Hi - just got steered to this forum by one of the suppliers for rod building components. I have three bamboo rods that I picked up, and my goal is to get refurbish them for my Grandkids. Two are Horrock Ibbotsons - one is of mid-30's vintage and the other is a 1940's vintage - this all based on a few websites I searched which points out the various labels used for each era. No other marking on either rod, except a large gold M on one of them.

There are both 8' bamboo 3-piece rods and I would guess that they are what would be comparable to a 5-weight.

Does anyone have recommended guide spacing on these H-I's. The gentleman at the supplier indicated that the old spacings were laid out for silk line, and that the newer lines required new spacings. Also, along with spacing information, I would like to get recommended guide sizes along the rod.

Thanks,

Dave

Dave,
Must confess to not having cast a "boo" in 20 years, but will give it shot with a graphite build.

9-Guides spacing from tip
3.8 ; 8.3 ; 13.4 ; 19.4 ; 26.4 ; 34.6 ; 44.0 ; 55.1 ; 67.9

top 3 guides #2 Single foot light wire titanium
Next 2 guides #3 single foot light wire steel
Next 2 guides #4 double foot snakes
Next guide #10 double foot alox
Next guide #12 double foot alox

I'd be tempted to make the rod slightly faster with an 8-guide layout which would match my stroke better

8-guides spacing from tip
4.3 ; 9.4 ; 15.4 ; 22.6 ; 31.2 ; 41.4 ; 53.5 ; 67.9

Remove one of the #4's

Good luck,
Eugene Moore

If you haven't done this yet, check out the CCS site link on the left and the library articles. No one will be able to give you guide spacings for an old HI rod unless they have one. You can read the static guide placement article in the library and also do a search on the board (try "story pole") for other articles on guide placement. This should give you a pretty good start on placing the guides according to the length and flex of the rod.

Since the guide's primary purpose is to protect the blank when the line loads the rod, not sure the difference that silk lines vs new PVC lines would make but I don't know anything about silk lines either. :-)

Terry

Whatever you do, dump all the different sizes. Using them creates a less than straight line path and adds weight. You really don't need more than 2 guide sizes, three at the very most. A stripping guide, an intermediate, and then all the same size guides from there on out.

If you're attempting to replicate the original, that's a different story.

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

You could place them where they were before; just follow the "ghost" marks. However, it is likely that they were never placed optimally, in the first place. I would lay them out using static testing, just as i would with a graphite rod. This article tells how do it:[www.rodbuilding.org]. Also, if there is a "set" (or "warp") to the rod, you may wish to place guides on the opposite side from where they were originally. This will tend to straighten the rod.

George Forster
Fort Collins, CO



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/20/2012 12:10AM by George Forster.

All - thanks for the replies. I'm going to do the static load testing as recommended, but will most likely come close to what Eugene recommended.

Now, another question. As the cork is chewed up, how best to remove in order to put a new one?


Thanks

As it will be destroyed in removing, a knife or chisel slipped along the blank (carefully) will do it.