fishing poles

Question
have you ever heard of or seen a square steel fishing pole? i'm trying to find out how old this is and who made it.

Answer
Hi Bob,

Yes.  I had one as a kid and it may still be around here somewhere.  I have 3 or 4 of the old casting rods made of steel.  They will likely last forever.  They were made sometime in the 1900-1940 time period for the most part...maybe a few into the 1940s and 1950s although not during the war years.  No, the one I had as a kid was not new, I'm not quite that old.

Most of the vintage steel rods were made by only a few manufacturers even though they were sold under many brand names.  Bristol-Horton Manufcaturing and American Fork and Hoe are a couple of the more prolific steel rod makers.  There are square and round casting rods, and there are tubular, extruded steel casting rods and fly rods as well.  There are telescopic steel rods in casting and fly rod styles.

I have three 2-piece, extruded, tubular, steel fly rods that are all in excellent condition and actually fish fairly well.  Of course, they are a lot heavier than modern fly rods, but they get the job done.

None of the vintage steel rods have particularly a high value today.  A really nice one might be valued at $50-$75 but most are probably in the $10-$20 range.

Thanks,  Joe