Will this rod be used for still fishing, casting and drifting, deep drop, trolling? Form should follow function.
Forum: rodboard

Of course it's only a suggestion. I am convinced that the best advice for rod builders is a function of knowing the most specific needs and uses of the rod owner.
Forum: rodboard

I suspect the greatest amount of guide damage occurs not while fishing but during transportation, storage, and rigging. Durability of guides and their attachment is likely more critical than weight, looks, or performance for a significant share of anglers and custom-rod buyers.
Forum: rodboard

With all the variables while actually fishing, such as line (braid or mono), line diameter (pound test) spool diameter (spin reels) or spool width (conventional reels) it's hard to believe one size or one guide spacing scheme is best?
Forum: rodboard

If wood makes an efficient grip for a fish pole then cork should make a good ball bat. Hey, it's called logic!
Forum: rodboard

I occasionally do the same thing. Then I remind myself the rod does not "know" what is deflecting it, only that it is being deflected. So I tie my line to a brick, pull and jerk on the line, and watch how the rod responds. That satisfies my curiosity for several fishing sessions and several hook-ups.
Forum: rodboard

Big redfish flies tend to "windmill" and twist fly lines, and this in turn causes fly lines to hang up in the guide train. The geometry of snake guides allows then to pass a larger obstruction than a ring guide of the same nominal diameter. Weight is not much of an issue with snake guides, so you could go with larger diameter snake-style running guides also.
Forum: rodboard

Slow action fiberglass blanks are ok for fishing wet flies but not so good for fishing drys. A 7' rod is fine for 30' - 40' casts but not so good for 50' and up. A 7' fiberglass rod is a relatively specialized tool.
Forum: rodboard

It seems like the type of fly line being used and the expertise of the fly caster should have some bearing on the choice and spacing of fly rod guides.
Forum: rodboard

It's a super-light reel filled with helium. What's the sense of saving one 89th of an ounce in your guide train if the reel weights the rod down?
Forum: rodboard

I go to a spot where guys who rest their fish poles over the truck's tailgate fish and pick broken rods out of the trash. Then I buy a sandpaper belt for a belt sander and cut it into 1 1/2" strips, coat the cloth backing with contact cement, coat a 2' - 3' piece of the broken rod with contact cement, let both dry to the touch, and wrap the strip of sandpaper belt in an open spiral (1"
Forum: rodboard

I suspect the guide durability issues you mention are the result of events occurring while the rod is not trolling for muskies - or any other fish.
Forum: rodboard

I also would like to determine some real world differences between guide performance - like a double-blind comparison of two or more rods built on the same blank and tested by competent fly casters - blindfolded, of course. The real world often differs from the world of advertising and hype.
Forum: rodboard

Cork oak trees require 200 or so years of growth before high-grade cork bark can be harvested. Housing developments, roads, golf courses, shopping malls and the like require months, not centuries, to become useful. You can see where we are headed with cork, no matter how much you like it for fish pole grips.
Forum: rodboard

Some proficient fly-casters prefer extra-fast rods, some prefer moderate action rods, for some situations slow rods. If your client does not know what action he or she prefers I would go with moderate/medium action. A full wells grip configuration for sure but the ideal diameter of a custom grip depends upon the size of the user's hand. If your client didn't specify you probably should go with &q
Forum: rodboard

The EPA just announced it will decrease outflows from western dams. You should consider a lighter blank for back bouncing and swim baits.
Forum: rodboard

I believe he wants literacy.
Forum: rodboard

I believe he wants literacy.
Forum: rodboard

You could use fly-rod snake guides on a spinning or casting rod, or you could use roller guides on a fly rod, but the generally agreed upon goal of rod builders is to supply the best rod for its intended use.
Forum: rodboard

Like nearly all manufacturers the Snake Guide Brand website states their guides are made of "stainless steel", but do not specify the stainless steel alloy or alloys they employ. The varying qualities of different SS alloys are easily researched, and no one alloy is ideal for all applications. Quality rod builders will match components to the needs of individual customers, for example:
Forum: rodboard

So are there any tip-tops that are TOO light for bass? I don't know of any.
Forum: rodboard

Where can I purchase tip-tops made exclusively for bass rods? This would be a terrific selling point for customers who fish only for bass and use only bass rods.
Forum: rodboard

Are all 8 wt. North Fork blanks identical? That would make guide spacing less complicated. Using the same lines on all North Fork rods in the same ambient temperature would also simplify things. Finally, if all fly-casters using North Fork rods had the same casting ability that would simplify an exclusive guide-spacing chart for North Fork rods.
Forum: rodboard

Guide placement serves two purposes I can think of: (1) to evenly distribute the strain of a load along the blank's length (2) to minimize friction created by the line touching the blank and guides during the cast. It seems unlikely one configuration of guides best serves both requirements?
Forum: rodboard

What type of reel, what type of line (mono, braid), and what diameter of line are micro guides best suited for? I have had bad experiences with "one size fits all" products.
Forum: rodboard

The current popularity of six, eight, and even ten foot-long one piece blanks might have some impact on the number of broken rods. It's odd that fly rods, where the rod's action is so critical to casting, are nearly all four-piece rods these days?
Forum: rodboard

Not only is guide making a mystery but what guides are made of is also a well-kept secret. As near as I can tell a guide advertised as a "titanium guide" could be made of some unknown alloy containing some amount of titanium, or it could be made of some unknown metal coated with a microns-thin vapor-deposited unidentified titanium alloy, or even made of solid titanium, although only the
Forum: rodboard

For practical purposes ($) how they do it is not nearly as important as how they advertise it.
Forum: rodboard

What does "American made" mean? American-made graphite fibers, American woven graphite cloth, American rolled rod blanks, or some combination of these?
Forum: rodboard

Fiberglass blanks tend to be a lot more rugged than graphite blanks, and double-foot guides, especially big guides, tend to be a lot more rugged than single foot guides.
Forum: rodboard