Tuesday, January 3, 2012

McFarland "Limited Edition" S-Glass

Recently Mike McFarland of the McFarland Rod Company announced a "Limited Edition" run of S-Glass builds on the Fiberglass Flyrodders forum and I wanted to share it on T.F.M. as well.  I've long been a fan of the blanks that McFarland Rod Company produces and the several builds that I have from him have always been worth the much longer than expected wait.   

Two years ago I purchased a complete rod blank manufacturing shop. With my own equipment I can design and build new blanks more quickly than ever.  Ever since I got the shop up and running, I've experimented with new tapers, materials, mandrels, and patterns.  To date, some of my best new rods are S-glass designs.  I use a very thin, unidirectional S-glass cloth.  This material builds into amazing, long, light line fly rods, including an 8' 2 weight, an 8'3" 3 weight, an 8'8" 4 weight, and a 9'2" 5 weight.  While the four tradition rod models may appear ordinary, their performance and lightness are anything but.  All of the new designs are extremely light weight - even the 9'2" 5 weight three piece weighs only 3.0 ounces.  These designs show modern fiberglass is more versatile than ever.


Thin, unidirectional S-glass cloth is no longer available and my dwindling supply is approaching the end of its shelf life.  I decided to roll my remaining material into blanks for a "Limited Edition" rod series.  I selected my most unique and best performing designs for this rod series.

Two Piece Models
7' Three Weight
7'6" Four Weight
8' Five Weight

Three Piece Models
7'6" Three Weight
8' Two Weight
8'3" Three Weight
8'8" Four Weight
9'2" Five Weight


The rod blanks are black, unsanded S-glass with a tip over butt ferrule design.  Most rods will have slide band reel seats of my own signature design.  The 8'8" 4 weight and 9'2" 5 weight will have downlocking, Joel Lemke, screwlock seats.  All rods will have dark red wraps, chrome guides, bright hardware, and powder coated aluminum tubes with brass hardware.  The two piece rods are priced at $539.  The three piece rods are priced at $595.

Other than a few rods that are already complete, this rod series will be built in small batches.  Because I have very little S-glass cloth remaining, I will only build approximately ten of each model.  Some models will have even less.  The 7' three weight for example will be limited to a total of only four rods.  The first batch in production will be the 9'2" five weights.  I expect to ship these in early February.  The remaining models will be available through the late winter into spring.  When production of a particular batch of rods begins, I will make announcements online.


To reserve a rod, simply send me an e-mail indicating what model you would like.  I am not taking deposits or payments at this time, but I am accepting reservations. Only when your rod is ready to ship will I contact you to arrange payment.

I am very excited to offer these rods. They represent a lot of hard work and long hours experimenting with a seemingly endless number of prototypes.  Everyone who has cast or fished these rods agrees that they are special.  Because this series is so limited, I expect these rods will be some the most collectible McFarland Rod Company fly rods.  I think you will enjoy them as much as I do.

3 comments:

dude said...

Mike is a glass master!

Cameron Mortenson said...

dude...you are correct. I like his tapers a lot.

Shane said...

I agree with both of you!