Started wrapping.....and a small question????

[cholcomb13]

I started wrapping my FE Thomas 7-0 3wt.....here are a few pics

hook keeper and cheat wraps (@ 12, 14, 16 inches) :biglaugh:



stripping guide


I noticed that some of my silk is slightly frayed and my tag ends aren't always tucking back under any suggestions???

Thanks
Casey

[cross creek]

On the issues of frayed silk and tag end problems, some suggestions:

-Check your silk as it comes off the spool to see if it's frayed to begin with. Change brands until you are happy with the quality. The higher cost of Pearsalls (long filament silk) is offset by less waste and frustration.
-Learn to use an alcohol lamp to singe nubbies and frayed threads.
-Trim your fingernails and file them very smooth, use some fine garnet paper (320 grit) on your fingers to get rid of rough places and callouses, and use hand cream a few hours before you start (wash hands before handling thread). There's a reason (besides lower wages) many classic rod factories used women to wrap rods.
-Learn to use a burnisher. I use an old ball point pen barrel and a tiny little ball-ended tool used by sculptors to model clay. Find what works for you.
-Don't pull your tag ends all the way through the wraps and cut off. This results in a big nubbie and frayed threads that are hard to get rid of, because silk doesn't stretch and spring back like nylon. Pull your loop just to the edge of the wrap, cut the tag end very short, and snap the loop through to pull the tag under.
-Practice, practice, practice!

[AgMD]

The first few rods I did, I used nylon ( on graphite) and wound them with the spool in a cup , using my fingers to apply tension. Worked fine. But when I started to rebuild cane using silk I found that my fingers would fray the silk, and no matter how well I washed my hands, I would end up w/ dirty sweaty silk. Not nice. Out of need I built a wrapping rack and used an off the shelf tensioner. Better, but the tensioner would "stick" resulting in uneven tension and headaches. I now use a home built tensioner. The spool sits over a threaded rod , washers on top of that , a spring on top of that, another washer, and a wing nut. Simple, adjustable, and keeps my sweaty paws off the silk.
The alcohol lamp to singe the thread, and a burnishing tool, finish the job. DO NOT use a butane lighter to singe. Sooty and too hot.
AgMD