Randy sent me this information and asked me to post it for him.
A great tutorial on doing trim bands:

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TRIM BANDS MADE SIMPLE


Like many of you is used to struggle with trim bands on my guide wraps. I set out to work making this an easy part of my rod building.

You can position and hold your guide in place with whatever method that you like, but for my method you are going to need a couple of strips of tape. I prefer to use 1/8” or ¼” painter’s tape or the pin striping tape available at auto supply stores. It leaves no residue on your blank.

Cut a piece of thread that you want for the trim band to a length that will make the correct number of turns around the blank for however wide you want the trim band, ie. 1,2,3,4, threads wide, whatever. Lay this thread alongside the blank and tag it into place with the 2 pieces of tape, one near, but to the rear of the guide you are going to wrap, the other far enough to the front of the guide foot that it keeps your trim thread from wrapping around the blank while turning. Now lay in a pull loop right next to your trim thread so that it extends about 1/2” in front of where you are going to start your guide wrap.

Now start your guide wrap over the trim thread and the pull loop. Make a half dozen turns, then cut the tag of the wrap thread. Pick the trim thread out of the tape holding it and make however many wraps that you wish. Stick the thread through the pull loop and while holding the thread with one hand snuggly pull the trim thread snug, but not through the main wrap, tightly to the edge of the wrap. Now, using a pair of sharp scissors cut the trim thread leaving about 1/16th” in the loop. Holding pressure on the edge of the wrap and trim thread, pull the loop through at an angle away from you at about 30-40 degrees. This prevents no nubs whatsoever!!!

Now if you laid out enough trim thread down the blank past the guide. You are able to lay in inlaid trim. Just pick up the thread and making sure that you hold it to the inside of your main wrap thread , go around once until it just barely passes where you started. Hold the main wrap thread with one hand taut and with the other move the trim thread 90 degrees towards the guide and if you want another trim or more inlaid, just count the number of turns of the main thread and repeat the procedure. Once you have all the inlays you need, make a couple of more turns of the main thread and then snip of the remaining trim thread. Finish you main wrap as you wish.

This is the simplest way of doing trim bands and thread inlays that I could come up with and have been doing it for over 35 years. At one Seattle Sportsman’s Expo, I was approached by an elderly gentleman who wanted to see my thumbnails!! I showed him, and he said, yes you are a rod builder. Then he asked how I got a single thread trim band on one of my rods. When I outlined the above procedure, he said “but that is cheating”!! I told him that anything that makes building a rod easier, faster, and better is not cheating, it is innovation at its best! He finally agreed.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/02/2013 12:06AM by roger wilson.

G'day Roger

Great information there from Randolph litle bit different to how i do it but will give it ago.The nub is something i could do without.I guess the only thing i could
add is a tip Mark Fisher passed on.That is to start all your trim bands on the bottom of your rod to which way you hold it either spin or casting.That way any little
imperfections are not readily visible.

cheers

Ray Balmforth
Figtree
NSW
Australia

This is a great way to make very short trim bands. I do not like wrapping over tie off loops because if/when you screw up you have to start over. And on thin tip sections the tie off tends to roll over and not stay put when you start the wrap. And if you don't cut the tag end perfectly you will have a dot of the trim band color in the middle of the guide wrap/ If you are making a 3 turn trim you can do teh same thing except insertting the tip off from the beginning, and just wrap over the tie off with the trim 3 turns put it through the loop and pull.

Mr. Wilson, this would be an excellent youtube video if you could set it up.

Arthur,
This is Randy's information. Perhaps he would be willing to do that.

I do something very similar, but a few minor differences.

I tape the trim threads to the blank opposite of side the guide will go. I leave plenty of extra trim thread on the side that will get trim bands
Then I'll secure the guide with tape - covering the tag ends of the trim threads.
I'll wrap the guide foot until secure enough to remove the tape, and then trim the tag ends of the trim threads and continue my guide wrap. The trim threads are secure under the guide wraps.
Once I complete the guide wrap ( or 1 side of a double footed guide), I'll separate 1 trim thread from the tape, insert the pull loop, and wrap the desired number of wraps, and trim the excess.
For multiple trim bands, repeat the process until complete.
For double footed guides, just repeat on the other side.

Works great, and it is easy to get single wrap bands if desired.

I am self taught, and just found it easier To do the trim band first, and then finish the wrap with the main thread color. I start the trim wrap like normal, and count the number of wraps I want. I start the main thread color over the top of both the start end, and tag end of the trim band, and continue the wrap with the main color thread. When I have several wraps of this down, I cut the start end of the trim band. I may do 5 to 10 warps of the main color thread, and then put in a single turn of the tag end from the trim band, over the top of the main color thread. I then bring the main color thread over the top of the trim band tag end, and continue wrapping with the main color thread. When I think I have enough wraps to anchor this down, I cut the tag end, and then finish wrapping the guide with the main color thread. The only pull loop I use is at the end of the wrap.

Mike Bradfrod
R.M.B. Fishing Rods
Nampa, Idaho

I am self taught, and just found it easier To do the trim band first, and then finish the wrap with the main thread color. I start the trim wrap like normal, and count the number of wraps I want. I start the main thread color over the top of both the start end, and tag end of the trim band, and continue the wrap with the main color thread. When I have several wraps of this down, I cut the start end of the trim band. I may do 5 to 10 warps of the main color thread, and then put in a single turn of the tag end from the trim band, over the top of the main color thread. I then bring the main color thread over the top of the trim band tag end, and continue wrapping with the main color thread. When I think I have enough wraps to anchor this down, I cut the tag end, and then finish wrapping the guide with the main color thread. The only pull loop I use is at the end of the wrap.

Mike Bradfrod
R.M.B. Fishing Rods
Nampa, Idaho