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Results 91 - 120 of 361
5 years ago
Drew Pollock
The drywall tape recommendation is a good one. It's more permanent than masking tape.
But basically anything that shims it with epoxy will work. I really like the fiberglass open mesh of the drywall tape.
Forum: rodboard 5 years ago
Drew Pollock
Considering that one of those glue sticks lasts hundreds of rods, isn't it nice to support a real rod building company like Flex Coat? The cost per rod is trivial. It is a very good way to position guides on a rod blank.
Just my opinion, of course.
Forum: rodboard 6 years ago
Drew Pollock
So, a "travel rod" means something different, to every fisherman who travels. It may mean a 2 piece rod, a 3 piece rod, or a 4 piece rod. For me, as short as possible when broken down is good. So a 4 piece 9 foot fly rod is good. A 4 piece 7 foot spinning rod is also good from a traveling perspective.
It is rare to find true travel rod blanks.
So you need to consider your real
Forum: rodboard 6 years ago
Drew Pollock
95. Re: Rod Blank ?
MHX = Very good rod blanks with lots of selection and sizes. Good price too. Good warranty.
My favorite blanks are St Croix. Really excellent blanks, comprehensive selection, made in USA. A bit more expensive.
Recently built and liked a Rodgeeks blank. Made in Mexico at St Croix's factory. I'll be building more of these. Just another choice for you.
But graphite is fickle stuff
Forum: rodboard 6 years ago
Drew Pollock
If it's your first rod, no one expects it to be perfect. Just put some epoxy in the void and forget about it. No one is likely to ever notice. And it won't effect the rod at all. The next one you make will be better and the next one after that. I made my first rod about 7 years ago and it isn't perfect. But I still fish with it every year. Caught many salmon on it last fall and it isn't pe
Forum: rodboard 6 years ago
Drew Pollock
I've built several fly rods with ceramic guides, mostly with the Fuji TKTAG running guides. They work very well, look unique and just plain work great. They have not been fragile as some have stated. You notice the smoothness of the guides only with a fish running, otherwise, you can't tell any difference from snake guides.
But...they are quite expensive, especially if you want titanium fra
Forum: rodboard 6 years ago
Drew Pollock
98. Back to it...
Greetings to all. I've been away from building rods for 4-5 years. But I've been fishing the rods I built (a lot) and have accumulated enough breakage to get the rod building stuff back out and get going again. My rod building equipment has been in the attic, and I got it out this week. I have rods on the dryer as we speak.
First, let me say thank you to St Croix, Pacific Bay and Batson.
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
On a 5 wt I'd use single foots and of the single foots, the REC are the best. Keep it light and lively. Follow the Batson recipe but not the sizing guide. I'd use a 12/10 stripping guides, and all #2 running guides. Tip-top is your choice but the REC ones are light and a solid choice. Ceramic guides are not a good choice on a light fly rod in my opinion. I actually don't like them that much
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
Bruce Tomaselli Wrote:
> Hi DrewYou would use 11 guides and a tip top
> instead of 10 guides and a tip top?
> Bruce
Yep-I like 11 on a 9 foot 8wt. I know it isn't standard, but the line flows better and doesn't sag between guides. I'm almost always fishing with a 24 foot sink tip, and 11 guides vs 10 just works better for me. On a 9ft 5wt, I'd use the more standard 10 guides
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
I have built a bunch of 8wt 9 foot rods. Mostly for me and friends fishing coho salmon in Alaska.
I have a strong preference for snake type guides. The minimas and even the single foot ceramics tend to hang up on brush and get bent. Ditto the Fuji titanium single foot guides. Double foot snake guides on the other hand are very robust and hard to damage, plus they don't tend to hang on brush
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
102. Re: mhx st1024-f
25 pounds of salmon is a lot of fish, so I'd use the 1025. I don't fish for kings but do fish for Coho every year which run to 16 pounds or so and the 1024 is perfect for that.
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
The real question is how much do you want to pay?
You can do everything from a Sage to a remaindered blank.
For almost no money, you can get a Pacific Bay Rainforest II which makes a fine rod and is a perfectly good blank for $49. It's 4 peice, nice action, looks good.
All the Batson blanks are nice, but the Rx8 would be too fast for a 3 weight.
On the other end of the scale is Sage
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
104. Re: Decals
My dealings with Decal Connection have been great. They really do a first class job.
Their decals are peel and stick, and it is really important to put down an epoxy layer first, apply the decal to the epoxy, and then epoxy over the decal.
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
For a 2wt, a size 10 should be fine.
Size 4 fly guides sounds much too big. I'd use 1s. And that's all I'd use. 1 size 10 stripper, the rest size 1 single foot snakes.
I thought the "j" was Fuji's low frame height designation. Not sure about that.
Drew
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
I built a spinning rod out of a 4 piece 10wt fly rod blank. It's great for travelling-I go every year to Alaska. A couple of observations...
-1oz lure weight will be pushing it. The largest I've thrown are 5/8 oz pixies. I honestly think 1 oz is too much.
-Your mono line weight is about right. I use 14 lb with mine. Your braid sounds too heavy.
-It will not handle like a normal spin
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
It's plenty strong, but on a fly rod it won't be too subtle...
What are you trying to do?
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
tip, 4, 8 13/16, 14.5, 21, 28 5/16, 36.5, 45.5, 55 5/16, 66
That should get you close but final spacing may require some static testing and common sense.
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
I'd go back to the Quickline if you were happy with it. I too, built an 8wt for a friend and got to fish it on our trip to Alaska last year. If feels like and casts like a much more expensive rod. Nice gloss black finish too.
MHx is also good choice.
I never did like the Tiger Eyes. They were cheap, but heavy and slow. Just not my cup of tea.
Drew
Forum: rodboard 10 years ago
Drew Pollock
110. Re: Wrapping Thread
Pro-Wrap has worked well for me too. I can't see any major difference from Gudebrod. I've used only the regular nylon. It's very good stuff and there are many color choices.
Drew
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
The chemical reaction that bonds it together goes on for some time. I'm sure you could apply it and fish the next morning, but you might scratch the finish. If you leave it for several days, it will get harder and more damage resistant. Still if you had to, you could fish it as soon as it's set.
For me, I finish the rod and then stand it in a corner for another week before using it, or putt
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
Great decals, with the backing cut exactly around the decal. That is no small thing and it makes application much easier.
You have to put down a layer of epoxy first, then the decal , then another layer of epoxy. There is no need for CP which some here advocate.
Anyway, I used the decals from a competitor first, and the Decal Connection ones are much better (and less expensive!).
Drew
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
About 3 years ago, there was a rod building show in Pasadena. I just happened to be in Southern California that weekend and stopped in. I don't remember who all was there, except for a few highlights. I shook Bill Batson's hand and he gave me a hat I still wear! I met the guys from Anglers Resource, American Tackle had a booth, and a few others. I don't think Mudhole was there but could be w
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
114. Re: new guy question
Well, before you are "deep" into this, either denatured alcohol, or 91% Isopropyl alcohol are functionally the same, and perfect for cleaning up uncured epoxy from your tools, or cleaning the greasy smudge marks off your blanks before you build them. I use Isopropyl because every drug store carries it cheap and denatured requires a trip to the hardware store paint section.
Acetone
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
Jay Lancaster Wrote:
> Someone can gladly correct me if I'm wrong...
>
> CP does not keep your wraps from fading over time.
> They do not contain UV inhibitors (that I know
> of).
>
> CP only seals the thread as to not allow epoxy to
> make it go translucent.
That's correct. Any thread will fade if constantly exposed to UV light, some colors worse than o
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
A Pac Bay Rainforest II is medium fast, nice finish, economical, and perfect for a light weight fly rod. It's a step up from the Tradition II and a very decent inexpensive blank. For $49 at Donart, it's hard to go wrong.
Drew
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
We all have our favorites!
Just personally, I don't like the look of graphite reel seats on a fly rod. While they work, and are light, and don't rust, they are pretty ugly and will make your fly rod look cheap. Remember, that's just an opinion, which was what was being asked for.
I've used a number of the Batson RA701 and its a very nice seat. The one for lighter rods has only 1 locking
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
118. Re: Fly rod value
If you want to know what it's worth, put it on @#$%&. Otherwise it's just pure speculation.
I doubt you could get more than $75 or $100 for it.
There is one on there right now with a starting price of $100 and no bids. You could watch that and see what it goes for.
Drew
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
Jim Gamble Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
> Nope ... they make REALLY good blanks/rods, worth
> every penny.
I just took delivery of a 2013 SCV 9'6" 8wt blank and sure hope you are right. Not an inexpensive blank and beautifully finished. Just in hand the action feels perfect, but I won't know for sure until Salmon season. I have a prev
Forum: rodboard 11 years ago
Drew Pollock
I got this once in the winter when the room I was in was quite cold. I then bought a space heater and keep the room at 75F while rotating on the drier and no more issues.
Forum: rodboard |