This is a reference picture to a forum thread of the same name. The pictures were taken with a macro lens using a ring flash. The top half has the flash at a position to minimize the problem discussed in the thread. In the bottom half the flash is mounted on the lens with the orientation so as to maximize the problem. The reality is that the lighting has to be "just right"
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These are my thoughts on the "Material other than thread for a ferrule wrap" thread. I'm an engineer BUT I'm relatively new to rodbuilding. Please feel free to educate me if you think I'm wrong or your experiences indicate that my thinking is incomplete.
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See the matching posting for discussion.
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So here are some details. The base is a wrap of metallic gray. The feathers are (base to top layers), jungle cock cape, india peacock, grizzly hackle, and jungle cock nails. The left side is the top of the blank and the right side is the bottom (the hookkeeper is visible at the bottom). The epoxy is two coats of Threadmaster. Overall I'm quite pleased with the inlay. I did however discover s
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Since I was forced to redo this rod, I thought I'd add an inlay. This image is meant to give you an overall sense of the layout. The details are contained in the second image.
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So this is the bad. In the interest of providing bad examples as well as good, I'm posting these as an education tool. Remember that this was my first time without CP so I didn't think through the transparency issues fully. The top image shows what happens when the trim wrap ends are too long under a translucent body. It's especially bad because the trims are metallic. Thankfully it's my per
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I recently had to redo a rod (popped some guides due to ice up). This time I decided to not use CP (first time without) and I also decided to use a locking wrap. The main part is candyapple and the trims are metallic red and Old Gold. This picture shows the "good" side of the ferrule wrap and a guide wrap. This is the "good", check out the "bad&
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This is my first attempt. Since my wife and I participate in Dragon Boat racing, it seem appropriate to weave a dragon on to my paddle. It's standard Gudebrod metallic on a silk red background. There is one question yet to be answered. Is the proper way to finish this with multiple coats of CP and then an epoxy coat? The blue markers at the top of the paddle were finished with epoxy and I wa
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These are the guide wraps on my Lamiglas 6ft 3wt rod. The overview (with description) is in the grips gallery.
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This is a Lamiglas 6ft 3wt that I built for fishing a nearby small creek. This is a sweet little rod! The wood is all stabilized box elder burl, the skeleton is a Struble U25, and the guides are the Forecast single foot, gold colored wire guides.
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The reel seat for this rod was turned from stabilized Amboyna and the skeleton is the black nickel Struble U24. The grips ends are stabilized Vancouver Island maple burl with Wenge accents.
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These wraps are from my latest project. See the grips gallery for descriptions of the rod.
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This is from my recently finished 10ft 5wt Dan Craft FT switch rod. Thanks to those who provided design advice.
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This foregrip is from my current project which is a 10ft 5wt Dan Craft FT switch rod. The caps are stabilized maple burl with wenge accents. The inserts are zebra wood with black walnut veneer edging. The reel seat is stabilized amboyna.
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Hi, It's time to build yet another fly rod so I'm looking for recommendations. Some details: 7 or 8 weight 9' < length < 9'6" 4 piece med fast < action < fast Ideally available from a Canadian source Money isn't too big of a problem but I don't want to go into the RX8+, Sage, Hardy, price range. The rod will be meant to go after bigger trout or maybe steelhead. I'd li
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I have a co-worker who is an avid fly fisherman. Unfortunately he had an accident that resulted in quite a bit of nerve damage and now he has feeling and control issues in his index and middle fingers. He still wants to fish so other than learning to fish with his other hand I thought I'd explore the possibility of making a custom grip that would place his ring and pinkie fingers in a better p
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I couldn't resist a followup picture. Talk about putting it out there for public scrutiny and criticism! See for the image.
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Sorry I didn't make it clear. I'm not painting overtop of the weave itself, only the parts adjacent to the weave where the unused threads that I'm carrying forward peek through. A single weave thread (that comes out between two wrap threads) on the edge of the pattern prevents the adjacent wrap threads from closing up completely. This leaves the underlying threads (and blank material BTW) show
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I just completed a 65x180 weave and although I'm generally happy with the result I've got one last (I hope) problem that I'd like to address. The wrap thread is a standard Gudebrod (Scarlet) thread and the color is a metallic gold Gudebrod. Naturally I couldn't completely close the gaps so often the underlying gold shows through. I was thinking that I might experiment with mixing some paint in
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So I finally got my hands on a few pieces of a recently cut down birch tree. Could somebody please post the starting steps to prepare the bark. Do I let it dry out first or try to peel the bark now? How deep should I try to peel? I tried it right away and the surface is easy to get off but it's only about 1/16". The next layer (down to about a 1/4") is tougher to get off (it flakes
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The one cautionary note that I would add (based on personal experience) is to make sure that it's more than 1/3 HP. Since nobody else is complaining about their lathes, which for the most part seem to have 1/2HP, stick with that. Steve
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OK so people continue to tell me to get the Rodmaker magazine so I'll try again. I'm in Canada and the website doesn't list that shipping to Canada is an option. Whatever happened to Richard's rod and Reel (who as I recall were the Canadian distributor)? Any updates on Canadian subscriptions? The flip side is, can I order specific backissues from somebody who'll ship to Canada? Steve
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Hello one and all. I'm thinking that my next grip will be of the laminated birchbark variety. I'm trying to get my hands on some freshcut logs but in anticipation of it's arrival I have a few questions. What is the best way to get the birchbark off of the logs? What thickness should I peel off? Do I dry it first or work with it green? If I dry it, do I compress it under something heavy whil
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Emory, Yes I agree that the thread/epoxy adds very little in terms of stiffness. Really I was only contrasting it's contribution to the effect of the adding a very stiff material to replace the thread. The lack of extra stiffness (in absolute terms) also points out that the load transferrence is through a different mechanism than shear flow through to the fibers of the butt section. I would a
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I have been thinking about this question and have collected some thoughts. I created a "picture" that I've posted to the miscellaneous section of the photo board. I'm open to corrections or omissions in my logic being pointed out. Steve
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I'm about to start on an FTL 905-6. In an effort to lessen the visual "busy - ness" of the rod, I'm toying with the idea of modifying the finish on the ferrule wraps. The reasoning (rightly or wrongly so feel free to jump in here) is that 5 ferrule wraps with 10 guide wraps will be somewhat overwhelming. I'll make the ferrule wraps as short as possible (2-2.5 X ferrule diameter) but
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I would very much like to thank all of those who provided their expertise / opinions in trying to resolve my recent problems. Personal emails, thoughtful advice, and the willingness to provide wisdom gained from experience have yet again shown me the value of the community fostered in this forum. I cannot wait for my next project (my 2 FTLs are on their way) just so that I can test out what I
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As I mentioned in my original posting, I very much like Threadmaster, I simply need a solution to this problem. Just so you don't think I'm crazy, check out the picture I posted in the Misc section of the photos board (sorry but I'm not sure how to create the hyperlink or how to directly imbed the picture). The picture shows the leftover piece from the foil lined bowl. You can see the bubbles
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I'm having some problems with mixing/applying Threadmaster and I'm hoping that somebody has experienced/solved this problem. I accurately measure out the two parts and put them in a small plastic disposable mixing cup. I stir the glue with a small bamboo stick that is essentially solid because I leave the previous thin layers of epoxy on it. Using smallish circles, I stir around the perimeter
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One of the pleasures I get from building fly rods is the process of turning down the wood for the inserts, trim rings, and accent pieces. Maybe it has something to do with wood shavings flying everywhere or maybe it's the surprise of the look of the final product (buckeye burl is a great example of the finished product being completely unpredictable). My problem is that I can't seem to locate
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