I've been building rods about 2 years and have just completed rod #24, mostly fly rods with the odd spinning rod thrown in. I'm comfortable with my procedures and the rods all look good and fish well. I do not sell rods.

I pulled out my first rod yesterday, It's a 9 foot RX7 Batson Salmon rod-IST1085 to be exact. That rod has been to Alaska twice, both times loaned out to my brother, and it literally has caught dozens of salmon. The problem is, it isn't done very well. There are gaps in the wraps especially on the bigger guides, the trim bands are uneven and too thick, and a couple of the wraps have small fish eyes if you look closely. Your eye gets much more critical as you progress in this craft! Prior to me even fishing it once, I built an RX8 XST 1085 to use myself, and that's what I've fished with. So this is strictly a loaner/extra. It is perfectly suitable as is for fishing-meaning the guides don't come off, the reel seat and grips are attached well and the alignment is good.

So my question is, would it be wrong to go back and re-wrap the guides and make it nice? Since it's the first rod I made, I'm tempted to leave it be, but when I look at it, I can't help thinking it looks poorly done, and not up to my current standard. Yet unless you're a rod builder it looks OK and my brother even said he hopes he can fish with that rod again during this year's trip.

So what would you do? Rebuild or leave as is? It's going to get used one way or the other, I am not one to keep an ornament around just because it's my first rod.

Appreciate any comments.

Drew

I would rebuild it, but I'd be veeery careful now, especially removing the old wraps. I went about rebuilding a Cascade Batson IST1084F (really sweet blank) and I damaged the tip when scraping off the old wraps and finish. Easy does it, but yes. To rebuild it is my recommendation.
Cheers,
Michal

Leave it. I still have my 1st from the 80's.

DR

By all means leave it the way it is. It serves as a great reminder as to how you have progressed

My 1st rod is uglier than sin and I would never think twice about rebuilding it. I fished with for almost five years and decided I better just put it away. With the Custom Rod Builders insignia on my truck I didn`t want to show it to anyone if they were to ask me about custom rods.

Bill

Ohio Rod Builders

Canton, Ohio

Hi, Drew. No, there's nothing wrong in rebuilding it. The first rod i built was a boat rod for my dad, it wasn't too bad but it had a few flaws like gaps in the thread, not enough finish on the wraps. But as i improved over the years i rebuilt it and added a weave and fancy trim work which i couldn't do then. You could always take some photos of it before you strip and rebuild as a reminder of how it first looked.

If you remember put the date you built it on it

Stick it away and build the same one -- just nicer

Bill - willierods.com

I looked at my first rod the other day and started laughing. I was SO proud of that thing when I got it done. I don't fish with other rod builders who would know how bad it is, so I won't rebuild it. It's a great reminder of where my skill level once was.

Its funny that you mentioned this as I have been thinking about the same thing. I have a rod which I built roughly 15 years ago. I still fish with this rod on a very regular basis and it serves me well. As with all things time has taken its toll and it could use a rebuild. The epoxy is staring to yellow and the paint is starting to fade slightly.

As of of writing this message I still have not brought myself to tear it apart and rebuild it. I was in my mid teens when I built that rod and havent been able to pull it apart.

It needs it..... I want to do it.... I just cant LOL

What would give you the most pleasure, keeping the rod as is to show how far you have progressed with your current builds, or fixing it and having another rod representative of your improved skill level?

I kept my first one as is, just for a reminder and conversation piece. I rebuilt my second one several years later though. It was on a really nice blank and I wanted to try some new techniques. If the rod doesn't have any sentimental value to you, rebuild it by all means. I just like to show mine to people sometimes so they can see what a rod looks like from a first time builder and to serve as kind of an evaluation reminder of my work.

David Dosser
Coshocton, OH

Thanks for the replies. I think I am going to redo the 2 largest guides, and leave the rest as is. That will preserve the first build "character" but it won't make me think it's an ugly rod every time I look at it. The trim wraps will still be too wide, but the worst of the ugly will be gone.

Thanks,

Drew

Not my first rod, but I have a rod that I built around 1990 that has seen it's share of memories and fish. It is in dire need of being rebuilt but I can't bring myself to do it. One guide is loose and routinely needs to be put back in place. A mouse chewed up a bit of the handle. It almost ended up cut in half and placed in my brothers casket, as it was the rod he would use if I convinced him to go fishing. It doesn't get much use anymore but it's not going to be altered either.

However if I had a rod that didn't get used or have much sentimental value, I'd hack it up and start over in a minute if it were worth the effort.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/30/2012 08:47AM by Scott Kelly.

I very much wish I had NOT rebuilt my first rod. I now have a Sage, Batson RX8, St Croix that I have beautifully custom built for myself. But the rod that is my meat rod, is my very first blank build..... A Cabelas 9', 2 pc, 5/6 wt. I have pictures of that first build and I have to say it was just 'pretty ok' but it was the BEST I could do back then. It was like an ugly baby .... but it was my ugly baby and I loved it. I did not check the spine on the top piece and it had a significant curve to the right. (Which I found had absolutely no affect on the casting accuracy). My oldest son to this day kids me when we are out fishing and I toss an errant cast into a bush or log. Says something coy like, " Hey Capt. D S, I see you're still 'Splinin' your builds to the right". Anyway, as I got better at building I finally stripped much of it and re-did it. The origianal Cabelas butt piece and the reel seat are all that remain. I re-do the guides almost every winter. And it is still my go to rod. Your FIRST rod allows you to have a true measuring/starting point for comparison to all other builds that follow. Darn I wish I had left that first one alone. I now have only one 'ugly baby' that I love left. You guessed it, the 'Oldest Boy'!