The Robin's blue wraps were out there, for sure distinct, but anytime you put a light color over a slate colored blank, you are asking for scrutiny because it will show everything that could have been better about the wraps. And that was a huge gripe from all NRX owners, not just the fly guys. A $700 rod should have been wrapped better IMO. I'll agree with Gracie, everything fancy adds elements that take away from the performance of a rod(blank), even if it is just two wraps of metallic trim. But man, there is something to be said when you're standing on the river with a functional piece of wrap and artwork, knowing the fish are coming in just to take a look at what you're throwing at them!

No doubt, Winston makes very nice rods.

A local shop put their Loomis fly rods on clearance at 50% off last summer. I went there to buy the 5wt NRX and it sold before I could drive there to buy it. I think it went unsold for so long at full price because it didn't have the same "curb appeal" as similar brands in the shop. As soon as the price went down the NRX was the first to sell followed by their StreamDance line (I ended up buying one of those). Given a choice, with a few choice marketing messages thrown in, your average rod buyer is going to choose the best looking rod, all other things equal.

I don't think the green finish looks so hot either.

Buckhunter..."I guess from a marketing standpoint, an ugly rod may detract buyers but not users."

Well said.

KD,

Don't call them "ugly" - refer to them as "elegant, as attained via aesthetic simplicity."

I only fish them because I don't want to wake up the morning of a trip having to decide what shirt goes good with [insert rod color here].

;-)

Sayfu, I prefer sanded bare graphite for my sticks, but very few makers make them. The unsanded are lighter than the polished ones in most cases, but sand it and leave it that way and you have a neutral canvas for a rod builder to do with what he wants, that's the way I like it.

weedless87. No two rods perform the same in the mind of the user.
Extremely subjective judgement, but an owner will always make one. Like owning two different cars, and saying why not get the color you like, they both perform the same. Chevies, and Fords...exactly the same performance..yeh, right.

Me also, can't be an embarrassing color. But that rich, deep green that many of the rod makers used on their rods is attractive. Hard for anyone to say they aren't attractive, unless they prefer gawdy-ness. I think it was Loomis that didn't bake on shiny color their rods, or a model at least they did not shiny finish color, and made the case for their dull black, blank as being stronger in that the "scrim" (sp?) that they use to wrap the rod, heat, and make the blank, then remove the scrim that leaves a spiral edge on the blank after removal, was better left as is...lighter, stronger, and less reflection to spook fish...?..I dunno. I get caught up in the looks. One look that has been proven to not function very well, but sells anglers in the store, are small guides, and not bigger guides. Bigger guides cast better, but are poor marketing, and poor sellers. I was sent a 4 piece custom rod in a nice leather case to try out, and make a recommendation to the manufacturer as to how it casted. It casted lousy! A 9 ft. ,7wt. that I had to put an 8 wt. line on it to cast the darn thing decently. Then I realized how small the guides were. The tip top guide was very small, and the feeder guide was a small guide. I contacted them and asked if I could remove the guides, or the critical ones, and put bigger guides on the rod. It was a go, and the rod performed great with the bigger guides...I still have the rod, a $400 rod at the time about 15 yrs. ago now probably. The said keep it.

Buck, the scrim is the innermost material that the rest of the graphite or glass is laid over. Loomis were the first that I know of to use a graphite scrim, lowering the overall weight of the rod, most use fiberglass scrims and lay carbon over them. I like to add an extra guide into the mix on my fly rods for that same reason buck, the extra 2inches of pull it allows can make a difference when you're czech nymping, and like all things friction related, the unsanded blanks will provide less surface area for the line to scrub if that is going to slow the line down at all. Smaller guides do help, I run size 4 pac bay minima-4 guides on my 8wt, they pass the line just fine. I do however run larger tips and standard size stripper guides, but I do throw in a second stripper, or tamer guide that is smaller than the stripper 3" above first stripper guide.

It's the same idea with those saw tooth looking spools on spinning reels, its such a small thing, but if you want to add them all up, the ridges on an unsanded blank would have less surface area riding against your line, so you would get less friction surfaces to slow your line down, like sharkskin line, its textured to provide less surface friction running through the guides. The effects are minimal, but they are there if you really wanted to get picky with it. Some guys prefer to use guides with a little height off the blank. For me, it's pac bay minima guides or recoils(the NRX got it right there with recoils).

Should be no thought of being tough to cast...just saves labor intensive time. And that is a thought of the consumer...they cheapened the rod by not adding a nice labor intensive finishing time...but should cast as well.

jamesti..but you do know that a lot of folks do, be it their clothes, car, or most anything the own. Some fly anglers want to buy a custom made rod just for the fancy wrapping that identifies it as a custom made rod.

clgoogl. Connect the dots. Looks good, and you feel great! When you feel great, you eat well, drink good booze, get lots of sleep, and get up, hit the water, and cast good.

clgoogl..You've definitely come of age clgoogl...brought your "A" game...good to see.

Unfortunately for the salt water anglers, they don't have that luxery of fine wood reel seats.

This is an amazing discussion! I fish with the cheapest equipment that can get the job done. I drive a red truck because it was a diesel with roll up windows and no carpets. I don't like red trucks, but I do like not paying for options I don't need and don't want. I have never in my life thought about how a rod or a gun, or a truck looks. I enjoy fishing, I enjoy hunting, I want a vehicle that does the job I need to have done. I toss the fly the fish will hit, not the fly that looks best as I cast it. I hunt with my lab Glock because he is a good partner and a fetching fool, not because he is the "in" dog to have. Beauty contests are of interest to some, not to me. I have more than one fly rod because I broke two one year while fishing for silvers in Ak. See you guys on the water, I'm the ugly bearded guy fishing with the Lab, wearing mismatched rain gear and camo waders. I have a blast in my uncool, ugly, cheapskate way.

And something else that did not get mentioned here, is the overall fit and finish of the rod. One thing I tend to look at as a rod builder. Are there any glue lines, is the finish too thick over the wraps, does it cover the thread properly, is it level, are the guide foot tunnels filled in and not exposed to the elements, is the cork overly filled with wood filler, is the cork straight and not off center? I look at all of it when I pick up a rod. Cork is the one area of a rod where a company will pass you a filled in low grade product because they can cover it up.

An attractive rod is the same thing as the post on a parachute Adams...more for the fisherman that the fish. Personally I like it when a rod is pretty, it just enhances time being outdoors and on the trout stream. For my money tho', split cane is the most beautiful of all.