Reviewed by Bill Taylor
I am a student of cane rodmaking and a
practitioner as well, so it was with great
interest that I ripped open the pages of
Ray Goulds second book Cane Rods Tips
and Tapers. I must admit that even
a "caniac" like myself was a little skeptical
that anything significant could be added to
the craft after so many books and articles
have been published on the subject. I was
mistaken. I should preface these comments
with the statement that this work is not a
title which a person would purchase to learn
to make cane rods, rather it is a compilation
of tips and tapers for the craftsman who is
interested in the furthering of their craft.
The amount of information available on cane
rodmaking these days can be staggering, and
Mr. Gould has again added to the bounty.
On the cover of the book we find a photograph
of classic rods by the likes of Dickerson, Payne,
Garrison, and Edwards. If you are unfamiliar
with cane rods this means little, but to the
initiated these are names whispered in reverence.
Ray does a superb job of balancing the classic
makers rods with modern building techniques,
and demystifying certain processes involved
in rodmaking. Sections that have been little
covered in other works have been included in
detail in this book. Including sections on
maximizing rod performance, heat treatment and
moisture control, ammonia toning, milling machine
designs, quadrate rods, nodeless rodmakimg, and
spiral rodmaking are included. Each of these
sections are written in clear, concise language
with detailed drawings and photographs that make
the operations described easy to understand.
Some of you may be unfamiliar with the term
taper. A taper, in this context is the
dimensions of a rod at certain points that
are fundamental to its action. Ray Gould
in this book includes 334 tapers by my count,
from 4' banty rods to 14' spey rods it is the
largest compilation of tapers that I am aware
of in one publication. Fly, spin, baitcasting,
quadrate, pentagonal, spey, and bamboo over
graphite insert rods can be found here. Tapers
taken from classics as well as a generous amount
of Mr. Goulds personally developed tapers are
included. This is perhaps my favorite section
of the book as I am continually looking to
incorporate new ideas in developing rod models
and searching for that "perfect" rod action.
Bamboo collectors and afficionados of classic
rods will be happy to see photographs of rods
by Dickerson, Payne, Garrison, Edwards, South
Bend, Hardy, Pezon et Michel, Montague, Granger,
Heddon, Leonard, Orvis, and Ray Gould. The book
concludes with a section on understanding rod
actions and also a glossary of commercial
suppliers of tools,components, adhesives,
and finishes for making cane rods.
This book has found a welcome home among my growing
library of titles devoted to cane rods and rodmaking.
It has already received the best compliment I can
give any title on cane rodmaking as it already has
its corners bent and bamboo shavings are imbedded
in its binding creases. Ray Gould has written a
great sequel to his first book Constructing
Cane Rods and I again have replaced my
skepticism with appreciation. ~ Bill Taylor
Cane Rods Tips and Tapers
Ray Gould
80 pages
Softbound (ISBN: 1-57188-308-8) $25
Published by Frank Amato Books
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