I will soon have a very sweet, Rainshadow fly rod, thanks to Custom Rodbuilders Supplies and Rodbuilding.org.

I have built about 15 rods now, and I think I have the basics down pat. But I have never built a fly rod, so I am looking for suggestions. Here are the recommendations I've been given so far...

1. "Go with the single-foot guides. They are slicker and lighter, and should improve your casts."

2. "Put a second stripper guide 4" above the bottom one. You will shoot farther."

3. "Use a light-body epoxy over the wraps, ESPECIALLY on a 3 wt! In this case, less is more."

These things seem well within my skills. Is there anything else you would recommend? How far do you think the first guide should go from the reel? Any special tricks for doing fly rods as compared to other rods?

Thanks again!

TH

Tony,

I'd suggest you sit down, take a deep breath to calm your excitement, and call me(toll-free) at 1-877-303-9331 so I can get your goodies shipped out to you!

Its really is great to have someone so excited about winning the 'posting contest' - your excitement makes this great fun for everyone on the board.

cheers for now
andy Snedden

Hi Tony You lucky dog!!!!!

You're on the right track with that flyrod. I would definitely go with sinlge foot guides. For the extra stripper at 4 inches, I would place all your guides and test cast. Then tape on the extra stripper and see what the results are. Did you get less or more casting distance? If you got more then use it, if you got less don't use it. The extra stripper is not a sure bet on every set up. Sometimes it's better and sometimes not. As far as the finish goes, I don't see why you couldn't use LS Supreme. There are some on the boards that use Crystal Coat but I have heard of some does & don'ts with it. Dig a little deeper on that Crystal Coat but I think LS Supreme would be fine. For the first guide, hold the rod as if you were fishing in normal position and reach up to the point where you would normally grab the line to start stripping. Mark that point and then place the first guide an inch to 2 inches above that point. Building a flyrod is just like building a casting or spinning rod. Reelseat placement is about the same, the grip installation is the same and guide placement is the same. Also, make sure you wrap the female end of the rod that excepts the male end at the ferrule. I think the length of the wrap should be 2 or 2.5 times the diameter of the rod at the female end. Not exactly sure about that length but I know it's close. I'm sure you will get plenty of good info from some of the professionals.

Good luck and you will like that RainShadow,

Steve

Steve,

Thanks for that info! I've recently started using Flex Coat lite, and I like it a lot, but I'm interested in the Supreme, and may simply order some with the stuff.


Andy,
I'm picking up the phone now! :)

TH

Just got off the phone with Andy of Custom Rodbuilders Supply, and he was VERY knowledgable and helpful! He took the time to answer every single question I had.

Then he helped me select the proper components and even traded me for a blank that I will use more! (I flyfish small, overgrown creeks, and the 9' rod was not the best)

I am now getting a 7 foot, four weight rod. It will have the superlight TiC single foot guides and the silver nickel reel seat. Can't wait!

TH