Stefan. There is no free lunch on this weight business. I have used all the reel seats mentioned above, except for the Venneri. If you really want to keep things light, you must use aluminum fittings with cork. Winding checks can be substituted for the bulkier rings. Wood and nickel silver is going to weigh as much as the blank. However, wood inserts and reel seats look very classy. You d
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Stefan, I like the recoils because of the thinner wire and very light weight. More noticeable in the double foot, even the single foot guides bend a bit, and you don't want to dampen this blank. I find wood inserts in any configuration are too heavy for this blank. You might get a cap and ring set from Cortland. The nickel silver version is a little heavy, but will work. The aluminum is lig
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I have the 7 foot blank, but have not built it. I would recommend that you use single foot REC recoil guides with a single foot ceramic stripper. 10-4-3-2-1-1-1-1 etc. to the tip. Put the #3 on the female ferrule. Consider an all cork seat and grip as this is a very light blank. Use a 2.2 oz. Forbes magnesium from Overstock.com or a Bass Pro ultralight classic. Rio PW1F from Sierra Tradin
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Stefan, are you refering to the 2 piece 7 foot? I just got one in, but have only built the 3 piece.
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If you want to really penetrate the thread you might try Gudebrod 822, Tru-oil, Klass Kote, or my new favorite, Wipe On Polyurethane. You then finish with an epoxy topcoat. You should add a blocking wrap if you are not currently using one to help with the back lighting phenomenon and to fill the tunnel.
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I doubt if you can buy paint pigment a whole lot cheaper than Miniwax stain. Tru-oil is more expensive than the stain, as I recall.
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I use Klass Kote almost exclusively for thread wraps on graphite rods. You can put on the first coat, then thin the remaining mixture with a bit of thinner and cover with Saran Wrap. Put it in the fridge. After 4 hours you can put on the second and final coat from the same batch. They make it in colors too.
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Use a very fine sandpaper, 2000 grit or so, and the epoxy wraps will be very matte in appearance. The Klass Kote 2 part epoxy paint comes in a gloss and a satin. You can also use satin Wipe On polyurethane. If you just cover the threads (about 5 coats) it will look pretty dull over most colors and may be the style your customer wants. No matter what you do, rry it off blank first. Don
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A size 12 dry? You can throw a size 6 beadhead on a DC! But you must choose your line with care. A RioPW1F (discontinued) can throw a lot of fly on a furled leader. The new Monic microtapers are pretty thin, I have a DT3 on a rod and a 12 is about the limit for that line even on a 1 weight rod. In other words, I could fish the DC with a Rio most all day and not feel limited. Don
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The Sage is way more expensive and heavier than a DC. The DC will handle all 1 weight and many 2 weight lines. The Sage color is nice though. Don
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I was trying to explain the advantages of CCS on a site. My analogy was to a thermometer. You don't have to have one to experience the weather. You can go outside and stand around to get a feel for it, call up your friends and ask them, and you can describe it with terms like "chilly", "brisk", "need a light jacket", etc. But sometimes it is easier to know that i
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Let me know what it weighs when you are done. If not this one, you can get under an ounce on another project. Don
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Bill. I added some pigment to paint a blank. Don
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Andy, it won't make an ounce using a cork handle but it will be close. Mine weighs 1 ounce even, but I turned down a Kork-a-lon handle and used shrink tube rings. I would use a 10 mm titanium stripper because you need to consider the angle at which the line will hit the guide coming off the reel. Then 3, 2, 1s to tip. If you go with the 8mm, 2, 1s to tip. The recoil tip tops are pretty light
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I have stained some Mudhole cork and then applied Tru-oil over that. For graphite blanks use the fast dry poly (but why?).
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I have built both and greatly prefer the Dan Craft ONE, unless packability is a factor. The cap and ring is perfect. Cortland store has an inexpensive NS set.
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You can usually get a guide on each female ferrule of a 4 piece rod and make it look like a 1 piece rod. Don't know of any factory rods that will do this. You might include a short fighting butt permanently affixed. It can then double as fresh or salt.
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Permagloss dries way to fast for my taste. I think the easiest way to coat a blank is to wrap a coffee filter around your finger and saturate the filter over your finger tip with a quick dry polyurethane, a Wipe On poly, spar varnish, or Tru-oil. The quick dry Poly appears to be the hardest finish next to the permagloss. That said, the Wipe On poly is the easiest to use followed by the Tru-
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A plastic palette knife is the ticket. Second choice is a strip cut from a closed foam paint brush, the dark grey dense ones. You are manuevering on the epoxy, not painting it on.
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Tru-oil or Wipe On varnish applied with a coffee filter for the blank. You can use a soft brush to apply the same finish to the wraps. For a wall hanger, only a couple of coats is necessary on the wraps.
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Multiple coats of Miniwax satin Wipe On poly. The regular polys dry too fast. The Tru-oil would also work. 600 grit sandpaper will take off the gloss from the Tru-oil.
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Get some Stripeeze and use as directed. Takes you down to the original matte blank.
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I have used similiar guides in titanium frames for the stripper and next guide. The higher guides allow the line to flow in a more direct line from the reel through the first couple of guides, without using a ring bigger than a 12. You can switch to the shorter single foot guides further down the blank.
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Mark Fitch on @#$%& is the best deal and a great blank, but he usually offers single tip blanks and many 'boo guys want the traditional 2. Mike Brooks offers beautiful blanks with 2 tips. Pay the extra to get the blank ferruled up by the maker. Fitch and Brooks impregnate their blanks, so a wipe on coat or two of Tru-oil and you are ready to wrap. Size 50 silk is about a 00 and more elegant t
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Lighter finishes like permagloss and poly look very good after about 5 coats. You can still see and feel the texture of the thread, but I suspect they are plenty protected. Very hard to get that poured on look without using a heavier epoxy.
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As Lou says, the easiest method is to strip the blank bare. However, if you want to save the paint, carefully peal the epoxy off and lightly sand the top coat where the old guides rested with 1000 grit sandpaper, then buff the entire blank with 0000 steel wool and put on a couple of coats of polyurethane with a coffee filter.
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Go to your hardware store and get a length of shrink tube in the size next up from your seat. Cut off the length you want and shrink them down to fit. I generally buy a brass tube the appropriate diameter, soap it, and shrink them on the tube, as I don't want to scorch my grip. The tubing is very thin, can be cut much wider than any commercial ring, and are easily replaced. They have some str
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I wrap thread all the way to the grip, put an undercoat on the thread, and then slide the check over the thread against the grip. This makes removal of the check a lot easier if the grip needs to come off later on and a neater finish overall. There is no shear point at the check. Of course I don't do thread art or hook keepers up against the grip with this method.
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Learned to tie early on, then started building after a couple of years. Like to fish my own rods and flies. I don't see a lot of cross-over skills, though. Don
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I use a plastic palette knife. Very flexible. Package of different styles from the craft store. The narrower tips allow you to work around the foot a little more easily. I do not rotate under power when applying epoxy.
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