Did it again!

Equipment Rod Building: Cane and Graphite
1

During the trip to California last weekend stopped into the local Salt Water shop to check out the tackle. Naturally I had to check out the “Barrel”. You know the one - the one full of rods/blanks they want to get rid of. Sure enough in amongst those big Tuna Sticks sat some Fly Rod blanks. I picked up two blanks for $15 a piece. :smiley:

Tonight I sat down and did my ordering on the NET. Just finished ordering everything I need to build these two blanks. I spent $88 bucks on parts including reel seats, guides, guides for a spinning rod I’m building, hook keepers, winding checks, and an 8oz kit of Flex Coat.

Total to finish building a 7 1/2’ 3wt, 8 1/2’ 5wt, and my spinning rod came to $88 + $32 for the blanks = $121 + spare parts I had laying around.

Anyone else as cheap as I am? :shock: My favorite rod is an 8’ 4wt I built from “Scrap Graphite” I paid $10 for out of a Barrel in another shop. That $10 scrap graphite built three rods - two 8 1/2’ 7wt and one 8’ 4wt! :lol:

2

I prefer to refer to myself as “fiscally retentive.” :lol: Nothing wrong with getting a deal. until I started building my own rods, my favorite rod was a 8’0" 4wt “barrel rod” that I paid $16 for. Just proves you don’t need to spend a lot to get a lot, unless you want to impress people with how much money you like to spend. JC proved this at the Michigan Fish-In last year with his Wally Mart outfits.

Of course, this is just my opinion…

Joe

3

As they say in Boy Scouts I’m “thrifty”. I live near a Cabelas and cruise their “bargain cave” One day it looked like they bougth out a rod shop. Reel seats and REC grips $2.00 guides salvaged from some broken sectios they were offing $3.00 last years model 8’ 4 wt blank $20. Total cost for rod including thread and flex coat. less than $40.
Some days you just are in the right palace at the right time.