Corpusfishing.com

[Towboat Trash]

"HOLY-JAMOOLY! THIS LOOKS LIKE THE TACKLE SHOP WITHOUT THE CASH REGISTER! AINT NOBODY BUT A TACKLE PIMP NEEDS ALL THIS!! You don't need NO.. MORE.. RODS! No more! NO MORE I'm telling ya! People these days just got TOO MANY RODS! You give ole' Ralph just one rod and reel and I'll make those trout walk on water into the icebox! That's right! Like they got legs!

--Ralph Wade, surf fishing legend, 2012, at the house for Sunday dinner.

"Man, ain't nobody worried bout no Harnell, shoot I can go to Wal Mart and all and get a Fugly Stick and roll OUT!" I told Steve. Long, long pause. Incoming swell crashed out over the bar in the dark night air, and the fire crackled one good time before he answered me. But first he took one good solid pull off of a brown pack Winston as my education was thoughtfully prepared. "WELL NOW, look here son, it's like this! YOU CAN HAVE A PORSCHE OR YOU CAN HAVE A BICYCLE NOW WHICH ONE WOULD YOU WANT! YOU CAN HAVE A HARNELL OR SOME KINDA CALSTAR NONSENSE WITH ALL THOSE TINY GUIDES AND SOME KINDA TIE DYE WRAP! HARNELL...NOW HARNELL IS GONNA HOLD ITS VALUE, HARNELL'S BEEN CATCHING FISH SINCE BEFORE YOU WERE BORN AND IT'S GONNA KEEP CATCHING FISH AFTER YOUR LITTLE ARSE IS GONE!!! AND ALL I OWN IS HARNELL AND HARRINGTON AND THAT'S ALL I'M EVER GONNA OWN!"

--January 2017, shark fishing campfire education with the best old school rod builder I know.


Time flies and ain't a fish I've found yet has any legs. Hah. Goodbye yellow brick road, eh? One year ago, moping around trying to find work. Here today, everything is just mighty fine. There's an old buddy of mine that I like to refer to as "Lil Joker."



Dunno if he really likes it all that much, but I haven't gotten punched in the face yet, so there's that. But he told me once during an extended time that he was out of work, "Ups and downs, one day you're down but the next day you look around and you're back up again." So true.

I wanted to share these rods for the last year. I truly don't know if we'll ever see anything like them ever again, and anything this beautiful deserves to be seen. My old buddy Steve built them, and boy oh boy, is he talented. He told me once he started building rods back in the 70's, and it shows. Last year around November he called me and asked if I was interested in a Harnell he came across. I told him I was and one thing led to another. The original rod was never ever fished or used, and was from the late 50's to mid 60's. As he was restoring it, the fella he got it from showed up with another just like it, never used and never had a reel on it. Said they were part of an estate sale, just laid up in a closet indoors. Never seen a drop of water. All original. Steve put gold plated Fuji SIC guides on them, restored them by rewrapping them, and named them the "TWINS."



I had never seen guides like this in my life. Just beautiful. Absolutely stunning.


He always keeps the original Harnell stickers, even with a new wraps. He is also the only fella I know that keeps the old school Gudebrod thread to match up the Harnell colors exactly.




His work is just unbelievable. No tie dye, no weird weed leaves in the paint, no peace and love logos, just CLASS.


And two MASSIVE tips.




Steve is a believer in Fuji guides and I am too. The only brand I've found that won't rot out on me on that beach.


The original Harnell wrap is just georgeous.










Original cork foregrips.


Original ash unibutts.


Varmac reel seats, original.







Stunning.


Gimbal never used.






I never wanted to share these until I had reels on them, so here we are. Two Avet 80 Wides. I almost put 12/0 Penn Senators on them for nostalgia's sake, but those Penn's just don't fit my style of fishing.





I kinda thought I'd never ever fish these, but Steve busted my you know what enough, that I guess I better, even thought it's gonna kill me to put these anywhere near that surf.

I just don't know if we'll ever see old rods like these in this shape again, I really don't. The wrap and butts and the rest is well before my time, and I suppose the only reason Steve thought of me is he knows I like old things, the old ways, the old traditions, and things that time and events have proven to be true and strong and right. And I know for SURE we'll never see guides like these old discontinued Gold Fuji's again. Where he gets them? We'll never know, but I suppose that's what makes an old school restoration rod builder as good as he is.

--Colin
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Protect Padre at all costs for future generations to use and enjoy and never forget our freedoms aren't free.

www.padreislandexpeditions.com

[deputydawg]

WOW!!!! I'm not sure I could let myself use those! I love that old stuff! Thanks for sharing them!

[Tyler]

Those are fantastic. Fish one and save the other for posterity!
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[SaltyMutt]

Steve Certainly is an outstanding person. I could spend the whole day listening to his stories. Those twins look great!
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I like fishies

[gkrane]

Those look absolutely amazing!!!

[AnmRanch]

Those look amazing!

[shallowsport]

I agree, they look so nice I believe that I would have to wall mount them.
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"I do hunt and I do fish and I do not apologize to anyone that I hunt and fish." - Norman Schwarzkopf

[jeff89]

I should flag this for being porn, but i'll let it slide. Very sexy.

I agree with Tyler, hang one in the living room for art's sake.