Black/white on the bottom, with black on top makes a nice semi-subtle wrap.
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I hadn't thought of that. I will give it a shot. Thanks for the tip!
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I have a very crude but effective rod holder for static load testing. A piece of pvc pipe, lined with pipe insulation, duct taped to one leg of my bench. Never had a rod rotate while testing.
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I use this: Using a 1000 or 1500 grit belt; it takes a light touch, and with practice, about ten seconds per guide foot.
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If a comment from a rookie is ok, dont use slip joint or channellock pliers to remove the cork. Both will easily apply too much force when you are gripping and twisting, resulting ina sickening crunch, which tells you the game is over. Instead, try some round jaw vise grips. it wont matter how hard you grip visegrips; they will not tighten beyond their setpoint. With the added time for unlocki
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I use a parting tool to cut tenons. I use this thing to get it concentric, and into a close, rough shape. Great tool
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Agree. An UL would not be my choice, whatever the length. The rod I use for a Ned rig(pretty much a last resort technique for me) is an Immortal walleye blank, 7'2" ML, built as a casting rod.
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I have an Alps power wrapper, with the upgrade chuck, and can highly recommend this piece of gear. However, I do not power wrap guides, inlays and trim rings. Just cant seem to get the hang of that, and have given up even trying. I do power wrap longer wraps. It is a real time saver when doing a tiger wrap. I use it for applying CP and finish, and for drying. Also have a stand alone dryer. It is
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I scuffed it up with scotchbrite, but do not know if that was strictly necessary. It may be just habit, but that's a good habit to have, in my opinion.
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I like Fuji #11 brown with Prowrap #716 teak. That combo also works well with Immortal blanks. Ive used it both ways; with brown as main color and teak inlays and trims; and inverted.
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Mix slowly, pour out on a foil sheet, and blow on it through a piece of tubing. Use the tubing after application to pop any in the applied finish.
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Ive been using DNA followed by Dawn and hot water. Be interested to hear about something better.
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I made a ECS seat fit a much smaller blank using one of these. Glue it into the seat, bore and ream to fit the blank, and trim away the part of the arbor in the exposed area of the seat. A careful sanding of the trimmed part, before installing the seat on the blank, gave me an acceptable looking seat. I wish I had pics. I gave the finished rod to a friend, and did not think about pics unti
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I started with a redneck engineered lathe based on a variable speed drill. Ten, on advice from a much more experienced builder, I bought one of these. There is a world of difference. This thing is more than well worth the price. Beware! Turning is as addictive as rod building. Beware again! I have more invested in chucks and tools for turning than I have in the lathe.
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A word of caution about using slip joint pliers to remove cork. It works nicely, but, it also fairly easy to crush the blank. Been there, done that. When gripping the cork, and rotating the blank, slip joint pliers can easily become over-tightened when rotating in one direction. The easy solution is round jawed vise grips. Get them just tight enough to start removing cork chunks. They will not
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My brother wants me to build him a fly rod. A fiberglass, 7', 5wt, preferably two piece. I can't seem to find one. Anybody know a source?
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That's a good idea Mick. I'm gonna use it. Thanks.
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Ive run a half dozen searches, and apparently can't come up the correct phrase to get the results I'm looking for, so I will just ask. I'm planning two fly rods builds; something I have never done. My limited rod building experience is telling me to place the guides by static load testing. It seems to me it really doesn't matter what kind of rod your building. The line should follow the natur
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Well, that looks easy. When will these be available?
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From one rookie to another, welcome aboard.
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Mark, I have tried to do what you proposed. I attempted to wrap a length of titanium alloy leader material, to make a "bumper" guide. The stuff retains its shape entirely too well to do this. I did a little research and discovered that what is required to make this material form to a different shape, a spiral in this case, is extreme heat. I have no way to achieve the required temperatu
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Does the idea that the stripper guide should have an ID no less than half the OD of the spool still have any relevance? This is the "rule" I use when not using MicroWave guides for spinning rods. Or, is this like finding, and building on, the spine? An outdated concept?
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After trying elastic thread, cable ties, and masking tape, I now use surgical tubing. Mudhole and getbit both sell this. Get all four sizes. Cut to the length desired and slide on the blank. Easy to move during static testing, and hold more than well enough for wrapping. They will slide up the guide foot when wrapping. Cut them off with a razor blade, cutting down onto the guide foot. Cut longer
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Ive always wondered if an electric shaver would work for this application. I do not use one, and I really don't want to buy one just to experiment, because I won't use it on my face. Has anybody tried it?
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Some advice from a rookie. I get nubs. Not always. But often enough to have come up with a way to deal with them. I use two coats of finish. For the first coat, I apply enough to cover the thread. Then use a heat lamp to warm it up. Then, with the rod spinning, i brush away as much finish as i can, wiping the brush on a coffee filter. After this first, bare minimum coat has cured for half a day,
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An opinion from another rookie. I prefer Fuji thread, for one reason. Almost no fuzzies. The problem with Fuji thread is a very limited color palette. Pro Wrap is my second choice. A lot more colors, and with the exception of one bad spool, very little fuzzy problem. Pac Bay was the worst I've tried. Maybe I got two bad spools of that? If Madiera came in shorter spools, I would give it a shot
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You might try this first on a scrap cork ring. Tru oil gun stock finish is nice on cork. Applied with an almost dry brush, it will seal without becoming glossy. Additional very thin coats will go from matte, to semi-gloss to glossy. I use it a lot.
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Tom Kirkman Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > The survey that was done in RodMaker Magazine a > few years was filled out and returned by roughly > 4300 custom rod builders. The bulk of those in the > craft are over the age of 50 and most do not start > rod building until after the age of 45. > > .................. An interesting de
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roger wilson Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I have asked all of the different vendors that I > buy blanks from about trimming the blank and all > of them told me that the warranty would still be > in effect. > > Be safe Roger, I've taken a lot of good advice from you, so I'm going to contact a few more manufacturers.
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I too have a few pieces of blanks, trimmed from the butt end. I figure I can use them to extend blanks, should the need arise. I'm still reluctant to trim a blank that will end up in a customer's hands. I tell them, in an email, so I have documentation, the blank will have no warranty. Sometimes it's a deal breaker. I completely agree with Mr Spooner. It's time we had the option to buy a bla
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