[Jim Riggins]

I picked up a bamboo rod at an estate sale and it is missing a guide. Does anyone in the Vancouver area work on bamboo rods, looks like it is a simple repair. The wraps are intact and looks like I could slip a new guide under the thread and re glue it?

 

[bitterroot]

Jim,

I don't think you'd be happy with a slip it in and glue it repair. However, you don't need to have it repaired specifically by a bamboo rod maker either. Any rod builder who can wrap a guide on a graphite blank could wrap a guide on a bamboo rod. About the only difference is that bamboo wraps are usually finished only with varnish and plastic rod wraps are usually finished with epoxy. No biggie!

 

[4357]

Jim,

Bitterroot makes a good point but if your rod has any value to it you might want to consider a bamboo specialist for the job.

Dwight Lyons has done restorations for a few of my rods and has been in the business for years. Go to; http://www.fdlyons.com/

Dennis Stone also gets rave reviews for his work from those into bamboo. Try him at www.stonerodco.com

Both are in the Portland area.

 

[Kent Lufkin]

Bitterroot makes a good point but if your rod has any value to it you might want to consider a bamboo specialist for the job.

You didn't mention the maker's name or model of the bamboo rod in question. But just because it's old doesn't mean it's without value. As an example, one member here a few years back was given an old cane rod by a friend of his mother's. Turns out it was a Payne from the 1960s (if I remember correctly) and worth as much as $6,000. While not every old cane rod will be a treasure, if yours indeed has some value, a botched repair job could reduce that amount dramatically.

There are several folks here who are quite knowledgeable about old bamboo rods. Before doing anything, why not take a closer look at the rod and post a manufacturer's name, model number or other information from the flats just above the grip or the rod tube? While a beater rod worth $25 to $50 is probably not be worth seeking out a cane rod specialist to repair, one worth several times that amount or more certainly might be.

K

 

[bitterroot]

one member here a few years back was given an old cane rod by a friend of his mother's. Turns out it was a Payne from the 1960s (if I remember correctly) and worth as much as $6,000.

K

I never have that kind of luck!

Good advice from both Greg and Kent.

 

[Jim Riggins]

Kent, it's an old, and I'm sure cheap Montegue 9', 3pc. looks like a 5 or 6 wt. model say's "flash" on it. Except for the missing guide you would swear it's brand new. Just thought it would be kind of fun using a natural cane rod instead of the Sage's and Echo's every now and then. My dad gave me an old Garcia automatic reel that I used to play with as a kid, so it should be a kick in the pants to play around with.

 

[Nooksack Mac]

I was talking with an older man in Yellowstone Park last week. He said that his grandfather stripped and replaced all the guides from his E. C. Powell bamboo every year! That seems unnecessary. But replacing guides, rewinding a new one with silk or nylon, and refinishing the wrap is no big deal. Have it done by a rod-builder and watch as he does it, so you'll know how to yourself in the future.

 

[Kent Lufkin]

Kent, it's an old, and I'm sure cheap Montegue 9', 3pc. looks like a 5 or 6 wt. model say's "flash" on it. Except for the missing guide you would swear it's brand new. Just thought it would be kind of fun using a natural cane rod instead of the Sage's and Echo's every now and then. My dad gave me an old Garcia automatic reel that I used to play with as a kid, so it should be a kick in the pants to play around with.

Montague's do indeed have some value, although sadly nowhere near the $6,000 Payne I mentioned earlier! Here's a link to some old information on various Montague models and guidelines to their market value: http://home.myfairpoint.net/and96jac/fishnbanjossliceoflifeincyberspacecopy/id23.html

Unlike graphite rods, in general the longer the cane rod, the less it's value. Why? Bamboo rods have a solid, not hollow blank, which weighs much more than a graphite or fiberglass blank. The longer the bamboo rod, the heavier it is and thus the more effort and fatigue required to cast one for a length of time. (I've got a 9 foot Granger Special that's worth about half of what the exact same rod but in the vastly more popular 7-1/2 foot length would fetch.)

I'd recommend finding someone with experience in restoring cane rods to evaluate your Monty and perform the necessary repairs. Length and value aside, I'm glad to hear you've already discovered how much fun a bamboo rod is to fish. Take good care of this one and your grandchildren will enjoy fishing it many years from now.

K

 

[Jim Riggins]

Greg and everyone, thanks the rod is on the way to Dennis Stones for repair. Also he has moved to McMinnville Or. Kind of fun poking around that bamboo flyrod forum, they are so SERIOUS! Bamboo rods are a whole different ball game, $6000 for a rod! I don't spend that much on a whole year of fishing, well I might but I don't let the wife know.