TrueTemper Carboloy Fly Rod

Question
QUESTION: Can you provide any information on a TrueTemper 8' Fly rod, 1395A.  labeled genuine carboloy.

I recent found one at a flea market in excellent condition and hope to learn fly fishing. I need to know the line weight, etc for this rod.  Thanks Much.

ANSWER: Hi Joe,

This one is almost certainly fiberglass, probably from the 1960s or so and will probably need a 7wt or 8wt line.  If you have access to both line sizes, try them and see which one performs best.  If not, buy the 8wt (8DT or 8WF) line and use it.  The 8wt should work fine for general use.

These were not high performance rods and don't have any particular collector value but it should work fine for you to learn the basics.  I suspect once you get started you may want to look for a rod that performs better in a 6wt or so.

Thanks,  Joe

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your response.  I am curious about the description on the rod, genuine chromoloy stripper guide.
Apparently, chromoloys are metal alloys of tungsten, cobalt, carbon, etc. and are used for cutting tools.  Thus ther are very hard metals.  Is this the type of material used in guides today?

Answer
Hi Joe,

Several of the guides I sell for use in saltwater fishing and a few of the "old style" freshwater guides are what is called an "industrial hard chrome" which I assume is pretty much the same thing as the chromoloy.  Basically, resistant to corrosion and resistant to grooves being cut by line passing through the guides.

The majority of guides in use today utilize ceramic rings of either hard aluminum oxide or silicon carbide to prevent wear.  The framework of the guides is still hard chrome but in a variety of colors.  Relatively new to the market are titanium frames and titanium coated rings...also stainless steel frames and titanium coated rings.  

Modern, braided lines, plus the never-ending quest to minimize the weight of the overall fishing rod have moved the market to experiment more and more with very strong, very lightweight materials.

Thanks,  Joe