In the northern hemisphere they are rotated counterclockwise, clockwise in the southern hemisphere. ;o)
Forum: rodboard

Whether you align your guides to the stiff side, soft side or straight side does not mean that the user will cast in-line with that plane. I have noticed that some excellent and even famous fly casters will load the rod at an angle to the placement of the guides.
Forum: rodboard

Can cork be bleached?
Forum: rodboard

Drill a few small blind holes at various angles to the inside of the cap. The epoxy will flow into the holes and harden. Because the holes are at various angles, a mechanical attachment is made. The butt cap cannot move in any direction, even if there is no adhesion. (This assumes that the epoxy does adhere to something on the inside of the reel seat.)
Forum: rodboard

I use a drill press to turn my cork. I put the cork on a length of threaded rod and clamp it between two thumb screws with washers directly against the cork. I then chuck one end of the threaded rod in the drill press and run the other end into a piece of wood that has a hole just big enough to accept the threaded rod. This piece of wood is clamped to the drill press's table and supports the r
Forum: rodboard

This site (below) might have the info that you want, but it appears that back issues can be bought on-line at
Forum: rodboard

10' -8", 7 or 8 wt., switch rod
Forum: rodboard

I just use heat thin both.
Forum: rodboard

If you were abel to find the spine of the butt section of an 8 weight rod, you're a better man than I. I never use alignment marks i just sight down the guides. If you are off a few degrees, you will never notice the difference. Fitting butts can be handy, I'd go for it.
Forum: rodboard

I think that you can see my point better if you greatly exaggerate the rod's actual shape. Imagine if the rod's diameter changed by 2" every foot of its length, but was constant in diameter between these stair-step changes in diameter. The centerline bend of the rod would be smooth, but would you want the string to follow the shape of the outside surface? Or here is another weird example:
Forum: rodboard

Just to stir the pot a little, wouldn't it be more accurate to measure from the line to the centerline of the blank rather than to the nearest surface of the blank? See what difference that makes. Personally, I don't think it makes much difference where, within reason, you put the guides. If you were blindfolded I rather doubt if you could ever make any distinction. I do, however, think tha
Forum: rodboard

Robert, well said !!!!
Forum: rodboard

Tom, I agree with what you are saying. I'm just trying to give a fuller understanding (at least in my opinion ) as to of what is going on. There is no torque on those guides that induce no change in the angle in the line as it passes through them because there would be no force on those guides. Am I wrong? Theoretically there is no torque about the rod whether the guides are mounted o
Forum: rodboard

Tell me if I'm wrong here, but isn't the torque nonexistent when the rod is in-line with the line as is usually the case when retrieving the lure. Even when in the act of fighting a fish, that part of the rod which is bent in-line with the line can not be exerting a torque on the guides. Only those guides which are at an angle to the line can induce a torque and the closer the angle is to 90 de
Forum: rodboard

This address will take you to how Thomas & Thomas rods are made.
Forum: rodboard

Has anyone ever used stereolithography (rapid prototyping) to make either parts or patterns for molds?
Forum: rodboard

I only build fly rods and on those I use 3-M masking tape near both ends of the seat. I'm careful to completely coat all sides of the tape with a glob of epoxy to seal out any water and add a little rigidity. I've had some of my rods for many years and no problems yet.
Forum: rodboard

I'm fairly new to this rod building thing, but it seems to me that if both micro guides and standard guides can be used, then its illogical to say that "You can't predetermine guide sizes - you have to let the line path determine your guide size". It looks to me that there are a lot of ways to skin this cat.
Forum: rodboard

I found exactly what I was looking for at this site. I'm going to make a copy and put it in my files. Thanks guys
Forum: rodboard

I have some snake guides that are no longer in their original packaging. How do I determine their proper size number?
Forum: rodboard

Hopefully it is clear to everyone that I am using the term "stripper" guide due to the shape of the guide and not necessarily due to its function. If I saw a fly rod with a conventional "stripper" guide" mounted on the very tip of the rod, I wouldn't call it a "tip top" guide. It's a "stripper" guide mounted in the wrong place. The catalogs and web
Forum: rodboard

I'm trying to understand the need for stripper guides on fly rods. Some even have two stripper guides. What's the point? I can kind of understand their use on heavy rods, say over 5 wt., but on 5 wt and under I don't see the need for the extra foot and bracing. I have built two or three fly rods that I used a single foot spinning guide and it seemed to work fine. I haven't lost or loosened a
Forum: rodboard