South bend 359-9 - tebowden



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Rodmakers,
 
I recently came across an old South Bend 359-9’ 3/1 with a short mid section. The butt and tip are the right length, but the mid is only 20.5” long. The assembled rod length is 92”. It looks like the mid section broke off at the bottom, and the owner simply built up the ferrule station and glued the original male ferrule back on. The guides were missing and the varnish was awful, but the ferrules were tight, the sections straight, reel seat in good shape, and the rod had one of those cool “comficient” grips. The guy wanted $15, so I went ahead and bought it. 
 
When I got home, I taped on some guides and took the rod out on the front lawn. It’s a fast, stiff action rod that casts a DT5 50-60’ with authority, and is actually pleasant to cast. The taper drops .064” - from .310 below the ferrule on the butt section to .246 behind the male ferrule on the shortened mid-section. The taper measurements (taken after the varnish was stripped) are included below.
 
I’m thinking about making a second mid-section of the correct length and taper. Does anyone have the original taper for this rod? If so, I’d appreciate a copy. 
 
Also, to pull this off, I’ll need ferrules for the mid-section. The male has a shoulder, with an outside diameter of .280” – i.e. 18/64th. The female ferrule has an inside diameter of .170 – i.e. 11/64th. Does anyone have any South Bend ferrules like this that they’d be willing to sell? I could send a close-up picture if necessary.
 
Any help and/or advice would be much appreciated.
 
Tom
 
Here’s the taper
 
00.076
50.086
100.101
150.121
200.136
250.151
300.166
34 (ferrule)0.172
400.190
450.216
500.235
54 (ferrule)0.246
600.311
650.342
700.360
750.380
800.390