I would mix up a small batch. Of thread finish and coat the area. That would seal it up for sure. Only problem there is it will take some time and waste a bit of good epoxy. If you time it right you could finish a rod being built and apply finish to your friends rod.
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If fishing for smallmouth the ML blank will be a better fit in my opinion. I live in MN and mostly fish for walleye and panfish, but we catch the occasional bass too and I wouldn't want to go any lighter than the ML if I was building it specifically for bass. I have no doubt you'll be happy with it!
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Steve - I built a rod on the 5S66MLF 1-piece and I love it. It looks like you may be looking to do a 2-piece rod but I would seriously consider the 1-piece. What are you going to use it for?
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John Powell - could you send me that link too?
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John Powell - could you send me that link too?
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I've been building quite a few rods using Recoil guides using their standard spinning rod guides with the double loop for runners. Has anyone tried making a spinning rod with the fly guide with a single loop? Does it even make sense to try? I can't imagine you'd save much weight when using recoil guides but it might he interesting to try it on cheaper builds with regular SS fly guides as runne
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Jerry - that would be great, I just unhid my address.
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Chris - it is similar but is printed on an adhesive sticker and it has a rubber "bubble" finish to it. Chad - i like those, do you apply them on a flat butt or recessed?
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To resolve my ongoing challenge of finding large rubber cork plugs and my inherent lack of fine motor skills to cut my own (can't get the darn things round...), I think I have a solution in either coin or "bubble sticker" inlays. My local supplier (Thorne Bros) sells a rubber ring that has a place for an inlay already machined out that fits a penny size coin perfectly. When they build
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Do the various distributors and manufacturers (I.e. St. Croix, Batson, Anglers Resource, Recoil, etc...) offer wholesale pricing? If so, are the minimums really high? I am a small builder and have accounts with a couple retailers which it has worked out good so far but I am wondering if going direct to the source would possibly provide better pricing. I could call each one but thought the expe
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I'm curious to see feedback on this too. I've been eyeing up a MFC for some time and am ruinous how it stacks up to the others.
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Personally I would go with Recoil guides. They are incredibly light and their ring size is large compared to others due to the lack of an insert. I am not an expert at guide trains, but I would get down to a size 5 or 5.5 for runners with a micro tip (Fuji Titanium). I don't know much about that blank, but in my experience a rod that is too "whippy" will lack some sensitivity. My pe
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Well I had some old NeatsFoot Oil laying around and gave it a try. There is NO way that the customer will be able to tell me where the scuffs are (still getting a discount, guess I'm too honest). Thanks for all the advice everyone.
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I've used both NCP and regular Nylon and don't yet have a preference. The NCP will really make the color "pop" whereas the Nylon will give it a more subtle but elegant look. I like the ProWrap Resfish and Fishhawk 638 for Nylon and have used an old Gudebrod 638 NCP that. Looks really neat with a nice blue. No matter what you choose, I like the look of a matte black blank much more th
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Thanks Tom and John. It is a St. Croix SCIII blank. It has a painted finish on it they call Carbon Pearl. John - does the poly leave any visible line where you rub it on?
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I just completed a rod for a customer and in the process of turning the handle somehow a piece of sandpaper blew up into the blank and caused some light scuffs over a length of about 12". I told the customer and I am giving him a discount but would like to know what I can do to cover up the scuff marks as much as possible? If i take a wet finger and rub over the scuffs they disappear but t
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Are there any good sources for large plugs for rubberized cork rings? I am using rubber rings as the hurt cap on handles I've been turning directly on the blank and outside of making my own it would be nice to find prefabricated plugs. Any help is much appreciated.
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The rubber tubing Chris mentioned is Surgical tubing. I use a combo of that and tape when needed and it works great. However, be careful when moving guides as the tubing holds them down tight and you can scratch the blank if you're not careful.
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Jay Dubay - I think it all comes down to personal preference. I wrap my electrical tape pretty right too so I'm sure it will leave a dent but I like the feel of it better as it has a slimmer profile on the handle. One thing I always do is out painters tape on the cork, under the reel foot, before I wrap the electrical tape. This helps preserve the cork from pulling out pits when you unwrap. I
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It will work but I wil warn you that the reel seat will dent the cork. I used it on some ice rods and while it works good I went back to electrical tape (the good stuff) and like it more myself because it is a slimmer profile and is more comfortable in my hand. All that said, it will work great and keep the reel very secure.
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What is the proper way to strip a rod to refinish? I have an older St. Croix and I'd like to re-wrap the guides because they've yellowed and are cracking. I am concerned about stripping this rod because it has a painted finish. Is there a way to strip it down without damaging the paint?
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thanks everyone. This confirms what i thought, its not posible to salvage them. I planb to send it back whole and if/when they send it back i will make a spare pole for myself out of it. Worst case the tip breaks and its still a 6' rod.
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Is there a way to remove a cork handle from a blank without damaging it and allowing for re-use? I am working on a rod blank that I need to send back to the manufacturer because it has a "dent" in the tip portion of the rod. I custom turned this handle and would hate to lose all the work. WOrst case i can send it all in together and they will send the blank back to me.
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I can't speak for the many brands but can vouch for both DH Custom Rods and Thorne Bros, both have excellent noodle blanks. Actually, Mudhole coped the name exactly from the Thorne Bros Power Noodle they developedany years ago. I love pretty close to both shops and you can't go wrong with either. The TB blank is more than the DH but both in my min (from what I've seen other places) are better
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I tried to find some information on a web search but didn't have any luck. Are there any local Minnespolis/St. Paul rod building groups that get together? I am relatively new to this compared to most of you on here and would love to find a way to get involved with any oval groups to expand my knowledge base.
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Thanks everyone for the feedback. Thankfully this one is for me so I an not too concerned about giving it to a paying customer. Hopefully I can avoid this on my next build.
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Thanks Roger. I've never had trouble with bubbles on the top of the surface but for some reason these are causing me some difficulties. Is it possible I'm not applying enough finish right away? I like a thin first coat so I could always clean up excess after its settled a bit.
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Are there any tricks to avoid air bubbles by the guide foot when using Nylon thread without CP? on my 2 most recent builds I did not apply CP and noticed air bubbles trapped under the thread next to the guide foot. I tried applying heat and packing more finish but I think it was too late. Any tricks to avoid this? Anything I can do before I apply my 2nd coat to remediate it? For the reco
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Mike - I just undid my email, please do send photos as I have a couple more rods to build in the coming weeks and any tips will help!
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Good catch Roger, I should have mentioned solid fiberglass as well. Some of my favorite Ross are "Noodles" built on a solid fiberglass blank. They can, however, be VERY tricky to wrap the top 2 guides though with the incredible sensitivity they have. Patience is key with these, it will usually take me a couple tries to get it right.
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