Final Product

[Joe Valencic]

Hope you get your stuff soon Joe, and I would say you are right, that snow has a lot to do with it!! If you start getting the shakes you can always dig out the one you just finished and just pretend you are building!!!

Just called H&H, and my order is still sitting there waiting for the superfine grips and 1 reel seat. They offered to ship what's ready, but I can't do anything until the grips are in. Bummer...guess I'll go play with some feather inlays on my factory rod. I built my dryer today, and I'm running out of things to do. Even cleaned the basement to my wife's amazement.

Joe

[Gardenfish]

Joe, patent that tiptop, give it a fancy name, market it and sit back and count your money.
That blue is a lovely color on that rod. Really pretty.

[Joe Valencic]

Joe, patent that tiptop, give it a fancy name, market it and sit back and count your money.
That blue is a lovely color on that rod. Really pretty.

Ya know, even though I said I would leave the rod "as is" because it was my first effort, I was bugged by the tip top looking goofy. So, I painstakingly sanded it down to where it was as level as I could get it, mixed up a small batch of flex coat and recoated it. Damn if it didn't come out looking the same as before. I guess I'm destined to have a gimpy looking tip on old 001. We'll see what happens with 002 (if it ever leaves Pittsburgh). It probably won't ship till next week because they are closed tomorrow to go to the rod show for the weekend. Just my luck.

Joe

[PaGuy]

Joe are you using to much epoxy on the tip? thats what happens when you use to much, it gets wavy.

[Joe Valencic]

Joe are you using to much epoxy on the tip? thats what happens when you use to much, it gets wavy.

PaGuy,

As a newbie to rod building, I don't know what I don't know...if you know what I mean. If too much epoxy causes that look, then I must be applying too much. I was trying to keep it thin, but obviously I need to work on getting it thinner. Thanks for the observation.

Joe

[PaGuy]

Joe, What I mean buy thin coats is put a coat on then wipe of extra, with your brush, let dry then repeat 2 times you should have a nice finish. But for your first build nice job, YOu dont want to see pictures of my first



On second thought looking at your tip did you wrap up on to the tip or did you wrap up next to the tip and not actually on the metal? That would cause the bulge if you wraped up on it.

[Joe Valencic]

I wrapped ONTO the tiptop. I take it this was not correct, or does it not matter?

Joe

[PaGuy]

Ok this is just my opinion soo...wraping onto the tip is just for looks the epoxy is there to hold the tip on not the thread. So I just but the thead up to the tiptop and then it makes it nice and even when you finish it. My first & second rod I wraped up onto the tiptop they came out looking like yours.

[Joe Valencic]

Thanks for the info. I won't make that mistake again, but I'm sure I'll make others.

Joe