I thought the aliens built the pyramids?!
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Deleted.
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Note: The data for the first specific Dan Craft blank that I mentioned is listed on the Dan Craft website only. The data for the second Dan Craft blank that I mentioned is from my personal test - which I didn't bother to list because it is essentially identical to the data listed for that specific blank on Dan Craft's website.
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John, Take a look at the Dan Craft Five Rivers Series of blanks, particularly the FTXL9054. It has a listed AA of 68-70 with an ERN of 6.20. Your Sage Z-Axis should have very similar characteristics to this Dan Craft Blank since it is listed of the CCS data site as having an AA of 67 and ERN of 5.65. Also the FTXL9044 (a rod rated for a 4 wt. line ) which I personally built recently had an
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For an 8 wt. rod, you might want to go with sz. 5's. Only you can make that determination, but I'd likely put 5's on for a flyrod that will see an 8 wt. floating line. One other thing to add - if you are using a guide for a tip top (like I do), you might want to consider going with one size larger than the running guides at the tip (I do this even on 4 wt's.). The sharp bend in the line at
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“I assume that tournament fly casters have pretty much abandoned snake guides in favor of micro guides. Has Lefty come around yet to endorsing micro guides on fly rods?” As far as I know, (unfortunately) fly casting competitions involve using the same exact identical model of a factory produced rod - so that everyone is on the same level playing field and can practice on the same level pla
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Sounds good. If what you wanted was color, then you did achieve it. I noticed that you may be in Alaska, and probably have easy access to Alaskan birch. Not to knock it, it has its' own beauty, but I favor the more uniformly (and lighter) colored birch of Siberia or the Northeastern North American variety. You might have actually wanted to create an offering that is different from the natural
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I guess it worked for you. I couldn't do it myself. To me, it would be like taking a nice piece of furniture made of Cherry, and painting it. The natural grain is what is most appealing to me. This goes for birch bark as well. Also, the natural oils that are within the bark that give it its' "sponginess" are now likely displaced. There's a reason the Indians of the Northeast left
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I guess nobody else has tried this. Admittedly, I often find that I get a little lazy when conditions dictate adding action to your lure. This might be a bit "gimmiky", but it ensures that your lure will have at least some action. Taking the line off after hookset will take a little getting used to. I think I'll try this with a double foot snake guide with one foot and part of the h
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You would definately want to epoxy over your logo if it's applied via decal. You could also have a metal butt cap engraved, but that would probably be fairly expensive. I usually reak havoc to my butt caps, so I can't personally see doing this.
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I was surfing the net and came accross this product for use on spinning rods and thought, "wow, that would probably fall off of my rod during the first trip out. I wonder if I can wrap something similar to that onto the blank?" It also looks like you could create an equivalent that would be much lighter than this one. Has anyone done this, or better yet see a benefit for this product
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If you fish baitcasters the way a lot of people fish baitcasters - by grasping much of the reel during retrieve, then the lightweight, exposed blank reel seats are just fine to use. I've used the Swampland baitcast reel seats and they're very light weight, affordable and fit the blank very snuggly without needing to install an arbor for the threaded barrel portion of the seat like the minimas re
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Scott, Does it store essentially the same way that PG does (in the fridge)? Also, does it come with a plastic cap, and if so does the metal Testors model paint cap work as a replacement? Torin.
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Roger, I haven't found a manufacturer who makes lighter weight fly reels that doesn't have more and better features in their models than another manufacturer's equivalent (heavier) models. That being said, there are only a couple of reel manufacturers that I'll use anymore - and they're not the most expensive out there (but not cheap either). Larry, although the difference in weight savings o
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I've special ordered some through Mudhole, but I've also recently noticed that Schneiders has them on their website under "hot specials". I'm sure many of the sponsors would be glad to order them for you. They're available in as small as a size 4. I've only used them on flyrods thus far, and I too was wondering how well they're currently holding up for use on spinning and casting
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I threw away any of the finish that was labeled "lite" long ago, and I've produced far better finishes without it! Just use less finish when applying your high build. You'll be very surprised how little you need to get a full coverage and level finish. I now apply two coats of PG first, then wait about 5 days (don't reduce this time frame - you'll be sorry), then apply one THIN coat
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That Mastery GPX line is one half size heaver that most standard 4 wt. lines, which tells me that those rods - as you've finished them - will not load as quickly with a more traditional 4 wt. line. How is the "straightness' of the Pac Bay blanks? Did you notice any crookedness near the tip of the blank?
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Bill Z, From the information I've gathered on this site with regard to making your own decals, I've come to the realization that paying for the decal to be made for me by Decal Connection is ultimately the most efficient way to go. The printers used to create these high quality decals are both expensive and require a great deal of maintenance. I'd rather spend my time focusing on building ro
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From what I've heard, minimas have not been in use long enough to give an accurate indication as to how well they hold up to braid. If you will be using this spinning rod alot, and making cast after cast after cast and loading the rod fairly often, then you might want to consider ceramics. I think alconite will work just fine for braids. Recoils are a little noisy, and I've read here where the
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Thanks everyone for your replies. Tom, Cody, you might be right with that popping blank suggestion. It will have to be the 2 pc. model for easier transport, as I got kind of a dirty look last year when I had the "gaul" to load my 1 pc. 7 ft. baitcaster into my friends minivan. Occasionally these "pod" members attain 10+ lbs, but that's where angler skill will have to come
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I wonder what you bass guys do when you go to those big lakes in Mexico's inland areas to fish for those giant LM's. Do you take your one piece baitcasters on the plane with you? I know if I went, I'd go during the time of year when flyfishing with deer-hair surface patterns is at its' best. Conventional gear would be a "backup" for me anyway. It seems like it's that way with what's
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Definately helps Russel. Thanks. I believe I will want to use around 8# mono/blend or 15# braid. My lure of choice is the only thing that I'm "locked in" on. So, that being said, I would need something that can load enough to Launch a 3/8 oz. lure accross this desert landscape. And these pod Stripers are around 5 lbs.
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Thanks Ron I was actually looking very closely at that exact blank. I like that it has a larger butt dia. AND smaller tip dia. than it's 9 ft. equivalent (in terms of line/lure rating). I might go that way, but I'll probably look at smaller-ringed Pac Bay "M" guides and minimas for runners and set them up using the 27X method. I see you have those too. Chuck, I have a small pont
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Thanks Tom and Chuck. Tom, I really like the idea behind having the more powerful butt of a fast action Hot Shot blank for long distance hook-set. I just wonder how it will throw a wind-resistent lighter weight soft plastic compared to a medium fast action blank that loads a little deeper into the butt. Maybe a Popping Blank could meet the two half way? Chuck, thanks for the suggestio
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OK, Here goes. I've been wanting to construct a VERY application specific rod for "chasing" pods of smaller Stripers in Lake Powell for quite some time. These fish, which average 24-26", travel in pods of anywhere from 10-200 fish. They corral (round up) schools of Threadfin Shad throughout the year and bring them to the surface where they are able to devour them in droves -
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Go with the Pac Bay Minimas and you'll never use any of the previously mention guides again!
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John, Slip rings will work, but if you are consistently "crashing" through the brush then you might periodically work the reel loose from the slip rings. That is why I suggested a locking reel seat with a threaded barrel assembly to firmly secure your reel. An uplocking reel seat may or may not balance well with such a short flyrod if you're using double foot snake guides (twice th
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I have a 2 wt. I use it about once every 4 years. So, in that respect, I can't honestly believe that anyone "needs" a 2 wt. But, then again I don't fish in brush choked little North Eastern trout streams. Even my 2 wt. at 8' 0" is probably too long for those conditions. If I were to build your little 2 wt. and take into consideration that this is your first build, I'd use
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If you're using the 4 oz. bottle of Permagloss (recommended) discard the plastic cap that it comes with (but hang on to that clear conical tapered insert/seal) and get a metal Testors Cap off of a 1/2 oz. model paint bottle (I bought the $1.25 brush cleaner and discarded the contents and the bottle). Be sure that every time you take the bottle out of the fridge and pour out what you need to use,
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I've fished every brand mentioned above (except the cabelas), and I have found that the Dan Craft XL line is superior to ANY of the other models mentioned. It will cast a determined line both far and short with ease. More affordable than the Sage or St. Croix. The Dan Craft's are a smaller in diameter, thicker walled - Lighter in weight and straighter than the Sage, St. Croix or Batsons - in t
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