Im looking for a reputable place to purchase several aluminum fly rod tubes. The TFO tubes are $50 for the 32" x 2.5" That seems pricey to me. Not to mention the fact that they have been backordered for months. I've seen several on eBay for around $25-$30 but dont know what kind of quality they are. Any suggestions/opinions?

easy to make with PVC from yer local hardware store & a helluva lot cheeper, you can put a screw coupling on one end & plug the other, piece o cake

What he said. They travel well and double as blunt weapons.

Seriously, there are kits you can get that turn them from ugly ducklings into swans.

Make that a female adapter with a plug on one end and a hard cap on the other(thought I'd give you the proper terminology). 2" works for everything that I've built one for so far, but my smaller rods(2,3,5wts) will fit in 1.5"...8wts won't.

Try Fly Rod Crafters

Fly Rod Crafters - Rod tubes

PVC is the answer.

Black PVC if you're picky.

Jet Tube if you're a complete anal nutjob:

http://www.mudhole.com/Jet-Tube-Rod-Tube-Kit

...plus, if the cap is on tight, they'l float-p-

Another nice thing about PVC case is that ya' can run truck over them and not harm your rod... I've seen it done!

"Seriously, there are kits you can get that turn them from ugly ducklings into swans."

I have looked through google a bit and cant find an example of the kits. Do you have a link? Thanks!

"Black PVC is you're picky."

I guess I must be if Im looking for aluminum.

Here's the deal. Im tking two trips this summer. One to West Yellowstone Montana and Im taking my son to Canada for a Pike/Walleye trip. So we will be doing quite a bit of hiking. I've got a Fishpond Tundra Tech Pack with the "Integrated rod tube system" that holds two rods. (http://fishpondusa.com/tundra-tech-pack.cfm)

I am interested in the PVC tube kits. They sound cool even if they wont work for this specific application. I have a few PVC tubes, but the tolerances on the openings of this bag seem to be precisely designed for aluminum tubes. You would have to see the link to know what I mean. Anyway, I stuck my buddy's aluminum tube in the slots and it fits PERFECT! So thats what Im after.

The pvc rod tubes work ok, I have a few with the fabric/cordura covers. I prefer Aluminum overall though - they fit better in my rod travel case and can handle a lot of abuse.

The cordura covered tubes can be found at J Stockards (http://www.jsflyfishing.com/cgi-bin/category/99300) and I think Hook and Hackle (www.hookhack.com) as well. (Hook and Hackle also have aluminum if memory serves)

Funny how you can ask for one thing, but then get told that you need something else...

the other day when i got three rods slid into one tfo oval rod tube, I was very happy with my self

so go big !