Don, I cannot answer your question from experience, only suspicion. Cork is basically a closed-cell material and I would think attempting to dye it would only cover the very outside “skin”. I would also worry about the dye coming off in one’s hand with the constant gripping. Just my thoughts and nothing more but hey, maybe it can be done. Test, test, and test again or wait for a qualified answer
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Dean, Yes, McMaster Carr sells CF tubing, both uni-directional bias-ply (0*/90*). They also sell Ti and FG tubing but in limited sizes. Make certain to use the bias ply (for the additional hoop strength) if CF is the desired material. While a lower modulus blank extension than the blank itself may be optimum to not overcome / overstress the blank where they connect, that is not the entire pictur
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Alex, Some people are just “bulls in a china store”. A custom rod can accommodate for that but at what cost? Maybe if you charge more, they will appreciate the rod more and take better care of it lol.
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Morgan is exactly correct on all accounts. The weight of different Al alloys is negligible, at least for our purposes. However, the yield strength difference varies vastly; 6063 = 21,000 PSI, 6061 = 40,000 PSI, 2024 = 47,000 PSI and 7075 = 73,000 PSI. Simply put, the stronger the alloy = the less material required = less weight. I tried to explain that in my first post “Using a stronger alloy wil
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I don’t know what all the fuss is about; I never experience non-concentricity issues…yah right. I have come to the conclusion that the only way to obtain a PRECISELY concentric grip is to employ the largest possible boring bar on a metal lathe (or a highly modified wood lathe). But the taper is a real PITA. When all else fails, I employ Michael’s approach; I just tell everyone to not view the ro
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Alex, How heavy is “heavier”? Guides are generally stronger than need-be, and the KL-Hs can handle quite a bit. As Dan mentioned though, they may be more susceptible to surcomming to rough handling. The KR Concept works exceptionally well due mostly to the height of the reduction rings; the KWs are obviously considerably shorter than the KL-Hs. One can use larger diameter KW rings (butt guide in
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Ladd, Aluminum (Al) butt extensions can work very well; they can certainly be strong, easy to work with but as Norman mentioned, can be a bit heavy = it all depends on the flavor (alloy) of Al. Much of the Al found in stores such as Home Depot is 6063 “architectural “ Al which has good corrosion resistance but is rather weak compared to other alloys. 6061 is the most widely used Al alloy due its
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You know what they say about guys with big hands…big feet too!
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Mickey, All the above are good replies = not a bad one in the bunch. Other than aesthetics or trying to slow the rod recovery down, there is no need for the wraps to be any longer than what is required to begin the wrap and started climbing up the ramp of the foot. There are those who can wrap DOWN the ramp but I have not been able to master the technique. Most will agree that for the overall r
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zachary, As Tom suggested, foam arbors would be a good choice and the route taken by most. But I understand your dilemma of "big but not too big" with a diameter difference of ~.100in (.050 wall) causing “disintegrate” issues. If the foam arbors are epoxied to the grip and then reamed to fit the blank, all should be just fine. However, Tom may not have factored-in the actual ID to OD
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Phil, Thank you for your synopsis of Gen 4 thread finish. There have been quite a few people posting their pleasure with Gen 4 recently but I have yet to try it. With so many proponents, I guess I’ll have to give it a shot as well. As you, I have become very accustomed to ThreadMaster (light) and the FlexCoat offerings as well = I need to deplenish my stock of those first.
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Thanks, Norman. That is what I meant.
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Tom, Lance, ben, Phil Ew., Herb, Phil Er., Thank you for the replies. The general consensus is basically the same and has been used for many years. Although a (understandably) different value / distance than a spinning rod butt guide, the placement of a fly rod stripper guide is apparently just as easy = 32in from the reel = boy, that is easy. Now let me overthink it and find a much more difficu
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Norman and Bruce, Well I am certainly glad to learn Bruce is building on an Immortal blank rather than Norman’s reference to an “immoral” blank, whew! lol . Jesting aside, Bruce, listen to Norman = he may very well know more about the KR Concept than even the engineers at Fuji in Japan!!!
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I agree with Lynn. David stated in his original post that his shop is 72* = if that is too cold for thread epoxy, then we are all in trouble. Furthermore, David’s question/ observation referred to the epoxy seeming to have “gummed up”, not crystallized. The only thing I can think of is the possibility of the dispensing syringes, or other transfer devices, cross-contaminating each other. Otherwise
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… or at least the issues of concern. I would think placing the stripper farther up the blank would decrease the line angle coming from the angler’s hand but, on the other hand (so to speak), would reduce the number of guides on the lower section to help evenly distribute stress to the blank (especially when battling that trophy-of-a-lifetime which has the rod maxed-out) = a two-sided sword. I wou
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Jay, If you are looking for U.S. made FG blanks, I can supply you with even better; NOS vintage (1960s) FG Conolon blanks. Not only were they manufactured here in the U.S.A. but by Conolon who invented tubular FG blanks using their ground-breaking knowledge from building missile bodies and lightweight aircraft parts for the military during WW2. Not only will they go head-to-head against any mode
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Ben, When I mention that I tend to use higher thread tension than others, it is certainly not excessive by any measure. As stated, I discovered the root of my problem was the thread being sharply bent around the tiny wire of the screw eyes while under tension which could break a filament or two of the thread here and there. On my original setup, the thread was directed ~130* through the last scr
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Robert, I would have attacked the problem with acetone before the epoxy cured; but hind-sight is always 20/20 and that is now water under the bridge. It will be virtually impossible to sand off the epoxy without sanding some of the blank as well. Consider applying mild heat to the buggered-up epoxy and scrape, as much as all possible, off using a plastic or wood scraper (a credit card works wel
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Mo, By the way, the OD and ID can be cut rather easily using the sharpened end of telescoping brass tubing.
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Mo, Flat foam sheets used for structural foam core composite construction will suit your requirements quite well. They are available in different densities and thickness and are designed to be used in conjunction with epoxies. Some are polyurethane, others PVC, along with other variants. Consider using “Divinycell” (PVC) which comes in densities of 3 lb / cu ft or 6 lb / cu ft and in thicknesse
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Josh, Wrapping flimsy, wimpy blank tips can be difficult if not aggravating. Roger is quite a fabricator and his tip support method will certainly work and is probably easier to make than what I built. If you care to do so, take a look at mine to maybe give you some additional ideas to make your own.
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David, Mr. Baylor is probably correct in that you may have a “slip clutch”. They are much more versatile than simply being able to stop the rotation of the blank while applying finish to guide wraps; they can also be used while thread wrapping to afford rotational tension to avoid the blank from reversing = a huge plus! However, one thing is very important while adjusting the slip clutch = DO NO
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Jeffery, While certainly not an expert on the subject, if they are used they probably are not monetarily worth much; if new in the original box, possibly. Consider fishing them to experience a piece of tackle history; who knows, they might just outperform the modern, fancy-fandangled offerings!
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Jim, While certainly not a seasoned veteran rod builder like ben or Tom, simple logic suggests to me they are correct on all counts. My thinking sees it as although using heavier guides might help load the rod, it will also slow the recovery rate which in turn slows the rod’s ability to propel the lure. Personal experiences fishing very light (<1/8oz) lures (crappie jigs alot) for mountain tr
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Michael, Thank you for the reply. While researching different designs of wrappers, thread carriages and tensioners prior to designing my own, I did not see a real big need for a “tension rod”; yes, they do allow one to back-up and keep tension on the thread without reversing the spool but I have not found reversing the spool to be inconvenient, I do not have a tension rod in the way and there is
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Since I promised “news at 11:00” within my 8/15/2021 post “Proper Thread Tension”, here is my reply after fabricating an Acetal idler V pulley to direct my thread from the spools and onto the blank. That original post had more to do with the “fuzzies” I was experiencing than anything else, hence inquiring about “proper thread tension”. While designing my thread tensioners, I did not like other
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Richard, When one gets right-down-to-it, They all work, just slight variations on the same theme and it becomes a personal choice for which suits the individual builder. That being said, consider using an epoxy which was designed and formulated for rod building (as in flexible). I started using ProPaste, and it worked fine, but switched to Rod Bond; if Ralph O'quinn formulated it = it's GOT to b
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Dan, I am confused. The HQHG that Rick linked in his reply has the two legs “...was flipped so double foot was towards butt… “ as you requested. Same with the double-foot Fuji KWs = double leg toward the butt. Did you mean a single leg toward the butt, similar to a Fuji RV, but with the ring sloped toward the tip?
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Josh, It ultimately boils down to personal preference and features when choosing a wrapper. Although fabricating my own, nonetheless I utilized a few features from the Flex Coat wrapper (prior to the new 777). If you are not happy with the Flex Coat 777, you will probably not be happy with any commercial wrapper, even those costing 2X - 3X as much = build your own. Flex Coat’s commitment to t
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