Online Orders:

The Stick: Introduction, Warranty, & Pricing
by Ken Abrames

The reason for the The Stick is quite simple. Many years ago, long before salt-water fly-fishing became so popular, we had to make our own rods if we wanted to solve problems that we came up against. The tackle available was similar to what it is now but there was not as much of it to sort through. A few reels, a lot of nine foot rods, no stripping baskets, some salmon and steelhead gear which was interesting, very few popular flies and believe it or not, no salt water fly shops, fly fishing guides, salt water fly fishing magazines, salt water seminars, casting clinics or schools. There were very few books written and Lefty's was the most popular for good reason. The time I am referring to was not that long ago. Those of us who fly fished were forced to develop our own solutions for salt-water difficulties and what we had to work with was our own experience and resourcefulness. The modern salt-water fly-fishing scene is quite different in tone but salt-water fly-fishing itself has not changed at all. The difficulties still remain and experience and resourcefulness are still operational.

What has happened is simple; the business part of salt-water fly-fishing has overwhelmed the fishing part. Marketing products is the force that is dominant. Salt-water-fishing problems are not seen as fishing problems but as opportunities to sell products that may or may not solve those problems. The intent is not to mislead but the expertise in product development is not grounded in broad personal experience in solving fishing problems but rather in developing and promoting products that anglers will believe solve those problems. It is good business to develop products that sell but it is also good business to listen and address the customer's real need. Fishermen need meat, not sizzle. Sizzle sells and that is the problem.

Sizzle does not catch fish. It's a placebo that leaves the user with an empty feeling of being exploited rather than helped. It's a bad taste that remains after the money is spent and no growth comes from the investment. Fishing is about catching fish, not about image. Image is real in short term marketing goals, but it is short sighted unless there is substance behind the image.

Years ago, the business of fresh water bass fishing was dominated by very few manufacturers. All the magazine writers wrote about their products, all the theories about how to catch fish were based on the use of their products, and all the bass fishermen believed in the truth of what was being written. Then something remarkable happened. The bass tournament phenomenon occurred.

Results of fishing with different methods and lures became public knowledge and an industry was born based on what actually worked. The growth of fresh water bass fishing occurred because the people could see the truth. The tackle changed. The standard rods and reels lines and lures that everyone bought and used became an option rather than the only products available. Tremendous change occurred because the information that helped fishermen catch more fish became mainstream.

The bass fishermen were given a real choice. They abandoned the writers that couldn't win tournaments, preferring to listen to those fishermen who displayed results rather than theories. They abandoned those magazines that refused to publish articles based on sound fishing principles. And those manufactures that once were dominant lost their hold on the industry.

The fishermen themselves became the force that demanded a change in products based on what actually caught fish best in a controlled and measured situation. People who cheated went to jail. No sizzle, just meat and there was a change, within two years fresh water bass fishing was transformed, and all the pretenders were gone. Some of us might not like the image of fresh water bass fishing, but its growth as an industry was based on solid "What really works best", verifiable and scrutinized result.

What does this have to do with salt-water fly-fishing? The similarity is astounding. Everyone fishes with the same tackle, the same lines, the same flie,s and reads the same writers in the same magazines who write and re-write the same stories and profess the same theories about almost everything. It's time for a change based on what the fishermen themselves need to know about the fundamentals of fly-fishing for striped bass. The force of market pressure and promotion has locked up salt-water fly-fishing information tight.

As I said before, the reason for The Stick is simple; it's a fly rod that was created to perform a different function than what the modern fly rod was created for. It is not a better rod; it is a different rod. The principles behind it are sound fly fishing principles: counterbalance to relieve stress on the wrist, length for salt water mending, flex for loading from the weight of the line, power to fight fish with, and proper guide placement and size for smooth casting. The rod also functions perfectly with three line weights so that different forms of presentation with different sized flies can be executed with grace.

The rod was born out of need, not to manifest an engineering or a marketing theory. I needed to cast a long line and be able to mend it. That was the first problem to solve. Stiff rods wouldn't flex and load correctly to both mend and cast. The power I needed to cast an eleven weight standard fly rod was draining on my arm. I found that I could cast an eleven-weight line effortlessly if the rod I was using would load from just the weight of the line on a simple backcast. I experimented with many rods and found that rods made from older, softer blanks loaded quite nicely. They had one problem: they weren't long enough to mend with precision. I spliced an extension into a first generation graphite blank and made a rod that I used for seventeen years. I was satisfied and content, but I had the misfortune of losing that rod to a car door. I had to come up with another one or fish with what was available. I tried everything and nothing would fish the way my old rod did.

For years people have been asking me to make this kind of rod available to them, so with my broken rod in hand I decided to see if I could. Thanks to the effort of my friend Al Fuller, who did the hard work of sourcing the materials and components and painstakingly formulating the placement of the guides and the procedures for manufacture, a much improved "Stick" is fishing once again.

It is an interesting rod in that it allows you to cast with both tight and open loops. It is a sweet rod and can be used in many different ways. It is not just for casting. It is beautiful to look at and it is made with attention to detail. The guides are large, heavy duty, and functional rather than standard fare. The reel seat is also heavy duty and will not fail. It has a hook keeper because a functional fly rod needs one. The rod has a tremendous amount of power to fight fish with in the butt section and you can easily move fish without worrying about the rod exploding, this is true even with the six weight. The middle section of the rod is where the power for mending comes from. When you point the rod down the line and lift, the rod flexes and loads throughout this section. Rods that are designed for casting alone do not have this middle section flex. If they do then they are rods that reflect design principles from an older era. There is nothing new about the idea behind this rod. A.H. Wood had single handed laminated wood rods built for him by Hardy of England in 1900 for big river fishing for salmon that embraced similar ideas and were longer than 10 1/2 feet. They were also a lot heavier. He was able to out-fish everyone because of what those rods enabled him to do with his line. Fly-fishing is about line control; fly-casting is just one facet of that.

The rod casts extraordinarily well. It is a one-backcast rod. If you try to force it, it won't cast at all. It's a waltz, not a break-dance, casting rhythm. The rod has the flex and the power to cast three line weights within itself. If you try to impose the timing of a fast stiff rod casting stroke you will be 100 percent frustrated. If you relax and let the rod load and unload in it's own time, with a little practice you will cast the whole line every time without a double haul. Shooting line into the first backcast is much more effective than multiple backcasts, and if you want to double haul use a two-inch stroke. The tip section of the rod is where the cast is made. It is not a 'tip action' rod but having the knowledge that the tip alone casts the line is very helpful. You can cast anyway you want to with this rod. If you want a tight loop and high line speed than shorten the casting stroke but do not increase the power from your arm. Cast with the top eight inches of the rod. You are in control of everything this rod does, but you have to work with the rod, not expect it to zip the line out there because of your strength. It will absorb your strength and dissipate it like a good shock absorber. It's a finesse rod that has great capacity and versatility. It is not for everyone and it was not designed for that purpose. It is a sweet rod that was created to fish in the ocean with control as the focus.

The rod comes with a bag and a case and a five year guarantee which covers materials and workmanship. It is not a production rod and because of the time and care that goes into each rod, the rod it is not a throwaway item. The guarantee does not cover accidental breakage or negligence. It is for five years, which is no small thing. Most breakage of rods comes from hook points penetrating the shaft through casting. That is not covered. There is a simple remedy to use when this occurs that really works. If you hit your rod with a fly check the rod for damage and if you find the mark where the fly hit the rod touch that spot with super glue. It stops the graphite fibers from separating and holds the integrity of the blank intact. I have a friend who had thirteen holes in the tip section and five in the butt section and the rod still fished powerfully for two years until an errant Clouser lead-head missile finished it off. I replaced the rod anyway but not because of the guarantee.

The production is limited. I do not make hundreds of them at one time. The Stick is a special rod and because of the care that goes into each one of them production will remain limited. They cost $595.00 plus tax and shipping and come with bag and case and a five-year limited guarantee.
All the best,
Ken Abrames.