glass vs graphite

[Phil Blackmar]

“Many were increasingly of the opinion that they’d all made a big mistake in coming down from the trees in the first place." Douglas Adams

I have become enamored with casting a fiberglass fly rod. Not the old rustic nostalgic kind, but the newer versions. I recently got a CTS quartz 8'9" 8 wt and love how it feels. It got me thinking.

I like the slower action of the fiberglass because I can really feel the weight of the rod/line in the stroke which helps with my timing. Reminds me of golf and feeling the weight of the head in the swing. I don't find I have to wait or throw it easy, in fact, it's the opposite. Can I correctly state graphite fly rods bend less than their fiberglass counterpart? If so, when you combine less bend, or at least less bend in the middle section, with faster recoil of graphite, it would seem timing is more sensitive with a graphite rod than a fiberglass rod. I know that goes against the overall consensus, but, isn't that the reason manufactures went to putting bricks on the end of their lines to slow the action of modern rods slightly and provide more weight for feel? Is it possible, that in some cases, tho certainly not all, that a fly fisherman would be better off with a glass rod than a graphite?

Just curious.....

Thanks
Phil

[Paul Arden]

Hi Phil,

Carbon rods got stiffer and stiffer, however the original carbon rods were like fibreglass but a much better version. Winston still make soft carbon rods I believe.

Cheers, Paul

[Lasse Karlsson]

Just going to leave these here...





Rodmaterial says nothing about a rods action or stiffness, recovery rate is marketing BS. A heavier line doesn't change a rods action or stiffness. Minds do play tricks on people, especially fishermen minds.

Cheers
Lasse

[VGB]

I have an Orvis Supafine graphite that is bendy as a bendy thing.

[Graeme H]

I love my (many) glass rods but I’m not going to give up the carbon fibre ones. Horses for courses.

PS - as a geologist, I strongly object to the implication that graphite has any place in a fly rod. It’s a truly amazing mineral, but it’s not noted for its tensile strength. Carbon fibre, on the other hand, is a very useful isomer of carbon in a structural setting.

[VGB]

You are of course correct Graeme, I’ve fallen into an Americanism which is criminal because I used to work for the company that first produced carbon fibre. I just checked on Tik Tok and it said don’t tell a geologist that rocks are dumb

Regards

Vince

[Paul Arden]

You’ll be casting Spey rods next!

[Mangrove Cuckoo]

Graeme,

Thanks! I love to irritate some of my friends... like yelling "trout set" when they miss all their fish. Now I'm going to correct them with "carbon fiber" every time they say "graphite".

I expect years of entertainment from that one.

[Graeme H]

. I just checked on Tik Tok and it said don’t tell a geologist that rocks are dumb

Is that the Mensa Tik Tok?

[Phil Blackmar]

I love my (many) glass rods but I’m not going to give up the carbon fibre ones. Horses for courses.

PS - as a geologist, I strongly object to the implication that graphite has any place in a fly rod. It’s a truly amazing mineral, but it’s not noted for its tensile strength. Carbon fibre, on the other hand, is a very useful isomer of carbon in a structural setting.

I stand corrected Graeme, thank you. My father was a geologist and had an impressive mineral and crystal collection but his true love was Mexican agates. Here are a couple examples.

Thanks
Phil