Have any of you had a chance to cast the new Dorber "S" rods? Seriously, is this a joke? The blanks are not straight.....they are actually set into a shallow S shape. I was reading a review in the new FF magazine and the guys there said it excelled on the forward cast, but ended up working against you on the back cast. Sounds reasonable. I just cannot believe that such a blank exists. How would you get the mandrel out of the darn thing once it has been hardened into that S shape? Inquiring minds want to know.

Pretty bizarre. I'd like to try one though. My guess is that if you get off the exact casting plane it would be more than a little funky feeling. Should be interesting to see how far this concept goes.

guess ya build it on the straightest access ???

Bill - willierods.com

Bill,
The mandrels usually have a powder lubricant on them and the mandrel is pulled out of the blank with a hydralic puller. The blank is reinforced at the end where it comes in contact with the puller. One way or another the mandrel will come out.

I can understand that on a rod blank that is straight. But how do you get an S shaped mandrel out of an S shaped rod blank? Looks to me like it would be formed in once the graphite sets and no amount of pulling could get it out.

Bill,
I understand your question. I do not know for sure. I have not seen it done, but I think that probably both the blank and the mandrel are flexible enough that one or both flex as the mandrel is pulled.
Actually, almost no blanks or mandrels are perfectly straight. There is almost always some bend or crookedness in the blank and or mandrel that must flex as the mandrel is pulled.
You are probably right that at some point, some degree of crookedness, the scheme will not work, the mandrel cannot be removed.

That's my point. So how do they withdraw the mandrel from this S shaped rod blank? If the mandrel is made of steel I doubt you can pull it through an S shaped object and not ruin it or the blank.

Think of the stiffness of a piece of music wire. The steel mandrel has a pretty darn small diameter, and it will readily deflect (straighten out) with even a small amount of tension. This is particularly true of steel if the yield point has not been reached and the steel is still in the elastic range. The rod blank should have considerable greater elastic range, therefore ---No problem.
Sounds like a great way to market a goof up to me.

The entire bottom half of the rod is from a quarter to a half inch in diameter. How flexible is a quarter inch steel rod??? I just have to believe these are made some other way.

The owner of Dorber will be at the Expo, if you can track him down you can ask him there.

...............

Does Dorber have a email or web site? These are question one must ask a manufacture. Maybe someone could get a blank and come up with a new guide wrap design. Remember how long it took for the Roberts (Acid Wrap) to take hold , now every one who builds has one or 2 types or styles of that wrap. Maybe they could call the new wrap the (Coke Wrap) Put 2 S's together, one reverse of the other an what do you have? A body ! . We all know where the Acid Wrap got it name. One thing is for sure you don't have to worry about guide alignment

Good Wraps Bob

Must be a bear to spin on a rod lathe!

Freddwhy (Rapt-Ryte)