South Bend Question

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CMcDowell
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Joined: 12/21/11 14:58
Location: Oregon

South Bend Question

#1

Post by CMcDowell »

Did all c. 1932-34 model 20/120 South Bend fly rods have intermediate wraps?

I suppose anything is possible. I should ask, does anyone have, or has anyone seen, a marked/labeled early model 20/120 that they believe to be original without intermediates? The rod I have is a 9' 3pc. and has the aluminum "Threadlock" reel seat with the black bakelite/rubber filler shell that Wes Jordan introduced on higher grade South Bend's and Cross marked rods (The hardware on mine is not embossed with the SB logo), a 7 1/2" reverse half-wells grip, is 5.86 oz., and has Goldenrod (yellow #5 in Sinclair's book) wraps with black tipping. The rod is in tough shape, but the wraps look original to me and there are no intermediates. However, there is no label or script, so if absolutely all South Bend rods from this early 1930's era had a label then I guess it must have been stripped (labels and ink) and re-wrapped at some point in time?

Thank you,
Chris McDowell

jeffkn1
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Re: South Bend Question

#2

Post by jeffkn1 »

Tough one, Chris. Can you provide photos?
The 1934 catalog shows the 120 with intermediates so it should have had them all along to '34. I think the 20 was dropped by then, but all the entries I found show the 20 with intermediates.
It should have shown evidence of labeling via decal or roll stamp on the seat.

CMcDowell
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Location: Oregon

Re: South Bend Question

#3

Post by CMcDowell »

Thank you Jeff. I was thinking this is a 1932-34 rod based on the clues from the catalogs. The rod weighs 5.86 oz., but has a lot of grunge and some repair wraps were done with heavy upholstery thread, so it might have been a tad lighter when original. Regardless, I've always assumed rod companies will err on the light side when declaring weight, so I think this would have been a 5.75 oz. taper, so pre-1935 per the catalog designation for the #120, but I may be wrong on that. Beginning 1935 they indicate a 6 oz. taper. It also has an agate stripping guide, although it looks as if it were run over by the fishing car at some point. I'm going to try to straighten it out. It looks like carneleon. The ferrules are serrated and wrapped over and look like chrome plated nickel silver, with angular welt and distinctive knurling below the welt and at the base on the females. It does have a signature wrap and a mid-butt wrap, but no intermediates. Once I strip it down I should be able to see any ghost marks from intermediates if they were removed, but for now this rod is very grungy and I don't see any sign of them. Here are a few photos:

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jeffkn1
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Joined: 06/08/05 18:00

Re: South Bend Question

#4

Post by jeffkn1 »

Chris

As luck would have it, my South Bend collection includes a 9' 120, so I'm posting detail photos for comparison. I didn't include male ferrules but mine are the same as yours. The wraps are original and the varnish has been removed. The catalog states brown varnish but I don't recall just how brown it was. Wraps are green with orange tipping and thin green intermediates,spaced 2 1/4" apart on the butt, 2" on the mid, and 1 5/8 on the tips. Weight is nominally 6oz.

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CMcDowell
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Posts: 150
Joined: 12/21/11 14:58
Location: Oregon

Re: South Bend Question

#5

Post by CMcDowell »

Thanks again Jeff. The hardware on your rod definitely matches the one I have, and I feel confident now that mine is a model 120. The bamboo color is the same as well; where the brown-tinted varnish is absent. This one will be satisfying to refinish. It is very sound structurally, except for the 2nd tip down 1", yet a real beast cosmetically. The transformation will be dramatic.

RAD357
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Joined: 11/16/23 13:35

Re: South Bend Question

#6

Post by RAD357 »

I recently inherited my father's bamboo fly rod. It says it's a South Bend 19066. It has 3 sections. It was purchased sometime in the late 70s. Apparently it was never used. After he passed it was stored in its tube until recently discovered while clearing.

I'm at a loss at figuring out information about this item. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Randy

crowebeetle
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Location: Chapel Hill, NC & central Penna

Re: South Bend Question

#7

Post by crowebeetle »

much more info is needed and photos of the reel seat, ferrules, winding check, tip top,

Webfly
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Joined: 07/29/11 18:00

Re: South Bend Question

#8

Post by Webfly »

And, it would be best if you started a new thread in the appraisal section that has a list of details to include.

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