Walt & Steve, Which finish do you use, or have you found that it doesn't matter? I've used Flex-Coat CP since my second rod, and have not used chromaseal. In any case, the only remaining rod crafting supply shop in the Anchorage area doesn't carry it. C&M (@#$%&) in California does. Since I'll be in their shop over the next couple of weeks, I will be sure to pick up a bottle. Patrick
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First, I've never done any testing between various threads, so I could be completely wrong, and Walt, I certainly mean no offense. But...I've always had the "understanding" that thread manufactured for sewing fabrics is impregnated with a silicon-type product to aid travel through sewing machines, while thread manufactured for rod-building, does not. And, that using the former inste
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I really appreciate everyone's insightful comments. I really had no idea what I wanted to accomplish beyond weaving one-dimensional initials. I would like to do some patterns such as fish, flags, etc. Jim (and others), I may take you up on asking questions via email. Since I posted this initially, I discovered there are quite a few worthy youtube videos on the subject. I will pay a visit to C&
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After after these years of wrapping rods, but not doing much to really dress 'em up, I'm ready to do some decorative wrapping using a Renzetti wonder weaver or a Doc Ski jig. Any thoughts on ease of use, the pros' & cons using each, wonder weaver Vs wonder weaver II, Doc Ski's Vs Renzetti's. I've seen the Doc Ski jig in action as the local rod shop has provided them. As the winters are pretty
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Donald, There are lots of costs other than gas and launch fees that most people don't realize unless they they their own boat. The time it takes to prepare a boat for a day's fishing trip; the cost in time and money in the clean-up after a trip, and so on. The maintenance costs., etc. The decent thing to do is to genuinely offer to share the costs. If he/she declines, then that should be the en
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Jim, Can you explain that one a little further? That sounds like a great idea, I'm not understanding what you mean by using the thread ends. Thanks
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I build mainly fresh water spinning, casting, and fly rods. In that case, I'm a "less is better" fan, when it comes to applying finish, and I do everything I can to keep the finish from overlapping to the blank. Taking into account to make sure the finish is smooth. But I'm not indifferent to builders who like to finish the wraps so thinly that you can feel each wrap. How does a thin
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Roy, I wrap my guides pretty tight, and I do try to prep them pretty well. Some of the things I've learned to do: - Make sure there is no gap between the blank and the leading edge of the foot. Guides don't always come from the manufacturer perfectly flat, and you can't always straighten a foot to fit flush without grinding off too much material. I'll jam a wedge of masking tape under the l
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I like going into the stores and checking out the quality of productions rods. Granted that anyone who has even built a single rod, develops some appreciation for the efforts that go into building a rod. And I understand that mass-produced rods are not assembled to the high standards I might come to expect in myself or with other builders because of cost considerations. Just the same, checking th
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Thanks to everyone who responded to my question. I know I was asking within a pretty narrow scope, and not really sure how unique the problem is to builders elsewhere. The heated room seems to be firming up the finish, although a heated box will be more effcient energy-wise. I've got 4 more rods to build before April, so box construction is next (after the "chores"). Thanks, Patri
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Bill, Thanks for the suggestion. I myself, haven't experienced any problems with freezing before mixing. At 62 degs, do you notice any changes to the curing time once you've applied your finish to the rod? And, which finish do you use, ie., Flex-Coat, GudeBrod, etc.? Thanks
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Both rods are sitting in an unused bedroom. The nice thing about building my own house is that I set the rooms up with separate heating zones. While the rest of the house is sitting at 60 degs during the day, the rods are resting at a balmy 72 degs. I'll check on 'em this evening when I get home. I've got some composite wood, plexiglass, and some Christmas tree lights that I'm going to use to con
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I've let sit other rods before when I wasn't entirely too sure the finish had cured completely, and that seemed to do the trick, but only after a day or too. This winter is by far the coldest, and longest period of cold waiting for the finish to cure. When I get home from work this evening, I plan to look for the warmest area in the house and set the rods up there. Duane's suggestion to build a c
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I'm looking for any comments on rod building in cold weather. All of the finishes I've mixed over the last several days have not completely cured. I've wrapped two rods over the last two weeks, and have applied the finish in 6 separate batches to each rod segment over several days. I've used High-Build Flex Coat, as well as flex coat lite. In all 6 batches the finish has cured to an untacky, semi
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Cart, Amongst my friends, and within this forum, there are differing opinions as to applying finish only to the wrap, or to slightly overlap the finish to the blank. This is one of those decisions you need to determine which method is right for you. There are a number of photos in the gallery to help you figure that one out. I've done both, but I believe it is better to apply finish only on
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Ken, Been there, done that. :>( If you can turn the blank on a lathe, you can sand the finish down until it all traces of the fleece are gone, without having to completely remove the finish. The more set (cured) the finish is, the easier it is to sand it. Light pressure and reasonable speed. The thing you don't want to do is to heat up the finish as you are sanding it. You can sand
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Josh, Never thought of cutting the threaded area of the reel seat down, but I will certainly make it a consideration from now on. Thanks for sharing your preference. The only concern I have taking this approach is what the end of the graphite handle looks like after the cutting. Does the cut come out clean, or are there "fuzzies" created from the graphite thread, as a result of the
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Dewey, As Tom pointed out, I do refer to low build finishes such as Flex-Coat Lite, and I occasionally use PermaGloss, which I believe gives great protection without the attending build-up, or need to "wick" away the finish during rod turning. But I do use high-build finishes such as Flex-Coat or Crystal Sheen. In fact, I use just about any finish available, and still work towards a t
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Funny you should post a question to begin this discussion. Over the years, the argument to apply finish only to the wrap, or extend the finish beyond and onto the rod blank, has come up, so if you conduct a search through the website's archives, you might find some interesting interaction. Last night, I was thinking about posting a similar question, since there seems to be a number of newer mem
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Hey Bill (and anyone else who might be interested), Watch that "geek" stuff. I'm an ISP but I ain't no geek. I do see enough of these error messages to explain to you "non-geeks" what the error message might mean. Reporting-MTA: dns; eastrmmtao104.cox.net Arrival-Date: Wed, 7 Nov 2007 14:02:14 -0500 Received-From-MTA: dns; eastrmimpo01.cox.net (68.1.16.119)
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I've had mixed results applying newly-mixed finish over a tacky finish, but wouldn't discount it as a solution. I only have time to build rods during the fall and early winter, so I am willing to wait days and even weeks to allow a finish to cure since I can't fish a rod immediately after completion anyway. My current rod-building room is usually on the cold side, so curing seems to take place sl
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Shawn, When you use words such as "never" or phrases such as "among the worst", you don't leave much wiggle room to interpret how you feel about commercially-made rods, regardless of your intent or meaning. I wasn't putting words in your mouth. I just included some assumptions based on your statements. If you say WInston rods are among the worst, then I can't help but con
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Shawn, In your post, you said "I wonder if this is why the factory finish jobs look so bad? " " I've never seen a really good finish job on a factory rod and that includes the likes of Sage, Loomis and all the rest of the so called premium rods." I wasn't trying to make you look bad. I was simply responding to the statements that you posted, that on the surface, are p
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Shawn, I'm not a commercial rod builder, but I do take issue with your comments regarding the quality of commercially-made rods. I think it is very unfair and inaccurate for anyone to condemn all commercially-made rods as poor quality or poorly-assembled, particularly in a public forum. Those guys on a daily basis, turn out hundreds of rods that make countless recreational users happy. Everyone,
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Hi Mike, Bashing isn't always a bad thing. Sometimes, discussions such as this topic make for a highly interesting read while providing excellent information. To that end, I'm glad it came up, and wouldn't have issue with it appearing again in the furture. While I don't thin my finishes using acetone or any other thinning agent, I also don't have a problem with those who do. If it work
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Jeff, The only advice to making your own, is to make sure they're plenty long enough. In fact, when you think they are, look add another six inches to be sure. I occassionally make my own when standard sizes don't seem to work for a particular blank. I made some from too-short segments that made it difficult to ream out 12-25 inch bait casting handles. Short reamers work great if you are reaming
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Daniel, I'm a relative fly fishing novice, so my perceptions on fly fishing rod performance versus spinning or casting rod performance, is lacking. But I'll do my best here. It's light-weight; a great travel rod; and it's well-made. Some of the more-experienced fly fisher folk I work and fish with don't care for the external, older-style scrim construction, but it doesn't bother me. I ha
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Jason, I do admire your desire to attempt something different. But I would not thin a finish using any additional chemicals that are not already included, or not recommended via the MSDS sheet. There just isn't any real way to know what the long term affects to the rod, and especially to your health are. Like many of the rod builders participating on this website, I always work towards a thin
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Bill, I avoid using a razor because I have sliced off strips of blank material. I'm fortunate so far that either rod I damaged has failed over the years. I usually warm the residue up a bit and then "scrape" it away with a finger nail or an old credit card. They do no damage to the blank. The only downside to using a fingernail is that my fingertips get a little sore for a few days aft
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Robert, If you mean applying vaseline to the mandril while gluing the cork segments together, then I would advise against using it. I would be real concerned with the affect vaseline would have on the bond between blank and finished handle, and the difficulty a builder would experience removing vaseline residue from the cork.
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