I just finished this for my friend Chris. It’s a 7’ 4wt based on a Wayne Cattanach taper. It is my first attempt at a flamed rod, I’ve only made blondes up until now. I could’ve used better cork, and the reelseat could probably use some more finish but this rod will fished hard.
nice rod there… ya build the blank & all ?
Thanks. Made everything but the guides.
Nicely done! As for the cork, use the wet varnish method and you can’t tell it from fluor grade cork. (Using coarse sandpaper, sand the grip down, close to final dimensions. Then, wet it with varnish (or, white varnish, if you are bleaching the cork). While still wet, spin it in your lathe and sand down to final dimensions using fine grits of sandpaper. This process creates a cork dust slurry that fills in even the tiniest holes or cracks. Allow the grip to set for 24 hours to dry and sand, using 600 grit paper, to remove any surface varnish. You’ll end up with a perfect grip every time.)
Nice job, Jason.