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Thread: Fly Rod Repair?

  1. #1
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    Default Fly Rod Repair?

    Any good fly rod repair experts in the Upstate?

    I'll check with the mfg, but I don't want a "deal" on a new one if this can be repaired.

    It's a Fenwick HMG 755 - 5 wt / 2 PC, and I snapped it right under the fifth ferrule when I was practicing and the tippet got tangled in an unseen branch behind me as I made the forward stroke. It's a pretty clean snap, but I don't have the supplies or experience to try it myself and do a proper job.

    Hopefully a repair job will be a lot less than buying a new rod.

    Thanks for any info.
    Last edited by WoodieSC; 10-17-2016 at 09:28 AM.
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  2. #2
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    I doubt it can be repaired satisfactorily. Rods, and fly rods in particular, are fine tuned right to the edge of the performance envelope of the materials they are made from. Putting a cast on the broken section will affect the action more than most folks would be willing to put up with and it will never be as strong as an unrepaired rod.

    If you do replace it, look at the Temple Fork Outfitter rods. They get touted as the best "bang for the buck" rods and that implies they are decent "economy" rods. I think that despite the lower price, they stand with the best brands when it comes to performance, fit and finish. They are damn good rods with a good warranty. Look at the Lefty Kreh Signature series.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Palmetto Bug View Post
    I doubt it can be repaired satisfactorily. Rods, and fly rods in particular, are fine tuned right to the edge of the performance envelope of the materials they are made from. Putting a cast on the broken section will affect the action more than most folks would be willing to put up with and it will never be as strong as an unrepaired rod.

    If you do replace it, look at the Temple Fork Outfitter rods. They get touted as the best "bang for the buck" rods and that implies they are decent "economy" rods. I think that despite the lower price, they stand with the best brands when it comes to performance, fit and finish. They are damn good rods with a good warranty. Look at the Lefty Kreh Signature series.
    I have a couple of Temple Forks in 3wt and 5wt and they are very nice rods for the price.
    Molon Labe
    HRCH Coal's Sparkleberry Cache MH

  4. #4
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    Call Jake Howard at Barron's in Columbia and see what he says.
    Listen to your elders. Not because they are always right but because they have more experiences of being wrong.

    "We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give" Sir Winston Churchill

  5. #5
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    You don't repair a broken carbon rod. It's a goner.
    "hunting should be a challenge and a passion not a way of making a living or a road to fame"

    Rubberhead

  6. #6
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    You guys are confirming what I was afraid of. I was hoping that being right under a ferrule might make it possible. I did find a guy in Simsonville - CJ Rod Repair - who wanted to look at the Rod or at least some pics before he said whether he would even try it. I didn't necessarily like his suggested procedure, but haven't really gone in to all the details with him at this point.

    I'm going to call Fenwick first and "hope" they still have the right rod blank whereby they night be able to replace the top half of the rod.

    What really ticks me off is that I even had the rod out. I've pulling together a package of this rod (which I've owned for years and rarely used), another 9' 5 wt rod I had sitting around unused, two reels, and some 5 and 6 WFF line for a neighbor friend who's done me a number of big favors over the years and only has a 7 wt rod despite his enjoyment of fly fishing and his hobby of making nice, laminated, trout nets, of various combinations of woods. The guy has put three daughters through college, doesn't spend money on himself, and would never turn anyone down who needed a hand. This rod was in pristine condition and he would have loved it, and I'm just mad at myself for screwing it up.

    I do own a TFO Finesse 7'9" 4 wt that I really like. The problem I'm seeing is that it seems rare to find a 7'6" 4 or 5 wt rod. They all seem to be 3 wt, and the 4's and 5's are longer. In this case I was trying to stay in that 7'6" length since this guy presently uses a 7' spinning rod to fish where his 7 wt rod won't fit, although he'd rather fly fish. If I have to drop back to the 3 wt it messes up the reels I got as they would balance with the 9' rod, and did well with this Fenwick, but probably are a bit large for a 3 wt rod. Damn...

    I guess I'll see what Fenwick says before I give up the ghost.

    Thanks for the feedback.
    Last edited by WoodieSC; 10-17-2016 at 09:28 AM.
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  7. #7
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    Fenwick said I could send it in for evaluation and their review committee would either give me a replacement, or offer a 45% discount off a current HMG rod, or the 45% off the HMG pricing + any $ difference if I wanted to upgrade. But they also said it wouldn't be an option to just return my old rod to get it repaired. I have to decide before I would send it to them.

    Overall it sounds like a fair deal, but they don't offer a 7'6" rod in 4 or 5 wt, only 3 wt.

    So my question to you guys who use a 3 wt rod and line is... is that light a line really enough to fish anything other than dries and small nymphs? I've never used anything that light so I have no idea what it's limitations are.

    Here's a great article series on repairing fly rods. The break on mine is like the first one in this article, just down under ferrule #5 instead of higher up.

    http://www.flyanglersonline.com/feat...pair/part2.php
    Last edited by WoodieSC; 10-17-2016 at 07:23 PM.
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    Foothills Golden Retriever Rescue
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    "Keep your powder dry, Boys!"
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  8. #8
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    Is it the old school fenwick? I've got one I'll sell you.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by murraywader View Post
    Is it the old school fenwick? I've got one I'll sell you.
    Hard to tell. The 'old school' I know of is the green one.

    This is 'old school' in that is was 'Made in the U.S.A.', and I'm pretty sure that Fenwick rod production was moved to Taiwan(?) sometime in the 70's, although someone told me it was in the early 90's, which sounds more plausible. So I'm not sure how 'old school' mine is. It's a real good looking brown/amber color.

    What model/weight have you got? And what condition is it in?
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    Foothills Golden Retriever Rescue
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    "Keep your powder dry, Boys!"
    ~ George Washington

    "If I understood everything I said I'd be a genius." ~ 'Unknown'

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by WoodieSC View Post
    Hard to tell. The 'old school' I know of is the green one.

    This is 'old school' in that is was 'Made in the U.S.A.', and I'm pretty sure that Fenwick rod production was moved to Taiwan(?) sometime in the 70's, although someone told me it was in the early 90's, which sounds more plausible. So I'm not sure how 'old school' mine is. It's a real good looking brown/amber color.

    What model/weight have you got? And what condition is it in?
    I've got a few of them. I'll check when I get home.

  11. #11
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    Default

    you can nymph with a 3wt no problem

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