The Best, Least-Known Bamboo Fly Rod Builder: A Jim Reams Rod Review

I’ve often said that Jim Reams was the best, least-known bamboo fly rod builder going, and that the quality of his rods far outreached his fame.

The Reams 8.5′ 5wt, 3-pc Hollowbuilt (Prototype). Pretty rod. So-so picture.

That might have been true as little as a year ago, but the Internet holds no secrets for long. Simply put, Reams has been discovered, and discovered fast.

He’s been flooded with orders for his elegant hollowbuilt bamboo rods since his Web site “went public” in early 2006, and his name is often spoken on the bamboo-related boards.

Then there’s the ultimate arbiter of fame in the digital age: Google. Type “Jim Reams” and the rod builder’s name pops up atop the list (ahead of a prosecutor and a bluegrass musician).

Interestingly, I’ve very quickly found myself at that point where I can shake my head and say “I knew Jimmy before he was famous” - and sound only slightly moronic doing so.

Enough. What About the Rod?

A couple weeks ago, the postman (my new best friend) left a package on my front porch, and what I found inside was an 8.5′ 5wt hollowbuilt Reams.

Not one of his listed tapers, it was a 3-pc prototype that could soon find its way into his catalog.

First, the obvious stuff. Jimmy’s cane work is excellent (no flaws found). The rod’s nodes are short and tight, with little evidence of grinding.

The blank itself is straight as an arrow, and the ferrule fit is smooth.

Reams varnishes his blank, then wraps and varnishes the wraps.

And while I can’t see it, I’ve seen other examples of Jimmy’s painstaking hollow building work. Good stuff.

In short, there are no shortcuts evident in this rod.

Never having been one for overthick varnish, I appreciate Jimmy’s smoothly finished blanks and separately varnished wraps.

The blank is a dark caramel color with reddish undertones, the wraps are a lovely dark brown, and the ferrules are darkly blued.

The overall effect is one of an understated elegance and functionality, and that’s no accident.

Reams builds his rods to fish, and one look at the fast-ramping full wells grip (similar to the Powell style) reinforces this belief.

It’s a fisherman’s grip.

The reel seat is an uplocking slide band over a wood spacer. I’m curious to see how this seat holds up over the years, but must say the appearance is striking.

Hollow Built Performance

Ask any accomplished builder why they hollow build, and most will tell you it’s not a weight issue, but one of performance.

Removing the pithy center portion eliminates non-contributing mass, speeding dampening and improving performance.

Simply put, you don’t buy a hollowbuilt with the expectation you’ll find a lightweight in the tube. You do it for the performance.

With this in mind, my Reams hollowbuilt was a revelation; it’s easily the lightest 8.5′ bamboo rod I own, and feels lighter in the hand than my 8′ solid builts.

A quick trip to my cheap digital kitchen scale revealed a rod weighing between 4.20 and 4.25 ounces. That’s light for an 8.5′ bamboo fly rod, but not astoundingly so.

Simple, functional and extremely fishable.

Of course, nobody stands around simply holding a bamboo fly rod. You’d look dorky.

You’ve gotta cast the thing to attract the babes. And this is where Jimmy’s rods shine.

Cast and Cast Again

Some rod builders are talented craftsmen, and some are talented fly fishers. Reams is both, and during the season, you’ll find him fishing some of Northern California’s toughest waters 5-6 evenings a week.

Watch for any length of time and you’ll see he’s a stone cold killer on slow, technical water, and his rods reflect that sensibility.

Reams is a hunter and a damned accurate caster; he sneaks closer to fish than anyone has a right to, and then drops the fly right on their noses.

When I first cast the rod, I discovered it was exactly the rod you’d expect someone like Reams to build.

Smooth and light, the rod fished beautifully at close range, and a smooth stroke found it working comfortably to 50′.

I fished it at ranges greater than 50′ during a Rogue BWO hatch, and while the rod held up fine (Dave Roberts certainly had no trouble casting it farther), I’d suggest its forte was in the sub-60′ distances.

Still, it was when I hooked a fish that I discovered the rod’s most interesting characteristic; I felt the trout’s every move. Wow.

This rod would protect even the lightest tippets superbly - on a par with my 8.5′ 4wt Diamondglass fiberglass (the reigning champion).

Tiny flies? Light tippet? Spooky trout? No problem.

Wind? Ultra-long casts? Fast-moving water and big fish?

This rod would handle it, but I’d suggest a faster, stronger taper for the above conditions.

Every fly rod is an compromise, and this one’s biased towards more technical fishing.

And whaddya know. I love technical fishing. I expect it’ll be a superb pocket water rod too – it casts at close range like it knows where the fish are hiding.

The Final Cast

Outside of galactic casts and gale-force winds, this rod’s is a stunner.

Under less windy (read normal) conditions, the rod rewards a smooth caster with exceptional control and a silky, wholly cultured feel.

Light and resilient in the hand, Reams’ aggressive hollowbuilding techniques and extremely refined tapers play right to the strengths of bamboo as a rod building material.

The Trout Underground gives it two fins up.

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