There seems to be a recent interest in building rods with the off season rapidly approaching, so I thought I’d throw together some general info/pointers for some of the people just starting off or considering taking the plunge. Feel free to add info as you see fit. I’m omitting spine/spline data/opinions because it seems to be controversial and a cause for great arguments (and I am one of the non-believers when it comes to modern rods:D).
Rod wrappers. You can make one easily with scrap wood, or use a cardboard box and your flytying bobbin to get started.
If you want to build your own, there are lots of plans for free online. But start here for the general idea. http://www.rodbuilding.org/library/buildjig.html
I presume by “or cork” in your list, you mean cork rings, and that by “finish” you are referring to wrap finish. Winding checks are at one’s discretion. They do add a touch of “class”, but are not essential. Them other items you list are.
Some local clubs periodically offer rod building classes. Ours here in Houston (Texas FlyFishers) does.
I used the nickle silver checks because the rubber ones looked like H*** to me ( cheapened the looks I thought). I made some of my own out of thread…building up and overlaying various colors. Looked pretty decent actually
That list needs to be sticky! There is a lot of info there that answers “standard” first questions.
I have ordered a blank for a 3W from Cabella’s, but nothing else as yet. I wanted to see the blank before ordering the other items so I could decide the aesthetics. It is not an expensive blank, so I will not be using expensive pieces part on it, but I still want it to look sharp.
I want to get a wrapper/turner built as well.
I would like to be able to refer to that list as things progress. I am sure it would be handy for other first time rod builders, as well.
Hook keepers are an option, winding checks? Just wondering why you wouldn’t want to use one? From a price range of .60 cents on up… Not using one is like tying a great fly and just tying off the thread without making a head.
When wrapping guides, the wraps on the tip top are purely ascetic and have absolutely no practical purpose, whereas a winding a check makes the transition from the cork to the rod often hiding slight imperfection’s. If the cork hole is not perfectly centered or not perfectly round, lack of a winding check will not only show the problems but amplify them.
Often, but not always, Id wind thread, 3 layers deep from the cork grip up the rod for about .150. Then make a 2 layer thick band for about the same distance then ending with a 1 layer band about the same “length”.
Ive done them all at one time; in separate increments using various colored threads…etc. Just to be doing something different is all.
I forgot the keeper. A good reason to have a checklist. It’s better to have it on the list and opt out than omit it and have to make another order. It’s on the list now.
I did, but probably in a different way than you intended. It isn’t something I personally believe you need to deal with, IMO. I feel that you are much better off building off of the straightest axis because it looks better.
Just a hunch, and I do not yet have a blank to check it out on, but if you were to locate the straightest axis, could it be that is also the spine? After all, we locate the spine so the rod will cast straight, right?
Sometimes, sometimes not. My position is that you can put it on any axis you want, and won’t be able to tell a difference when casting. Take a rod and twist the top section 90 degrees. I’ll bet you can’t tell a difference when you cast it. I can’t with modern fly rods. Older ones may be different, but I’m sceptical.
Placing the guides on or off the spine makes a difference when there is a load on the rod. When the rod is under a load it wants to bend with (or against the spine) if the spine is on the side, when it’s under a load, it will want to bend/twist to the side.
Now the difference of on or under. I guess this is relative to which side you perceive the spine to be. When you put a single piece of the blank under moderate tension like the simple method of: put the butt end on a hard surface(table top etc), lay the tip in your hand at roughly a 45d angle, then deflect with your other hand and roll it until it jumps to where it wants to bend. Some say the spine is the inside of the curve, others say the outside.
Regardless, on a fly rod and spinning rod, the guides should go on the inside, and on the outside for a casting rod. This is simple physics and should be self explanatory.
