Welcome to Our Website
Hi, I'm Walt Carpenter. I have been involved with fly fishing in many capacities
since childhood. But, it has been my life and livelihood since 1973 when I was first employed on staff at the H. L.
Leonard Rod Co.. I subsequently was manager of the E. F. Payne Rod Co., and did another stint at H. L. Leonard
before starting my own company, the W. E. Carpenter Rod Co. 30 years ago. Prior to my employment with those most esteemed
companies, I produced rods on my own part time and was inspired and mentored by some of the most knowledgeable and reputable
people in the industry, back then. The late fishing historian "Marty" Keane bought my very first hand planed
"W. E. Carpenter, Browntone"™ rod. Famed fly tiers and fishers, Harry and Elsie Darbee
encouraged my pursuit of the split bamboo rod by hiring me to do repairs on used tackle they had for sale in their Roscoe,
NY fly shop; they offered some of my earliest efforts for sale there, also.
Harry once
told me that the only way to learn a craft was "empirically" as he had done with fly tying. As a result of his advice,
I started to acquire rods by famous builders (F.E. Thomas, George Halstead, Jim Payne, Wes Jordan, etc.) as well as those
by lesser known rod makers, like my old friend Bill Taylor, a champion tournament caster and rod builder from the first half
of the 1900s, to use as learning tools. By examining, casting, and re-doing those examples, I was in large part able
to learn my craft and gain access to many influential people, as well as contemporary rod builders, who helped establish
my decades long career as a Master Rodmaker.
Mark Twain once said, ".....the report of my death has been
greatly exaggerated." In recent years I have heard reports from various sources about my "deteriorating health"
or that I have been dead for years. Well, unless the sources know something I don't; I'm feelin' fine.
I'm actively producing rods and believe that my body of work is far from complete. I still get excited about upcoming
projects and new rod designs. I even get a chance to use some of my creations on the stream once in a while. With
my wife, Marcia, I have been writing some chapters over the last few years for a memoir of my life in the Split Bamboo
Rod Business; we hope to have a completed book ready for publication within the near future. With everything rolling
along, it seems that now is an appropriate time to clean house and get rid of some of the piles of paper and documents, pictures
and advertising memorabilia, quality rods, reels, books and ephemera that I have accumulated in the course of my incredibly
lucky life. Most items that I offer for sale here are part of my own personal collection; others I have taken
as trade ins toward my new rods. Each and every piece has been perused, examined, restored or built from
scratch by me. I will only include in these pages unique items of the highest quality and legitimacy, which
lend credibility to the past, present and future of the Split Bamboo Rod.
I hope you enjoy acquiring and owning these items as much as I have. I look
forward to doing business with you, Walt
