I'm new to this forum and to rod building. How important is the brand of thread? Are they all pretty much the same? I realize some are nylon, some metallic, and some are NCP. If brand is important, could someone please make some suggestions of some of the better ones. Thanks for your help------Chris

Chris -
I don't think brand is as important as choosing the correct type and size. If you stick with the major manufacturers (and distributors to the left) you should have no problem whatsoever. The differences will be those that you develop preferences for. For example lots of people like to use Madiera thread - I do not. The thread is good, runs smoothly, retains color well - I just do not -prefer it. My "go to" choices are Gudebrod and National thread but that is not to say I don't use Robison-Anton or Fish Hawk or Madiera just that those are my normal choices.

Personally I like the Gudebrod and Pac Bay Rodsmith regular nylon for wraps. I only build fly rods so I use size A only. I prefer regular nylon over the NCP also. I just think it looks better, even without CP. To me NCP looks dull and lacks the luster that you will get once it is covered with the wrap finish. My advice is to get several different brands of the thread colors you want to use, get a scrap piece of blank and make a bunch of wraps of the different threads and finish them. Sounds like a lot of extra work, but it will give you a good representation of how all the different threads will look finished. For metallic thread I use the Gudebrod and Fish Hawk. The Gudebrod has a bit more shine than the Fish Hawk, but the Fish Hawk is easier to use.

You can use nearly any thread, but only a few are designed expressly for use as guide wrapping thread. Sewing threads may have lubricants in them that can cause various finishing problems. Just keep that in mind if you run into trouble with a non-guide wrapping thread.

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