My First Hardy Rod OTW to me!

[steve kelley]

Hi - I'm a true newbie here but an excited one. Ever since I was a kid in high school I wanted a Hardy rod but of course could not come close to affording one.. Now sixty years later, I am about to own one. Found on ebay, it should arrive Monday or Tuesday. It is a Hardy Hollokona 7'6" 3 piece Hollow Built #5, built in 1956 and supposedly in mint condition.

I should add I have not fly fished in many years and am really just fulfilling a boyhood dream here. So as you may suspect I am pretty ignorant and have two questions that I hope someone can help me with: 1. What does the #5 mean? 2. I do want to complete this buy by getting an appropriate vintage Hardy reel - the question is what kind of Hardy reel will fit and make sense on a relatively light rod like this and where should I be looking? ebay?

Thank you so much.

Steve

[steve kelley]

And I do have a fly reel already here which should fit but I would prefer a vintage Hardy reel; just seems morre appropriate - there are some on ebay but I'm unsure which one to bid on. Prices seem to range from $50 to several hundred dollars - given my level of ignorance that seems a bit strange.

[hatch]

Steve, The price in Hardy reels varies depending on model, age and condition. My guess is that a Hardy Uniqua 3" diameter might fit your needs and hold a 5wt line which your rod may require. You may have to cast the rod with different weight lines to see what suits your style. A "good enough" 3" uniqua might cost you #150.--$200. A 1950s vintage Hardy Lightweight reel might also do the trick. It will hold a 5 weight line with very little backing. Cost about $150.

[Godfroy]

Dear Steve,

The Hollokona rods, either the Hollolight or the Phantom are really nice rods. I have had 4 Hollolights and one Phantom.

The 7'6" is rare and I can't see it listed in any catalogues although I have seen two.

The date 1956 may be wrong. I don't think they were made until 1960.

#5 is the line size, which also makes me question the date as the earlier ones did not have the line size marked on the rod. My three 1960 rods do not have any line mark and my 1961 rod is marked #5.

I would go for a Hardy Marquis reel. They came in slightly later but they were the Hardy recommended reel to go with the Phantom in 1969. They look the part and back in the day I always preferred them to the Lightweight series because of the advantage of rim control.

The more modern Hardy Sirrus or JLH Ultralite would also look fine and work well if you can find any.
I hope you enjoy the rod. I have the 8' Hollolight and it is one of my favourites.

Paul.

[av1903]

The date 1956 may be wrong. I don't think they were made until 1960.

#5 is the line size, which also makes me question the date as the earlier ones did not have the line size marked on the rod. My three 1960 rods do not have any line mark and my 1961 rod is marked #5.
.

Mine is 1960 made and has no line mark, so the #5 mark is post 1960. You may check the serial no. to find the year of production. More Hardy reels to consider are the Golden Prince and a 3 inch Bougle with a silk fly line, both are nice on my hololight. The rod is very nice both in appearance and as a fishing action.To add more flash/posh look you may find the hardy golden suvereign reel to match the gold anodized rings of the rod.

[Lockfast]

Yes, it's 1960's rod, and the shortest version is very uncommon.

As it is a quite light rod, I'd rig it with a 60's Hardy Featherweight and a WF5 line.

[Godfroy]

Mine is 1960 made and has no line mark, so the #5 mark is post 1960. You may check the serial no. to find the year of production. More Hardy reels to consider are the Golden Prince and a 3 inch Bougle with a silk fly line, both are nice on my hololight. The rod is very nice both in appearance and as a fishing action.To add more flash/posh look you may find the hardy golden suvereign reel to match the gold anodized rings of the rod.

The Bouglé and Sovereign are good suggestions. The other one which works aesthetically for me is the Angel Featherweight which has some gold anodised highlights.

[NewUtahCaneAngler]

A "good enough" 3" uniqua might cost you #150.--$200.

Hmm, is there a 3" Uniqua? I've seen 2 5/8", 2 7/8", 3 1/8", 3 3/8"..., but never a 3".

I'd go with a 2 screw lineguard Hardy Featherweight or 3 1 /8" Uniqua if it likes a WF line, a DT5 may not fit on these reels.

[av1903]

Mine is 1960 made and has no line mark, so the #5 mark is post 1960. You may check the serial no. to find the year of production. More Hardy reels to consider are the Golden Prince and a 3 inch Bougle with a silk fly line, both are nice on my hololight. The rod is very nice both in appearance and as a fishing action.To add more flash/posh look you may find the hardy golden suvereign reel to match the gold anodized rings of the rod.

The Bouglé and Sovereign are good suggestions. The other one which works aesthetically for me is the Angel Featherweight which has some gold anodised highlights.

That's some mega cool hardy stuff, the only thing i would change is to replace the angel with a perfect, the angel being some very nice modern reel that goes well on a graphite rod, but as with anything tackle related this is just my preference.

[jacknoir]

Steve, I'd echo the suggestions above. Another consideration is whether you prefer to reel with your right or your left hand. The golden Prince, Marquis and JLH can be adjusted to allow for either. A modern Hardy to consider is the Duchess. I love mine. It has a palming rim-control spool, can be switched to left or right, and has a very classic look.

[steve kelley]

I want to thank everyone for all the helpful comments. Great. I have a Hardy LRH Lightweight on the way. Thanks again.
Steve

[steve kelley]

So the new rod just arrived and looks perfect except that the joints are so tight I am afraid to assemble it. My fear is that if I were to fully seat either of the joints I could not get it apart. No obvious rust or corrosion - perhaps fine steel wool on the male portion of the joint? Any sort of lubricant?

Hoping for some wisdom before I make any mistakes.

Thanks

Steve

[Godfroy]

If the fit is tight I use 0000 steel wool to clean the male and inside of the female joint. I have never ended up with a joint which is too loose using this on my Hardy rods. I usually use it wet with something like denatured alcohol then dry with paper towels and pipe cleaners or cotton buds and lubricate.

From the Hardy 1962 catalogue: "The male ferrule is not made to go right home, but is fitted to within 3/16"

see https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=wDZ0vrl_8UU

Added: I should have said that I would try cleaning without steel wool first and only use steel wool if it is still too tight after cleaning and lubrication.

[steve kelley]

Thanks Godfroy - that seems to work!

[DA]

Hardy ferrules not fully seated:

viewtopic.php?f=67&t=73859&p=595032&hil ... ne#p595032

[Godfroy]

Thank you Steve for starting this topic. I was so intrigued I sought one of these 7' 6" Hollolights for myself. Mine is labelled #4 and works very well for me with a Snowbee WF 2-5, XS Plus Thistle Down Floating line. It will be a favourite rod and I think I will use it in preference to my 7' 6" Hardy Marvel.