Vintage Split Bamboo 3pc Fly Fishing Rod w/ Extra Tip & Carrying Tube

Item: 3pc fly fishing rod with extra tip and carrying tube

Make: Rod - Unknown, Case - the Improved Case Company (New York, NY)

Age: Early - Mid 20th Century

Construction: 

• Rod - bamboo, cork, metal, fine cord, lacquer

• Case - cardboard, metal, wood, linen

Dimensions: 

• Rod - 74 ½” Long (with current tip), 76 ¼” Long (with alternate tip)

• Case - 39 ¾” Long x 2 ⅛” Diameter

Condition:  Very good vintage condition. Bamboo, fine cord whippings, metal ferrules and eyelets all in excellent shape. The extra tip is missing the final eyelet, and the bamboo shows some fraying. Cork and metal handle in good condition, very minor chipping of cork at top of handle. Case has some minor corrosion of metal cap and base and black paper coating has flaked in some places, printed label is no longer clearly legible (faded). Please see photos. 

Details: Portable fly fishing rod made of split bamboo laminated in a hexagonal profile with a metal and cork handle. Assembled as is, the rod measures approximately 10 feet. The rod is composed of three segments. Included is an additional tip segment that has lost the final eyelet and shows some fraying of the bamboo. These bamboo segments are graduated in diameter and fit together with metal ferrules. No manufacturer's marks, but the workmanship appears to be quite fine. 

The case, made by the Improved Mailing Case Co., is heavy cardboard with a black paper tape coating and metal base and screw-on cap. A makeshift handgrip appears to have been made at the center of the tube using wood tongue depressors and black fabric tape. The base cap is stamped "THE IMPROVED MAILING CASE CO MAKERS".  A light paper label wraps the tube approximately 2 1/4" below the cap. The label, badly faded, is printed in red ink with "SPLIT BAMBOO FISH ROD"  along with dimension information and a maintenance warning, only partially legible.