Okay, I've taped the guides on with one recommended spacing and put a fly line thru them. Pulling on the end of the line loads the rod pretty evenly, but I'm confused about something. I have seen comments similar to : .......load the rod in order to make sure that the line doesn¹t touch the rod when it is heavily loaded. Nor do you want the line creating sharp angles or flat spots between eac
Forum: rodboard

I'm building my first spiral wrapped casting rod. A week or so ago Tom talked about putting the spine on the 3 or 9 o'clock position depending on which hand is used to cast with. I wondered which would be best for a right handed caster. I would think putting the spine on the 3 position would reduce the loading of the rod and thus reduce casting distance. What about accuracy? Are we talking a
Forum: rodboard

I want to build a 7' Allstar popping rod using a spiral wrap. Before getting started, I was wondering on which side of the spine I should put the guides that lead to the tip. Do I mark the spine like I would normally do for a bait casting rod and then spiral the guides underneath or do I start off on the opposite side so when I spiral the guides they are on the side they should have been had I
Forum: rodboard

Been reading the glowing reports on the Rainshadow blanks. I am looking to make a saltwater 6 wt and need a blank with a pretty fast action. I am familiar with the action of blanks by Sage and St Croix and have a preference for truly fast blanks like the RPL+, RPLX or SP+. The St Croix Ultra Legend, while nice, is not as fast as I would like. How does the Xcel range compare to these rods? Many t
Forum: rodboard

Here's something I've been using on the last couple of rods to help mark the spine - plumbers teflon tape. Just wrap it on and make the mark, then, when you're done, it cleans right off. Nicer than masking tape... ==dave==
Forum: rodboard

Something that customers of rod builders eventually may get confronted with is an inquiry for comparing the cost of a finished rod with that of the sum of the rod's parts. No doubt this topic has been previously covered in various posts. There is a need to consider this from various perspectives. One is that of a dealer with a good name factory rod, and how it would compare to a comparable mo
Forum: rodboard

I just experienced my first rod failure this weekend. It was the sixth rod I've built and one of a matched pair. The rod snapped in two near midpoint, about 3/4 inch past the first guide wrap, when I was set the hook while fluke fishing. I'm not overly aggressive with my hooksets. The break is pretty clean and runs straight around the circumference of the blank. The rod is only four months o
Forum: rodboard

Say, What is the latest info on guide placement for flyrods? On the spine or opposite the spine? Thanks, AR
Forum: rodboard

Good Morning All, I am spining a 2 piece fly rod. I spined both sections individually, and marked them. Then I put the two sections together and checked the blank again. This time my spine marks are off a little to one side. Should I adjust the spine marks according to both sections together? Thanks in advance. AR
Forum: rodboard

I just made myself a spine finder from some old bearings and a few blanks of wood. When i went to try it out on an existing rod i found that i had 2 points of least resistance! They were 180 degrees opposed. Is this because of the existing rod having been used alot or is there some other reason. A help would be great as i am just about to find the spine on my first blank and i don't really want
Forum: rodboard

This is my first rod so please be gental. I bought a IF704-M Rainshadow and am trying to find how far to space the guides apart. Can someone please point me to an online chart and brief description on how to read it. I think this is a hobby I will like if I can get past this first one. Thanks for your help. -Scott
Forum: rodboard

I am building a 7' sprial wrapped crankbait rod. On the other spiral wrapped rods I aligned the spine on the fish fighting plane. My casting plane does not line up with the guides. Will I get better performance if I align the spine with my casting plane? Thanks, DP
Forum: rodboard

Hello Guys, I am building a G.Loomis Crankbait rod and using FUJI Alconite concept guides. It is a 6'6" casting rod and so far I have nine guides plus tip top taped in place. During static distribution the line still wants to lay on the blank . I am running out of blank!! I know this is a great example of why the Spiral Wrap is a good choice but my customer is insistent on traditional wrap
Forum: rodboard

Will try not to be too long winded.Tom got my back issue Fri. PM and Thank You. I've read Mr.Foran's article for the 4th time and am amazed at how well he stated what i think a lot of us "knew" but hadn't given much thought to.Now I understand what I knew all along.Thank you,Mr Foran!!! Since I'm not a Pro builder I don't have the luxury of stressing blanks until they fail but I do stre
Forum: rodboard

I am hesitant to post yet another problem two days in a row but if you guys continue to solve them it is hard not to. Help me out on this one and I promise to go back to work and leave you alone for a while. I tried this in the archives but had no luck. Has anyone done a spiral wrap on a Cape Fear LB70B. Any guidance, results, drawbacks, etc. are appreciated. I have a customer asking and I am al
Forum: rodboard

Thanks to everyone who helped with my previous spine finder question. I encountered another problem with my equal angle setup last night when I attempted determining guide placement for the first time. I am building a Lamiglas, 8'6", 12-25 lbs casting rod. This is a fast action rod. When I placed this rod in my setup and moved the 120 degree line down to where the blank moved 1/2 inch of
Forum: rodboard

I am trying to build a spine finder as part of the equal angle guide placement system. I am at a loss where to locate a cone that spins freely. I have considered using a smaller thrust bearing, but would prefer to use something that holds the blank a little better than that. Thanks in advance, John Bailey JB Rodworks
Forum: rodboard

I have been troubled by the placement of guides on a casting rod? Should they be placed on top of the spine or in the curve like a spinning rod? I looked at one of my older casting rods and it seems to be in the curve like a spinning rod. But does this place more stress on the rod becasue it is used primarily the other way around? Thanks alot
Forum: rodboard

Can somebody out there tell me how to find the spine on a Cal-Star BT330 blank? This is my first pole that I'm trying to build. Advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank You.
Forum: rodboard

I was wondering if anyone has some flyrod guide spacing and size suggestions for this ancient relic. (sage didnt have any data available when I called) I was thinking of going with 5" of cork on the rear then standard size 16 flyseat and then a 7" cork handle. Thankyou for any help.
Forum: rodboard

I'm building my first rod using your book & thought I understood everything very clearly. I've got my handle glued up & I've done my test for guide placement & now I'm ready to start wrapping my rod. Now here is where I got confused, I received Mud Holes catalog in the mail yesterday & started reading it & they have a how to section in the beginning of the catalog. Their descr
Forum: rodboard

I was going through the FAQs. Let me get this straight. The actual spine follows the outside of the natural curve of the blank and probably won't have much relation to the "effective" spine. The effective spine is, for lack of a better term on my part, the stiffest side of a blank section, or the outside of the relaxed curve. It's also the reference most often used for guide placeme
Forum: rodboard

Tom I just recently purchased your book Rod Building Guide. I guess I am one of the guys you were refering to when you said confusion still exists even among those builders who have built many rods. I learned to build rods by reading Dale Clemens books 20 years ago. In Advanced Custom Rodbuilding Dale states that the point where the rod seems to jump or produce increased resistence is the spline.
Forum: rodboard

Tom explains rod spine very clear in his book but there is one statement that I am a little confused on & wanted to clear up before I glue up my handle. Towards the end of the "Understanding Rod Spine" there is a paragraph about casting where he says we should tape up our guides & test cast the rod with the guides on both sides of the spine. My question is how do I do that with
Forum: rodboard

1. How do you find the spine on 2 or more piece blanks? I find the the top parts are easy to find, but the butt section which does not bend as much gives me trouble. 2. The wraps I made were looking really sharp. After I put the color preserver they lost some of the color and look duller. Is there any way to keep the colors as bright as when you first tie them?
Forum: rodboard

I was gluing up real seat parts for four piece six weight this morning and had some left over rod bond, so I decided to plug two of the sections that came from the manufactuer without plugs. after doing this and setting them aside I walked outside to the patio for a smoke. I had barely set down when it dawned on me, hey you dummy, you plugged the wrong ends of those sections. I was fortunate in t
Forum: rodboard

I have just received a new G. Loomis "Slate" IMX 9' 10 wt 3pc. The tip section has a considerable bend that does not line up with the spine. Is it better to wrap the guides inline with the bend? Or should I wrap along the spine in spite of the bend? Thanks in advance for your responses, Chris
Forum: rodboard

I have a dilemma. I am working on a fairly skinny blank with a fast taper. I plan on doing a single patterned fish wrap with the fish facing perpendicular to the spine. My midpoint circumference is 44mm. I want a compressed pattern, so I am shortening the basic measurement by 10mm. If this blank had a fairly even circumference, this would not be an issue but there is a significant change. B
Forum: rodboard

I just thought of this today and I'm sure someone has already thought of it before but here it goes anyway. I was working on a flyrod and trying to get the guides straight as possible. So, on the butt section I placed one end of a string on the spine mark with tape and then ran the string through the guides to a center mark on the reelseat and pulled it pretty tight. Then adjusted the guides til
Forum: rodboard

The one thing that seems to be on the wish list of most of those who sell their custom rods to the public, is better public acceptance and demand for custom rods. We all know that as very small businesses, most custom builders cannot afford to advertise the advantages of owning and using a quality custom made rod to the at-large fishing public. So most builders are left to convince the local bu
Forum: rodboard