St. Croix Imperial Fly Rod Review

In this product review we are going to look at the St. Croix Imperial Fly Rod, but first we would like to talk about St. Croix. 

St. Croix can proudly say that they have one of the most technologically advanced rod manufacturing facilities in North America. Most of their rods are manufactured in facility, located in Park Falls Wisconsin.

Rods that are not manufactured in the USA, are made in their state of the Art Manufacturing Facility in Fresnillo Mexico. Like the USA facility, there is no outsourcing of any part of the rod manufacturing process. Everything is done in house.

A lot of people may not be aware of just how long St. Croix has been in the rod manufacturing business. They began manufacturing in 1948 and were the first company to manufacture a multi-piece bamboo rod. Fast forward to today and St. Croix has emerged as a leader in the rod manufacturing industry. 

Now on to the St. Croix Imperial Fly Rod Review. The Imperial series of fly rods has seen several changes throughout its tenure in the St. Croix line-up. At one point it was more of an entry level rod. It was revamped in 2018 and the Imperial is now the top-of-the-line fly rod offered by St. Croix.

Rod Guides

There were no details spared in the design and construction of this fly rod. The rod guides are double-coated with Flex-Coat, a thin, slow-cure polymer. The stripping guides are the highly-touted Kigan Master 3D guides. The snake guides are Sea-Guides with a black PVD coating which helps harden the guides and increases smoothness for farther casting.

Reel Seat

In the 7wt model and above, the reel seats are anodized aluminum, making them suitable for saltwater usage. The lighter weight rods have anodized aluminum components with a sharp-looking rosewood center portion.

Rod Blank

The Imperial blank is a combination of SCIV carbon and SCII carbon, creating a rod that is an absolute pleasure to cast.

Castability

We were very impressed when we took this rod for a test-drive. It performed very well when casting short and long distances, even when carrying a ridiculous amount of line. In the air, the rod never felt like it was overloaded.  There is a ton of power in the rod and we could generate a high line speed but by no means was there a “broomstick” feel to the rod. There was still a good amount of flex in the blank and you could really feel the rod load. 

Lengths and Weight

The Imperial is available in a broad range of lengths and weights. It’s not only available in a 4-piece model but some models are also available in 2-piece, which is quite outside the box in rod manufacturing these days.

The smallest and lightest Imperial rod is a 6’ 2wt, the heaviest is a 9’ 10wt. There are 22 rod length and weight variations in between. Whatever fishing you’re doing, St. Croix has an Imperial rod to meet your needs.

Verdict

In summary, a St. Croix Imperial Fly Rod is a very worthy addition to your fly rod collection. We hope you enjoyed this review. Shop online for a St. Croix Imperial Fly Rod.

If you have any questions about this review, please feel free to contact us by email searun2013@gmail.com, by phone at 604-931-5044 or stop by Sea-Run Fly & Tackle at #110-1140 Austin Avenue in Coquitlam BC.

Good luck on the water.

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