Wright McGill Water Seal 7', 5wt

rodnreel · Post by **rodnreel** » 09/25/10 07:41

Tr'noon, out messing with some of my rods, and I noticed that my Wright McGill 7' Water Seal which I recently purchased, has an incorrect tip top - wrong color, and doesn't match the guides at all...anyone have any knowledge on what the correct tip top might look like, and where to purchase one? On the original advertisement that I saw this listed under, the advertisement referred to the rod as usable as either a fly rod, or as a spin casting rod..has a three inch long quasi 'fighting butt' section as the end to the reel seat...don't know if that might have relevance to the correct tip top or not --- anyone???

rodnreel · Post by **rodnreel** » 09/25/10 08:26

Okay, here are few quick pictures...I did notice that the guides used on this rod are the style used on spinning or casting rods, that may have an influence on the type/style of the tip top that I need to replace...any info would be helpful...thanks -- Rob

rodnreel · Post by **rodnreel** » 09/25/10 08:28

native2 · Post by **native2** » 09/26/10 18:01

Hello Rob,
Your Water Seal rod should have the tip top as shown in photo below. While it is a spinning rod and has spinning rod hardware, it also doubles as a nice 4/5 wt. fly rod. I have found this particular model to be a rather smooth-casting rod. The cane is very good quality, and I believe the rod is considered an FA designation. It's particularly useful on ponds and lakes, where you can pack a fly and spinning reel with only one rod. Good luck.

rodnreel · Post by **rodnreel** » 09/27/10 12:01

Thanks...any idea who might carry such a tip top - doesn't look familiar? Appreciate your feedback...

V/R

...Rob

native2 · Post by **native2** » 09/27/10 12:50

Check with the person who sold you the rod or the original owner? My next best guess would be Rick's Rods? Good luck.

BobB · Post by **BobB** » 09/28/10 04:12

Here's a couple of not so good pics of a W&M Water Seal spinning rod with a more conventional spinning handle.
This handle also has the red butt cap as rodnreel's.

This rod is 6' 9" and has the owner's name applied. The rod is also an impregnated rod with varnish applied?

Flyman615 · Post by **Flyman615** » 09/28/10 09:48

The Water Seal rods were made in an era when bamboo was "on the way out" and fiberglass was definitely "on the way in" as the primary rod-building material. Water Seals were made in many styles and for various fishing purposes. As you know, this was also an era (post-WWII) when "spin fishing" was being promoted by almost every outdoor magazine extant.

In addition to fly rods, Wright & McGill made the Water Seal rods in all sorts of weights and configurations for applications from fresh water spin fishing to heavy saltwater work. And to a large extent, the rods were assembled from various tapers/exisiting W&M cane blanks which were "densified" or impregnated after the fact. Confusingly, some of the earliest Water Seals were indeed varnished AND impregnated. Go figure.

As for the "fly/spin" rods, in my opinion they really performed neither function very well. (Think about casting an 8-foot, 3/2 spinning rod made from a fly rod blank, or trying to cast a fly line with a rod that has all spinning guides.)

By and large, I don't think the Water Seals were very popular, although some remained in Wright & McGill catalogs into the early 1960's.

jbauerlin · Post by **jbauerlin** » 10/03/21 19:13

I have the exact WM rod. I know it’s been several years since this post however I have not been able to identify the model of this rod. Any information appreciated

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