i hear you guys talking about test casting a lot. are you just taping the guides on with masking tape or what? can you test cast after you wrap, before you finish the guides?

You can test cast at any time, but due to the fact that you will want to try different guide positions, wrapping them can make this a long and tedious procedure.

I use tape, some use rubber banks, others use twist-ties. The idea is to be able to try out several different configurations in order to determine which guide size/s and location will give you the best results.

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yeah, i meant test casting before you wrap with tape, then a "just to make sure" cast after i wrap. thanks!

I use surgical tubing. They make it in tons of sizes. Cut into little rubber bands. Roll them onto the blank (before you glue the tiptop in place, don't ask me how many times I have forgotten to do that). Works great, very fast a repositioning. Plus, if you have a friend that works at a hospital, they can snag some. It comes into hospitals by the rolls of 100+ feet. A 3ft. section will work on many, many rods. Plus, once you begin wrapping, the bands hold in place until you secure the foot with thread, then just cut with razor (be sure to do it on the guide foot, so you don't cut the blank) and they fly off.

i don't have any surgical tubing, but i bet skirt collars would work good also. i'll try tonight. i'll also try to have someone rogue me some surgical tubing :-)
thanks guys...

Be careful not to scratch the blank if you are not 99% sure that you have the guides in the right place.

If you aren't sure, put a layer of masking tape under the feet.

Clemens Tackle sells the tubing in a few sizes. It is also good for attaching Lunker Lights to the tip of a rod for night fishing.

just a quick addition. i tried spinnerbait skirt collars last night with great success. they will definately work in a pinch. they are a little too thick, which makes them a little harder to cut off, and they are probably a good bit more expensive to use, but they work just fine.

i placed my guides by placing the 2 tip guides, then running my line through them (making sure to center the line guide on my reel), then put tape with a line at the correct angle on the blank for each guide.

then i placed the collars and the guides on in the right places. went outside to test cast, and everything worked great. no line pile, casted effortlessly with no line slap. flexed the blank, and the line didn't touch anything but the guides.

snuck home today at lunch for a couple of hours and wrapped it up. went outside to test cast again, and everything was still perfect. it's drying right now, and i can't wait to use it.

thanks again,

matt