Grip w/ insert 6 1/2" for 2-4wt rod
That’s beautiful! What material did you use for the stone insert?
Stone!!! Scrimshawed? Details!!!
<really beautiful!!>
Smernsky,
Bud, your turning out some mighty fine grips for fly rods. Nice work!
Thanks Ron / and Betty here ya go “How’s it’s Made” …just like the TV show…LOL
The insert is a piece of Corrian. Corrian is used in construction for making such things as counter tops… Any way, I scrounged a cutoff piece from a job the thickness was appox. 1/2".
I then (using a 1 1/4" hole saw) drilled out a piece. This left me with a round piece
1 1/4" round by 1/2" deep with a 1/4" hole in the middle. The same size as a standard cork ring.
Although Corrian has the consitancy of stone, it sands easily. So with that in mind, I glued a bunch of cork rings and the corrian together. I then sanded the entire grip to shape.
The next step was to apply 1 coat of artist fixative to the corrian piece only. This seals the Corrian and allows it to be etched. By sealing the corrian ,it allows you to afterward fill in the lines etched without the ink penetrating anywhere else. Any excess will just bead up and can be wiped off. (Etching is done with a pin vise and a large needle)
Once the design is etched and filled with ink, I let the ink dry. Last step is to apply 2 coats of fixative to the Corrian. This seals the artwork, waterproofs it and guards against the elements and hard usage.
I can attest to the strength of the corrian and the artwork , as I have personally fished a rod that I own ,using the same technique (different design) for over 5 yrs without any sign of wear. That’s about it!
It takes some work as you can see, but the results are rewarding.
Absolutely fascinating! And beautiful! Thank you!
I noticed you have grips for sale on the things for sale board, but these are not shown, how come?
Are you keeping these lovely beauties for your self?
Great work by the way…
Not at all Steve…This one I just finished , and it is for sale also. Anybody that is interested can PM me about this one or a sepecial request.
My purpose here was to show and encourage others on what can be acheived with a little imagination. We all gain in sharing ideas and How To’s…Ed
Once again, a nice creation by thinking “out of the box” and using materials well suited to the application, but normally used for another purpose. Nice work!