Any of you west coast guys have any info on these? I picked up a few here in Florida. Really nice glass rods. Are they still made?
I think it said Carson CA on the rod.
These were great rods back in the day. I think they are still available but likely imported now.
Wow that's a shame. They are very responsive and built tough.
Sweeet rods, I have several that were the original California Tackle Company in Carson. They are still sold here in California (Big 5, Dicks, etc) but I believe are now an imported brand, I have two of those. - john
The Sabres sold today are NOT at all connected to the original Sabre rods produced by the California Tackle Company. The closest things to those rods are the E glass West Coast rods sold by Cal Star and Seeker (at least the old Seeker.) The mandrels went to Seeker, the talent went to CalStar, as I understand it.
That isn't to say that those rods won't fish, they just won't fish as well. I have pulled on a few and found that they have more of a consistent bend as opposed to the near parabolic of Sabre, and they don't feel anywhere near as sensitive. I must be honest and say that I keep thinking about picking up one of there deckhand rods to pair with a Newell deckhand 113H that I got from Rudy (THANKS RUDY!!) That would be a lot of fun for deep black rockfish and such.
As far as the originals, it is not true that they started it all, but they certainly refined West coast sticks into the art present today. The tapers and actions, as well as the build quality, are what make them so special. You really can't find something like them anywhere else, and there isn't a rod I'd rather throw jigs with other than any you find today tend to be short.
The Man
The Man