I just picked up a gorgeous Montague Clipper off of eBay. It literally looks unused. Wraps are perfect, no stains on the cork. Well, it looks unused except for one ferrule that is split, and another that is completely loose (but not split).
I’m still negotiating with the seller, as it was listed as Mint/Unused, which it obviously isn’t. If I decide to keep it though, I need to replace the ferrules.
I’m not a rod builder, and have never tried to repair a rod, but may take a shot on this one depending on what I learn here.
The ferrules are pinned.
So here’s a couple of questions:
Should I seek out original Montague Ferrules for this rod, or replace them with a modern alternative? I plan to fish this rod, and based on what I’ve read, I don’t believe this rod to be anything special regarding value and collectability, so I’m not so concerned with keeping it historically correct. It seems a little foolish to replace a ferrule with another of the same when they’re notorious for failing.
Speaking of collectability, can anyone tell me a little about the Clipper model?
Who are some good contacts online to source the ferrules?
Can the ferrules just be removed and replaced, or does the rod have to be rewrapped as well? (I’m speaking of the wraps at the top of each ferrule)
Is there anyone on the board here interested in doing this work for me should I decide not to tackle it myself? (Please PM me)
If you’re just planning on fishing with it, I wouldn’t worry so much about the authenticity of the ferrules. And yes, you should be able to replace the ferrules without having to re-wrap the whole rod, but you’ll have to find a thread that matches the other wraps (which can be tricky, as the color of the wraps changes with age/exposure to sunlight).
I don’t know much of the history of this rod, but there are plenty of much more knowledgable 'boo guys on here (dleo, splinter, etc…) that could probably provide you with some more info.
I’d be happy to take on this project for you (I’ve begun building my own 'boo rod, and I’d love a restoration project). If you don’t need it to be an “authentic” restoration, I can get a good price for you on the Bellinger ferrules. Since I’m doing this part time, it’d probably take about a month to get it back to you. If you’re interested, email me, and I’ll give you an estimate of the cost for the supplies.
Montague replacement type chrome plated brass ferrules can be ordered from American Tackle - www.americantackle.us/docs/ferrules.htm for around $1.50 - nickel silver ferrules can be ordered from Golden Witch for around $50.00 - it all depends on how expensive of a restoration you want - top value for a Clipper is around $125
Jeff,
You can get the exact ferrules that you need, “new, old Montague ferrules” from Rick at Ricks rods. You can remove the old ones, send them to him and he will match them exactly. Replacing the ferrules means rewrapping the ferrule wraps to do it correctly and since you are building it to fish, I would go ahead and rewrap the Clipper, adding a couple of guides to it, especiall on the tip which probably only has 3 guides on it anyway. Montague is known for not putting enough guides on. Too, since you are building it to fish, it will give you the opportunity to ensure that the guides, wraps and the finish is capable of holding up to the rigors of fishing.
the Clipper was a middle of the road rod for Montague and all of them that I have seen would be in the 6 wt line category. They are a bit heavy, but then again, Grangers are heavy too. The other line of thought is to completely redo the rod with all updated hardware and make it really special to you since you plan on keeping it and fishing it. By going this route, you will be investing more in parts than the rod is worth on a re-sale basis. Rick sells (or used to sell) the Monty ferrules for like $22 per set and that isn’t bad. When you referrule the whole rod you will still have less invested in new ferrule for the whole rod as you would if you put nickel silver on just the butt section. I have done several of these and a couple of them I did for people that wanted them completely updated with all new stuff…parts alone exceeded $140. and that was with me making the grip and insert. There are less expensive ways to go, to get the same result and I would advise spending some google time, and ebay time looking at “rod building” “ferrules” “snake guides” etc.
Jeff, Ill echo what others have said about Ricks Rods. Ricks also sells nickel plated brss ferrels for 12.50 a pair. Im refinishing an old Chubb, my second refinish. For me, Im doing it too fish so doesnt matter if the ferrels are an exact match. I just wanta get it back on the water. Email Photojoe. Ive seen the rod hes building and hell do you right. If he doesnt I wont take him fishing again LOL. Seriously you can do it yourself. Youll get alot of good advice here. 8)
I’m very tempted to try redoing the rod myself. I’m a woodworker, an engineer by trade, and have excellent mechanical ability, and I don’t think that this project would be beyond my skills. It’s mostly a time thing, as I have a ton of honey-do’s ahead of me. This weekend the Mrs is out of town, so I was planning on building a rod wrapping jig in the workshop.
Anyway, if I can negotiate a better deal on the rod (I feel like I paid a premium price for this rod on eBay based on it’s mint condition listing), then I may take the plunge and strip it down. I don’t intend to replace the reel seat or grip though - is this a mistake? If I’m going to add new guides should I just go ahead and strip it to the bare blank and redo it? The reel seat and grip are really pristine. I would only want to redo these if there was a quality issue on the reel seat or something like that.
So, if I strip this rod down, is there a standard method for dealing with the varnish and wraps? Is there a solvent or something to loosen the finish, or does one just commence 'ta sanding it down?
Jeff, IM sure others will throw in but on the Chubb Im refinishing I used some stripper called Citristrip. I brushed it on and left it just long enough to bubble then used a very dull scraper. There was some residue and I used heavy paper towels to get most off, then used 220 grit sandpaper, lightly to polish it off. If the grip has some dings you can buy some cork stoppers, sand them and use glue. Mix it together and use a needle to get it in the ding. Once dry you can sand it smooth. For a restore I wouldnt do this, but if its for you and you just want to fish it, it looks all right. Photojoe is also a wood worker, just take your time and it will turn out fine. Welcome to the dark side
If the reelseat/grip look okay and are tight I wouldn’t mess with them. For stripping it down, just use something mild like an Orange/Citrus stripper, and go SLOW (you don’t want to take off any of those precious “power fibers”). And if you’d adding/replacing any guides, you certaily could replace them all so they match, but you certainly don’t have to if you just want to get it back into fishable condition. If you’ve got basic woodworking skills and a micrometer, I’d say you’re certainly qualified to tackle this yourself. Don’t hesitate to let us know if we can help.
Thanks! One more question. The decal is perfect, and all the wraps and varnish are perfect on this rod, which is why I hesitate to rewrap it. Other than the ferrules, this rod really looks like it just came off of the shelf of a fly shop. The ferrule wraps just butt up to the ferrule, not overlapping onto it or anything, so why can’t I just glue a new ferrule on the rod? Does the ferrule end wrap serve another purpose other than aesthetics? It seems to me that if I can get an exact replacement ferrule that I can just glue and re-pin the new ferrule, and I’m off to the races. I wish I could post photos of the rod, and I think you would agree that it really doesn’t need to be refinished or wrapped, but I left the rod at my office.
I’m really torn on this rod because it’s so clean. I am tempted however to find a rougher example and try to restore it.
So with all of that, if you still say refinish and rewrap the rod, I think it would be great to keep the decal intact. Not having experienced the varnish on cane rods, I’m very familiar with modern finishes, and most of my WW finishes are hand rubbed shellac. The nice thing about shellac is that it’s self levelling, so it is easy to repair a finish. If I strip/sand everything but the decal, can I blend the new varnish up to the decal like I could on a shellac finish? Do the old varnishes yellow with age like shellac does? If I can blend this, then would I be better served to clean and replace the wraps only and then spot varnish and blend the new to the old, leaving the rest of the finish on the rod intact?
I think the discussion about rewrapping by Dleo is because of the few number of guides originally placed on the rod. Rewrapping the rod (and addding additional guides) will result in the rod having better fishfightn’ action. This is the calculator for guide-placement that I’ve been using (refered by other builders of this site). I usually end up with 2 more guides on a 9’er than what was on before. You’ll be able to decide whether you want to add more and rewrapping the entire rod.
Given that, I have left a rod alone and not rewrapped it because it was in such good condition but it still gets fished. Hey they would have fished it that way in the “old days”. http://www.uwm.edu/~stetzer/guideN.html
I’m with Wednesday Caster on this. If it’s not actually missing any of the original guides, I probably wouldn’t re-wrap the whole thing. Especially if the whole decal is intact. As far as the wrappings on the ferrule go, I would definitely replace them if you’re planning on replacing the ferrules. More that likely, they will get chewed up/singed when you go to pull the ferrules of. And yes, the varnish does tend to darken/yellow with age, but it’s really hard to tell since the bamboo itself it yellowish. It might be a bit tricky to try to “blend” the new varnish into the old stuff. I’d suggest just using your fingers- dip them in the can of spar and work it onto the rod. Hope this helps.
Jeff, IM sure others will throw in but on the Chubb Im refinishing I used some stripper called Citristrip. I brushed it on and left it just long enough to bubble then used a very dull scraper. There was some residue and I used heavy paper towels to get most off, then used 220 grit sandpaper, lightly to polish it off. If the grip has some dings you can buy some cork stoppers, sand them and use glue. Mix it together and use a needle to get it in the ding. Once dry you can sand it smooth. For a restore I wouldnt do this, but if its for you and you just want to fish it, it looks all right. Photojoe is also a wood worker, just take your time and it will turn out fine. Welcome to the dark side 