Hi,

Lots of good advice, and there's plenty more in the cane world today. I can't imagine what it would have been like trying to ferret things out even thirty years ago, though I've heard tales.

I've seen wonderful rods wrapped with thread running through a phone book with a human-foot tension device -grin - and a film can with a nylon stocking lid full of varnish used as a dip tank. On the other hand, I love Jeff Wagner's high-end planning forms for their precision and versitility, and while Stanely's work well, Lie-Neilsen planes are works of art in themselves. Different strokes...

Here's just a thought to use or disregard as your circumstances dictate... if you want to see if you really want to make rods before investing too much, consider a class. Everything is usually provided, and you walk away with a finished blank or maybe even a finished rod, depending on the length of class and the price. The setting are often pretty cool, too. The Catskill Museum offers a late June class (disclaimer - grin - I'll be there with my husband and at least one other instructor), Jeff Wagner offers classes, Lon Blauvelt, Ron Barch, Wayne Cattanach, Golden Witch, hmmm... there's a lot of others, too. Just a thought.

Kat