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 ^ u b< : r ? f 



, 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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