Barder 25 year anniversary

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Michael
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

Post by Michael »

CWK, I couldn't agree more, as I stated above. Edward, Andrew, Gary, Paul, Gary are all Artisans, creators of sublime rods.....

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CrayCane
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

Post by CrayCane »

CWK wrote: As you say there's more than one way to skin a cat and get a superb result.... ...
Precisely, each stage of making a cane rod can be approached in different ways and still produce excellent rods.

Strips for milling still have to straightened, nodes treated and heat treated. Milled strips are just as good as hand planned strips and I doubt that anyone could tell which method was used, if presented with a finished rod.

Pete

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Beresford
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

Post by Beresford »

Early Barder rods were hand planed…

If it's not possible to tell the difference you've only the word of the rod maker that the taper was cut by hand, for all you know the blank might have been machine cut and bought in for finishing…
The Split Cane Splinter Group

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Bumble
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

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Old Bumble is easily confused and I am now. This thread started with a very interesting point from Snape about a new range of rods from EB we then go into a debate about order books for EB and AJ and the relative points on who we should order from based on cost. The some when along the line we got into hand planned versus milled.
Are we sure we are comparing like for like EB has a price list of rods he rarely/ occasionally moves away from. AJ is more left field and recreates classics like the Craftversa and Festival Avon that no one else attempts, should we not just celebrate that in our moment of time we have a choice if we want a new build cane rod what ever it is and the associated cost. The next generation of cane afficiardoes may not have the same choice as we currently enjoy.
Confused of Berkshire.
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Michael
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

Post by Michael »

I`m sure its got to do with our ages, you know, once we`ve started its hard to stop Bumble mate, we all seem to meander on occasions, me probably more than others.....
Yes, celebrate the Artisans, appreciate them or they'll disappear......

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Bumble
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

Post by Bumble »

Mike I can barely remember yesterday it clearly is an age thing.
Bumble

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Michael
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

Post by Michael »

What are you talking about......do I know you :Hahaha:

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Rutland Rod
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

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Bumble is quite right, future anglers who like cane probably won't have the rod makers we currrently treasure, they all build a suburb rod for varied prices, long may EB/AD/PC/RB and others continue to do this, they won't if they can't price their rods (and renovation work) at an economic price for them in their own circumstances to pay their way.

Tight lines Dave

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Snape
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

Post by Snape »

Bimey I went away for the weekend and came back to find my little thread on some 25th anniversary rods has grown into a full debate.
I agree with Bumble and let's just celebrate the range and beauty of the rods available through the craftsmanship of the modern cane rod makers.
I know that Edward simply insists on producing the finest rod he is capable of producing and in terms of materials he just uses the best and will lavish whatever time is necessary to do so. He choose to move from hand planing to milling many years ago simply because he felt it produced a better quality rod.
One reason he has put his prices up recently is that he now spends around 80 hours making a rod which means his total output cannot be much more than 50 rods per year.
“Fishing is much more than fish. It is the great occasion when we may return to the fine simplicity of our forefathers,” Herbert Hoover.
`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸ ><((((º>

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Paul Cook
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Re: Barder 25 year anniversary

Post by Paul Cook »

Some good comments coming in from all angles on this one .
I can see where Malcolm is coming from with hand planed versus milling , its that human touch where handplaned comes in , the artisan working up from a raw material and crafting something natural by hand into a functional and beautiful item .Without doubt Edward Barders work is stunning as is also Andrew Davies , John Brough and the young Ryan Burns .

I am fortunate to work from home so my overheads are low compared to Edward Barders and of course there is Colins wages etc to cover and lets face it , business rates etc are high as well as our everyday living costs so pricing up ones own work has to be down to the last penny .I can fully understand someone using a mill , it really does speed up the process and if you are working for yourself, profit , if there is any , is most important . There is no point working for nothing . I can well remember many years ago an ex rod builder saying that he would rather make one rod for the right price rather than two for the wrong price , a true statement .

There is also the other equation to take into consideration , the love of what you do and making the decision that handmade items , should you choose to make a living going down this path , is never going to pay you above average wages despite what most believe .New build split cane rods are expensive to buy but with the man hours involved in making them there isnt a great deal left in the pot .I personally think that Barder has got it about right for his situation as far as pricing goes , for us mere mortals its another matter .

On another note concerning cane rod building I do wonder if any new up and coming young rodmakers will be around , I do hope so to help keep the craft alive . There are a few makers out there that go unheard of purely just wishing to make their own rods for their own enjoyment . Not that long ago I bought some vintage tonkin , planing forms and a healthy selection of old silk and rings to see me out . This was all purchased from an unknown rod builder who was retiring and simply enjoyed making his own rods and a few for a couple of his friends . The rods were extremely well made and finished , equal to anyones work today yet nobody would have ever heard of this maker , so I would imagine there are others out there and perhaps one will make the decision to delve into this wonderful craft and take it up full time .

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