What initial investment ($$) in forms, tools, etc. should I anticipate making to get started in making bamboo fly rods?

I do not do split bamboo rods. I do know counting my rod lathe and rod dryers cost about 500.00 dallors. Now when it comes to makeing a first class 9ft,med. light graphit steelhead rod my expence is near 400.00 dallors. What I know about split bamboo, is that a blank cost in the range of 400.00 so by the time you get guides, reelseat, foregrip butt grip, thread and finish you are looking at an additional cost of around 200.00. I recomend you go get a basic book on makeing bamboo rods. You may also try and find a bamboo rod maker and look around his shop and see what it takes to make a rod from start to finish.
I hope I have been of some help
Bob

I do not do split bamboo rods. I do know counting my rod lathe and rod dryers cost about 500.00 dallors. Now when it comes to makeing a first class 9ft,med. light graphit steelhead rod my expence is near 400.00 dallors. What I know about split bamboo, is that a blank cost in the range of 400.00 so by the time you get guides, reelseat, foregrip butt grip, thread and finish you are looking at an additional cost of around 200.00. I recomend you go get a basic book on makeing bamboo rods. You may also try and find a bamboo rod maker and look around his shop and see what it takes to make a rod from start to finish.
I hope I have been of some help
Bob

A friend of mine recently got into building their own bamboo rods and I commented that I'd someday like to do it myself.

"You got a spare $2500 laying around??" was his response.

Planing forms, roughing forms, micrometers and depth gauges, binder, heat treating oven, planes, glues, ferrules, lathe (not required, but helpful), dip tube (again, not required but a nice-to-have), and culms of bamboo. It all adds up. Lots of these can be made in your shop, or purchased, so the final total cost depends on your course of action and how fast you want to get started.

I suggest you stop in to The Golden Witch and browse through Russ's pages of tools and other sundry items.

[www.goldenwitch.com]

Also, Bruce Connor's FAQ on bamboo rod building might be helpful.

[www.cybercom.net]

Finally, Harry Boyd is putting together a series of articles on building bamboo rods that might also answer a few questions.

[www.globalflyfisher.com]

Bob

RodMaker Magazine's series on making your own bamboo rods competed its run with the current issue. I have asked Russ to expand the Bamboo Corner to include more on other topics related to bamboo now. Hopefully we'll see some articles on tooling in the very near future.

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

i,ve been collecting tools for 2-3 years finally have everything i need (i think) i,ve probably spent 1500.00 . the rod maker mag.has complete series and is really helpful,cabela,s also has a video on making bamboo rods.golden witch has been really helpful and has quality tools. hope this helps

Wayne,
I recently began my own quest to build bamboo fly rods. I'm trying not to think about the overall investment that I will likely put into this adventure, both in time and money. Instead, I'm taking it a baby step at a time. So far, I've purchased three culms of cane at something like $75, including shipping. I've already split one culm into the appropriate number of strips and sizes for one rod, maybe two. My splitting tool was an old pocket knife chucked into a vise, a pair of leather gloves and a hammer. I purchased a rough planing form on sale from Golden Witch at $12. I also bought a Hock blade from Russ, also on sale, for a plane that I have yet to buy. I have a wooden planing form on my Christmas wish list. I'll get back to my point: I don't expect to acquire all the tools and knowledge to build bamboo fly rods in a brief amount of time or within a specific budget. I'm just hoping that I enjoy the ride.
Clyde Dent

Wayne,

Good advice so far, but let me give you another perspective. I'm a tightwad, and built everything I could myself. So far I've made about 50 bamboo rods. My total investment, well, we won't talk about that. But there are lower cost alternatives.

Splitting knife -- Steal one out of your kitchen

Heat gun -- $30

Rough forms -- $5 if made, $35 if purchased

Binder -- not essential for first rod. $15 if made, $300-$850 if purchased

Heating oven -- Buy a propane torch for $35 to flame. Build nodeless and use the kitchen oven. Borrow the local pizzaria oven for nothing. Build a heat gun oven for $40 or a mica strip oven for $100. Or buy one at a cost of $350-$800

Final Planing forms -- $35 if you make them yourself. $300-$900 if purchased

Dip tube $20 - $500 depending on how good you are at scrounging.

Finally, come see my demo at the Rodbuilder's Guild. I'll show you a whole bunch of home-made tools.

Plane -- $30

Hi, I am currently building my first bamboo rod. So far here are my expenses
Rough planning form 40$ (wagner rods)
wooden final planning form 250$ (golden witch)
used stanley 91/2 plane 22.50$
hock cryogenic blade 35.00$
honing guide 14$
heat gun 25$
accesories for heat oven 15-20$ (home depot)
culm bamboo 20$ plus shipping (golden witch)
angle gauge 6$ (wagner rods)

I will be building a binder and that should not go for more than 15$. I also need to fork out about another 100$ for a dial depth gauge. I have not bought glue or made hardware for the rod yet. So final cost for the first rod is still up in the air, but will be near 800$. had I built the planning forms I would have saved a mint. And each additional rod will bring this cost (average cost) down! Eric

Wow ... you guys are great. Thanks for all of the input. Sounds like if I'm willing to make my own tools, forms, et al, that the entry cost isn't too bad.