Just moved to a new house and in the process the movers lost my rod wrapper, so I find myself in the position of needing to get a new one. I wrap about a dozen rods a year for family and friends. No major concern about cost. I have thought about a power wrapper. I have no real need for one, but they sure do look nice.

Any insight would be appreciated.

Jim

My opinion is that it depends much on what type of rods you wrap, what materials you use, etc. Certain wrappers use a thread tensioner that puts pressure directly in the thread - bad for silk. Some use rollers vs. a v-shape block and tensioners to hold the blank in place - rollers seem better for cane as they create a smooth roll even with a faceted surface. I am shopping right now myself, and will most likely get the hand wrapper from Golden Witch. I can't see myself using a power wrapper to any advantage, as I already have a lathe set-up for handles and a seperate drying motor is not any trouble.

The Sully's wrapper is a good unit for the money. Get a drill stand for shaping your cork and use the wrapper for the guides. It's all you need unless you plan on expanding into a business.

I am in the 'business' as they say, but still build custom rods one at a time. We use a power wrap as well as good hand wrappers with better thread tensioning and extensions, etc.

The power wrap machine we offer, is like the Rodsmith and has feature to use as a lathe in turning cork as well. Many are in use, I would venture to say moslty hobby builders. If you are building more a few rods per year to keep your interests going in custom rodbuilding, this unit is still worth it.

Discussing with my wife, who is also into sewing and quilting, but not for business reasons (she just likes to sew and make a few quilts per year) the point is many women (and some men, if you're into sewing) will not hesitate to spend several hundred or even thousands of dollars on good sewing machines and accessories. Belive me, over the years her sewing room equipment would put the rod shop to shame, and I use the rod shop to make a living!
Point is, you can sew by hand. You can also build rods with a hand wrapper (I still supplement the power wrap with a hand wrapper when building more than one rod at a time). Having to justify a power wrap machine on the basis that you have to be 'in business' is a misconception. You can be a perfectly satisfied than a hobby builder or just happen to want one, like my wife wants her expensive mechanical sewing contraptions.

Many will start with a home made or invest with an inexpensive production hand wrapper (many like Flex Coat hand wrappers are very good, by the way) and use it for many years, and the addition of a power wrap is as natural as a lady adding a foot operated motor driven sewing machine. What's wrong with that?
Get what you want as you can afford. Both the power wrap machine and the quality made hand wrappers will last you a long time.Just keep track of it next time you move.

Rich
Richard's Rod & Reel

Are you working with cane on the Sully's? I know that my homemade v-block stand makes wrapping faceted cane a bit less smooth. I am looking at that model as well and like the idea of constant thread tension for backing up, etc.

I would highly recommend the Clemens unit without the power. It is an excellent unit. You can use the stands with your "homemade" cork turner (drill or whatever), then if you decide you want the whole ball o' wax you can order their power upgrade which upgrades to the exact same as their power wrapper. I hand wrapped for 6 years and finally fork over for a power wrapper, I'll never go back. The Clemen's tension unit is very good and will not give silk any grief. It applies tension directly to the spool, not the thread. Check it out in their catalog or call them, they are very helpful, even make recommendations for your needs. I have no complaints except you can't wrap with the thread coming under the blank. That is how I taught myself, but after wrapping a couple of rods, the above method works just as well and I can now do it faster than before. You will not be disappointed with this unit.

Flex Coat makes several nice wrappers. Some have wheels instead of V notches and work pretty well. They can be adapted for power wrapping later if you wish. I am not sure if they have a web site.

With some glass-door rollers, nylon electrical boxes and covers, and a board, I made my own wrapping station for less than $20.

It is not pretty, but it far surpasses a V-notch station, and equals an expensive roller station. A friend went to a thrift store and bought a pair of kid's rollerblades for $8. Took the wheels off, and mounted them to his V-notch station, and it works GREAT! He had to make an adapter for a roller to come from the top, but he is loving it.

TH