Hi All,

I recently came into the possession of a few antique rods (a friend of my fathers wanted to get rid of them) and I would like some help identifying/pricing them. There are 3 in total, 1 J. Bernard & Son "Club" Rod, 1 Hardy Bamboo and 1 Hardy Split Cane "Knockabout". Bar the J. Bernard & Son Rod, they are not in great condition but I would love to have any information about the rods as I am thinking about getting them restored.

Here is the J. Bernard & Son "Club" Rod, it is a 9ft 6 3 piece with 2 tip sections.




I have had a look for info about this rod online but have come up with zilch

Here is the Hardy "knockabout". It is a 2 piece 9ft 6 rod and the serial number (E20916) dates it to 1931 according to this site http://vfish.net/hardy.htm



The writing here says The Knockabout and "Palakona" Red'd no. 246936





Finally here is the Bamboo Hardy rod, which is also a 2 piece 9ft6. I can't find a name anywhere on this rod but the serial number (55032) dates it to 1901!





Any help identifying these rods would be much appreciated as would any recommendations on good rod restoration companies.

Second rod is in pretty poor condition. Third rod though is Greenheart , not split cane.
Ser No 55032 is around 1900 .Good luck with the renovation you will need it.
Here is something tohelp you
http://www.hardyandgreyscanada.com/hardy/rodname.php

http://www.flyfishinghistory.com/har...ring_dates.htm

Tight Lines

__________________
"The Future's Bright The Future's Wet Fly"

... is the integrity of the glue which bonds the six strips of bamboo and the ferrules.

The Knockabout - which in more modern guise - was the first serious rod I owned. It was a pig of a rod and really only suitable for salmon fishing. This one will cost a fortune to refinish and is simply not worth the expense/effort.

The Bernard rod has a better chance of being useful and it is almost certainly made by a trade maker, or is another rod rebadged for their London shop. The silk above the butt has the look ofa Leonard (USA) rod, though I cannot see that a Leonard would have been rebadged. It is the only one with any possibility of collector status.

The greenheart is really only suitable for display. Strip off the existing finish and rub in a mixture of 1/3 each of pure turps,boiled linseed oil and vinegar making sure you shake the bottle very well. Apply a few coats making sure the previous coat is dry before the next goes on. Rub down lightly with the finest steel wool you can find between the coats. This will give a nice finish and the rod can be used if you apply more polish from time to time.

Good luck.

Thanks for the advice, it is much appreciated, I was thinking that the 1901 Hardy Rod would make a nice display model.

Are J. Bernard and Son still going? I can't really find any information about them on the internet.

HI All

I sold a friend a 11' Hardy greenhart & lance wood fly rod, it was quite light for it's length.
When we put a line through it I was very suprised, first off how soft the action was, but as you got used to it, it would put out quite a nice line, a 6# seemed to suit it best and with a pick up and put down style of cast it was putting a line out to about 22 yards, for some thing of over 100 years old, still very useable.

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www.acgameangling.com & www.acgameangling.co.uk