# Dick Swan Rod?



## GSPHunter

Hey guys i posted about this before but ran into a deadend. 

I have a manufactured Dick Swan rod i bought from Gander Mtn. a bunch of yrs ago. I recently had a mishap and broke the upper section. I did some searching and found some old posts saying this rod was possibly made by browning??? Anyone confirm this??

I was wondering if anyone knows of how i may be able remendy my problem. i really like this rod but have had no luck searching the internet. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks,

Jeremy


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## Worm Dunker

Have you tried contacting Dick? He lives in Clare Mi. the last I knew.


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## wildlife chaser

browning did carried his rods for awhile but then for some reason they stop.i heard it wea because he didn't like how they where using to cheap of material to make them and he didn't like that so he started making them again himself. that is what i heard.


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## syonker

I have a pair of 10.5' Browning, Gold Medallion, Graphite, Dick Swan noodle rods that I bought on clearance from Meijer over 15 years ago for $30 a copy.

They have dark blue rod blanks & cork grips.


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## BIG DAVE

have the11'6 browning gold, by dick swan!!! fished it hard for
10 yrs. seems the butt is starting to loosin up some. but got a
buddy to regrip it. may be wrong!!! but heard dick swan past away last
year or before that. dont know, any help one this. dave


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## GSPHunter

I have had no luck contacting either Dick Swan or getting a response from browning. I appreciate the insight, just guessing i might have to hopefully find one for sale on ebay in the future! The rod i have is a 10'6" in matte black, unfortunately its in three pieces instaed of two :sad: 

Hey, Steve u wanna part with one of those rods?? Let me know!!!

Thanks all, i'll keep lookin!

Jeremy


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## MoJoRisin'

The Dick Swan Brownings have been discontinued for some years now. I have 2 of the 10'6" Black with Blue wraps myself. You have to treat these with care as they did have some blank issues and if you fish in cold conditions graphite gets brittle. I picked one rod up by the mid section supporting the reel weight when clearing builtup ice and broke the rod in half - my bad. Browning went to their own version of 10'6" noodles and I think Cabelas and or BPS sell them. 

I now have 2 of the newer 10'6" Black Swans and really like them - lighter and really nice. The other 2 Brownings Swans are reserved for backups and use them when throwing 3 oz. Not sure if the new lighter Swans are still around. They were selling Green and Black ones and the Black were going for $99 at the time I got them.

Good luck - hope you can track down what you need.


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## sfw1960

BPS has right to the Browning name (in fishing) and the Swan rods have a cult - like following like the S. Bend Black Beauties....


The Pinnacle Vertex IM7's are pretty good for the $$$


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## Fishndude

> You have to treat these with care as they did have some blank issues and if you fish in cold conditions graphite gets brittle.


I have to say that I have a pile of graphite rods, and I have whaled on fish with most of them in the dead of winter. When I got my first custom graphite rod, I was worried that it would be brittle in cold weather, and might break if I bent it too much, or too suddenly. But a buddy who repped rods told me the cold doesn't affect them, so I quit worrying, and started having some real fun. And I never looked back. 

I have broken a few rods, but never once because it was cold outside. But a fault blank will have weak spots, and might break if you hold it in the middle with the weight of the reel hanging off it. They are not meant to flex in that way. Reaching up and grabbing your rod above the upper cork to leverage a fish is a really good way to blow up a rod. 

I will say that the blanks for most of my rods cost more than the finished "Swan" rods made by Browning. That tells me that the quality of their blanks isn't the best. IMX blanks are light, but they sure can tame a raging Steelhead, as long as you are not using too light a rod. 6 weights to 8 weights are perfect for Steelhead.


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## MoJoRisin'

The Swan Brownings I got were retailing $44.99 at Meijer when I got them in about '97 or so. 

The new version 10'6" Black Swans were $99.99 at Meijer which I got about 5 or 6 yrs ago. I did not see anything on these when I searched for Swan rods recently so I' m not sure if they are avaialble anymore.

As mentioned BPS has the Browning Six Rivers noodles which are right in the same line if not identical to the original Swan rods.


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## jerrylee505

Hello I have a Brand New Black Swan Graphite, it's 10' 6" long. It has Dick Swan signiture on it and a date 2001. Make me an Offer. Thanks.


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## jerrylee505

jerrylee505 said:


> Hello I have a Brand New Black Swan Graphite, it's 10' 6" long. It has Dick Swan signiture on it and a date 2001. Make me an Offer. Thanks.


Hello I have a Brand New Black Swan Graphite Rod, 10' 6" long. Has Dick Swan's signature on it and a date. 2001. make me an offer. thanks


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## sfw1960

Do I hear .50¢ ????

:lol: :lol:


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## 20acredave

Dave at Patriot rods in Gobles may be able to rebuild the broken section for you. Give him a call 269-628-5227.


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## MoJoRisin'

I'll buy it for $.50!! 

If anyone has a new one that they want to let go send me a PM. I had one of my old Brownings go over the side of the Lud pier with my cart in a sand blizzard and it is now in 6 pcs 

SFW - for real these newer rods are pretty nice fighting the big silver. I have even thrown 3 oz with them no problem. At first I figured the new Swan rods were "fragile" but after using them for several years throwing from 1.5 oz to 3 oz have learned they are excellent steelhead tamers for pier and surf.


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## MoJoRisin'

Here is a nice 12 lb hen and one of the Black Swan's


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## sfw1960

http://www.pinnaclefishing.com/shop/default.aspx

http://www.pinnaclefishing.com/shop/s-13-Spinning-Rods.aspx













http://www.pinnaclefishing.com/shop/p-67-vertex-im7.aspx#page=page-2


You can PM my friend Lee (brigeton) here and ask what he thinks, he's got a few of the 10' he uses for perchin', but I've owned some Pinnacle stuff for a long time and for a more inexpensive product - they are dang good for the ca$h you pay for them.

The 2011 catalog:

http://www.pinnaclefishing.com/shop/..\master_catalog\FNL_2011MasterCatalog_web.pdf

I own the Silstar OEM version of the Pflueger Trion (Matrix Metal) Baitcaster and you may recognize the "Power Tip" rods as the uGLyStiK OEM version.
Dick Swan ain't gunna live forever :lol: - these might suit you well instead.

RAS


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## MoJoRisin'

Reason I'm looking specifically for a Black Swan rod is it will make my pier and surf set a full 3 rod set with one odd backup. I had 2 of each before (newer and older swan's) but Lk MI and a big blow claimed one of my old ones. I have other 9' multipurpose rods (9' Browing noodle, 9' St Croix, 9' Fenwick (old) and several other shorter casting rods) so what my need is pretty specific. 

FWIW - a few times while pier casting with the black swans I have had the bail flip closed on me with 2 oz pyramid and the rod did not get damaged and the line did not break - a testament to the fact that eventhough these things are true spagetti noodles they are pretty tough. I've even casted 3 oz pyramids with them with no issues. 

Thanks for the input though - maybe I'll see you again on Muskegon Lake in a few weeks!!


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## sfw1960

If I haven't had back surgery in a few weeks MAYBE I'll seeya out there...
:sad: 
FWIW - Dawn & I each have a 10' Silstar Pinnacle SH rod - they are (I asked her B/C I'm half See-Nile!) at least 16 years old according to my lovely Bride's memory.
I would EXPECT a rod to be able to take a bail sCHnapping shut at an inopportune time a few times _AT LEAST_, as it's not really that uncommon - at least with all the clumsy guys I fish with including me'seF ! :lol:
Anyway - when they were first "new" we used them for trout, salmon & SH and they handled everything quite well (including 20LB class kings going kRaZY in the MO up by the dam).
:coolgleam
The last 10+ years they have been used to rake white bellies off the bottom; sometimes with a good hunk 0' lead on the rig as well as winging pyramid sinkers off the pier at times.

Ours were made in Korea , they're probably cH!nEsE now though....

From the sounds of it - once the _*Mighty MO*_ locks up well, there's going to be some dandy year classes to be had f0' sh0' ....
:evilsmile

RAS


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## MoJoRisin'

Found 2 10.5' Green Swan rods from a MS member's tip (thanks)!! I can tell you from the info I got they stopped making them in 2004 and if you want any you will have to look far and wide. I got 2 so my son can use them when he gets to be hook setting age (almost 2 now)!! Also got 2 of the Shimano 4000 Sedonas - man they look sweet!! I cant wait to get on the pier - we just have to get done with the damn snow!!!


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## syonker

Nice score Mojo on the rods!

I'm still trying to hunt down a bail screw for my long forgotten 1972 Zebco Cardinal 3.


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## Fishndude

Any halfway decent reel repair guy/place should be able to put that bail screw in for you. If not, I'll make you a deal on that un-useable C3, if it is really a Zebco, and not an Abu. In decent working condition, they usually sell for between $55 and $75 on Ebay. Non working they sell for quite a bit less. You can often find parts for them on Ebay, too. I tried to replace a bail spring once, and ended up paying someone to finish the job. There is a trick to it, and I couldn't figure it out. But I love those reels. 

FWIW, I have thrown some Swan rods before, and they were too floppy for my taste. I know they can take quite a beating, but that isn't really a large consideration for me. I tend to appreciate rods with a decent amount of backbone, so I can use heavier line, and can man-handle fish in. I like to get the best fight out of a fish, quickly. I usually either land them, or lose them, within a couple minutes. When I release a fought Steelhead, I know they stand a decent chance of surviving. And I just enjoy a hard fight. I cannot fathom why anyone would want to lightly hold a fish and let them swim around on the end of their line for 15 minutes or more, if they didn't have to. 

I had a Silstar rod that I think I paid $37 for, and it said it was for "Crappie and Steelhead."  I never understood the connection, because the two species are nothing alike. It was cheap, and I used it on the piers a couple times, and loaned it to friends who wanted to try fishing, but weren't experienced; so they wouldn't destroy my custom IMX rods. Eventually one of my buddies snapped it trying to pull off a snag (I must have told him 15 times to pull on the line to get free from a snag, not on the rod). It wasn't a nice rod, and I never replaced it. I did make my buddy get himself his own rod, tho.


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## MoJoRisin'

One of my steel pier buddies has a 15' crappie rod he uses on the pier for steel also. Key there is it is a noodle rod just like the swan rods. Quite the sight to see him fighting the big one. 

FWIW I run 8 lb main and mostly 8 lb leaders on my noodle rods and do not typically "baby" fish - rarely is the fight much longer than a few minutes unless it is a repeat big screamer. Now there are guys that run light 4 lb leaders and have to "baby" the fish - I dont have a problem with that either - sometimes they are the only ones getting the action due to the light leaders. 

I just like the ultralight action which allows the fish to go spastic and absorb the head shakes without pulling the hook out. Also it allows you to bury the hook with a solid hookset and not pull the hook out or break off. 
Everybody has their preference I guess. 

Also these noodles work great for perch fishing in deeper water. Put on fireline or powerpro with perch rigs and you can feel them breathe on it.


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## Still Wait'n

And that is the whole concept when Dick Swan started designing the noodle rods back in the 60's. He would go as low as 2 lb test. He may not of landed all of his fish but would have more hook ups therefor increasing his odds.


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## syonker

Fishndude said:


> Any halfway decent reel repair guy/place should be able to put that bail screw in for you. If not, I'll make you a deal on that un-useable C3, if it is really a Zebco, and not an Abu. In decent working condition, they usually sell for between $55 and $75 on Ebay. Non working they sell for quite a bit less. You can often find parts for them on Ebay, too. I tried to replace a bail spring once, and ended up paying someone to finish the job. There is a trick to it, and I couldn't figure it out. But I love those reels.


Yup, it's a Zebco C3 & according to the spare parts list that came with the reel that I saved (I didn't save the box when I bought it 40 years ago-duh) the part I'm missing 11167-screw.

I've been monitoring Ebay for that part & I'm amazed with what C3s are pulling down on auction-triple the original retail.

My fall back plan is if I can't find an original screw is to contact Tuna Tom & let him have a go at replacing the screw.

Sweet reel, great drag.


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