Friend saw some of my builds and has asked me to make a fly rod for his son. They have a vacation house in north Georgia and do a lot of fly fishing.

He's asked me to do a 3 or 4wt rod. Beyond that, we haven't met to get any of the specifics.

I've never done a fly rod and know little about fly fishing.
What should I ask him?
How much decoration (wraps, weaves, etc) can I put on it?
Any other traps I might want to watch out for?

Thanks in advance.

Brian

Brian,
The only “trap” to avoid is spending too much on the blank and components! Too many fly anglers assume that the more they spend on equipment, the better they will fish; such is hardly the case. That is not to say that the cheapie $40 KMart rod will perform as well as a $400 St Croix, but a little research and common sense can save huge amounts of money when purchasing fly equipment.
I do not build a lot of fly rods, so hopefully the veterans such as Phil Erickson and others will afford you with “build-pertinent” questions to ask your customer. I will say though that typically, fly rods are quite devoid of any bling; subtle elegance is more the norm.

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

I agree with what’s been said above, more expensive components and blanks don’t necessarily mean a fly rod will perform better. I don’t have much experience as I’ve only built 3 fly rods (a 6’6” RS Rev 2wt, a 9’ 4wt RodGeeks C4, and a 9’ 4wt NFC classic) so take this with a grain of salt. The RodGeeks blank is cheaper than the NFC, $100 vs $170, but the RodGeeks casts much more effortlessly. However that’s not to say the NFC isn’t a very easy casting rod, it out performs our Orvis rods and is much lighter too.

I believe quality of line is an often overlooked factor in rod performance. The NFC rod has a Cheeky preload reel while the RG has a Lamson Liquid with SA Amplitude line. When test casting, I’d recommend using the line that the people will use with it, or something with a similar taper, to get a true feel if the guides are spaced effectively.

Also agree with the subtle elegance of rod aesthetics. Simplicity can be beautiful when done correctly.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/31/2023 07:31AM by Evan Cobb.

Rainshadow Unity blanks would be a good blank to use for your first. I have built the older RX6 and it performs well. Getbitoutdoors can also provide the grip, seat, and guides. I would contact them, tell them what you are trying to accomplish, and get their help in selecting appropriate parts. Get the 4 piece blanks; they work just as well as two piece and travel a lot better.

In order to keep the rod light and fast recovering, I would use single foot wire guides to simplify wrapping (I've never seen that snakes do anything better than single foot, although I know some will not agree), ceramic ring guides only on the first two. Getbit can help with sizing. Spacing charts are available on their site at the Unity selection.

Internet searches and searches of this site will answer most questions you have, but if you get stuck and want an opinion, my email is open.

Think about the first guide, with the kid assumingly having shorter arms than an adult. Let the kid feel the blank with the grip glued on to determine where he'll pull line from or move the stripper guide down a hair to adjust for a kid with smaller arms.

Blank wise, for affordability and reliability, check out the CRB Color Series Fly Blanks [mudhole.com],

For higher-end, very crisp blanks check out the MHX Traditional and Native Series of Blanks

[mudhole.com]
[mudhole.com]

Hope this helps!

Regards.
Team Mud Hole Custom Tackle
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First of all you need more input from the father! If they fly fish, he should be able give you a lot more information. You cannot pick a blank before you know how they will use it!

Besides the weight asked for, you need to know length and action wanted. Another way to approach it , is to ask if they have a favorite rod, and why. This can provide guidance as to what they want in the new rod.

Being that they are in an area of small streams and saying 3-4wt also suggests he might want a shorter rod then the most common 9 footer.

Your email is hidden, otherwise I would send you a copy of the form I use for specifying the build.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/31/2023 03:34PM by Phil Erickson.

Brian,
Unhide your email or email me at hladen@hotmail.com.
I mentor many builders on their first fly rod build.
Herb
CTS Rep

Definitely clarify what water he is fishing there and his techniques. Last trip I nymphed in the rhododendrons and then used the NFC 4 wt glass and Gamma Alpha. All smaller water The GA is much more moderate and smooth casting to me than the GB or classic. I am going to order a couple rodgeeks blanks to try.

Take what Phil E said, and once those questions are answered you’ll know what blank to buy.

Thanks for the responses.

I am having the Dad over to my house to talk about it (The son is ~30). My plan is to start with how long does he want it to be and work from there. I wouldn't be surprised if he wants a short one.

I'm thinking this might be a good time to experiment with building handles (once I find out if he wants a full wells). I saw an off-shore rod at Mudhole built with thin slices of EVA between cork disks. I might float that idea, as it seemed to me that it gave it a better grip. If he's not that adventurous, I might buy a premade decorative handle.

Thanks for the comment about the single-foot vs snake guides. I will ask about that.

I have opened up my email address, but if it doesn't show up, here it is: brianpetters27@gmail.com

Thanks.

Brian

A full Wells grip on a three or four weight seems like too much material. If you are mixing EVA in it this would increase the visual and actual weight even more. I add another vote for the Rod Geeks/St. Croix selection for function and affordability. I’ve had avid Sage fishermen get tongue-tied after complimenting my unlabeled builds on them.

Brian,

I have built many fly rods and even teach a flyrod-building class to the members of a local Fly Fishing Club here in the Pacific Northwest. There are several considerations to factor into the equation - among others, you need to consider:

1) The experience of the angler
2) The age of the angler (affects the distance from the reel to the stripper guide)
3) Size of the water (small, medium or large streams? Ponds? Lakes?
4) The fishing method for the requested fly rod (Dries? Dry/Dropper? Nymphs? Streamers?) (Softer action for dries, faster action for nymphs & streamers)

Each of these facets will affect the build. For example experienced anglers can handle faster action whereas beginners will experience wind knots A generic choice for all-around fishing would be a Mod-Fast blank. The length of the rod will be determined by the environment in which they will be fishing and the length of their usual casts. In open water or larger streams, they would want a longer rod for both casting distance and line-mending. For small, brushy streams, they would want a shorter rod to facilitate easier casting strokes under the branches.

There are many great blanks out there, with a wide variety of price points! A number of them have been listed in some of the comments above. I personally like the American Tackle Matrix blanks, but they do not have a wide variety of sizes, all their choices are 9'. Pacific Bay has a great selection of blanks, from the high modulus Arctos line to the lower cost standard modulus graphite Tradition II line. Batson Enterprises also has a substantial variety, as does Mudhole. You can also check out Proof Fly Fishing, they will sell you a complete "Kit" with component choices, and North Fork Composites has a number of stellar blanks.

When I built my first fly rod, I made the mistake of adorning it with a decorative diamond wrap. I was subsequently informed (by an internationally renowned Fly Angler and IFF board member) that fly fisherman don't want a lot of decoration, they want classic simplicity, akin to the look of a classic bamboo rod. I therefore limit my decorative touches to trim bands.

I also believe in using high quality components, including the reel seats, guides and handle. A great handle I have been using lately is the woven carbon fiber half-wells from North Fork Composites - a great looking handle that feels good in the hand and transmits vibrations extremely well.

Good luck on your venture!

Rich Bowers

Richard Bowers Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
> When I built my first fly rod, I made the mistake
> of adorning it with a decorative diamond wrap. I
> was subsequently informed (by an internationally
> renowned Fly Angler and IFF board member) that fly
> fisherman don't want a lot of decoration, they
> want classic simplicity, akin to the look of a
> classic bamboo rod. I therefore limit my
> decorative touches to trim bands.
>
> I also believe in using high quality components,
> including the reel seats, guides and handle. A
> great handle I have been using lately is the woven
> carbon fiber half-wells from North Fork Composites
> - a great looking handle that feels good in the
> hand and transmits vibrations extremely well.
>
> Good luck on your venture!
>
> Rich Bowers

I agree with everything Rich wrote, except his choice of blanks differs significantly from my preferences. It’s hard to error on a fly rod by going elegantly simple. Even the Hollywood celebrities in Montana, after “The River Runs Through It” movie put them on the rivers for a few years, kept it simple. I seldom see highly ordained fly rods actually being fished. In both Montana’s blue ribbon trout streams and Oregon’s popular steelhead floating sections, they are rare. The few guys who do have rods dressed up a little will do subtle things like having a small jungle cock feather affixed. They know what they want if they want adornment at all, and are likely best surprised with well executed simplicity.

The recipient and the buyer of this rod “do a lot of fly fishing”. It seems as simple as asking the buyer more about the type of fishing they do, and in what type of stream he wants the rod to excel, and then coming back to this thread. There should be a pretty tight set of opinions after this information is presented in comparison to brand preferences with limited specifics.

As to wraps, KISS. I make fly rods for myself and typically only use one color on the wraps. Looks simple, clean and aesthetically pleasing to me. If you are good at wraps, you can maybe add a thin accent wrap.

Before picking a blank, you may want to know how and where he intends to fish, how often and how serious he is about fly fishing, and the types of fish and size of fish he will be catching.

You can build from a blank and parts you assemble, or just buy an all inclusive kit.

If you want an all inclusive high end kit, look at Epic, and lower cost kits can be had at Hook and Hackle, Mud Hole, Anglers Workshop, Custom Fly Rod Crafters, Proof Fly Fishing, and many more.