Are there any domestic (US) sources for ultralight or light power blanks that have a solid/very small diameter tip integrated? I'm talking tip diameter of 0.75mm or so. Basically, an ice fishing power noodle top integrated with a tubular carbon blank in that 6-7' length. I know that the Japanese domestic market has had rods of this style being very popular in the past. I'm curious to build a
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I'm building a rod for my daughter and was planning on using a colored tip top, but a size is 5.5 (2.2mm) and its slightly bigger than the rod tip factory measurement at 5 (2mm) . Should I shim it with thread? Tape? Just use a bunch of extra glue? Not that big a difference? How much of a gap would be too much? I don't foresee heavy use or heavy fish, just trying to make a "pretty"
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I guess with the new "stick-to-itself tape" Reel seats are being eliminated from ice rods. Just had some high school seniors come in and order some Walleye ice rods with no reel seats. They want a butt a split and and a grip that they can tape a handle to. I started making them and am questioning the length? I made the platform 4" long and now it seems too short. thankfully I can r
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Doing a pair of rods for very young kids. The grand parents wanted small rods as xmas presents. The IS601L would be too light for how the rods would be used. I have 2 CRB IS701H blanks that i was planning on cutting the butts down by a foot each. Is this ridiculous or will it be alright?
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After some 10 years without fly fishing at all, I will now go back to this type of fishing. I have built casting rods and ice fishing rods that I really love, I now want to put this love into a couple of fly rods. On my casting rods I uses Torzite guides that I really love, carbon handles is a given too. I know more or less nothing about guides for fly rods. I think I want 2 Torzite stripper guid
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What factors makes a rod "sensitive" and what techniques and materials are you using to achieve the highest sensitivity? Also, interested to hear how you test as well. I have a number of rods under my belt at this point, mainly focused on minimal weight, and I'm finding the amount of weight you add to a blank is only part of the factors to consider. What are your tips, tricks, mater
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Does anyone know where I can purchase just the reel/handle for a palm rod? Did a web search and came up empty. I would like to try to make one to see how they perform. Thanks, Dave
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I am building a Rod Geeks 3wt 7' c4 fly rod and would like to be able to use it as both a fly rod and spinning rod. What would you recommend for a grip? I plan to use Seaguide stripper with stainless insert and round wire fly guides for the rest of the guide train. Any recommendations on guide sizing and stripper size would be helpful. Any recommendations on the build would be helpful. I have ver
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Hey ya'll, I'm thinking of building a spincast set up for my 3.5 year old. I got the NFC SJ543 SM and was wondering what your thoughts might be on components. Particularly the reel seat. I know that a typical casting seat will push a spincast reel up off the blank a bit, but I was thinking that when she grows into the SB5100 I also got her (because I didn't know that NFC had sales multiple tim
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In an effort to advance my guide placement knowledge, I spent most of the afternoon doing research. Not surprising, there's actually quite a bit of information available on the internet. I found old articles on "equal angle" and setting up peg boards and concentric circles, etc... and information on New Guide Concept. But, the one article that delivers the message in a simple, concise a
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I'm starting to realize it was probably a bad idea to tell anyone that I've gotten into rod building. As of this writing, I have 3 repair jobs and two rod builds on the bench. It's not my intention to get involved in builds or repairs, but I kind of got talked into it. Anyway, I'm a little over my head on one of the repair jobs. Two are simple guide replacements, but the third is a bit more invol
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Hi, New to rod building here. Wanting to start. My current interest is ice fishing rods. I read a couple comparisons of the DC777 against other power wrappers on here. The DC777 looks really interesting. I do have a question as to whether it ships full length or in 2 or 3 sections. I couldn’t find any info on that. I think it’s 93.5 inches long - if I had to guess I would say it doesn’t ship tha
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For you hardwater anglers and rod builders, I have a question. I've been building several rods lately and everyone has requested the REC ice guides, even though they are more costly. I have two I'm building right now and the customer wants one with REC guides and is contemplating using CRB guides on the second one. I've been using REC Ice guides on my builds for myself the last couple of years ju
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Is it common for rear grip tenons to be too large for seat? Should I just totally chop off the tenon and put my first tape arbor wrap up against the grip? I have no sand paper but should I try to sand the tenon to fit in the reel seat? Slice it to size with an exacto knife? Thanks
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Seeing very few Pac Bay products available anywhere. Is it just supply chain issues, or are they not selling products for retail sale anymore?
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What are your GO TO rods for your FAVORITE kinds of fishing? I'm curious what some of the best rod builders and fishermen on this forum reach for first. New to rod building and don't have lots of rods yet? Chime in with what you do have and why you like it. Have a couple favorites for the same category? Freshwater and/or Saltwater? Fly, Spin, Cast? Go for it! Also, I thought it might be h
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Is it safe to store rods at temperatures that can reach -40c. The usual temp is somewhere between -20 c to -30 c. They would be stored in the garage. I am moving in with my girlfriend and we are trying to figure out where to put them.
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Fond memories with cheap rods were to be had where I grew up. I used a cheap Shakespeare pole, with a Zebco 202 reel and pulled many a trout from the streams, and more perchthan I can count from the river, and bays of the St; Mary's river. Lake Huron offered bass, and pike, which I could also fish for off of our front yard {We lived right at the river's edge). Several rods hung in the workshop
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I’m looking at adding a power wrapper but am not finding too much info on the current options. I will use it for personal rods, and perhaps for friends and family. Being such, my budget is around $500. Not sure if I can get one that includes a handle / cork turner, but that would be great. Anyone what to share some resources that’ll help me make my choice? Maybe share your knowledge of the dif
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I've rarely had this issue before. It may be related to my advancing age and retreating memory, but I'm beginning to have a lot of problems with the shadow of the blank coming through the thread on wraps when I want the thread to be completely opaque. I did a wrap with ProWrap Hot Pink NCP thread on a black blank and try as I might, the blank shadow is still showing through. After doing the wrap,
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A good friend of mine is willing to help me build a dedicated workbench for rod building. And I looked at some pre made countertops I could cut to size that were already laminated but didn't care for them. We are thinking about using a natural wood and using a stain or finish that will be easy to clean. I'm hoping to hear what you all have used to make your personal benches as I'm sure you all ha
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If a Tip Top is Glued on with Tip Top Adhesive, is there a requirement for Wrapping it? Is it more for aesthetics? Or do you wrap over the tube a little to help secure it? I am building an Ultralight rod and wondering if it would be okay not to have the wrap Tip Top. On my Ice Fishing Rods I wrapped a guide for the tip top, but this is first time I am gluing a tip top on. Thanks
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I am really struggling trying to figure out what size guides I need to order for a fly rod I am repairing. I think they are either REC or Pac Bay brand guides but I can't find a chart anywhere referencing the guide measurements for me to compare. The wire of the doublefoot guides measures .762mm. The overall length foot to foot is 28mm. The height from the top of the blank to the inside edge
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Is there someone I could call and discuss my setup for my spiral wrap steelhead rod? It’s 11 1/2’ long, medium power. I have the first guide at ~20” from the bait casting reel, set at 0, next guide is about 4.5” at ~ 60*, next guide another 4.5 inches up at ~120* and the last guide at 180*, 14” up from the first guide. I placed the remaining guides where they need to be. Took it out to cast an
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Greetings during the recent NFC Rod Blank Sale I purchased a NFC FW 601-1(IM) Blank and a NFC 1K-IPS3.75-2.0 Soft Touch Grip to go with it. I am using this for Trout Fishing in Small Streams in WI and perch vertical fishing. For trout fishing it will be a light flouro line, and for perch it will be light braid with flouro Leader . So I did find the Anglers Resource for KR Guide Spacing. I
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I'm in bed recovering from cancer treatment and tend to spend a lot of time on YouTube. I recently came across videos by Japanese custom rod builders and am fascinated about how they do many things differently than I am accustomed to. Handles seem to be built on a graphite tube and then the tube is slid over the rod butt and epoxied.  Multiple coats of thread epoxy and what I think is two part
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I am building a Rainshadow REVS72UL-2SB blank (7'2" 2 piece ultralight) mostly for trout. I'm going to use a CF TN handle and have a Lew's Mach 2 spinning reel sized 100 I am going to pair with it. I'm looking at Pac Bay guides, and from my understanding the going recommendation is to use the high frame M guides for the reduction train then F fly guides for the running guides. Would going
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I'm 99% spinning so that's basically all I've ever built. So I apologize in advance if this question is too basic for those of you baitcasting rod pros. Been intending to build a BFS (bait finesse system) rod at about 5 1/2 feet long, and UL in power using a spiral (acid) wrap. I'm curious about the distance of the butt (1st) guide to the reel. Since the line is already going through a
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The benefits of a Tennessee handle (TH) are often overlooked if not ignored in favor of a conventional tube-type seat, be they 1-piece or split / skeleton. As with many others, I initially considered them a cheap, insecure way to mount a reel. But, contrary to the saying, ignorance is NOT bliss! Quite a few years ago, I was given a beautiful, if not historic, vintage (1950s?) Conolon Missilite“
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So - Been looking forward to trying the Kutzall Rasps that I posted a couple of weeks ago. Short review - sending them back. Stanley Sureform have them beat for rounding cork grips. You guys with conventional lathes with rests and gouges - some of us don't and need a reliable tool to round the grip. Herb CTS
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