I enjoy learning and seeing how things are made and how things work. There are videos all over of rod blanks being made but I have not been able to find anything on how guides are made. Seems there are very few companies in the world that make them so it must be difficult. Can anyone share any experience with the rest of us on how they do it?

For practical purposes ($) how they do it is not nearly as important as how they advertise it.

Depends on the guides, some are simply stamped and formed, others involve brazing the guide together, and everything in between, nylon/graphite guides formed like our reel seats would be neat.

I submit it is much more important how they are made, and what they are made of, than how they are advertised. There is nothing simple about making a guide. There are significant differences between guides based on their metallurgy and the manufacturing processes that build them, the ring materials, and finishing processes. Stop and think how you could process the materials into a product that can last a lifetime and can be priced for only a few bucks. If it is simple, then start your own guide company and make a million. Fishing rod guides are a great example of the skills of the design and processing engineers.

i get what Phil is saying..they don,t just sell guides anymore, it,s systems..

Im just asking how they are made. Normally there is some sort of video for almost anything in the world. Not rod guides... They are more top secret that making uranium. I can watch videos on that

I do know they start with a sheet of metal and it is punched the basic frame then sent for polishing clean up feet get ground then finishing /plating and it gets the necessary bends added the ring is added and you have a guide.
for the deep pressed guides that is a whole lot of engineering to do the stamping of the frame and setting of the ring making them quite a bit more expensive

The best day to be alive is always tomorrow !!
Think out side the box when all else fails !!!
Wi.

How do they make the rings anyone know?

This gives a little insight into the making of Fuji's guides: From page 77 of the Anglers Resource catalog: "1) NO-WELD construction
Concept Guides™ are stamped from a single sheet of high-grade, corrosion resistant stainless
steel or Titanium Alloy and sent thru a series of 20 shaping molds to attain their final
form. This series of micro-bends assures no compromise in tensile strength, better recovery,
proper hardness and lighter weight.
2) DEEP PRESSED design
Concept Guides™ feature a super-strong ring housing first introduced by Fuji® that offers unmatched protection to the
ring. The housing is similar to a shallow bowl with no bottom. The ring presses into the open “bottom” of the bowl and
the edge of the bowl “wraps” to protect the outside of the ring. The result is a ring that totally protected by the frame.

To do this forming requires the proper combination of ductility and strength and a proper product design which is consistent with the forming limitations. Most metals, as they are formed, "work harden," sometimes requiring tempering treatments between forming operations to restore ductility.

The "shaping molds" that Michael mentions are a substantial part of the ultimate quality of the product. Fuji has always stressed the fact that the product goes through a series of very subtle bends to reach it's ultimate shape. Small, "micro" bends eliminate heat build up in the molding process and maintain more of the original strength of the material.

We've all bent a piece of metal until it warms and ultimately breaks - same principal here. It's part of what makes Fuji guides a little more expensive because there are more small, incremental bends (as many as 23 sequential steps) and more time involved in every guide. If you want to make a less expensive guide, bend it into shape quickly and polish it less - oh, and make it look as much like a Fuji guide as possible so you can sell a few. ;)

makes sense I can picture how they are made now. Just thought it was strange there isnt a single video from any company. Usually the asian market will show anything

Not only is guide making a mystery but what guides are made of is also a well-kept secret. As near as I can tell a guide advertised as a "titanium guide" could be made of some unknown alloy containing some amount of titanium, or it could be made of some unknown metal coated with a microns-thin vapor-deposited unidentified titanium alloy, or even made of solid titanium, although only the most fanatical and wealthiest rod builders could afford such guides.

If we all right letters to "How it's Made" then they may go to a place that makes them and film it. I found this, this might be how Recoil got started. Pretty interesting.
[www.youtube.com]

Sounds like you just described every item available to us in a free market. There will always be those who can afford things others may not be able too. You can spend thousands on a large glass boat or a couple thousand on a small aluminum boat, both do the same thing one is just a little nicer, i suspect guides are no different to a certain degree. While i may not use a 30 dollar guide on rod, i certainly wouldn't say anyone who did is foolish.

my tenkara rod has zero guides and catches as many fish as rods with guides, maybe more..lol.

IT's actually a really good question but it figures people can't give a staight answer and stay on topic. Even though Jim answerred, he didnt' say how the rings were made. Aluminum Oxide adn Silicone carbide are abrasives. Are they ground into a liquid or a paste like clay, poured into a mold and baked to shape? THen polished?

I wish I could answer that definitively, Billy. I just asked Donnie Paul if he knew and he said that Fuji at one time made their own rings and it was similar to what you describe. Like firing a ceramic coffee mug in a kiln but I'm sure a tad bit more sophisticated. As demand grew they turned to "the world leader in ceramics engineering" - a company that I'm not suppose to mention. They co-developed TORZITE with them and are constantly looking at the latest ceramics advances and technologies. I think in the end they all follow the coffee mug method with a few billion dollars worth of research and development layered on top. The research is powered by smartphones, electronics, insulators in all sorts of other ceramics applications...it's a huge industry that never runs short of money for advancing the technology.

Thanks Jim, tell Donnie I appreciate it as well. All that makes sense, and it's something I never thought of before. It of explains a lot of things that go on.

Regarding alloys, including titanium. It is highly unlikely that any product of any metallic material will be made of a pure non-alloyed metal. Alloying is done to alter the properties of a metal making it more suitable for the job it's intended to do. Strength, ductility, work hardening characteristics, corrosion, etc. Expecting "pure titanium" is unrealistic.

I don't know...
I say this just for practice.