Josh, I am a little confused with and why the question, so I’ll do my best to answer your question. As Michael eluded, there are numerous “copies” of just about anything Fuji makes, including the KW in question. By the way, your reply to Michael seemed a bit rude. Alps and Seaguide, for instance, both have guides similar to the KW; I don’t know about offshore “imitations” = I could care less = I
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El, Don’t tantalize us. Where’s the photo???
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This particular post has been dead for over 20 years; I miss the old format.
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El, ???? for a number of reasons. I will say that is certainly thinking outside the box! Can’t wait for the photo.
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Dido thanks, Mike
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Daryl, This is an ongoing issue which I have tried (and given-up on) to resolve a few times here on RB.O. Either the respondents to my quest of how to obtain a perfectly level, ground-glass type lens over a long area do not epoxy more than a .5in wide guide wrap or they are simply not as picky as I am; I suspect the latter. All I can offer is to apply enough epoxy to allow it to self-level witho
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Mick, Thanks for the reply. The Fuji L single foot would be my ASSUMPTION, even though the ring appears to be higher than what Mike was concerned with. Nonetheless, I would feel more confident hearing it from the man who performed the test which proved my original assumptions incorrect. I AM here to learn.
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Mike, Thanks for the reply, Although I consider myself as a Fuji guy, I was unaware that Fuji offers a “fly” guide. Their single foot L guide seems quite spindly and the ring appears rather high; the L-T has a wider / longer / barbed foot and the ring seems as if it is lower than the L; and the MK appears to be a bit spindly but possibly with a lower ring (but only in their bottom-tier aluminum
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Apparently, Alex has “left the building”.
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Hello Mike, Are you still following this topic? I requested your opinion of which brand and style single foot guides are best-suited to medium-duty salt rods.
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ken, While $30.00 may sound cheap to a rod builder, It may not seem so to the customer; 8 X $30 = $240. Your only salvation is that hopefully you can perform each required task on 3 or 4 rods at a time. Although Tom’s suggestion has merit, most decals have lettering on top of a clear backing. BUT, if the blanks are black, possibly Decal Connection can print the text on a black backing?!?! Otherw
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Jake, Adding a bit of bling to a rod build can be easy and quick or difficult and time-consuming = your choice. I personally do not really care for butt wraps and concentrate my thread bling to the actual guide wraps themselves. Trim bands, inlays and JTOBs add a subtle yet elegant pop and are quick and easy to do while color fades involve a bit more time and effort; all only require the simple
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Mike, Thanks for the clarification. Although I have never experienced “guide pull-out”, I too install a locking wrap on all of my single foots (not a Forhan but of my own design). I don’t build that many salt spin rods; the single foots that I have been using are on spiral wrapped rods. By the way, I was going to ask if you performed the test more than once but you answered that in your last r
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Ernie, RodMaker magazine Volume 25 / Issue 5 / Page 16. Mike, Fair enough. First, a clarification of terms (guides) used; you mentioned Fuji “KT belly guides” a number of times and “KB belly guide” only once and am wondering if the KT and KB nomenclature was unintentionally intermingled. It is my understanding that the “belly” guide is the KB while the KT is considered a runner. Apparently, y
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Mike, Thanks and congratulations on a very good article “Single Foots for HD Use” in RM magazine. I found it both enjoyable and enlightening, if not surprising. There are a few questions I would like to discuss with you but your email is hidden on this forum. If you would be so kind as to email me, it would be appreciated.
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Alex, As Lance suggested, with more information I’ll be glad to offer my ideas for you; salt (I assume) or fresh, casting (I assume) or spinning, stand-up (I assume) or rail-rod or trolling (East or West coast), top live bait, jigs or bottom, and anything else you can think of to explain the conditions / methods in which it will be fished. Be forewarned that I am pretty much a Fuji guy.
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Jeff, Admittedly, I have not used water-slide decals for rod building; only when building model cars back in the 50s and 60s. Therefore, the above replies seem like good advice = use newer stock or change brand. Of course, there is another option which many rod builders, such as myself, and even rod manufacturers use = Decal Connection. I have purchased full sheets of my logo as well as all of
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Alan, While marine spar varnish is certainly a good choice given the anticipated usage environment, I have found that PG works the best with BC TrueOil coming in a close second. The quality and attributes of spar varnish varies wildly, so if that is your chosen medium, select a quality one like Total Boat Lust or Epifanes spar varnish. I have recently been extremely pleased with PG for other tha
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I have said it numerous times, which has been backed-up by a few veterans as well, that the simple “Adding and Dropping Threads” technique will cover just about ANY thread wrap requirement, including single-thread trim bands. Life is so simple if one just allows it to be!
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Daryl, It is a simple matter of “Adding and Dropping Threads” (dropping in this case). I will assume that you are wrapping from left to right; if not, you’ll have to reverse my instructions. I will also assume that I understand the thread sequence you want = single thread each alternating from red, gold, red, gold, red, gold (3 rotations), drop the gold and continue with red for the main wrap.
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Kerry, Thanks for the reply. I am unfamiliar with the “Equal Angle Method” for positioning / spacing guides. I would certainly be interested in exploring another method if you would please explain / elaborate.
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Kevin, To be honest, between static load testing for the runners and Norman’s slightly modified GPS for the reduction train, I find no benefit in test casting anymore (unless it is something weird / out-of-the-norm like Tom’s “oddball” reduction train. It just plain works, each and every time. David’s comment concerning no difference in casting distance even though the line was not threaded thr
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Les brings-up some good points and questions, particularly “I trust two-line static line testing more than charts. Yet, why do charts and calculators give similar results? My Theory is that maybe the charts themselves were created using static line testing at some stage of their development.” Even so, no two blanks, even if from the same “run-batch”, will be identical; more hair-splitting?!?!? A
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Thanks to all who have replied thus far; I am learning! While the majority of rod builders may be inherently guilty of “hair-splitting” and may proclaim more than they actually practice, I am still intrigued with how a mechanically produced, good looking, progressive guide spacing layout can mimic that of a technically achieved 2-line static load test. Yet again, I ultimately rely upon the 2-lin
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Whether a 1-4lb UL trout rod or a 100lb stand-up tuna stick, I ALWAYS perform a 2-line static load test to ensure that the guides are positioned at their optimum location along the blank, PERIOD. There is no other method, difficult or easy, quick or time-consuming, far-fetched or logical, and certainly NOT as precise as the tried-and-true 2-line static load test!!! I have never, nor will ever, us
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Whether or not to dress a guide foot continues to be a debated topic. The late Jim Ising of Anglers Resource / Fuji was strongly opposed to any dressing of a guide foot. No one can really argue with his infinite reasoning; most SS guides go through some sort of passivation process which brings the non-rusting, non-ferrous elements such as chromium, nickel, molybdenum to the surface to enhance the
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Unfortunately, “NIH” (Not Invented Here) is rampart within the rod building community. The suspects are easily recognized as though who are the first to criticize or condemn but often the last to complement or concede. Whatever happened to common-courtesy, common-decency, common-sense??? I miss those days!!! While reverence and respect is certainly due to our rod building forefathers, stifling th
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Michael, Thanks for your reply. I suspect you are correct in that although the rod WAS BROKEN and that weight WAS ADDED for the repairs, its original characteristics should only be altered minimally. I am not certain that I could tell the difference, being as numb as I am. But then there are those who claim to notice a 1g difference in a rod. Maybe ignorance IS bliss.
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Mark, Norman and Steven, I certainly appreciate the compliments = thanks. I am hoping to learn from others as to how they perform such repairs; I may not be the smartest man in the world but I like to associate myself with and learn from those who might just be. Without any replies to my post a few days ago, Fenwick FF79 CCS?!?, I will not have any hard-numbers to reveal how the breaks and repa
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A very long-term friend gave me her father’s slightly used yet 98% pristine vintage Fenwick FF79 a few years ago. In turn, I gave it to my son who is more into fly fishing than me. Long-story-short, it succumbed to the dreaded truck door disaster, crushing it in the lower third and clean-breaking it in the upper third. While sentimental value is certainly the most prevalent here, the FF79 has bee
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