Sunday Classic / Trust The Boo

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My 7 Foot 4 Weight

I’ve fished bamboo rods my whole life and I’ve made my own for the last twelve years or so. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked if I was afraid to fight big fish on a bamboo rod. The answer is no. I’ve broken my share of rods but only once did I break one fighting a fish and that was totally my fault. I’ve landed more fish over twenty inches on bamboo than I can count, a few pushing thirty. The two fish pictured were both landed on a seven foot four weight. The tip on that rod measures only thirty thousandths of an inch in diameter but it handled those monsters just fine.

A 27″ Hen and a 28″ Male Both Landed on the 4 Weight

Bamboo is a remarkable material. When properly heat treated it has amazing strength. Traditional Japanese carpenters use bamboo nails cooked in a wok and high rise construction all over Asia is done on bamboo scaffolding. Do bamboo rods break? Of course they do but a well made rod is much stronger than you would guess and if properly handled and cared for it will take whatever a fish can dish out. I’ve heard it said that fisherman break rods, not fish, and I think that’s true. With that in mind, here are some tips on how to keep that cane rod fishing for many years.

• Treat it right. Bamboo doesn’t take a lot of maintenance but there are some things you should think about. Rot is a death sentence for a cane rod. Rod makers spend a lot of time on their finish and it can last a lifetime but it’s not bulletproof. Never put a rod away wet. This is the most common mistake guys make with their rods. When you put a rod in a tube with an o ring seal any moisture on that rod or it’s sock is in there until you open the tube again. That gives moisture plenty of time to work through the finish and into the wood. I set mine out on the mantle in the sock overnight before storing them. The second big finish mistake is leaving the rod in a hot car. If you leave that rod tube in the sun in a hot car the finish will bubble and no longer protect the cane. If you have to leave a rod in the car keep it in the shade and take the cap off for ventilation.

• Ovoid physical traumas. A bamboo rod will bend like grass in the wind. What will break it is sudden physical trauma. For example, trying to rip a fly out of tree leaves with a brisk casting stroke, as I watched a good friend do with my rod once, works every time. Running the tip headlong into a tree while hiking in doesn’t help. Hitting the rod with a heavy fly during the cast can nick the cane. Anything that breaks any fibers in the cane will eventually lead to a break. Often the rod seems to have broken over something minor when, in fact, the damage may have been done much earlier. I think this contributes to the idea that bamboo rods are delicate.

• Play your fish smart. I’ve heard people suggest that rolling a rod over during a fight so that it bends the other way will keep the rod from taking a set. This is a bad idea. Reorienting the fibers quickly while the rod is under stress will frequently break the rod. Never move your hand up the rod to support it past the grip. Taking the flex out of the butt section puts stress on the ferrule station which is the weakest spot on the rod. Use tippet that is appropriate for the rod. Don’t fish 3X and streamers with your three weight.

Bamboo rods are remarkable tools that are largely misunderstood. They will do some things that graphite can not. There are also applications where graphite is superior. But those cane rods are made to fish and land fish. Generations of anglers put them to good use before graphite came around. If you been considering getting into bamboo or if you already have a cane rod holding down some space in your closet don’t let the fear of breaking it keep you from fishing it. Some of them are works of art but they are all made to fish and enjoy and there’s nothing you can break that can’t be repaired so get that came out and fish it.

Putting "em In The Net Photo by Dan Flynn

 
Louis Cahill
Gink & Gasoline
www.ginkandgasoline.com
hookups@ginkandgasoline.com
 
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7 thoughts on “Sunday Classic / Trust The Boo

  1. I’ve heard some people mention Oyster rods and the rod building seminar that they offer…Any chance you will be offering any classes of your own to share some of you own rod building expertise?

  2. Good morning LC, I’ve been following an Italian Boo rod make on FB he is an amazing rod maker, I don’t have much knowledge on Boo rods, but he has peaked my interest, he amazed me, some of his rods even have Boo ferrules, his believe is flipping that rod over is the correct way to fight a big trout saying the backside fibers are much stronger. He makes awesome rods and catches big fish, you may of seen him before, Massimo Tirrocchi, they have a big Boo week planned in Mar in Patagonia, which I think B. Oyster attends as well or has. Thanks again

    • I know some very knowledgeable rod makers who feel the same way about rolling the rod but I have had them snap in my hand doing it and that is not a good feeling.

      I’ve never made bamboo ferrules but I do see the benefits. I’d like to try it but my time is so tight these days it’s hard to imagine. I could really use a week in the shop.

  3. Louis,
    Like to see cane rods getting some love from somebody under the age of 60! I fish my Oyster 8′ 5wt all over the place and find that it can take more abuse than any graphite stick I’ve had. Try scarfing a broken tip section on a graphite rod. Can’t do it. Keep up the great posts.
    Regards,
    Jed

  4. Pingback: Tippets: Caring for Bamboo, TU’s 1000 Miles, Geoff Mueller Interviewed, Pros and Cons of Line Design | MidCurrent

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