Sage Circa

A sweet "old-school" Circa 7'9" #3 I have finished this week for Dan, in Utah. Dan fishes small and medium sized streams for trout, similar to what I fish here and some bigger ones. He likes rods that are very clean and understated. Dan is a fan of Dave Lewis work whom he has met personally. He has a few Dave Lewis made rods in his collection and knowing his taste on rods, it inspired me on this build. I have built another rod for Dan in the past and this Circa is pretty much built in the same style.

I had a NOS Struble D2S NS amboyna seat and it looked like the perfect touch on this fine blank. A small Mildrum stripping guide and classy Universal snakes wrapped in Pearsall light olive silk tipped green complement the green-tea blank perfectly. My finish work makes this Circa a very special rod that is not only beautiful to look at, but will last a lifetime or more. I haven't got to cast it yet but feels like a great ultralight rod with power. Even better that my 589-4 favorite or 389-4 in the series. The Circa was discontinued recently and it is the slimmest, slickest blank Sage has made so far. Many will still preffer something shorter than the current ultralight series they have now. The 7'9" length is spot on for small stream fishing.

I removed most of the factory simbols on this blank but the SAGE logo. Turned out very simple and elegant in the end. Maybe very similar to the famous Sage LL series? 

Thanks for looking and Merry Christmas everyone!

Some cool news

Just received an email from Mauri in Finland and his thoughts on the new Epic 686 Amber rod. His collection is quite amazing too. Wow...stoked to read this!

"Hi George,

The rod arrived today safely and sound. It sure was a pleasure to open up the package... Pics does not make justice for this rod! The blank itself is great looking and the color is maybe the coolest I have seen on any rod. Then the build, rarely you face up the rod that at the same time is dead straight functional and still as beautiful as a rod could be. This rod is so nice to admire and look at but still it feels as a fishing tool. It's a rare combo but this one has just that. Very clean build all the way to the rod bag and the tube as well. 

After admiring and wiggling it I took the rod outside to check how it casts. Tried a few 6 and 6/7wt WF lines and it has more power than our back yard can take... need to get this rod on the water soon. Very accurate and fast action, easy to load and shoot line with one false cast and is able to produce enough speed for big flies and for those windy days. For a glass rod that's not that common. Definitely a tool and not a toy. First impressions were great and I'm sure it will fish equally well if not better.  Have to say I have seen pretty much everything in fiberglass rod world over the last thirty years but this rod really impressed me. Really.

Thank you so much George for building this up, executing it with all your passion and skill that are clearly present in every detail. Already one of my favourite rods. Really look forward to see the process of those two future Morgan builds.

Wish you all the best and also a Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones. Take care.

Best,

Mauri"  

Epic Amber 686

Here is Swift's new Amber color in the also relatively new four piece 686 design. I finished this rod for a cool guy in Finland. A beautiful looking six weight for sure and even better performing. Mauri fishes for big trout and salmon in the Kola Peninsula, Russia and of course, Finland. This wicked Amber 686 will have some serious work to do in the next coming season.

The rod was fitted in my presentation grade in a special color scheme similar to a cane rod. The dark accents of the blued Mildrum stripping guide, snake guides, reel seat and blued winding check really complement this beautiful golden-yellow blank. Everything flowed together nicely as I felt very inspired on this build.

It's going to be a long busy winter and please check back from time to time for more of these beauties. Thanks for looking! 

Another Winston

Here is another Winston LT beauty I just finished. I think these classic rods are among the best designs ever made and no other company has been able to replicate or to even come close to the sweet Winston "feel" in a graphite rod yet. 

I tell the Sage guys who still don't want to take the plunge into the new fiberglass rods that they should go for a good old Winston, even in used state. 

This time I was lucky enough to find a NOS blank for this project, and I have a couple more LT's from other sources that I'll have to build sometime this winter. And it looks like it's going to be a long winter.

This is a second project on the same blank. I love how this one came out. Simple, clean and sharp.

I casted this rod on the water before it was complete and I gotta tell you this rod is a trout fisherman's dream rod. I built it for a friend here in Romania and hope he's going to have a blast on it for years to come. Thanks for looking everyone!

Steffen 8'3" 5/6wt. Fall edition.

Here a beautiful Steffen build I completed for my good friend Jay Lee in the Netherlands. Jay hates using the six weight graphite broomsticks available in the industry today, so I decided to build him something nice and smooth so he can fish streamers more relaxed.

Jay is an FFF casting instructor and a true gentleman. I love building rods for guys like him. He can apreciate a fine build and he is very picky about handles. He thinks the handles on rods today are huge for some people's hands. That is why I paid very much attention to the grip shape and proportions.

The rod is fitted very minimalistic with a tiny fighting butt and a new "old school" Lemke bronze anodized reel seat, a complementary bronze anodized winding check and simple chestnut wraps over the dark snake guides.

A beautiful hand sewn rod bag by my girfriend along with a gorgeous new rod tube I received recently. This was the last Steffen blank in four pieces Mark made for me and one of his famous models. Thanks for looking!