Never seen this before, got a rod in for repair and he wants the butt wrap and bottom guides refinished, pretty common request BUT in this case the reason is the finish is split, he said he used Flex Coat when he made the rod a few years ago and now the finish is cracking or I should say splitting on the butt wrap and bottom two guides. The splits run length wise nearly two-three inches on the
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Gator glass blanks are a good blank economically they are a little heavier then compatible newer model blanks and they are not sanded but overall good value, some of the sponsors sell them at very reasonable cost absolutely no need to purchase or bid elsewhere for who knows what. Since Chaos rods bought the company there can be at times a little problem with getting some models John
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Jeff mark your centers then turn it round then drill it out using the four jaw chuck fast and accurate John
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I got to agree with Mike if one has a problem with the hotel they are the ones to complain to, goes to show the only thing Tom couldn't control is where there were problems. i thought out of the last 4 this one was the best yet and the others were tough to beat John
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Josh virtually all factory rods are built on the straightest axis, the spine is rarely utilized and plays little part if any in how the rod performs John
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Paul the difference is the 1300 was Dye Sub capable where the 1000 isn't for our purposes it doesn't matter as dye sub isn't used in making the decals, back when Alps actually sold the printers they use to have a link to a site that said don't use dye sub for decals as the ink isn't the same as used in the regular cartridge. That said I tell you the same as I told Bob forget them I would guess 9
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Bob save your money forget the alps printer stick with decal Connection. The printer has not been made in 8 years cartridges for it are higher in price now then ever before when you can find them , repairs are impossible and the same holds true for the clone Citizen printer. I have two alps both work fine and I wouldn't dream of selling one for fear it would arrived damaged they don't handle sh
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David you might try Russ Fairfield's web site re finishing with CA and other finishes very knowledgeable individual regarding finishes John
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I believe jimi (then with decal connection) mentioned some time ago that the topless ones were being discontinued the first were done by Bill Wiston and later decal connection John
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Chuck WAIT to Feb. their new model the PSI Comander is coming out longer bed 1HP indexing head MT2 all for $400 and VS also John
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Phil the purpose of using the tools a scrapper is the preferred is simply to get the cork concentric sandpaper alone generally won't do that, if one is careful using the scraper you only touch the side that is a little higher. John
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Tony something to consider, if you sharpen frequently the water stones are great, however if you allow the tools to become somewhat dull it may be better to opt for a slow speed grinder-- see Wood Craft-- they have one at a good price and the wolverine sharping system. note the better the grinding wheel the better the finish that can be achieved but the ones on the Wood Craft grinder are pretty
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Great place to compare various wood lathes before purchasing one John
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Paul once you have the tools become proficient in sharping them which is an art in itself but will save you possible heart break and injury later John
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Jeffery sounds like you made a big common mistake mixing two parts of A instead of one part A-B don't ask how i know John
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Andrew on line Craft supplies USA has Finkat paper excellent product in finer Grits Arizona silhouette a pen making site has Kingspor paper to 800 or higher grit also check out specials on kingspor web site re paper still using the stuff I got at the last ICRBE from them John
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Chuck the only problem you might have is getting attachments-chucks etc made for an MT1 taper, make a quick check to see what's available and cost for them John
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another vote for clear nail polish three thin coats will hold up for a long time John
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A number of the kids down here (Fl.) use a rod holder(Old Salty) for pier fishing and they will mess up grips if not used correctly-EVA -Cork or foam John
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Ron, they haven't produced blanks in about 5 years there has been talk of opening a new plant in the NW but nothing but talk as far as I have seen. I would suggest listing your wants on the buy sell page and anywhere else you are allowed to do so. many of today's blanks are superior to the older Harrington-Harnels but they were popular John
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If you follow the links on Mudholes site it shows PSI as the manufacturer so any extras extended bed etc should fit , there have been quite a few problems with VS on the midi lathes as the switches are burning out very quickly or in some cases don't work from the start, it is an easy fix but something to be aware of- note this is not just PSI but includes Jet and steel city perhaps others John
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Just got back from one of the shops I do repairs for and I mentioned that Loomis is no longer going to sell blanks since they carry Loomis rods, their only comment was out of their last order for 20 rods NONE were available, certainly looks like they are in trouble, next it will be Loomis China blanks only way to remain profitable
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Lance believe me some of the rods and blanks coming out of China perhaps other places have BIG problems with our finishes, whatever they use as a top coat on the blanks repels our finishes, i believe they use UV curing on the guides and that also makes for a mess if they need replacement. Note I have not heard of any of the sponsors blanks having this problem John
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Mike a lot of the guys fish with the rear grip under there arm average size is 12-14", something else IF you are not going to be using a harness or anything like that why add a gimbal a lot of people end up putting a butt cap over the gimbal just to stop it from hitting the arm or other places, foregrip on average for a rod with longer rear grips are usually about 8" and has been said b
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I spoke with Andy for a considerable time Sunday at the show and the one thing that I kept mentioning is durability mine is over 20 years old and aside from a couple of O rings and an upgrade on the thread carriage it is still going strong,best part I could sell it tomorrow for a good price, with what I could get for the sale I figure my investment is about $1.00 per month max not a bad investmen
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the older MD1000s came three ways one for Windows 95-98, one for a Mac and a third that was set up to be used on either it did call for adding I think spelling is correct an Scussi card to the mac and it did cost a couple of hundred more, today I doubt any new Mac will work with the alps and Vista is a complete write off The new method in Rod Maker may soon be the standard it appears it will d
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almost hate to say this low heat from a heat gun will work usually I think i would try a hair drier first as you can actually melt them if to hot John
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Curtis MudHole has one B78M use them quite often, Billy might have something close also John
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Ted a couple of thoughts first many old Harringtons and Harnels that were sold in Florida in the early 80s were counterfeit actually less expensive blanks were painted Black covered in flex coat and sold as harringtons I am sure it happened elsewhere also as the blanks were expensive and sometimes difficult to acquire. This was mostly with the 500 series, do the rods have the white grips. I do
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Tony up to a few years ago Star used almost all Gator Glass and a couple of Ugly Stik models. Some of the blanks used were made by Gator Glass for Star rods only the blanks were not available for sale, their older kingfish rods for example, with their move offshore no way to tell where the blanks used come from John
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