Sounds definitely like silicon contamination to me. In addition to any spray or semi-solid containing silicon, does anyone wearing one of those little wrist bands that are so popular these days...and are made of silicon...come into your shop area? If so, every time they enter the area, the contamination is renewed. Those things are not allowed in my shop.
Forum: rodboard

Mike, If you have wrapped the rod the following applies: Three coats of poly on the wraps will do a good job of preserving the color. The water based poly will coat and protect the rod well. Using a spar version of poly or a spar varnish will provide extra protection for the inevitable exposure to water and UV rays. Poly and varnish are very different and may require somewhat different
Forum: rodboard

Thank you. I'll make it a 9wt and see how that works for him. Joe
Forum: rodboard

Will, take a look at our Tiger Eye fly blanks on www.blackdogtackle.com. Very good price/quality combination for anyone. Joe
Forum: rodboard

As you know, I build tons of fly rods...for trout. I have a client who wants a fly rod for large Pike. Any suggestions on blank, line weight, setup, etc, would be appreciated. Thanks, Joe
Forum: rodboard

I have two sources for better quality imported bamboo blanks and one source for domestic made blanks. None of these are in my online catalog but I can discuss them over the phone.
Forum: rodboard

Buzz, I carry these down to size 125. I think I have that many in stock.
Forum: rodboard

One of my friends gave me a couple of used telephone signal circuit protectors. These two are all ceramic cylinders about 4 inches long and 3/8 inch diameter. These particular ones are no longer any good for telephone service, but chucked in a drill they sure do a great job of polishing guide feet. They knock off the last little burrs and shine the feet up really well. They also put a fine ed
Forum: rodboard

Matt, No, I'm up in north central Idaho outside of Orofino...on US Highway 12 between Lewiston, Idaho and Missoula, Montana. Right in the heart of the Lewis-Clark trail over the Rockies. I'm actually located 16 miles out of town up in the mountains in a small community called Grangemont. It's only 170 people or so but it does show up on most maps of Idaho. Orofino is the nearest post offic
Forum: rodboard

This is a little off the normal topics posted here, but I was recently invited to participate in a video aimed at bringing new businesses to our rural county in Idaho. We enjoy a large and diverse recreational base here and have targeted businesses in the recreational industry for recruiting to Clearwater County. The video has been picked up by the State of Idaho and is being publicized as par
Forum: rodboard

We now have two 4-piece fly rod blanks in 2WT...one is 6'0" and the other is 6'6". These are the latest Tiger Eye additions and they are very nice blanks. I have built a couple of them myself as well as selling quite a few and they make very nice pack rods. These are not on my web site yet, but give me a call and I'll fix you up.
Forum: rodboard

Buzz, Depending on length, some of the Tiger Eye blanks we have would be well suited for this application. be happy to work with you to find the right one. Joe
Forum: rodboard

Jared, Unhide your email address and I'll send you some information. Thanks, Joe
Forum: rodboard

We all have our war stories and favorites. I won't use the any of the ground services due to excessive breakage on, what seems to me, a regular basis. I use only USPS Priority mail and have excellent results on both domestic and international shipping. I imagine they all have problems with part time employees and seasonal surges in business, but I have less trouble with USPS than any of the
Forum: rodboard

John, Good advice from both Tom and Terry. These rods are not that hard to restore and will look great when you are done. They can be fished with as well once you have them back in good shape. It would make a fun project especially since they were your grandfather's rods. If you run into problems, just ask for help. Joe
Forum: rodboard

I had a store in the heart of downtown with a year round draw of fishermen and fishing guides. I closed it last year and built a building on my property and relocated everything here. I sold rods in the store, but I sell just as many here in the new location. I pay less for the new building and utilities than I did for rent and utilities downtown and the equity and building are mine. I use
Forum: rodboard

I have both the 6'0"-2wt, and the 6'6"- 2wt, in 4-piece now. These are the Tiger Eye blanks from Sevier and are quite nice. They are not in my online catalog yet so call me directly to order. Thanks, Joe
Forum: rodboard

After several attempts with several carriers and disappointments and broken rods, I have settled on USPS Priority Mail for everything, even international shipping. The damage rate is simply less than any of the others and the price is typically much less while the delivery time is quite good. None of them is perfect, but I just have much less trouble with USPS than any other and I ship odd size
Forum: rodboard

Interesting response. I am aware of at least one viable rod building organization in the sponsor list to the left...RBI.
Forum: rodboard

Glen, I have a few spools of vintage rainbow thread in size A. If that is what you are looking for, let me know. Joe
Forum: rodboard

Defintely something else is wrong. TM sets up much faster than other finishes I have tried. It does do better in a warm room. I don't think humidity has any effect on TM or most other epoxies. If it has not dried in a reasonable amount of time, you probably need to re-coat with another carefully mixed batch in a warm setting. That should do it.
Forum: rodboard

All of the above is great advice. The easist thing to do is to follow all the directions and the voices of experience. The hardest thing to do is to leave it alone. Once you get it in your head that the epoxy will work for you and you can walk away and leave it alone, your finish work will improve. Pretty much anything you do beyond following the directions for mixing and applying and dryin
Forum: rodboard

I have to agree with Tom on this one. I start at $100 profit for the simplest of rods and add proprtionately to the profit side of the pricing as the client asks for more sophisticated options. More work equals more cost for components and my build time and more profit as well. Look at it this way, if you went to your client's store to buy a fuel filter, or groceries, or real estate, or a n
Forum: rodboard

Have not tried that but I did rig up one of those laser levelsa couple of years back. I found I could as well or better by eye.
Forum: rodboard

I'm in north central Idaho and serve a number of rod builders in Oregon. Be happy to help you out. Joe
Forum: rodboard

I have used Diamodite for spot repairs with good results. I have not used it on an entire rod. I recently ran out of Flex Coat which has been my favored product for years. I bought some Threadmaster to give it a try and I am extremely pleased with the product. I've probably done 25-30 rods now with TM and the results are perfect every time.
Forum: rodboard

My wife just has had bypass surgery and I am in northern Idaho without a computer. Had a friend post this for me. Will back next week sometime. I can be reached at 208-827-0704.
Forum: rodboard

Mike, I use these all the time on fly rods, especially the heavier weights, and just do what Tom said. Four inches is usually just right. It is definitely an extra guide that you add after all other guides are selected and set. Joe
Forum: rodboard

I understand they plan to adjust prices annually from now on. It's been almost a year since the last adjustment. One of my regular mailling methods doubled in price last year so I complained loudly and often. It is now cheaper to mail that particular package to Canada than it is to mail it anywhere in the USA. We'll see if complaining does any good when the new prices come out.
Forum: rodboard

Mike, you can probably go either way and be just fine. I usually use DF stripper and second guide on fly rods above 6wt, but I have used SF to get the look a client wants with no performance problems. I sometimes use DF on rods below 6wt as well. I use SF stripper and second guides on lighter weight fly rods all the time with no problems. The SF ceramic guides are easy to work with and funct
Forum: rodboard