I am building a 4 weight 5 piece fly rod (Dan Craft) and cannot begin to find the spine on any section. Most are just too stiff and the one that will flex does not seem to favor any side. Should I just build it?

Spencer

The faqs page here tells you what to do in that case. Check it out.

My Dan Crafts have always came pre-splined with white china marks on the blanks.
I'd call Dan to see what's up.

I am no expert and may very well be wrong but I think I remember reading somewhere that those marks are not the spine but something used in manufacturing. Just a heads up until someone can say for sure.
Phil

Be careful trying to re-spine Dan's blanks. One of the first pages of his catalog says that all Five Rivers multi piece blanks are spined at the factory and can't be spined in the traditional way. Also says that breakage due to the builder re-spining voids the warranty. Go with the marks that are on the blank. Give Dan a ring if you have any doubts.

Mick

I saw the marks and could not begin to determine how those marks got on a brand new rod. I was not sure what was going on. No info was sent with the rod and I got it through Rocky Mountain.

I guess it is my fault for not doing more research. Fortunately I did use the marks but not sure if I put the guides on the correct side.

Thanks

Spencer Bass

Just read the catalog and it does say they are spined at the factory (multi section blanks) due to the difficulty of trying to spine such short pieces and the risk of breaking them.

Spencer

The marks that some refer to and most often seen on Sage blanks only designate the straightest axis. On the Dan Craft blanks they designate the spine. Check with the manufacturer of your specific blank to determine what any marks on it are intended to designate.

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