I built that blank in an 8wt and it casts pleasantly with an WF8F Sci Anglers bonefish line. While I've never cast it with a heavier weight line, based on how it casts now, I don't think I would go heavier, and I suspect a heavier line would overload it if going for distance.
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Some have success with a steady hand to get a straight edge, but not me. What I do is put small strips of 1/4" making tape around the bare blank, about 1/64 to 1/32 inch from the wrap. Leave a tag end of masking tape sticking up so it is easy to remove, and take it off after completing all of the wraps you are coating with finish at that particular time. There are other methods out there,
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Michael, I do have some questions for you, but your email is hidden...mine isn't. Thanks.
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I need a little education in the construction of multi-piece rods. Do rod companies make each section of a multi-spiece blank to a certain specification and then take random sections and package them together as the complete product (I presume this is the case) or do the individual pieces of a multipiece rod somehow "belong" to one another? I ask this in reference to warranty claims
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I'm planning on completing my arsenal of saltwater fly rods with a 12 wt 4 piece travel rod to be used on tarpon and trevally when the opportunity presents itself, and am hoping to go to Christmas Island next year. I have 8,9, and 10 wt rods. Models under consideration include CTS Revo and Affinity salt, Dan Craft FT, and Sage Xi2. Any comments comparing the characteristics of these blanks wi
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My apologies (and thanks) to those who responded to this thread. I initially measured the Abel reel at least 5 times, and never noticed that the diameter of the spool side is larger than the frame-side diameter. Therefore, Abel's measurements for reel spool diameter are dead-on. Its the other brands that come up 1/8 to 1/16 inch short.
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I just had my first taste of saltwater flyfishing, and am comtemplating completing my arsenal to include a 12 wt rod. In looking at some reels, the Abel Super 12 seemed particularly large and "bulky" at a reported 4.45 inch spool diameter, as opposed to 4.25" on a Nautilus 12, which has similar backing capacity. Out of curiosity, I then measured the spool diameter on some of my r
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Tom, something has changed in the last few days. I'm having the same problem as Fran...I never had to "register" to peek at the photos before.
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Bob, I pack my threads tight (using the flat side of a small Swiss Army pocket knife blade). However, I only burnish where I pull the thread through at the end of the wrap to flatten it out. Are you saying you burnish the entire wrap? Am I an "outlier" if I don't burnish all of the thread? I've never read where that was commom practice, but I'm always learning. Regarding the c
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There was some discussion recently (and there is chronically) about how many coats of finish to use, and the responses were pretty much the same as my own experience...it always seems to take 2 or 3 coats. Mainly though, it seems that I am putting the second coat on guide wraps just because the finish "runs downhill" off the guide foot, leaving visible thread ridges in the finish over
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I've been using TM for the last month or so, and the bubble-issue seems overstated to me. Where I run into problems is when I introduce some bubbles into my mixing cup while squirting the finish from the syringes, they will break up into lots of small ones while I stir. SO, get them out before you start stirring, preferably by making sure there aren't any in the syringes before you squirt. I
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If money is no object, then maybe your friend can go to a local shop and try out some Sage, St. Croix, and WInston etc. rods and give you some direction. In my opinion, for a small stream fly rod, lots of less expensive brands only available as blanks would be as good or better (i.e. Batson RX8+, CTS), but if name brand is important to him, let him decide so he isn't disappointed.
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I dilute Gudebrod CP about 60:40 isopropyl alcohol:CP so it is like water and it is very effective with one coat, as demonstrated the time I strayed onto some thread that I didn't want to "color preserve". I only apply CP on thread where I will do a feather inlay. If I don't dilute the CP, when I apply the feather to the thread (I also dunk the whole feather in the same diluted mixtu
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I'm doing this on 2 of 4 saltwater fly rods I'm building as I wanted a titanium frame guide with a ceramic insert. Only Fuji makes them, with a size 7 (or is it 6?) ring max. I want something larger for 9 and 10 wt rods, so AmTak Titans for me. I like the look of a tube top better, but the single foot method isn't unattractive to me. I haven't cast the prototype yet.
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If you want to stay with inexpensive epoxy, I'd recommend Devcon 30 minute. Plenty of working time to clean up any overrun, but things are fairly stable faster than you think. I'm too cheap to use rod bond, and I abandoned 5 minute epoxy long ago...not enough time for me to do clean up as necessary.
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When I have access to all those bins filled with bargain-price blanks without leaving home...well, thats technology I'd get excited about.
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Scarlet is a bit brighter, not a very noticeable difference between it and the candy apple red...until you put finish on. Without CP (whether or not you have a metallic underwrap), the scarlet looks more like a dark orange to me, whereas the candy apple is a very nice, deep red..."ruby"-like over a black blank. I never use the scarlet. Personal preference, of course.
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This won't help you now, but I've never scuffed the first coat prior to adding a second, no matter how long a delay between them, and haven't had a problem. I didn't know this was common practice until I found this forum...perhaps ignorance is bliss.
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Its been mentioned a few times in recent posts that a single foot guide can be used as a tip top, and I'm wondering how many have tried this, how does it look, and is it a difficult wrap to do? Intuitively, seems like it would be hard to wrap in the thinnest part of the blank with nothing to hold onto on one side of the guide. BUT, this would solve the problem of matching guide sizes to tip top
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Ditto the marbled green Fly Logic seat Scott mentioned. I have the blue/black marbled version, and it is off the charts cool looking, and seems very well made. Also, Batson makes a green woven graphite insert for many seats that I think would be suitable for the salt, and they are a sponsor of this site.
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I have only done one decal, but I thoroughly read two different instruction sheets, and if using MicroSet and MicroSol, they recommend waiting 24 hrs after decal application before you put on epoxy to allow complete drying.
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I recently did my first decal and used the MicroSet and MicroSol solutions. The only negative was that I had my first ever run-in with the "fish-eye" phenomenon, and it was clearly most severe over the decal itself, although there were a few small circles over the threadwork well away from the decal. Prior to applying finish, I was afraid to wipe the decal with alcohol, not knowing wh
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I was delighted to see I'm not the only one who analyzes every detail and experiences lost productivity at work while thinking about the next project. I've come to accept the agonizing/fretting and, to put a positive spin on it, refer to it as "savoring the build". Start with the desired blank, then what thread color combo that I haven't seen before wiil be the holy grail, add in &quo
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I was "doing my homework" the other day searching for info on layouts for guides on saltwater flyrods (I am determined to try my hand at bones, redfish, and perhaps snook and permit and will be building a 7 and 8 wt). I came across support for using V-style guides as strippers, and size 7 single foots as running guides for a 7 or 8 wt. These recommendations were made for Fuji titanium/
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Standard operating procedure from most of the feather inlayers I have learned from is to wash in warm water with Dawn dishwashing detergent to de-grease, then rinse well. Make sure they are thoroughly dry before doing the inlay.
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Daniel, thanks for the info. Jeffrey, Decal Connection sells them.
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I recently ordered my first set of waterslide decals from Decal Connection, and opted for their "new" type. I've read a lot of posts recently about being strict in leaving the decals in distilled water for only 5 seconds, but the website directions say it may take 1-2 minutes in water for the new type. Can anyone comment on how long to leave the "new" decals in water? Does
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Bruce, not too long ago I ordered a back issue of RM solely for the guide foot prep article, and what a revelation. It is easy, fast, and effective. I'm at work right now so I don't know what issue it was, but I'm sure you can find it. Never again will I prep them by hand.
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I have dealt directly with REC for several purchases, and although the order has not always been filled to my satisfaction the first time around (I'll spare you the details), customer service is excellent, and I have gotten what I wanted eventually and am very happy with them. For aesthetically pleasing reel seats, they are hard to beat.
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Tom, you are correct--it was Forhan...I couldn't remember the author's name.
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