34 PRACTICAL FLY FISHING 



is reenforced with a welt at the open end and is water- 

 proofed by a partition or floor at its base to prevent 

 water getting at the wood. In short, the better class 

 of American ferrule is a decided success. 



GRASPS 



The best material for the hand grasp is cork, either 

 solid or of cork discs over a wood core. Cheap rods 

 have a thin sheathing of cork on the grasp which soon 

 shows signs of wear and the same objection applies to 

 the celluloid and cane wound grasps. The form of 

 the grasp is a matter of taste. The swelled grasp is 

 large in the middle and tapers at the front and rear 

 while the shaped or Wells' grasp flares at both ends. 

 I have rods with both types and can notice little differ- 

 ence in them. 



REEL SEAT, ETC. 



The reel seat on a fly rod is placed below the hand 

 to keep the reel out of the way and to add weight be- 

 low the grip for leverage in casting. The reel seat 

 may be either metal, celluloid or " skeleton " the lat- 

 ter usually being a piece of grooved cedar. 



The metal reel seat should be of German silver as 

 this material is superior to the nickel plated brass used 

 on the cheaper rods. German silver is strong, its fin- 

 ish is permanent and never chips and while it tarnishes 

 slightly it can easily be polished. I rather like the 

 British idea of oxidizing all metal parts. With the 

 skeleton or celluloid reel seats a metal butt cap is put 



