With all the hype on 2.57 oz finished rods and Micro Management etc...does that make Artistic embellishment dead in this craft? If so......cant wait for the next color centerfold in Rodmaker. Might as well go back to Black and White.


High promotion of form and function...Flock it!

NERB that types with a bar of Ivory soap in his mouth.

Not at all. I respect the ability to do the thread work. There's great skill and patience required. I've done my share, and still do from time to time, but ti's just not my thing.

Some customers want a beautiful rod they can pass down over generations, some folks want a rod with their name put on it, some folks just want the best tool they can buy. It's a big pie and we can all have a slice. Or better yet make a different flavor than the standard apple and have some variety.

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Alex, You said it perfectly. The serious Bass hunters are leaning toward "stealth" rods. But the wife wants one with all the glitter . I am building a lot of rods for women with all the pretty colors and sparkles . Women around here are also serious Bass Tournament fisher-women.

Good answers both...I still see any art on a fishing rod taking the back seat in favor of function, based on promotion,dot dot dot long term.

delete

I see air brushing making a break through !!

Freddwhy (Rapt-Ryte)

It seems a singular shame to me, that the chase for the "holy grail" of "my-rod's-lighter-than-your-rod" should have come to this as a question, albeit tongue-in-cheek (I hope).

We build what our customer wants. Many of them won't order "pretty" wraps simply because there's an extra cost involved, even on a boat rod with a 3/4" butt dia. To me, the ultimate would be to do a 1oz rod including a fancy wrap, if I were chasing that particular prize.

In fact, I can show you a 3oz spinner I did about 35yrs ago that has one of Dale's "rose" patterns at the butt, in pink and purple done for my daughter to go after bluegills and such. It's on an old Fenwick 5' 2pc blank. But what I'm finding here on the coast is that no one is asking for (a) a superlight rod of any kind and (b) fancy wrap, except for the odd exception

I'd love to get back to this part of the craft. Yes, our ribbon designs are within the fancy-wrap world, but it's the cross wraps and weaves - regardless of size - that are the most fun.

Uncle Russ
Calico Creek Rods



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/01/2008 04:39PM by Russ Pollack.

.High suited cards my freind from the warmer climate.......check.



(for sale...thread, cork, more thread)

Triple dog dare you to raise preflop.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/01/2008 05:01PM by Michael Joyce.

Russ - not knocking you, but not really fair to compare a 3oz 5' bream rod to a 3oz 7' bass rod...

I agree... there just isn't any desire to have fancy wraps here. I have a couple testers with wraps and I usually get "Can I get this without this stuff on it?"

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Russ and I share a similar bond....and theirs others I'm sure.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/02/2008 04:21PM by Bill Stevens.

Alex - you are, as usual, pretty much spot on with the comparison, and no, I didn't even come close to taking it as a "knock" - but we both make the same point, because to build that same little rod now, with current materials, it'd probably weigh well under 2oz.

And Michael, thanks for the kind words. Yup, it's almost the exact same quote here. If I ever get time to do a couple rods for myself I'll do them up nice so folks can see it but even then they won't order it. The closest we come is when someone wants one of our "Patriot Theme" sticks with the ribbon wraps. BTW, we've accumulated a number of different styles of similarly-themed spools of ribbon, thanks to my wife always being on the lookout for such. But even then, the extra few bucks usually kills the extra line on the order/spec sheet.

Other than Lib, for whom I have to build two rods for our spring striper trip. She wants feathers on one, and hasn't decided on the other, but she's playing with VizWrap and VizWeave in the evenings. Scary. Trouble is, she's not a paying customer, but as you might imagine, she's the most demanding one we've got. Or as she is wont to say, "To heck with the Warranty, build it right the first time".

Uncle Russ
Calico Creek Rods



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/02/2008 12:44AM by Russ Pollack.

I truly hope the "art" of rod building as it relates to fancy thread wraps and incredible handle designs never dies!

When I walk around the ICRBE and look at some of it. I stand in awe of some of the artistic work on display, and the skills required in creating it.

But in the world of fishing competitively and building for those who do. What I and they need or want are technically advanced rods built for technique specific applications.
Which are equally a piece of artwork, viewed not from the point of appearance, but function.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/01/2008 07:30PM by Steve Gardner.

No worries here......... them 3oz rods won't lift nothing out of 80'+ saltwater....
(my project on the wrapper has gone over the 20oz mark and that's without the guides..........YYIIKKEESS)

Heavy, loud and proud. Hope it never goes away.

..like this little ditty...."Domenic the Donkey" (search that one folks and have a good night)

Not to jump into the middle of somebody' pot but why does it seem to an outsider to this "discussion" that you can build a only 2 different ways? Either with eye catching wraps or micro guides, are those the only choices?
I was under the impression that as long as you built a rod the way a customer or yourself wants then it was the "right" way. I prefer a simple wrap with concept style guide sets for my redfish and trout tournaments.
But then again I just started peddling with this and guess I have a lot to catch up on.

You Know, For me it depends on the purpose of the rod. I like my 4wt and below fly rods to be light as a feather. I just built an 8'6" 4wt that came in at 2.42 ounces. However I like for a 6wt and above to be decorated up a little. Heavier action rods are generally not going to be very light regardless what you do but on a light action rod I can feel a difference of even 1/10 of an ounce if it is forward of the grip anywhere. I know because I tore my 8' 3wt down three times for that reason. I made it no frills at first, then I decided to put a butt wrap on it, and it felt like a completely different rod so I took it off and rewrapped the whole thing without the butt wrap and used permagloss instead of epoxy and now it is even better than it was the first time. However on my 9' 7wt with a butt wrap and heavy epoxy it fells just like it did with only a grip and blank. Personal preference comes into play too, I don't like flashy much but some do.

Customers always right, but stick to your guns and give 'em your best .....and never listen to me or my opinion for that matter. Each inividual fisherman has a vision or criterior for what they want in a custom fishing rod. Buiilder provides it based on __________________(fill in the blank)

Im just poking the beehive with a stick.

Matthew, you just made my whole point, and much better than I could have said it.

There are folks who will tell you that if it weighs more than "X"-number of ounces, it's worthless and you obviously don't know what you're doing.

There are folks who will tell you that if you're not using micro guides or the NCG system you obviously don't know squat about modern rod building.

And then there are the rest of us, who build what the customers wants, and in the process make the rod as strong as it needs to be, as light as it can be in practical terms (although that's not a primary criteria), and as pleasing to the eye as it can be and the customer is willing to pay for (and sometimes throwing in a little extra something just for fun and to watch the customer's eyes light up when he sees it for the first time). The rod, after all, has to cast or troll line to suit the customer's requirements, and has to actually land his fish. Within those criteria, I guess we know enough to sell some rods despite the fact that we obviously have no clue about what we're supposed to be doing..

Uncle Russ
Calico Creek Rods

Russ-
It sounds like you are doing exactly what you are supposed to do. Building to the needs and wants of your customers. The guys building bass rods as light as they can be built are doing the same. The customers are different. The needs and wants of competitive bass fisherman are different regardless of their chosen level of competition. Whether it is a monthly bass club TX or the every so often gathering of 5 or 6 guys from the plant who get together and all throw $20 in the hat. Or the guys whos livelihood depends on it. They all want to win and feel if lighter rods give them an advantage then they want lighter rods. I haven't noticed the words "useless" or "you don't know what you are doing" or "you don't know squat" anywhere in the messages from guys building these lighter rods. Methods for building rods with the lowest finished weight are being shared between builders and users of those types of rods. I 've seen only complimentary things said about those who put rod art ahead of bottom line weight. I also see those who are blending the two-displaying thread art skills while being conscious of weight as well. Thank goodness I build bass rods because I have neither the skill nor the patience to do what the thread artisans are doing. I spend time looking through the gallery and marvel at what they are capable of. I look at a Corvette the same way-sure is pretty...but it ain't what I need. Different drums.

Chris