A pole for purists Attention to detail makes Charlie Downs' handmade fly rods unique Charlie Downs appreciates hand-planed, split bamboo fly rods for their inherent beauty, and the toil that goes into making one. Before there was fiberglass or graphite, bamboo was the traditional material for fly rods.
Color can vary from blond to a russet that resembles autumn leaves.
Not just any old cane that grows along the banks of rivers and sloughs will do, only bamboo imported from one small province of China. This variety of bamboo found only in China is straighter and grows much taller that the river cane we have here in Kentucky. Downs became interested in learning to make bamboo fly rods after he realized how expensive it would be to buy one from a catalogue. He also wanted a rod that was made with hand tools, using traditional construction methods, not factory-produced with a milling machine. So he decided to make his own rod.