The Greatest Value In Bamboo

[bassman]

Keeping this to bamboo I do not think you can have a thread like this without bringing up Steve Pennington and his Pine River rods. He built them for years and sold them at prices well below what I thought the value was. He also made some great blanks to be finished as you wished. For better known rods of course it's Orvis 7'6", either model. For perceived better quaity and name there can be some nice Leonards had for great prices if you shop and wait.

[RMorrison]

C’mon - these days some of the best rods for the money were made by Walton Powell.

[NewUtahCaneAngler]

I am a big fan of Orvis rods, and agree to what other posters have said about these rods. My first real purchase (I had a Penta that I purchased a decade before, but (very) sadly never fished) was a Sweetgrrass Mantra, which I now like more than I did during my first 12 months of ownership, but I have to say, that to me, the best VALUE has been a $150 7 1/2' Montague Fishkill. This rod, in my mind is even better than a 7 1/2' Orvis 3 7/8 oz model that typically sells for 3 to 4 times as much as the Fishkill, which with $25 of silk and guides, is a better rod. Most fishermen don't pay $150 for a made off shore "plastic" rod. Why we anglers with the bamboo disease are willing to spend 10X regularly or even 100X, makes me wonder what KOOL-Aid we are driking.

[PA Limestoner]

In the modern era of rod making, I would add A. J. Thramer. He built a huge number of rods, and some do show up on the secondary market. If your tastes run toward a Paul Young type rod, Bob Lancaster built some of the finest Young renditions available. Both makers displayed outstanding workmanship throughout their careers. Great value in either of these makers rods.

[creakycane]

Since they are widely available, and there were many, it is hard to argue with the best of Orvis and Granger for price/value if you like the action/cosmetics/construction of a particular example; they are a pretty safe buy.
While it doesn't fit the widely available criteria that the production rodmakers above supply, don't overlook the rods made by excellent professional individuals, especially when they can be had on resale market for not much more that some O's. When you see nice condition Ducks, Parkers, Jenkins, Jennings and others (look at the rods in stock with the usual suspects), coming down almost to the 1K mark, it's worth looking closely. These are often one off items, so it's hard to say to someone to look for one, unless they want to wait around for 5 years until one appears in their desired config.

[cutthroatkid]

Many readers here are probably familiar with the book "Casting a Spell". Much of the book deals with the efforts of various makers to build rods which had high quality while still keeping the price within a reasonable range in order to stay in business - a very tough thing to do for a product so labor-intensive. Those not familiar with the book might enjoy it.

[jrpaquatics]

Phillipson 8’6” hdh and W&M 8642 are a great value for the money. Both rods are great that don’t cost a fortune and you’ll be arguing with yourself on which one to take out to the stream.


Cabelas fiberglass is a great value, the 2wt is an amazing rod.

Speaking of glass, I bought a pal a 7' for a 5 Cabela's glass rod for about $70. And boy was I surprised when it arrived, beautiful rod and very well-fitted. Sharp green blank, tight wraps and good reel seat and metal work. Put on a DT4 and it felt very, very nice. Pretty darn good buy, like their Three Forks combos, good quality for the price.

[BigTJ]

I can’t understand the argument that Orvis rods are the most available. It seems there are more Heddons and Grangers around than Orvis rods. I also respectfully can’t understand the preference over Orvis rods casting characteristics over these two companies. Factoring price into the equation, nothing holds a candle to a Heddon. You can get a serviceable 8.5’ 5 or 6 wt Heddon for a couple hundred bucks that will cast and fish circles around an Orvis. $400 to 500 will get you a really nice 8’ 5 wt in a higher grade, arguably some of the best casting solid-built light trout rods ever made. Yes they can have varnish or ferrule issues. No you can’t send a Heddon back to the factory for a repair but there are plenty of folks doing work on them for reasonable prices. And you can build a multi-rod (2 or more) quiver of Heddons for the price of a sweet grass, Jenkins, Powell or evening a Thramer.

[ibookje]

For me Orvis bamboo has one important value above being readily available and affordable. That it keeps its value. You can sell for the same price (assuming you didn’t buy it at overpriced) you bought it. That’s a huge factor when you’re just into the bamboo game.

[teter]

Much as I love Grangers and Phillipsons, and I have quite a few of each, I have to agree that Orvis is overall the best value -- assuming that we're talking about Orvis rods from the Wes Jordan era. Their prices remain pretty steady.
The new Orvis rods depreciate very quickly, even though I personally like them.

[Kenneth]

I prefer impregnated rods, so no-brainer for me. Orvis. Nobody else offers well-nigh indestructible rods in such a range of tapers, and models within tapers, at prices that fall within my self-imposed $400 - $450 limit.

Having said that, J. S. Sharpe of Aberdeen is another "great value for money" brand. Cheaper than Orvis, I especially like their short (6-1/2' to 7-1/2') rods, and the "80" range (83, 85, 88). Very nice casting, and real sleepers.

Keep safe,
Kenneth

[DaveNJ]

I think there are some great points here about South Bends and Grangers being the best value (I honestly forgot to mention them because I'm unfamiliar and/or haven't loved what I've had in hand), but equally good point about the resale value of Orvis rods.

Another great point is tapping into prolific modern builders who are affordable, especially getting into clones.

And again with the Sweetgrass Mantras, not cheap, but a great way to try a $2K+ rod for half the price. That's how I found what would become my favorite smaller stream rod, the 7'3" 4wt penta.

[Vaughanwilson3022]

Grangers and Heddons are readily available and reasonably priced in the mid to lower grade grade rods.

[jvh]

I think Heddons are hard to beat. Especially the higher grades.
Vern

[Flashman]

I concur on the Cabela's fiberglass rod. Mine is 6 1/2 ft 4 wt and it is wonderful.

[Flashman]

I concur with recommendation of the Steffen 8 ft 5/6. I have the 8 ft 4/5 and it is my favorite until I received the 7 ft 8 inch 3/4: the difference is significant but both are excellent. However, on our larger western rivers the 9 ft rod rules, 4 or 5 weight, older, softer Winston's, Scott's or Sages.

[DireWolf53]

While I get the gist of the question I'd say value is somewhat of a relative thing. At the end of the day the best value probably will be the rod you reach for most often and will hang onto the longest.

[Perry Palin]

The more I read these pages the more I realize that either my experience is unique, or that others with similar histories aren’t talking.

My first bamboo rod is a PHY Company Midge from the early 1960’s, new, unused and stored until I bought it in 1981. The seller would only take $95 for the rod. I’m still using that rod. Performance and value are a plus, but there aren’t a lot of these available at that price.

I have a 7 ½ foot Orvis that I’ve used with a 5wt line. I don’t care much for the rod on our small Midwestern streams, but it’s holding its value.

I have a couple of very fine trout rods by modern local professional rod builders. They perform wonderfully. I had one given to me and the other I won in a raffle. They are available, and you can’t beat (the way I got) them for value.

I have eight or ten bamboo rods that were built by talented local amateurs. They were built with our local streams in mind, and perform well here. I found them through networking in local clubs or by knowing the builders. Some of them were not finished off very professionally (they are sporting tools after all, not museum pieces) but I have refurbished or refinished most of them. I invested $25 - $100 in each. A couple in this group I cobbled together from parts of two different rods, and before you dismiss that process you should read what Paul Young wrote about it in his book.

I am not a collector. I don’t put much weight on the name on the rod. The prices I paid are not important to me. I expect I could make money if I sold these rods. I am more interested in their performance, and the rods in my current “collection” all fish well for me. Availability? Even I was able to find them. So that's my story.

[maruoff]

It depends on what kind of rod you are looking for.

The shorter, lighter line weights are not available from the old production companies.

It is easier (although much has changed in the last 5 years - these rods are increasingly harder to get) to get 8ft+ rods that dont break the bank and are the best value in bamboo IMHO.

So for shorter rods up to 8ft I would go with:
AJ Thramer anytime
Radivoj Savli from Slovenia
C.Constable rods (Wallop brook etc.)
Pezon & Michel

Over 8ft:
Pezon & Michel
AJ Thramer
Heddon
Granger
Phillipson
Divine


BUT in the end you could also say that the greatest value rods are the best ones ever made that dont loose money when selling...depends on you...Payne, Young etc and in Europe Walter Brunner e.g..

[joep]

Some of the forum members are the greatest value in bamboo. Guys who don't go it professionally yet have quite a few under their belt. Just check the threads on rodmakers section.