Determining Line Weight for Older Bamboo Fishing Rods

Question
JOE--ON OLDER BAMBOO RODS (THOSE WITH NO MODEL #, NAMES, ETC.) HOW CAN I DETERMINE THE PROPER LINE WEIGHT TO USE WITH A PARTICULAR BAMBOO ROD?? DO I NEED TO USE SEVERAL REELS WITH DIFFERENT LINE WT'S AND CAST THEM WITH A PARTICULAR ROD OR IS THERE AN EAISER WAY??

THANKS FOR THE REPLY ON BAMBOO ROD RESTORATION--I HAVE ORDERED BOTH SINCLAIR & KIRKFIELD!!

THANK YOU--YOU HAVE BEEN VERY HELPFUL--PAUL

Answer
Hi Paul,

Practice some of the restoration techniques on junk rods or wooden dowels before trying them on bamboo rods you plan to keep just to be safe.  It's a good way to learn what happens when you do some of the steps involved.

Most of the older bamboo rods will perform nicely with a 6wt or a 7wt line.  Some will do better with a 5wt or an 8wt.  In general, if the rod is not marked, the tapers on production rods lend themselves to 6wt or 7wt.  Having said that, I can also say that I have an older rod that is made specifically for 4wt line.  Bamboo can be slow, moderate or fast action and can be made to fit any line weight...it depends on the tapers, the bamboo, the manufacturing process, the finish, etc.  

I do keep a box of old reels with different lines on them to try on rods.  It can be educational to see the difference line weight makes on different rods.  You can pick up reels at flea markets cheap...fly lines too at times.

There are AFTMA conversion charts all over the internet.  Find one and download it.  These will give you the equivalents between modern line (6WF) and older silk line (HDH or HDG) designations you see on the vintage rods.  In this example:

6Wt  =  HDH (DT line)  =  HDG  (WF line)  =  D (level line)

so, if you see HDH or D on a rod it is telling you that, in modern terms, use a 6wt line.

Here's a quick version of the chart...

AFTMA    DT    WF    Level
----------------------------
3       IFI   IFG     G
4       HFH   HFG     F
5       HEH   HEG     E
6       HDH   HDG     D
7       HCH   HCF     C
8       GBG   GBF     B
9       GAG   GAF     A
10       G2AG  G2AF    2A
11       G3AG  G3AF    3A
12       G4AG  G4AF    4A

Use these as a starting point.  I would still cast the rod with different lines to be sure which works best.

Thanks,  Joe