Dickerson, Lyle - Model 901812 Tournament, 9' 3/2 Bamboo Rod

For sale here is a Dickerson 901812 Tournament, 9' 3-piece / 2-tip bamboo rod in good original condition. Made in 1946 for John Sweeney Jr. Medium tempered cane with bronze snake guides and carbaloy stripping guide, wrapped in light brown windings & black tipping. The wraps are in good condition, although a few windings have split at the bridge on the stripping guide. All sections are full length and straight, except for a slight fish fighting set to one tip. The ferrules fit perfectly. 4 accent wraps on the butt section above the bold script reading "Dickerson 901812 Tournament" on one flat and "John S. Sweeney Jr. - 1946" two flats left. Hexagonal winding check and bent loop hook keeper. 6.5" cork grip is mostly smooth, but soiled, and the rod is fitted with an up-locking screw lock reel seat over wood spacer. The flat end cap is integrated into the bottom of the reel seat. Weight is 5.35oz, and the rod feels lighter in the hand than you might expect. It feels like a medium fast action 7wt. The varnish is in very good condition, save for a tiny bit of bag burn on the tips between the tip top and the first guide. One major condition is two "dings" on one flat on the mid, roughly 7" apart. It's hard to say for sure, but I suspect these are either stress cracks that developed after the rod was made, or imperfections in the cane that caused the varnish to crack. Either way, it seems like something that should be addressed with an invisible wrap. Other than this the rod is in remarkable condition. The Sweeney family was Dickerson's best non-dealer customers, and many Dickerson's bear the Sweeney name. This is also a rare "Tournament" model, which were advertised by Dickerson but very few examples are seen. An interesting piece by any estimation. Sold in the original bag & tube with brass cap. From the collection of Thomas H. Clark.