Hey all,
I'm wondering if decorative wraps on graphite fly rod blanks will have a huge effect on the performance of blank? I recently built a 10'6 Sage ESN for myself and I managed to scratch the bejeezus out of the blank just above where the grip ends and decided to cover it up with a 6" ish cross wrap design. Just wondering if I messed up the action?

Thanks!

Chris

A huge effect? No. A small 6 inch long decorative wrap isn't likely to have any practical effect on that rod.

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Christian,
As I suspect most others would, I agree with Tom. Luckily for you the scratches are near the butt of the rod and not out toward the tip where the weight and stiffness penalty would be much greater.

Mark Talmo
FISHING IS NOT AN ESCAPE FROM LIFE BUT RATHER A DEEPER IMMERSION INTO IT!!! BUILDING YOUR OWN SIMPLY ENHANCES THE EXPERIENCE.

Simply put, weight detracts from performance. Any weight except for the short guides required to hold a guide on a rod - adds weight.

Your choice.

If you want to do decorative wraps - then by all means do so. Pick up an inexpensive nice looking blank build a rod with great decorations and use it for a hanger queen to spruce up the library or your trophy room and keep the light rods on the water catching fish.

Best wishes.

Simply put, I look at a fishing rod as a tool. i.e. a tool this catches fish very effectively and efficiently. That tool needs to be the lightest possible tool possible that is consistent with the need of the rod. That tool has no need for decorative wraps.

But, if you enjoy doing decorative wraps, by all means go for it and hang the rod in a pretty place to go with your beautiful wraps that are on your decorative rod, but not on the tool you use to catch fish.

Great opportunity to try marbling.

Cool to read this.

Nearly these exact same words are part of my motto for my business. I’m making tools. I also prefer a clean, minimalist look to my rods, so that is what I’m building.

That's some funny stuff Roger!! I have an ex son-in-law that I still fish with, a pretty darn good building contractor that spent years as a nail banger. His favorite tool? A cord wrapped, stainless head 16oz framing hammer. Yep, decorative cord wrap as well. A wall hanger tool? Nope, an every day workhorse. You may be surprised at the number of people who like to use a fully functional and pretty tool.. There are also thousands of fisherman that can't be bothered by fish that nibble. The decorative vs plain jane argument is as silly as the spine argument. I'll try and search my rod building magazines and books for some of those simple, one color, shortest guide wrap no decoration builds. I bet I'll find a few among the hundreds of pictures.

It may be possible to make chicken soup from something else on this one- Try a feather inlay just ahead of the grip. That will cover any scarred area and add some nice color to the rod. Most fly fishers do not really like decorative wraps but do not mind feather inlays. Just an idea.

It's strange how seldom our hunting brethren decorate their rifles, shotguns, or even handguns. Archers don't decorate their bows. Same goes for tennis racquets, golf clubs, baseball bats, lacrosse or hockey sticks, bowling balls, etc. Why fish poles?

Camo rifles, high grade walnut vs light synthetic rifle/ shotgun stocks. Receiver engravings are the norm for high end competition shotguns. Camo bows vs raw materials with color specified pulleys and such. Painted tennis racquets and painted shafts and heads on clubs, metal bats are definitely decorated but also weight drop regulated, hockey sticks are painted and given different coatings and are rarely raw carbon, bowling balls are weight controlled and are giant glitzy marbles and even the urethane balls are colored these days.

The type of person that buys those things based on their aesthetic are the same who buy or build certain poles based on aesthetic. When it comes to happiness, to each their own.

Phil, because fish rods, not poles (poles are long bamboo sticks with no reels) can be works of art as well as simply tools to catch fish. What is wrong with that? Answer: There is nothing wrong with that.

A simple cheeseburger is delicious. One with mustard, mayo, lettuce, tomato, pickles and onion is deliciouser.

First off, I agree with Lynn. Sounds like a great chance to try marbling.

Secondly, Normally any mention of adding weight to a rod is met with posts of how bad of an idea it is (see Roger's post above) to add any weight to a rod. I don't happen to feel that way.

Weight, if it has a purpose, can improve the in use performance of a rod. i.e. ..... weight added to a rod to balance a rod and reel combination.

Then you have added weight in the name of aesthetics. Weight that is added in the name of aesthetics has a purpose. And while it may detract from rod performance in a bench test, it may add to the experience of fishing with that rod.

If one enjoys nice clean no frills rods, and I do, then build nice clean no frills rods. But if you appreciate the aesthetics of a rod, and I do, then add all the bling you want. It's your rod.

Many hunting and other firearms are covered with checkering, figured hardwoods, etc. And typically these are the upper end firearms.

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Custom arrow making has a long rich tradition...very ornate.

You will rarely find rods built for ultimate performance displayed in rod building books and it's very difficult to find them in the photos section of this website . Most who build for ultimate performance don't bother posting pictures because there is really nothing to show off and that's intentional .


Camo rifles , walnut or synthetic stocks, engraved receivers etc.. does not take away from the performance of the item at all . It's quite a different matter when talking about fishing rod blanks . Adding any extra weight to a fishing rod blank regardless of where it's located will lower it's dynamic efficiency . Much more so if that weight is located in the upper section of the blank by employing much longer but no doubt more aesthetic guide wraps than what's needed to secure the guides .


Anything added to a rod blank that does nothing to improve it's performance or is something that isn't absolutely essential to it's use is a negative in regards to performance. Adding weight to a blank may make the blank feel more balanced to an individual but it still results in a negative in regards to a blanks dynamic efficiency . Whether an angler can feel the difference or not is another matter entirely.

Now lets not forget what it really comes down to and that's individual preference . Some like to fish with highly decorative rods , nothing wrong with that .

The original question asked specifically about a 6 inch decorative wrap right above the grip. The answer given in the first response was accurate. I challenge anyone testing "dynamic efficiency," (what is the definition of that? How do I test for it?) to find the effect on dynamic efficiency of what was proposed. I have been testing true natural frequency and have enough experience with it to confidently predict that the proposal will have no measurable effect on true natural frequency.

Go for it, Christian.

"The original question asked specifically about a 6 inch decorative wrap right above the grip. The answer given in the first response was accurate"

Yeah , we all know that but the weight factor regarding performance has taken over and just like yourself and others decided to do , I decided to add my two cents .


Don't like the term dynamic efficiency then lets change it to overall efficiency .

What I said is the truth , when I'm not absolutely certain about things I simply won't post or I'll say my opinion only but the fact is adding additional weight to a blank will LOWER it's performance (Efficiency). I'm not going to get caught up in what it's proper scientific term is but it's all about efficiency .

Since we've been through all this so many times already if you want to rehash go back and read Joe Vanfossen's post on page 8 of the thread "How important is weight" . He explains what it all comes down to exceedingly well.

Checkering reduces the weight of a gunstock, but too light a firearm can kick you silly and make you flinch, so firearm weight can be beneficial to the shooter. I don't know how more weight in a fishing rod, especially leveraged weight, can possibly be of practical benefit to an angler. Still, not all is good structure in a winding stair . . .