Thanks, Roger. If my handwriting weren't atrocious I'd go that route :) One quick coat of CP did protect the decal from melting in some tests I did yesterday. However, I found it difficult to get a nice even finish over the length of it. It did look very nice on the thread wraps though. Any tips to applying the PG?
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Thanks, Donald. That was my fear, that every good option would come with some level of amber. I'd use PG, but the decal throws a wrench in that idea. I suppose I could do a few coats of CP over the decal. I've read that it'll protect it from the solvent, but it makes me nervous. I might just end up sticking with low build epoxy and saving the varnish stuff for a darker blank.
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Hi everyone, I am preparing to finish the wraps on a 2wt glass blank. The blank is white with light green wraps and a decal that needs to be finished. I'm thinking of trying a one part finish, spar varnish, urethane, etc. From reading through some older posts, I've gathered that urethanes tend to have an amber tint, which wouldn't be great on a white blank. What would folks recommend I che
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I'm curious about what motor folks have used for this sort of upgrade. I tried a 550rpm DC motor that I have laying around and it was way louder than the stock sewing machine motor. . . .
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20" from the top of the grip seems about right to me. I'm assuming that's what Roger was indicating.
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Thanks for the input, Tom. I don't use shooting heads personally, I'll be sure to ask when building for others.
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Hi Folks, I've got a few fly rods under my belt, but guide trains remain a weak spot for me. I'm have a 7'6 glass 4wt, an 8' glass 5wt, a 8'6 glass 6wt, a 9' carbon 9wt and a 9' carbon 10wt. Below is my current thinking. I welcome any and all comments. 7'6 4wt (single foot) - 9mm - 4 - 2 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 8' 5wt (snake) - 10mm - 3 - 2 - 1/0 - 1/0 - 1/0 - 1/0 - 1/0 8'6 6wt (snake) - 12
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I also use the first guide to keep my hook. The guy I'm making the rod for wanted a hook keeper and I thought the ring and strap looked nice. I didn't think it through. As Michael suggested, I will never use a hook keeper with any moving parts in the future. Thanks for all of the good suggestions.
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Hey Sam. If you mean the ring, it's soldered so it can't be removed once the strap is secured with thred.
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Thanks Sam. That was one of my ideas. The other is to tape a toothpick to the grip, with the other end going through the ring.
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Unfortunately the bend in the strap is way too small.
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Hi Folks, I'm building a 4 wt fiberglass rod and for my hook keeper I went with a strap and ring. I've got everything wrapped and ready to finish and it occurred to me that when I rotate the rod, the ring on the hook keeper flops down and hits the thread wraps. This will obviously be an issue when applying epoxy. I've thought of a few things that might keep the ring out of my finish, but I was w
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Excellent. Thanks, Phil. When I'm done I'm taking it down to Ascension Bay. I'll let you know how it goes. Best, Chris
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Thanks Phil. I was just going by the advice on the Sage guide spacing page to go 2 sizes up for single foot guides. You're suggesting: 4-4-4-4-4-4-4-5-12-16?
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I'm just beginning to get my components together for a 7wt bonefish fly rod. I have a CTS Affinity-X on the way and I'm planning on ordering guides and a reel seat soon. In my reading about guide size, I notice a lot of folks saying to stick to 3 or so sizes total. For single foot guides, does something like this make sense: Single foot #5 x 7 Single foot #6 x 1 Stripping guide #12 x 1 Stri
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Thanks again, Donald. I did the wraps and a coat of epoxy last night and they came out looking pretty decent (by my standards).
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Thanks, Tom. I would like the white thread to be transparent, so the india ink seems like the way to go. Best, Chris
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Thanks, Donald! That is exactly what I was looking for! I'll post pictures when I get it right. Best, Chris
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Hi, First time posting, but I've been reading and learning a lot from the forums. I am building my first rod. It's a 4 wt fiberglass fly rod. I would like to wrap the guides with white thread and a single turn, black inlay. I don't want to use color preserver and I'm concerned about the tag ends of the inlay showing through the white. Is there a trick to doing this? Thanks, Chris
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