CHAPTER III 

 FITTINGS FOR THE FLY-ROD 



WHEN you have decided upon the material 

 for your rod there remain a number of me- 

 chanical details of construction, in addition 

 to various questions of length, weight and the like, 

 to be considered. We will take it for granted that 

 you have decided to get a fly-rod of six-strip split- 

 bamboo. A visit to the tackle shop or the consulta- 

 tion of the tackle catalogue of a large dealer will show 

 you that you have still to decide about the number of 

 rod joints; style of ferrules and hand-grasp; form of 

 handle or butt, whether integral or independent; the 

 form of guides and windings; and the style of reel- 

 seat. We will first take up these latter details and 

 then consider the matter of length and weight of the 

 rod. 



Fly-rods are usually made with three joints, the 

 butt, middle joint and tip or, as the last 



is called in England, the top. There Number of 



Rod Joints. 

 are, however, variations of construction 



in this regard. For obvious reasons the one-piece rod, 

 that is a rod with spliced joints, is the ideal rod; but 

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