A fuller view of the end result. Made for a light and very sensitive handle. I thought it turned out nicley for a first attempt...
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This is a first attempt at using graphite tubing to build as a split grip. The graphite tube is 6" long - would like to shorten next time to about 4.5"
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Wherever rodbuilders meet they seem to have a good time. We had our get-together in Iowa on Saturday and it was a great event. We had about 50 builders there from all over the midwest, Iowa, MO., WI., MN. What a great time we had - I am thankful to Tom and Bill Stevens for supplying goodies for giveaways and for the folks who joined us. I also am very thankful to all the instructors who put i
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Hello all, I am most appreciative that Tom has been so generous with sending items of information for attendees and also a variety of items we will draw for people to take away at the end of the day. The game plan is to good batch of classes throughout the day - we are starting at 9 am and plan to run until 4 pm. Of course participants will be free to come and go as they please. The old s
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Hello folks, I have been through my usual suppliers and have searched through all the sponsors. I can't seem to find a brown St. Croix 5C68MXF for a project a friend is interested in. Anybody have ideas on a supplier who would still have one in stock? St. Croix has none left and I prefer the brown color for this project rather than the new blue / green flip. Granted the new color is very nic
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The MLF is a lighter action than some would prefer for smallies - but it depends on what you are going to throw with it - for light jigs or split shot rigs it would be great. The tail dancers should give you a good tussle on that stick. It also makes for a great Lindy rigging rod for eyes. The blank is a bit light for medium and larger crankbaits in my estimation. Although small rebel craws
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I found the Key Buoy at Cabelas - look here... It would likely float a rod with the additional flotation of the air that would be trapped in the blank and a cork handle - it would be bulky but a ring at the end of the butt would hold it - at 6.99 one could afford to have a few on hand to replace it - not sure how much bother it would be when placed at the end of the rod though... I guess a pers
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How about a Tuffy walleye boat just to make it interesting? Chuck Ungs
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I found copper in a box of gel pens my daughter had for school... so perhaps look for a variety pack to see what they have mixed in - don't tell her that it's in my drawer with the rest of my gel pens though - I like copper accents. :) They are labeled Pentel Smooth Gel Ink - Sunburst Metallic - a 5 pack with blue, green, violet, rose and copper. We had bought them at Wal-Mart I think but it w
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I'll bite! Having tension on the line is the only way to feel the action of whatever is on the business end of the line "directly". When a jig or jigging spoon is the lure of choice then reducing the mass of the rod allows lower mass for the tick of a weed, rock or stick to be more easily felt. When jigging in current a sensitive blank (we'll say graphite vs. glass) would allow the
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Lance - to follow your analogy - I would be very willing to bet those duck hunters use different shot sizes and loads for teal versus mallards versus geese versus swans in the few places that is permitted. And the choke tube option has been already mentioned. The fact is - one person could get by with one shot size and shell combo for every type of waterfowl but not without some sacrifices in e
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Would any of the backbouncing blanks fits your needs - they seem to be similar to muskie blanks as far as suggested lure weights? Just a thought anyway. Chuck Ungs
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I use 8 pound fireline (because it's what I use for fishing mostly) with two knots and then fold a 2 inch piece of blue masking tape over the section between the two knots - very easy to find when dropped and it doesn't get in your way... my 2 cents - Chuck Ungs
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To drop back to your original questions - I would think that any attempt to revise the legs on a TATSG would be an expensive mistake. I believe it would cause issues with the titanium leg breaking. I don't think titanium is going to take that bending well. And I believe the heat treatment would create issues with the process fuji uses to temper the titanium in the foot. That said - as othe
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For my wifes rod I used black and silver metallic Gudebrod for the base and used purple nylon as the outside layer - it turned out very well and we were very pleased with the results. Give it a try! Chuck Ungs
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Take a look at any archery shop that cuts and adds nocks and points to carbon arrows and you will always find high speed abrasive cut-off saws. The diameter is larger than a dremel but they are very effective to cut things off square. The next best thing if you don't wish to spend the money on such a tool AND you don't have any other tools around eligible to holds such an abrasive wheel is a dr
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Or Karen at Bingham Enterprises - she can likely work through the details with you - I would call just give her a ring. Good luck with your builds, Chuck Ungs
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Hello Sam, Arbor vitae is indeed white cedar and is a close relative of the red cedar and juniper referred to here. One of the side benefits of using it is it has rot resistance in the wood like red cedar does. It is a softer wood so care should be taken not to dent it however. It can be found as a shrubbier plant or a tree form. Chuck Ungs
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It's been said before but the Batson IP840 blank could be easily extended an additional 6 inches. It's a fun blank for me at its standard 7 feet but the crappies don't share my zeal for it when we place the better ones together in the livewell ;) Fun and interesting blank... Chuck Ungs
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Rod racks rock! Cabela's sells a stand up plastic and metal tube rack designed for 8 rods but with some constructive maneuvering you can fit about a doze blanks in each one... then run about $30 each. I would offer the guy a two-fer price on that model he can't refuse and get rid of the dead weight... just my thoughts. Chuck Ungs
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I'm with Jay - cover them with CP each and every time and be sure to hit the edges so there isn't a stair step for the finish to get funny about and your results will be better... Chuck Ungs
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Curious minds would like to know how motor oil came to be incorporated in the first place? Sounds to me like one of those fortunate accidents... sor t of the "come in here Watson" events...? Chuck Ungs
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Sorry - doubled the post for half the price ;) Chuck Ungs
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I know they aren't a sponsor - but since you asked - Jann's Netcraft carries cork rings with 1/8 inch diameter bores. Order more than you think you'll need so you can grade them out a bit. Chuck Ungs
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That's a great notion on the bumper inside guys. I appreciate the insight on that greatly - will allow me to place that first guide a bit closer to the reel seat. The guys wants a spinning rod on a flipping blank for bass fishing... and it was going to measure about 24 inches from the seat to the first guide but the bumper will allow me to get it to a more comfortable 22 inches. Thanks for the
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Hello all, I am building on a 2-piece telescoping flipping blank for the first time - in fact - I have always built on one piece blanks so this is new to me. I guess that I need to make a short reinforcement wrap on the terminal end of the handle section of the blank, at the junction where the two pieces slide into place - just like you would if I were building up a two piece rod ferrule - corr
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I use flexcoat tip-top hot melt adhesive. But then I don't leave my rod in a vehicle on hot days either so I haven't had issues so far... Chuck Ungs
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I believe Gudebrod has 9001 that is a metallic thread if that would fit your needs - it does have a multi filament core wrapped with the metallic filament. I have only used mine with silver as the underwrap for a tiger wrap - it worked well for that application. Chuck Ungs
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Mike and others - superglue is fine but if you used the flexcoat guide adhering hotmelt glue (different than the tip-top sticks) you would have the ability once the guide is wrapped to still adjust the position of the new top... I use the stuff alot and it goes on every guide I put on. To move it you just give it a gentle push and it will release after its wrapped to rotate it around the blank
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Not to jump in and hijack your thread but the thougth I was toying with that has some potential as well is to use a two thread base on a standard grey graphite and sacrifice one thread leaving a light colored thread behind - I am thinking it could produce the necesary contrast and may produce some additional depth. I also cosidered that a light layer of epoxy beneath the base layer might then be
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