Bamboo is fine for the mystique--but not the best fishing poles made. I've fished with a 9' bamboo rod and brass Union Hardware reel since I bought them 15 years ago at a flea mart for $20...fine for trolling flies in the local trout lake, but presenting problems in casting performance. Just got a Fenwick, and have come to the conclusion that I haven't really been fishing all these years...

Bamboo decomposes with age, losing its stiffness and camber. Mine has the consistency of a cooked spaghetti noodle--only slightly stiffer (it seems) than the fly line. Difficult to cast and slow on the hookset. Those old brass reels sure are pretty in their simplicity, but after using a modern reel with adjustable drag I began to rue all the fish lost because I never got them on the reel or, when trolling, they pulled my rod instead of my line.

I mention this only as a cautionary note--bamboo has its romantic properties as well. I've seen rods for as low as $50 at the Antique Mall in Bellingham--try flea marts and the such, as you're likely to hit a fixer-upper for around that price.

Good luck!

>><<(((*>-----mja