Guide sizes- How critical?

Articles Rod Building & Craft
1

I am about to start building an 8 ft. 3 wt. for a buddy’s 59th birthday. Over the years I have accumulated an assortment of guides in various sizes. Some came from guides sets where I didn’t use all the guides in the set. Others came from odds and ends that I picked up when I found a bargain. A few were even scavenged from broken rods, etc.

Anyway, how critical are the guide sizes? One chart I referenced says, for example that the “typical” sizes of guides for an 8 ft. 3 wt. might be: 1/0,1/0,1,1,2,2,3,4 & a 10mm stripping guide. Of course not every guide sizing chart has exactly the same recommendation.

I don’t have any 1/0 guides in my present stash. Could I get by with say, 1,1,1,2,2,2,3,4 & stripping guide?

Thanks for any advice.

Royce

2

Yes. I have never used 1/0 guides on any of my builds. With that small a guide, I would be concerned with the fly line to leader knot passing through.

3

Royce

Those guides will work just fine. I have built a lot of rods with those sizes.

Brad

4

I would drop the 2’s and possibly the 3 there is no need for that many transistions guides Most of my 3wt builds are all 1’s a 4 and then the stripper. There is no such thing as a “cone of flight” on a fly rod.