McKenzie Bamboo Fly Rod 8'6" 5-wt Medium | Granger 8642 Taper
Complete your rig
Add the reel and line. Fish it the day it arrives.
$295 · $100 less than buying it separatelyAdd the Clark Fork reel, matched line, backing, leader, and tippet to your rod order. We match the reel size and line weight to the rod you chose, so it shows up ready to fish. At $295, that’s $100 less than the reel bundle on its own ($395).
Reel hand
Matched to the rod you selected above. 30-day trial and lifetime warranty apply to the rod.
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3-Piece Travel Design
Built for packability. Fits in a carry-on, a backpack, or behind a truck seat. Slightly heavier than a 2-piece equivalent due to two ferrule stations. If you want the lightest possible setup, a 2-piece rod is the better choice.
A 5-weight that goes where you're going.
Some rods live on a rack. The McKenzie lives in a bag. Three pieces, Cordura tube, fits behind a truck seat or in the overhead bin - and when you get there, it fishes like a rod that belongs on a big western river.
At 8'6", it has the reach to mend line on the Deschutes, the authority to turn over a big dry fly in a headwind, and the slow-to-medium action that makes bamboo feel like bamboo. This is the 5-weight for the angler who travels to fish.
The Granger 8642 Taper
W.E. Granger built rods out of Denver for western American anglers. His tapers were designed for the water he knew - big rivers, long days, conditions that punish a fast rod and reward one with depth in the loading curve. The 8642 is one of the most versatile tapers in the Granger catalog: a medium action 5-weight that loads fully at 30 feet and keeps loading to 60.
It's not a delicate rod. It's a working rod - the kind you take to water you don't fish twice a year and want to get right when you get there.
Built the Way a Bamboo Rod Should Be
The McKenzie is hand-planed to the standard that has defined Headwaters rods since 2002.
The fittings: A finely knurled double-locking downlocking reel seat with stabilized burled maple insert. Ultra-fine cork grip. Red agate stripping guide. Hard chrome guides wrapped in deep burgundy thread with a narrow black tip.
The tube: Cordura rod tube with rod sock included.
Choose Your Version
The Favorite | $550 - Single-tip version for the angler who wants to get on the water first. Same rod, same fittings, same hand-planed cane. Clear upgrade path to the Deluxe when you're ready.
The Deluxe | $750 - Two tips, two sections of extra security. The complete rod as it was meant to be fished.
The Outfit | $1,045 - Everything you need to step onto the water. The McKenzie Deluxe paired with a Clark Fork 3.0 fly reel, weight-forward fly line, backing, leader, tippet, and a selection of flies.
Specifications
- Action: Medium
- Length: 8'6"
- Line weight: 5-weight
- Pieces: 3 (Deluxe and Outfit include extra tip)
- Taper: Granger 8642
- Reel seat: Downlocking, double-locking knurled nut, stabilized burled maple insert
- Grip: Ultra-fine cork
- Stripping guide: Red agate
- Guide wrap: Deep burgundy with black tip
- Tube: Cordura with rod sock
No Risk. Our Promise.
Fish it for 30 days. If it's not the rod you hoped it would be, send it back for a full refund, no questions asked. The lifetime warranty covers the original owner for as long as you fish it.
Read what our customers have to say about us
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to US destinations.
30-Day Guarantee
Wiggle it, cast it, fish it
for up to 30 days.
Free Returns
Exchange or return for free. Contact us for return label.
Lifetime Warranty
On any workmanship issue
for original owner.
"A great way to get into bamboo--affordable and well made."
"I was pleasantly surprised by the smooth, graceful action."
"It greatly improves your accuracy, especially at short distances."
"Allows the fly fisherman to feel good about the renewable, sustainably-sourced rod."
"The natural tone, attractive windings, cork, and fittings; and flawless finish--impressive."
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