Bamboo Rods | lines, guides, and spacing

 

I am writing an entry on lines, guides, and spacing regarding bamboo rods. I want to keep it simple, open-minded, and straightforward because, as I have learned from my past mentors, much of this is empirical. 

Very early bamboo rods used silk lines coated with linseed oil. The history of fly lines dates back to the 1700s, when horse hair was used, but I will focus on more recent developments. The early rods themselves used smallish guides by today's standards. Lines were mainly all silk and were not as thick in diameter as today's plastic lines. I'm not talking about line weights, I'm talking about thicknesses. The guides were quite adequate and suitable for the diameters of the silk lines back then. Today's guides are bigger, more robust, and have evolved to run larger plastic-diameter lines through them.  Leaders, the most critical piece of equipment, have evolved dramatically over the last hundred years and continue to improve over time. My leaders are both furled and silk leaders. I use nail knot connections exclusively for seamless energy transfer from the line to the leader.

Above photo: Some of my silk leaders that I connect with 

using only nail knots, these leaders usually last me around 3 years per leader.

The furled leaders I use are Cutthroat Leaders and Zen Outfitters. Both are great and come in various lengths, including shorty versions that are typically 50". I use the 50" leaders in both furled and silk for midging in tight quarters, especially with my smaller bamboo rods. I usually step my tippet down to between 9 and 12 feet, depending on conditions. The size flies I use, rod length, and line weights are all considerations.

So, before a custom cane rod is made, many makers, such as myself, will ask a customer what kinds of lines they intend to use. This is important because the sizing of the guides needs to accommodate these thicker lines (relative to silk), assuming they will use, for example, a Wulff Triangle Taper or Cortland 444 Peach line. Now, if they are intending on using a line like Terenzio silk, then smaller guides will actually work, but larger ones will too. This is where a maker really needs to chat with the customer to understand their line preferences. My personal rods all have smallish guides because I fish primarily with silk. As an example, if I were to fish RIO Lightline in a double taper, my guides, including the tip top, would be adjusted to accommodate the specific line diameters. If I were to run these lines through my own personal rods, they would load differently. I do this all the time, and I am not biased one way or another. I like Wulff Triangle Taper lines, Rio, Cortland 444 Peach, and Sylk. I need to know the preferences so I can make the proper adjustments to guides and tip top. It's simple and pretty straightforward. 

Now comes the dreaded and often heated discussions that I have had at many gatherings in the Catskills and at numerous rod makers' gatherings — the topic of guide spacing. Many makers have their own preferences, often based on empirical evidence, and we all wish there could be clear-cut rules. However, this discussion continues to stymie and confuse even the most avid fly casters and rod makers. If I could go back in time, I would put Paul Young, Everett Garrison, and EF Payne in a war room and hash it out once and for all. Get a box of donuts, a gallon of coffee, and put some steaks on the grill, and let the cards fall as they may. 

When I was younger, I would lose sleep over guide spacing. Until I realized I just needed to test everything for myself, and to this day, I still do. I was fortunate enough to have a lot of correspondence with George Maurer back in my late 20s and early 30s. His knowledge and resourcefulness were shared freely, and it made a lasting impression on me. Unfortunately, George is no longer with us. Now, if you were to open George Maurer's relatively recent book, published in 1998, and compare it to Garrison's book, first issued in 1977, and turn the pages to guide spacing in each one, you quickly realize some discrepancies. Often, makers will use oversized guides to make things simple, which can be problematic, as I have discussed with many makers in the past. I have built many rods with various guide arrangements specified by some very old makers, many of whom are no longer alive, and I can honestly say that all of them required some tweaking, which is a pretty bold statement. So am I picky? Most definitely, but I also believe that everyone needs to evolve as lines and rods evolve, including both silk and plastic lines. I have measured guide spacing on Payne's, Garrison's, South Bends, Fred Divine's, T&T's, and many others, but I won't list them all here. Over twenty-five years after reading Garrison's book, I can honestly say I am glad I took the time to explore, test, and draw my own conclusions. After all, that's how we evolve, which means taking risks and dedicating time to edit day after day, year after year.

Bamboo rods, like musical instruments, all have their intricacies and idiosyncrasies, much like their human counterparts.

Thanks for letting me share ~ Clint Bova