Once again, not wanting to tip my hand, I refrained from discussing the posting that had been renewed with this Fairy as the topic of discussion. As the time was nearing the close of the auction I had a discussion with a friend about borrowing some money should I be the successful high bidder and we agreed on the terms so I set up a snipe to occur with 10 seconds left in the auction. As the final hours approached I noticed the high bidder had bid 3 more times and this was not looking good but managed to hold my breath in the final 16 seconds of the end and when all was said and done had come out the high bidder. Since the seller was one I had done business with in the past and had an excellent transaction with I found no reason to expect anything less than bomb proof packaging as had been the case in previous transactions so I set up an immediate payment for shipping and insurance. The seller sent the rod out immediately and I awaited it's arrival. Friday arrived and as had been the case all week a long and drawn out hard day at work and was looking forward to the weekend where I hoped to visit the LL Bean Expo where author Kathy Scott, her husband, rod maker, David van Burgel and author and antique tackle expert AJ Campbell would be in attendance and I hoped to have the FE Thomas Special Mahogany Fairy with me when I went. As I entered my front door I was greeted with the long heavy cardboard tube in the living room telling me the Fairy had arrived. With trembling hands I cut open the top of the tube and saw how the top had been compressed and the tube would not come out that way so I cut open the bottom and pushed the tube down and removed it. The packaging was remarkable and I was sweating in anticipation on sniffing the magical smell of varnish that only a Thomas Mahogany rod can give you since the varnish is tinted mahogany and has a smell unlike any other bamboo rod. Uncapping the glorious nickel silver cap I was giddy, the hallmark deep green bag Thomas used on the Mahogany rods was the next thing peeking at me once I removed the cushioning the seller had provided and then the tag that read FE Thomas Rod Co. Special Mah Fairy 7 1/3 ft 3 1/8 oz brought a smile to my senses. I removed the bag and was taken by how almost new it appeared but given the overall new appearance of the tube I wasn't surprised and I could not await holding what is probably the most historical rod Fred Thomas ever built in my hands. I removed the butt section and looked at the wonderful series of delicate signature wraps and the gloriously flawless varnish that brought a smile to my face and a sparkle to my senses. I next went to take one of the tips out and realized something was wrong as it felt shorter than the butt section so I slid my hand to the next tip and realized it felt longer.
With a fear in my heart I removed the tip and saw that the tip had been sheared just below the long wrap which was due to the long tongue style tip tops Fred Thomas used during this period and then when I went to take the other tip out I saw that while it looked to be full length it too was sheared but the tip hadn't fallen off the section yet. I nearly cried as I held the 2 separate tip tops in my hand, partly because I'd experienced the first rod damaged in shipping since I'd been doing this back in 1987 and partially because what was once a very rare historically desirable and valuable specimen of a rod makers art was now just a broken rod. I brought the rod to LL Beans as I had planned and showed it to David and Kathy who conveyed their condolences to me about it and when I spoke with AJ Campbell the look of horror on his face must have been close to what was on mine when I'd made the discovery myself. Definitely the toughest week I'd experienced in a long while. I also realized this is not what you are accustomed to reading in the Cracker Barrel but since it was a devastating experience I thought I'd share it with you so you'd realize that not every aspect of collecting vintage tackle comes only as a positive experience. Now comes the waiting game as I expect the carrier to meet with me tomorrow and look everything over. Well the old coffee pot is empty, as Bob Corsetti always says at the end of his catalog, and I'm packing one of my pipes; as always I await your comments. Thanks once again for asking for the return of the Cracker Barrel and I hope you'll join us next week. As I stated the last few weeks be sure to stay tuned because I have it on pretty good authority that one of the forums writers is braving the elements on snowshoes, probably stuck in an errantly placed ice hole or holed up in one of the many shanties found in the UP, to visit a maker who has worked with a past master and worked with bamboo for almost 50 years…. Springs fast approaching.

Sad indeed! Image


Locked

Return to “The Cracker Barrel”