I am sure folks have asked before, but I am terrible at choosing these. I have a pair of "Urban Green" glossy CTS Nymph rods to build, and am wondering what would be a good color choice. (Blank, think kind of forest green).
I have some green jasper-type thread, but perhaps just a nice black. Any ideas welcome, sorry if has been covered a dozen times before. I did pull up some similar threads with a search, but not with green.

Thanks all.

Mike B



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/22/2023 02:46PM by Mike Bernazzani.

You can see the blank for yourself on Mudhole's website, but I built the MB843 in metallic lime green. It's far for what I would call LIME. It's more of a forest. Anyway, I used chocolate thread. I thought it turned up pretty decent looking. It's definitely more on the subdued side. I would think black would be good too. Or, you can always do what interior paint decorators do and pick a thread that's a two or three shades brighter.

Why not take a cue from Winston?

Pro Wrap 216 (tangerine) - replacement for old Gudebrod 257 (rust). Apply is without CP and it will be a rustic brown/copper/rusty color that compliments most shades of green or blue blanks. If used with CP it will keep much of the orange character like it appears on the spool. It looks good with CP - but better without CP IMO.

Also try Pro Wrap 740 Copper; 755 (chestnut) also looks very nice against as forest green blank.

Sam Stoner

I vote Sam Stoner

I'm going to be making an emerald green rod with gold guides and trim - still gotta figure out main thread and grips and seat - but I'm liking the ideas above - I can see chocolate with the gold guides working well together.

Building rods in MA, daydreaming of fishing in CA

Any color you see in nature's flowers goes with green, earth colors, golden rod or orange with no CP. Deep red like Garnet is a favorite, like gold and especially copper trim. I bet many of the blues would be striking, had a request for a dark blue with Lamiglas' dark forest green blank years ago I liked.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/2023 12:56AM by Spencer Phipps.

I really like Orange and green together

Thanks all! Winston, hadn't thought of that. Some great ideas here.
Mike B

Dark green. Regular nylon No color preserver. Blends in well and has a nice translucence.

I like that combination. Gold is an excellent trim color to go with dark green. You can also use a light metallic green along with the gold to provide a nice contrast.
As others have said, I prefer plain nylon with no color preserver. I prefer the translucent look you get with this combination.

I built a glossy green 5wt fly rod, and my BIL chose the thread. He chose Chartreuse and it turned out really really nice.

I like Mike's idea. I'd probably add a nice 2 or 3 thread gold metallic trim band as well.

I built two rods using the Pro Wrap 755 Chestnut that was mentioned earlier, but both of the blanks have the natural graphite finish.Not sure how much the green blank would affect the final color, but It is really a beautiful color without CP once finish is applied.

It's a deep brown with a beautiful shimmer to it. Probably look pretty sweet on a dark green blank. I put trim bands on the wraps of the rods I used it on. Pro Wrap Metallic 9710 Copper. Just something to consider.

David Baylor Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> I built two rods using the Pro Wrap 755 Chestnut
> that was mentioned earlier, but both of the blanks
> have the natural graphite finish.Not sure how much
> the green blank would affect the final color, but
> It is really a beautiful color without CP once
> finish is applied.
>
> It's a deep brown with a beautiful shimmer to it.
> Probably look pretty sweet on a dark green blank.
> I put trim bands on the wraps of the rods I used
> it on. Pro Wrap Metallic 9710 Copper. Just
> something to consider.

I am another fan of the Pro Wrap Chestnut . Outstanding color without CP . One minor problem I had was with the contrasting metallic trim band . The tag was slightly visible under the translucent wrap . ( Thankfully did this on a practice wrap on an old blank . ) Any suggestions on preventing this without resorting to CP ? I thought of a simple nail knot but might be hard with only a 1 or 2 wrap trim band ? Any suggestions ? Thanks .
Ron

Ron, I'm afraid I can't help you with the visible trim band tag end. Mine show a tiny bit too. I just figure it's one of those things I can't do anything about, so I don't let it bother me.

As far as the nail knot trim band idea. I tried doing those when I first started building, and the first couple practice ones were complete failures, so I didn't try to get any better at them. I do my trim bands like in a video I found on Youtube, but I don't turn the rod, I just wrap the trim band thread around the blank, by hand. I do inlays a little differently than the way it's shown in the video, but basically the same.

Here is the link to the video I mentioned [www.youtube.com]

I use the this method except I just use my index finger instead of a small tool of some type. There are no tag ends to show under your main wrap. I've seen this done with a cocktail straw or coffee stirrer as well. It takes a little practice at first but the results are superior to any other I've used.


[youtu.be]



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/04/2023 07:12PM by Sam Stoner.

I find that metallic thread nail knots hold better than regular thread nail knots, so before giving up on them, give metallics a try. I can go as few as three wraps. As you finish the knot, pack and pull the tag ends tight, but leave them on and put a drop of CP onto the knot where the threads come off. Let it dry before cutting them off and they will be more stable. Once the epox is on , they will be perfectly stable. Of course this only works if you're going to use CP anyway.

David Baylor Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Ron, I'm afraid I can't help you with the visible
> trim band tag end. Mine show a tiny bit too. I
> just figure it's one of those things I can't do
> anything about, so I don't let it bother me.
>
> As far as the nail knot trim band idea. I tried
> doing those when I first started building, and the
> first couple practice ones were complete failures,
> so I didn't try to get any better at them. I do my
> trim bands like in a video I found on Youtube, but
> I don't turn the rod, I just wrap the trim band
> thread around the blank, by hand. I do inlays a
> little differently than the way it's shown in the
> video, but basically the same.
>
> Here is the link to the video I mentioned
> [www.youtube.com] ,

David , I probably will try practicing a nail knot but I'm a fan of single or double turn trim bands and don't hold much hope of being able to get the trimmed ends concealed neatly . I agree with you about wrapping the trim bands by hand . I decided to use that method after watching a video by Mr. Falconer . If I keep the trimmed tag end on the underside of the wrap then , like you say , it's only a tiny problem . But , for me , doing this on the last 2 or 3 guides at the tip is difficult . Thank you for the link .
Ron

Sam Stoner Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I use the this method except I just use my index
> finger instead of a small tool of some type. There
> are no tag ends to show under your main wrap. I've
> seen this done with a cocktail straw or coffee
> stirrer as well. It takes a little practice at
> first but the results are superior to any other
> I've used.

Thank you for the link . I'm going to try this with some practice wraps and see if I can get the CP just on the metallic trim so I'll have a better chance at neat trimmed tag ends . But , honestly , my old hands aren't very steady so this might be an adventure and cutting straight down toward the blank scares me to death .
Thanks again .
Ron

Michael Danek Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I find that metallic thread nail knots hold better
> than regular thread nail knots, so before giving
> up on them, give metallics a try. I can go as few
> as three wraps. As you finish the knot, pack and
> pull the tag ends tight, but leave them on and put
> a drop of CP onto the knot where the threads come
> off. Let it dry before cutting them off and they
> will be more stable. Once the epox is on , they
> will be perfectly stable. Of course this only
> works if you're going to use CP anyway.

Thanks Mr. Danek . Like I've mentioned in replies above , I'm going to spend some time trying this with practice wraps but don't know if the old hands are stable enough . I mostly try to stay with two wraps at the most so , like I say , this is going to be an adventure . Thanks again .
Ron

Great tip, Michael. I've only done one rod with trim bands. Just couldn't get them to stay put until I did exactly what you described. Don't forget to apply CP first if you want to keep the thread color.