About Us
Trout Smiths/Struble is John, Jeremy, and Steve...Steve's wife, Cheryl, is the Ship Boss when she's not in the garden or on strike because Steve has the shop too cluttered for normal people to work.
ORIGINS
Trout Smiths originated in 2019 with Shane Gray of Graywolf Products and Services ( https://www.graywolfrods.com/ ). At the outset, TS was a comprehensive line of fiberglass rods to handle most any trout fishing situation. (Here's a link to The Fiberglass Manifesto's article introducing Trout Smiths in 2019: http://thefiberglassmanifesto.blogspot.com/2019/02/introducing-trout-smiths.html )
Over the next several years, Shane introduced new tapers and new rods to the TS lineup, eventually offering several Brookie LT e-glass rods and blanks ranging from 1-3wt, and all 8'0. He also added the Brute- a 7'6 ft glass rod tossing 7&8wt lines- and several models of carbon rods. The carbon rods, dubbed "Heritage Carbon LL" were made of IM graphite, all 8'0 and- again- for 1-3wt lines.
MERGER
Steve and John acquired Struble Components in 2020 and Shane was our first customer. Through Struble, Steve and Shane have opportunities to talk often and in 2023 they began discussing Struble taking over Trout Smiths.
Steve talked to Jeremy and in December, 2023 the merger of Struble and Trout Smiths was completed.
That Trout Smiths originated with Shane, means that the foundational tapers of our rods and blanks have been developed by one of the most creative fly rod minds in the country. In fact, all the rods and blanks we offer have been designed in collaboration with some of America's best fly rod developers; along with Shane, Mike McFarland and Dusty Smith have all had input on the rods and blanks we offer or will offer.
The merger of Trout Smiths and Struble means that we are able to provide some of the finest casting rods with the best components available at prices well below what you'd expect from rods built with premium agate stripping guides, classic Struble-designed nickel-plated seats with exquisite wood inserts, and unique components like Struble's "Turtle Check" (integrated winding check and hook-keeper). Most everything that comes standard on Trout Smith rods are usually "upgrades" with others.
US
Everyone at TS/Struble is otherwise employed. Jeremy is a Contractor in Bozeman, MT., John is retired Military and Yellowstone County Sheriff's Deputy and, now, Bagel Store owner in Billings, MT., and Steve is pastor of a church in Canon City, CO.
Steve has known John since they were kids in Lincoln, Nebraska. Steve pastored a church in Bozeman for 25 years where Jeremy was (and is) part of the church's leadership.
TS/Struble is an enterprise among lifelong or near-lifelong friends. And that's how we approach what we do: We consider people who support us, friends and treat them as such.
LASTLY
Fishing is fun, and Lord knows more fun is desperately needed in this world. What we do, we do for the love of fly rods and the fun they represent. Which means we really appreciate beautiful rods with stunning components but we also know in the end, as my dad said, they'll be covered in wet or crusty fish slime.
We build fly rods out of love. We make them to be fished.