This one is for John at Improved Clinch.
First let me first state that this is normally a gun-blog, and my fishing credentials are simply non-existent – but old-stuff, whether it’s gun or some other mechanical art, arouses in me a singular passion and joy.
The last fish I caught was a baitfish Aku on a boat out of Kauai. It was an itty-bitty thing maybe ten inches long, caught by a golden giant-monster Pen International XXX rod-and-reel combo that would be fit for catching whales and The Kraken. My assumed job on a fishing boat is to reliably insure that someone else does catch something – sorta like my job at a company is to insure that within a few years it goes tits-up. My history is impeccable.
Prior to that, the last time I even fished was back in 2000, after a painful 90-mile boot/foot interaction while dirt-riding in Idaho. I just needed a break from riding for a day, and enjoyed hopping around on rocks by a cool mountain stream – I caught nothing. The last time before that when I went fishing was when I was about twelve years old, on a family camping trip up in the Sierras – and I caught nothing. The only fish I have actually caught, prior to the 2008 Kauai Aku, was a 12-inch bass when I was eight, fishing with my Grandpa at Anderson Dam. I loved my Grandpa very much and miss him still… So any fish-related activity or motto for which I may be a poster-boy is, “That’s why it’s called Fishing, not Catching.” I’ve never actually even been fly-fishing.
But still, the aesthetics are inspiring, and I found this at a local charity rummage. It came in a kind of roll-up “rod-sock” and appears unused.
The rig has three tips, and is in five pieces. Two tips are for fly fishing (one is a spare in case the other breaks or is lost – I’m guessing) and another stouter piece is for Spin casting.
The fly combo had a mid-piece to extend the length of the pole to about 9-fee long, while the stouter spin-piece simply goes onto the base-section to make that set-up about five-feet long.
The wrappings are simply exquisite and undamaged.
The handle goes both ways. Pull out the button on one end and flip it around for the spin-casting setup.
Ebisu is the Japanese god of fishing – a pretty big deal there as they eat a lot of fish. My smattering of research indicates it’s of post-war Japanese manufacture and that these were sold to servicemen who were stationed there, and later sometimes sold under the Sears Craftsman label here in the US.
Normally it comes in a long, slender wooden box with some bits and pieces of tackle (hooks and weights, probably a fly). I just think it’s awesome cool, so I bought a little Mosquito fly-reel and now I need to take some string-throwing lessons or something…
Not Clauswitz 
Nice article! I also recently acquired an Ebisu bamboo fly rod. I then managed to get a cheap Grampus Nikko reel also made in Japan and suitable [I think] for this rod.
However, my personal preference is spinning and my collection is mainly vintage spinning rods and reels from European manufacturers. Living in the UK I can usually find this equipment without much effort.
That said, this Japanese bamboo rod is very well made and perhaps one day I might just give it a try. A nice Wild Brown Trout would make a wonderful catch!
Thanks again for your fascinating article on the Ebisu rod. Regards Harvey.
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A simple definition a bamboo fly rod is a fly fishing rod that is made out from bamboo which many people also refers to as a cane. This type of fishing rod is the most preferred by anglers because it carries within it a combined strength and versatility due to its high density fiber content.
For more information about Bamboo Fly Rod feel free to click the link
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Hi John, thanks for the warning! 🙂 I walked into an Orvis shop last evening and made some discoveries about price – one of which was a two-piece, 6-foot, split-bamboo fly rod for only $1,998.00 – with a $349 reel on it. I see from their website that is just a starting price.
I guess I expect as much from some big oceanic fighting rig designed to catch #800lb Marlin rather than #8lb trout, but I spend money on ammo and it just turns it into noise and downrange velocity! 🙂
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I hate to burst your bubble but there are graphite (carbon fiber) fly rods that go for over $800 each. I think my most expensive fly rods are in the $3-400 range.
That said, you can some really decent rods in the $100-150 range made by TKO. They just aren't American made.
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Well, since I don't even know how to cast a fly and my other nick-name is “Clodhopper Who Destroys What he Touches,” maybe this piece of fine artwork isn't where I should start.
I have a problem with starting-up hobby-things late in life, that everybody else learned to do as a child, from dirt-riding to shooting I'm always way behind the eight-ball. (I already glued one ferrule back together when it came apart upon assembly…)
But carbon fiber (or whatever) fly-rods I've seen cost over a hundred freaking dollars? Is that for real?
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I strongly recommend that you DO NOT cast or fish with that rod. The glue used in the old rods gets brittle with age and when the rod is flexed it is not unusual for the glue to fail, ruining the rod. It's a beautiful rod, and I'd recommend that you appreciate it for the beauty and workmanship, but don't fish with it. There are a lot of very reasonably priced carbon fiber rods out there, and if one of those is damaged, no big deal, as they are easily replaced. Not so with the bamboo rod you've got.
Mr. C.
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Way cool. I always wanted a split bamboo, my dr made several of his own from scratch. You'll have to keep us posted as to how it works.
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Pretty good tutorial stuff by a guy named Gary Borger (? – I think). You might be able to find some vids that he produced…god, thirty years ago or so. Good basic stuff like form and timing and that sort of thing.
I may have a copy sitting around.
Fly fishing is a game of practice, patience and craft, for sure, which, obviously, doesn't attract much of a crowd. It's not like watching football, and since it's hard to drink beer while fly-casting, well, not lotsa people do it. Still, wading the upper Missouri or some other Native-sounding name of a river has a definite appeal to someone like me…someday.
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