Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Lee Koch) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 23:28:29 GMT

No worries Jim - as you saw above, we had a chance to talk with Jim Schaff in July, and he unfortunately could shed no good light on hollowing processes. Some guys are still working on the possibility of x-raying a hollow Dickerson - I'll report on that if it happens. Lee

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Jim Lowe) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 15:41:06 GMT

Hi Guys,

I've been pretty busy and actually forgot about this thread or call Jim Schaff. Sorry.

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (grandtrout) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:39:48 GMT

Does anyone have the taper for the salmon rod pictured above.
JB

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (tapermaker) — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 00:38:24 GMT

pertaining to the glue lines. I would think if it was hollowbuilt that the liklehood of the glue lines that large would be pretty small. the lack of material in the core would tend to close up lines ,not spread them apart. Ive heard that later in life there were more than a couple that started to get them. I think i recall that Jeff Hattons book had a close up of a pretty bad open seam.

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Lee Koch) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 23:06:00 GMT

I have a sort of an update on these rare Dickersons, after the 2009 Colorado rodmakers reunion, which ended last week. Jerry Stein spoke with us for a bit, and he brought maybe 20 Dickerson rods, most by Lyle, one or two by Bedford, and one or 2 by Schaaf. Seeing all those rods stacked together on a table was the highlight of the meet for me. The first good news is that I got to weigh a few of them. The bad news is that Jerry only brought the butt sections of each rod and we obviously could...

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (RPL) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 15:13:34 GMT

That 8014 looks like one extraordinary rod. How does it cast? What does it weigh?

Dickerson seldom inscribed the weight on his rods as he did on that 8012. If the rod was hollowbuilt, the weight would take on an added significance and perhaps warrant an inscription calling attention to the weight. So the inscription strengthens my suspicion that it is hollowbuilt. (I've seen the weight written, probably by Dickerson's hand, on some of his rod bags along with the model...

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Lee Koch) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 14:14:42 GMT

Glad to hear that there is documentation for his Hollow-builts.

Here's the signature for the 8014 hollow:

And here are some intermediates on that rod, including 3 black "signature" intermediates that were placed between butt wrap and stripper. Those are the only black ones; all others were same as main wraps, I suppose antique gold.

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (RPL) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 11:27:37 GMT

The Stein/Schaff book on Dickerson contains references to a number of hollowbuilt rods, including a "8012." There's a ledger entry (page 35 of the book) that notes an "8 ft. Hollow" built for M.A. Pixley, which was inscribed "Model 8014 Hollow" built in 1938. So Dickerson was hollow-building early on. There's also a list of rods found in the ledgers and among collections which notes that two 8012s were found in the ledgers and two showed up in...

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Jim Lowe) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:38:30 GMT

Hi Lee,

Thanks. I'll give Jim Schaaf a call next week if I can find his number. He's local so I'm sure I can find it in the phone book or through the local fly shop.

Thanks again.

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Lee Koch) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:45:26 GMT

Hi Jim - none of us had ever heard of a hollow-built Dickerson (marked as such), and we have no idea what his hollowing technique was. We talked about the need to X-ray the rod to know, but when reality set in (relatively isolated up in the mountains of CO, only have access to the rods for a few hours, over a weekend...) we abandoned the idea (and had another beer ). What we DO know is that he chose to...

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Jim Lowe) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:28:58 GMT

Thanks Lee, this is great. Does anyone know the hollowing method Dickerson used?

Thanks.

Jim.

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Lee Koch) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 22:43:56 GMT

I agree with your astute observation about precision/standardization. Just a small case in point: the 8012 we measured actually takes a 13 ferrule. Go figure. I guess since he already had made an 8013, a 4wt couldn't be called that too, could it? I think every one of those guys who worked over the decades changed their rods over time - it was just a natural evolution for them. Makes life complicated for us, but made sense to them at the time, since they wanted to constantly refine their...

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (RPL) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:02:57 GMT

Thanks, Lee. Yes, sounds like a 6-weight, perhaps a 2-piece version of his 3-piece 901812. I guess it's generally trickier to build a nice 2-piece, 9 ft. rod compared to the 3-piece. I think you're right about his personal 9 footer, which I recall from reading the Schaaf/Stein book, but I think that there were several variations of that rod, like so many of the Dickerson tapers. Anybody make a 901711? I sometimes wonder if, because of his precise-sounding taper designations...

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Lee Koch) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 18:23:29 GMT

I don't know of any contemporary maker who regularly makes a 9016, although I'll bet someone does...

Jack Howell calls the 9016 in his book an "8-weight", but the tapers are significantly different. For example, the tip on his taper ends at .100, whereas the rod we measured was at .070 at the tip.

We didn't get to cast the rod, but I doubt it is a 5-weight. more likely a strong 6, at a guess... I have forgotten whether that rod or the 901711 was...

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (RPL) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:35:24 GMT

Who makes a Dickerson 9016 taper rod? Is that generally considered a 5-weight?

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (bbamboo) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 13:36:47 GMT

Thanks Lee its working now

Cheers

Gary

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (oldschoolcane) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 11:12:21 GMT

Thank you, Lee. This is great!

Tim

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (bbamboo) — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 10:57:29 GMT

Hi Lee

The link you give is broken
Can you update please.

Gary

Re: Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (jayhake) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 12:28:09 GMT

Lee,

Thanks for pointing this out. I found the tapers when I registered for this year's gathering. It was a great service you all provided last year and I know many will appreciate it! Looking forward to testing those rods this summer!

Jay

Rare Dickerson tapers

feeds@yuku.com (Lee Koch) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 12:06:46 GMT

I thought some of you guys might like to know that tapers for some unusual Dickerson rods are now available on-line.

Last July (2008) at Colorado Rodmakers Reunion, we had the chance to measure the following original Dickerson rods:
661510 special
7011
8012
8014 Hollow
9016.

We Mic'd them every 2-1/2 inches, all 3 flats, then Ralph T entered them into a spreadsheet that smoothed the curves between points and interpolated measurements for every...