I’ve been working with Olivia Elia for over 4 years now mentoring her in the art of building bamboo fly rods, and she is now building some incredible bamboo fly rods. She is also a talented Luthier building custom acoustic guitars and a musician. FlyFish Journal Magazine recently showcased her in an article in their magazine. And…now they have come out with a wonderful short video about Olivia…and there are a few shots of me also! You can check out the video at: SOMETHING OUT OF NOTHING: Handmade Guitars and Bamboo Fly Rods crafted by Olivia Elia.
Tag Archives: bamboo
Some Thoughts on My Costs of Building Bamboo Fly Rods, Nets, and Wading Staffs.
I do my best at keeping the prices of my bamboo fly rods, nets, and wading staffs down so they are affordable to many anglers. Yes, bamboo fly rods cost more than graphite fly rods of today…but really,…when did the cost of high-end graphite rods increase to $1600??? Every couple of years, I do an assessment of my costs for building my bamboo fly rods. Unfortunately, costs continue to go up. Over the past 3 years, I’m seeing these increases:
- Cost of raw Bamboo has risen by 85%
- Cost of silk thread has risen by 20%
- Cost of ferrules has risen by 35%
- Cost of reel seat hardware has risen by 15%
- Cost of shipping through FedEx or UPS has risen by 20%
- Cost of consumable materials (sand paper, varnish, glue) has risen by 10 to 25%
As a result of these increasing costs, I’m feeling that I need to increase the prices of my fly rods, nets and wading staffs. Any orders placed over the last days of this year will be at my current prices. Starting January 1st, 2025, the updated prices will be in place.
All two tip bamboo fly rods will be $2395
All nets will be $600
All wading staffs will be $600
Best Regards,
Dave Dozer
Getting Out Fishing Today With Our Bamboo Rods!
I was able to get out fly fishing today with my good friend, Joe, on Whychus Creek, the small creek in the canyon below my house. Whychus creek is one of my favorite spots here in Central Oregon…beautiful water and no other anglers around. I took out my 6′ 8″ 3 wt. Fast Action Series Bamboo Rod and Joe took out his 7′ 0″ 4 wt bamboo rod he built with me in my workshop. After a bug sampling that showed a lot of stonefly nymphs, I started with a #10 black rubber legged black stonefly nymph. Joe started with a #16 Tan X-Caddis pattern. We both were successful and caught several nice rainbows. After an hour, I wanted some dry fly action so I changed over to a #12 Yellow Stimulator pattern…Joe stayed with his X-Caddis. For the next 2 hours, we both raised a lot of feisty native rainbows, and by the end of the day, we each caught about 15 fish. What a fun day with our bamboo rods on one of our small creeks here.
A Big, Black Stonefly Nymph
6′ 8 3 wt rod
Joe with a great Bow And Arrow cast.
One of the beautiful native rainbows we caught.
Why do each of us prefer different bambo rod tapers?
A few years back I worked with Mary Ann and several other very experienced fly casters to look at how different fly casting styles impact that way a bamboo fly rod bends…i.e. how the motions of your hand/wrist/arm during the cast can bend different rod tapers differently. My goal was to gain a better understanding of why each of us prefer different actions of bamboo fly rods. Through extensive stop-action video analysis, we were able to show different rod bending motions which can impact the power and accuracy in your cast depending on what taper fly rod you cast. And if you cast a particular taper well, then it’s probably one you like. I pulled together a presentation that I presented at the 2022 Corbet Lake Bamboo Fly Rod Gathering, and I have also given it at other events. One of these presentations was recorded and can be found at the following link: VRG – 20200808 – Dozer – Casting Style Affecting Your Choice of Tapers (bamboorodmaking.com). Check it out!!!
I’m back in the Bamboo Workshop.
After 2 months of recovery from Knee Replacement Surgery, I’m finally back in the workshop building bamboo fly rods. Sure feels good to fondle some bamboo again. Just started a new 8′ 0″ 5 wt fast action.
Dave back in workshop.