Share your examples and thoughts on E.C. Powell rods

[BigTJ]

John, thanks for asking! I forgot to note they are both 8-foot rods, but I've now made the correction!
Fortunately, Per has listed ECP's tapers in detail in Appendix V at the back of his new book.

Scott

Thanks - figured they were short with those weights. Drooling right now.

I have the book and the tapers. But there are a whole lot of tapers not captured by the book. And as the book makes clear the rods do not follow the theoretical tapers exactly. The rods won’t last forever so the more tapers that are documented the more likely the genius of EC Powell and his designs will live on.

Cheers,

John

[maruoff]

I haven't cast many Powells but really like them.
Havent read the book so I apologize if this question is obvious.

What I wonder is, if there is any kind of consistency in the Powell rods tapers?

E.g. its hard enough to find out if any Powell is an A, B or C-taper. Boils down to personal opinion and preference or am I wrong here?
Some guys B-taper might the the other guys C-taper e.g.?

If you'd buy second hand, could you be (rather) sure you know what you get taper wise? E.g. do all Powells have that distinctive "Powell-feeling"?

Or are they all just a bit different and you would have to be lucky to get the rod you expect when you buy one?

[JamesEric]

Pardon me if I missed this in earlier discussion of ECP but can someone identify the silk color commonly used on them? I have a very early, quite heavy Salmon or Steelhead, 9.5’ (3/2) with an unmarked pre-Marysville reel seat of NS, SB. Similar to a Goodwin Granger SB. Also a 9.5’ (2/2) that loads well with a DT5 or WF6. Both rods need their agate stripper guides re-wrapped. Really ALL guides. Moving from Bend Oregon and now 20+ years in Colorado and Wyoming has really dried them out. Please RSVP.
PS Both rods handle these Wyoming class bruisers on swung Spey type flies.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Flyman615]

JamesEric: Per lists the following silk in Appendix III

* Belding Corticelli #3715 Size A
* Y.L.I. Corp. #79 in Size 50 (Asian sizing)
* Kinkame Brand #169, #18, #115 (Olive brown), #202, #203. All in Size 50.

Hope this helps!

Scott

[Flyman615]

I haven't cast many Powells but really like them.
Havent read the book so I apologize if this question is obvious.

What I wonder is, if there is any kind of consistency in the Powell rods tapers?

E.g. its hard enough to find out if any Powell is an A, B or C-taper. Boils down to personal opinion and preference or am I wrong here?
Some guys B-taper might the the other guys C-taper e.g.?

If you'd buy second hand, could you be (rather) sure you know what you get taper wise? E.g. do all Powells have that distinctive "Powell-feeling"?

Or are they all just a bit different and you would have to be lucky to get the rod you expect when you buy one?

Per discusses the ECP tapers (A,B and C) in minute detail In Chapter 5, "The A,B, and C Tapers: the Foundation of E.C.'s Rod Actions and in Appendix II, "How to Tell A,B, and C Taper Rods Using Micrometer Measurements".

Scott

[trland]

Havent read the book so I apologize if this question is obvious.

E.g. its hard enough to find out if any Powell is an A, B or C-taper.

There is also an appendix page in the book that outlines a way to tell the likely intended taper of a rod in hand by measuring the slope of taper in the tip, mid, and butt (at two points on each section). An increasing slope from tip to butt is an A taper, flat slope=B taper, and decreasing slope=C taper.

[16pmd]

I'd say that E.C. Powells are quite consistent in their actions because of his A,B,& C taper system. There are some intentional variations, within those categories, so that he could make a slightly faster or slower rod. There are also some inherent differences due just to the fact that bamboo isn't a uniform material. I don't know that anyone can say what percentage of rods were A,B or C tapers, but a rough division would be that a trout size model is highly likely to be a B taper, with the B-9 taper being by far the most common. Steelhead rods were often C tapers because of their need to lift long and sunken lines and tournament rods or ones for especially good casters were usually A tapers. If I had to make a very rough guess, I'd say there were 75% B tapers, 15% C tapers and 10% A tapers. Wonder what Per would say. Overall, I think that Powell rods were very consistent within the intentional design differences in Powell's system and that the overall consistency is they were almost all ourstanding casters.

[Flyman615]

Just me with my 8 ft. 3/2 ECP A-taper and a wild brown caught behind a local burger shop.

Photo by Rich Morrison

Scott

[Flyman615]

Here's an interesting E.C. Powell rod from my collection. It's a 7'0" 2/2; hollow-built; 3.41 oz. on my scale-3 3/8 oz. on hang tag. The hang tag indicates the rod is "Circa 1935". If this is correct, I believe the rod has been refinished more recently--perhaps by Tony Maslan or Walton Powell-- and not fished much since.

The brass-capped tube is Powell, but the dark green bag is newer and not unlike those Walton Powell used in the modern era. Interestingly, Per's new book does not list a 7 ft. taper nor are any pictured. I believe this rod is a B-taper 4 wt.


Scott

[Flykuni3]

Super schweet. Our pal Jz2 has a 7’ Maslin that I thought cast beautifully ( tho corks were not top drawer). Lemme know when yr selling yours this year, k?

[BigTJ]

Scott,

Is it possible a well intentioned but misinformed previous owner put the 1935 on there? Potential clues include does the rod look original or refinished - most likely case for a 7 footer is that it is a Maslan. Also has anybody seen a hang tag like that from the Powell shop and does it have the recognizable hand of somebody from the Powell shop? Another clue is the cork quality which was generally better on early rods. A close inspection under magnification may be able to determine if the rod was ever refinished. Obviously these thoughts have probably gone through your head as a true 7’ EC rod is a unicorn.

[Flyman615]

Hi Darrell and John-

Yes, indeed, some of those same thoughts have gone through my head. I'm pretty sure the rod has either been re-finished AND/OR it post-dates 1935 by quite a bit.

BTW, I'm not saying the hang tag is original to the rod, it may have been attached later. Perhaps when a re-finish took place or when the rod changed hands. The usual inked Patent number is present above the hook keeper, but whose handwriting it is (or that on the tag) I do not know.

Other unexplained details include: a comparatively "blunt" front taper of the cork grip and a flip ring hook keeper with separated wraps. To the best of my knowledge, neither are very common Maslan rod traits. The fittings, cane and node placement match that on other Powells I own.

All that said, it is a delightful little rod and very well finished in the true Powell tradition, IMHO.

Scott

[BigTJ]

Very cool Scott - the mysteries may never be solved but they are fun puzzles to work out. That rod must be a lot of fun with small fish. Thanks for your contributions to this thread it’s a nice companion to the book - on Chapter 7 reading a bit every night.

John

[Flykuni3]

Again, later this year, k?

[Flyman615]

You're close to first on the list!

Scott

[Flyman615]

One of my E.C. Powell 'companion' sets is this solid-built 8'0"/9'0" combination. Interestingly, the shorter (25.5") companion butt has its own matching tube. My theory is the companion butt was made a bit later to fit the 9'0", 3/2, version.

Depending on which butt is chosen, the rod weighs either 3.9 oz. or 4.9 oz. Ferrules are 18/12 and both A-taper iterations take a 5 wt. line.

According to Jim Clarkson of Raptor Rods Works, the rod was made circa 1939-40. Unfished since 1969, it had always been in the same family before I acquired it.


Scott

[Flyman615]

Does anyone have any pre-WWII E.C. Powell rods they would be willing to share photos of here on the Forum? Or, perhaps, a rod or two by Buddy Powell?

Also any Powell rods with differing original reel seats and/or grips would be nice to see. THANKS very much in advance for any and all contributions to this thread!

Scott

[LakesideAl]

Pics of my early E C Powell 9 ft. 3/2 solid built. Someone has handwritten on the early rod tube label..." Type "A" 9 ft. 5 1/2 oz.
Label reads - THIS rod is hand polished and finished with lindseed (sp) oil. No other kind of oil should be used.After each fishing trip the rod should be cleaned and rubbed over with a small cloth light-ly saturated with linseed oil.Linseed oil when exposed to the air dries to a gum, so that repeated applications from time to time does not have the tendency to penetrate and soften the bamboo as other oils might do.Linseed oil properly used will keep the rod waterproof and avoid reflections caused by var-nish, besides giving a beautiful rich finish.
E.C. POWELL Maker of FINE TROUT TACKLE RODS FLIES AND LEADERS 620 C Street Marysville, California

[LakesideAl]

Pics of my early E C Powell 9 ft. 3/2 solid built. Someone has handwritten on the early rod tube label..." Type "A" 9 ft. 5 1/2 oz. ...(not sure who)
Label also has an early 620 C Street address.

Full label reads - THIS rod is hand polished and finished with lindseed (sp) oil. No other kind of oil should be use. After each fishing trip the rod should be cleaned and rubbed over with a small cloth light-ly saturated with linseed oil.Linseed oil when exposed to the air dries to a gum, so that repeated applications from time to time does not have the tendency to penetrate and soften the bamboo as other oils might do.Linseed oil properly used will keep the rod waterproof and avoid reflections caused by var-nish, besides giving a beautiful rich finish.
E.C. POWELL
Maker of
FINE TROUT TACKLE
RODS FLIES AND LEADERS
620 C Street
Marysville, California

[BigTJ]

Neat early rod with the Motague NS sliding band seat and oil finish. That is an heirloom for sure.