Parker-Hawes Fly Rods

[Bruce Day]

An interesting history. Obviously when Parker had the opportunity to partner with Merritt Hawes for marketing and distribution of a bamboo fly rod, they chose one of the best.

[QUOTE=Bruce Day;5850]An interesting history. Obviously when Parker had the opportunity to partner with Merritt Hawes for marketing and distribution of a bamboo fly rod, they chose one of the best. And the Stan Bogdan "Trout" model reel is a fine choice as well. My favorite rods were the pre-fire Leonard 3 pc. series- the 49 7 & 1/2 ft 3/2 5 wt and the popular 50DF or even the Richard Hunt series of tapers. Very interesting about the relationships between the Leonard, Hawes, Thomas and others of the long-ago now era of craftsmanship. I believe Winchester also marketed cane rods in the 1920-1930 era, have only seen one- not sure of the manufacturer. Michigan where I live gave birth to the lates Lyle Dickerson and Paul Young, I have a Paul Young 7 & 1/2 foot 2/2 "Perfectionist" made in the 1950's in Detroit when they sold at retail with bag and Champion tube for $60.00. It is a "Steinway" indeed, I use a Hardy LRH on it with a Wulff TT 4/5 line-

[October Woods]

You have fine taste in bamboo sir! I owned an original Model 50 DF Hunt 8' 3 pc CA 1928 it is now making another smile. Many of the Winchester rods were made by Eustis Edwards then later by lesser makers. I too enjoy the works of your Michigander's and have owned, or own still, rods by Dickerson (7613, 8014, 8014 Guide, 8015 Guide Special, 8615, 9015, 9015 Special, 901812, 962013 and a bait caster) Young (Para 15 Deluxe KT Keller Model, Midge owned by Dody Ford (Edsel's daughter and Henry's grand daughter) a Martha Marie and Martha Marie Young's personal Perfectionist made for a 4 wt dt silk line marked in Paul Young's hand) Bob Summers model 856 and Morris Kushner's Formula B....... Love Bogdan and Hardy reels too!



[QUOTE=Francis Morin;5925]

Originally Posted by Bruce Day

An interesting history. Obviously when Parker had the opportunity to partner with Merritt Hawes for marketing and distribution of a bamboo fly rod, they chose one of the best. And the Stan Bogdan "Trout" model reel is a fine choice as well. My favorite rods were the pre-fire Leonard 3 pc. series- the 49 7 & 1/2 ft 3/2 5 wt and the popular 50DF or even the Richard Hunt series of tapers. Very interesting about the relationships between the Leonard, Hawes, Thomas and others of the long-ago now era of craftsmanship. I believe Winchester also marketed cane rods in the 1920-1930 era, have only seen one- not sure of the manufacturer. Michigan where I live gave birth to the lates Lyle Dickerson and Paul Young, I have a Paul Young 7 & 1/2 foot 2/2 "Perfectionist" made in the 1950's in Detroit when they sold at retail with bag and Champion tube for $60.00. It is a "Steinway" indeed, I use a Hardy LRH on it with a Wulff TT 4/5 line-

I had a Morris Kushner 7' 9" 2/2 "Excelereme"- but like the Young Parabolic series, I was more atuned to the crisper casting characteristics of the pre-fire 3 pc. Leonards. My DF50 was made in about 1958, I have never yet cast a Hunt Model 50- the flamed cane and blued hardware and reel seats were so pleasing to both the eye and in hand. Morris Kushner apparently was a friend of the late MI trout/legal/flyfishing/OldCabinStill consuming UP curmudgeon extraordinaire-- John Voelker! He was mentioned in Trout Madness I believe.

I have my reels set for LH winding (from the spin casting era I guess) and I was a good friend of the late Bill Hunter, he got me both the LH Trout and the LH Steelhead Bogdan reels many years ago. Stan's son Steve, who I believe is in charge of the Company up in Nashua NH- was a USN machinists' mate and had duty in the Gulf of Tonkin during the Vietnam Era- Strange isn't it, how the very Tonkin reeds that may have later become the Garrisons and Gillums and other fine "sticks" grew stronger in the Monsoons of the Gulf area.

I also have owned a few of the Captain Mac MacChristian SeaMasters and the early Gar Wood Fin-Nors (aka- the "wedding cake" design) and have used them salmon and steelheads--also salt water work, along with the no longer made Penn reels (Senators and M stainless spool models). Now 90% of the fly reels sold by catalogue houses are made in Korea, even Abel had to move in that direction to stay profitable.

I find it interesting to compare the graphite fly rods to the cane rods as comparing a Binelli 12 gauge with black synthetic stock to a Parker DHE- both variations will peform (if set up properly) but dry fly fishing for trout with a good cane rod (and balanced reel) is like bird hunting with a good dog and a fine double (side-by-side for me)- as the late Gene Hill once wrote: "A sense of doing it right". I met Gene years ago on a Orvis book signing tour out here, we chatted about trout and salmon fishing and he told me his definition of a "Hardy" fly reel, to wit: A reel that when dropped onto large rocks in Alaska will keep on working"_

[Tom Flanigan]

Originally Posted by Bruce Day

An interesting history. Obviously when Parker had the opportunity to partner with Merritt Hawes for marketing and distribution of a bamboo fly rod, they chose one of the best.

I just came across this post. I am a collector of fine vintage split bamboo fly rods and a fanatical fly fisherman. Forgive me for saying this Bruce, but the Parker Hawes rods do not command a high price on the market. They are generally considered somewhat below a good Granger or Wright and McGill which were production rods and semi-hand built. Those that I have seen for sale usually sell for between $300 and $400, far below collectible fly rods by Leonard, Dickerson, Howells and others.

I have never owned or cast one so I can't personally say one way or the other, but the market hasn't been kind to them. I consider the Leonard the Parker of the split bamboo fly rods and have a fine collection of them. I fish them almost exclusively.

I don't know how the marriage of Parker and Hawes came about, but Parker did not choose a top maker in my opinion. The only claim to fame is the association with Parker. A fact that the vintage fly fishing market cares nothing about.