This topic is destined to create numerous pages of replies! While it is safe to say none of us try to build a heavy rod, it is understandable that there are those who obsess over shaving-off every gram. With the overall weight of a rod secondary to the cantilevered weight further out toward the tip, it is only wise to minimize the weight of the guides, thread and finish to allow the blank to perf
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I apologize if my description of the “adding and dropping threads” method for trim bands was unclear; I understood it perfectly! Lol. There is a lot of validity to the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words”! Unfortunately, I do not possess the video abilities of Doc Ski and such others. All I can suggest to those having difficulty understanding the procedure is to simply think of and treat
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Lee, To me, trim bands are just like inlays = it is all about simply adding and dropping threads. I think this is what Norman is suggesting. I do not see the point of making two separate wraps to achieve a trim band next to the main wrap. Simply start with your trim color, make as many turns as preferred, introduce your main color and wrap over that tag and the trim tag 3-6 rotations, snip off b
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Aaron, Russel introduced an issue worth exploring = quantity discounts. If I could receive a 50% discount on guide orders of 100 pieces or more, I would most likely take advantage of it! However, that seems overly optimistic to me. If I were to purchase 1000 guides, half of them might become obsolete before getting around to actually employing them on builds lol. But one man’s ceiling is anoth
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Aaron, First of all, I am a low-volume builder and hence order my guides and tip tops per each build.That being said, once (or should I say “if”) you have determined the guide style, make and model of your builds, ordering the appropriate guides should be rather straightforward; a KT-5, for example, will fit just about any blank. However, ordering tip tops requires a larger array of tube sizes t
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Eric, Admittedly, my input does not directly answer your question. However, it may provide insight to the overall situation. To me, it seems attempting to measure such a minimal weight difference is similar to attempting to split hairs. By nature, many of us in the custom rod building world seek the absolute ultimate in every aspect of our builds; less weight in this case. We typically offer muc
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You can’t go wrong with Norman’s suggestions!
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Luc, I cannot really answer what the “max line angle” would be for a spinning rod; I just use common sense (or possibly common “dense”) in my case. Under max static load, it is safe to say the reduction guides will produce a greater line angle than the runners, especially the runners closest to the tip. The majority of blanks today seem to be more in the “fast” action range and will probably no
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Russ and Luc, I can’t imagine I am the only trout-to-tuna type on this site. I hope I understand your question correctly. While I typically use lighter tackle than most to enhance the challenge of the fight, I would hardly employ 15lb gear while seeking 100lb tuna; getting spooled with braid would get expensive lol. I think guide choice and, even more importantly, guide placement to be the mo
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Luc, I would not use a Tennessee Handle if tape had to be employed to hold the reel on. I fabricate my own tapered slip rings from hybrid CF / Kevlar woven sleeving. Due to the taper, the rings sit flat on the top of the grip and follow the angle of the reel feet on the bottom and thus do not dig into the handle and hence are extremely comfortable. The taper of the rings also affords a securely
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Mark, Any way you look at it, sanding / shaping a grip made-up of both wood and cork is tricky business. I am also interested in other veteran replies. I have only built such grips a half dozen times and the best method I have found is to turn, shape and sand the wood to size SEPARATELY BY ITSELF. Then add the oversized cork and CAREFULLY sand down the cork to match the wood. “CAREFULLY” is the
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Luc & others, That is why I absolutely love a Tennessee Handle for my lighter trout rods; a 12in TH will afford 8in-9in of reel position adjustability, is lighter and more comfortable than just about everything else, and in a pinch, a fly reel can be employed as well. ALL of my trout rods will be built with a TH from now on! Admittedly, a TH may not be the best choice for a tuna stick though
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Luc, The actual distance the line is from the blank is immaterial. However, if you like to measure things, the distance the line is from the blank MIDPOINT between the all the runners should be the same, or at least very close; this is assuming the runners are the same size and type. One could also measure the angle of the line as it passes through each runner and, yet again, those angles should
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Obviously, Ron is much more experienced with this type of situation = I stand corrected and suggest you follow his advice.
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David, That is a good observation and thanks for sharing. I simply insert the syringe, which already has residual epoxy or hardener within the stem / point of the syringe from the previous use, into the bottle, turn everything upside-down for 20-30 seconds, draw out the required amount and shoot it into the mixing cup. I think the main point is to invert the bottle / syringe for a few seconds to
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As Norman, I was also thinking of PG to be a fix for your issue. PG has a very thin viscosity to penetrate the fine “cracks” in your present finish = a good thing but inversely, may not hide / cover those cracks in the actual surface of the PG after cured. Allow me to suggest starting with the PG and if the hair-line cracks are still visible, then overcoat with the TM light as you have already co
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Lynn, Kent and chris, You are all stirring the pot of the spine VS straightest axis stew which will never be completely cooked!!! Lol
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Drew, Did you resolve your issue? We haven’t heard from you since the initial post. Joseph, A conventional roller top designed to be on top of the rod = yes; the AA guides are designed to be mounted on the bottom of the rod = no.
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And so the “spine” versus the “straightest axis” saga continues and probably will well past eternity! Build the rod either way = neither is WRONG!!!
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Amber, Welcome to the addiction and to rod building.org! You (anyone) would be hard-pressed to find an(y)other source with such valuable information from veterans and newbies alike willing to share their knowledge and experiences which will ultimately flatten your learning curve immensely. The abundance of information comes with an equally abundance of opinions; it is up to each individual to di
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Drew, Well there you have it: David has experienced the same thing. While it is very surprising for me to learn, I would still, if not certainly, call Stere or Lori.
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Luc, As the other replies correctly state, rubberized (or burnt?) cork is not really needed but tougher than plain, regular cork and is heavier. I use the rubberized cork tape covered with X-flock shrink tubing for many of my saltwater builds because it is so durable, quick and easy to repair/replace and weight is not as much of a concern. While I do employ rubberized cork “trim” on freshwater
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Drew, It is my understanding the All American Roller Guides, Nep_tune series, are THE ONLY rollers specifically designed for spiral wrapped guides. The roller fits into a formed recess of the side frames to avoid the line from jumping off the roller and into the gap between the roller and frame. I have built two tuna rods sporting complete sets of the Nep_tune guides and have never experienced t
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Norman, Thanks for the clarification; a FG rod feels sloppy if intended to be a fly rod but built as a spinning rod = that makes sense. Nonetheless, I still do it but maybe I am a bit slow lol.
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Norman, Thank you for your honest, trusted and veteran reply. I am admittedly surprised to learn the bamboo would feel less “sloppy” than FG. Apparently, archaic natural fibers such as bamboo are a hard act to follow!!! Considering the “sloppiness” aspect, I would have guessed bamboo to be at the bottom with FG in the middle and CF at the top; so much for guessing!!! Thanks again, Norman.
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Norman, Do you find the bamboo rods to be as “sloppy” feeling as FG?
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Roger, I am jealous! If you “took 16 of the rods that I use on a nearly daily basis”, obviously you have exponentially more time for fishing than I do lol.
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The MN is a great guide for its intended purposes!!! < or > = other Fuji options.
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Lance, Please excuse my ignorance, but from your supplied photo, I cannot tell if there is actually a ceramic ring insert or not; possibly, but probably not, but… While innovation fuels advancement, haphazardly applied it can prove to mask its effectiveness, not to say such is necessarily the case here.
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chris, Acknowledged; I will conform with the 99%.
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