Notes On The James Green Switch Rod

This photo has been sitting in my inbox for over a year now in hopes that John Arnold of Headhunters Fly Shop would have a few minutes to jot down a few notes on the James Green switch rod blank that he built up for his daughter, wife, and whoever else wanted to give it a go.

Quite a few of the Headhunters crew are glass junkies at heart and it's always fun trading messages and emails with John as he's scheming his next build for himself or someone at the shop.

Julie Arnold Loading It Deep

John wrote...  "I built this rod from a blank I purchased from James Green after Cam tracked it down for me.  I was looking for a blank to build a two hander for my 8 year old daughter Adair to use.  She fishes a lot here in Montana, and the Echo Gecko is her trout rod.  The Gecko is a great fly fishing tool for kids and it was that rod that spawned the thought of a glass two-hander for her.  While the Gecko is not entirely glass, it has the same slow soft action that makes it easy to launch a heavy weight forward line.  It's only drawback as a western steelhead rod was it's short 7'9" length.

The J. Green rod proved to be a great call for Adair.  It loads up easy and launches any fly.  The soft glass action means it's almost impossible to pull the hook away from a fish.  You can't be too quick.

I've tried many lines on it, but by far the best and most versatile line was the Wulff Ambush in a WF8.  Awesome.  Every adult that tries it absolutely loves it.  They won't put it down.

I finished it with all REC components, including black recoil guides.  I also turned a very small diameter burl cork grip for it.

Thanks again for the help with this project Cam!"

Follow the Headhunters Fly Shop Blog for daily updates on the Mo and whatever the hell else they want to talk about.  Fall is here and they're breaking out the two handers now.  Just maybe we'll see this sweet glass two hander show up on a scumliner media video at some point too.  Hint...hint...

Interested in a blank?  James Green does not have a website but can be contacted through email at  ml2jms@yahoo.com regarding blank specs, availability, and prices.