Fishing Rod Buidling

[eastonkayaker]

For all you guys that spend your long winter hours building fishing rods, where do you recommend a beginner start? Any good kits - web sites etc?

[surfdog]

mudhole.com. everything you need is there

[mmanolis2001]

Beware of incomming wall of text.

I would start by heading over to the Mudhole website.

They are the largest online store for rod building i have found. Large selection of blanks, hardware, tools and instructional books and videos. They also carry kits and budget blanks that make for good starting projects. Their Budget blanks are actually pretty good blanks when factoring in the cost.

I also really like buying from Fishsticks4u.

They are a batson distributor and i have been using those blanks for most of my rods.

I learned by reading the Clemens series of books most notably Advanced Custom Rod Building by Dale Clemens. This book will get you from A to Z and is well worth the cost.

This is all you need to build that first rod.

- Research. Google is your friend. Most cases someone has built a rod with similar specs and ratings and posted about their experience. There are tons of how to videos floating around the web as well.

- Rod Wrapping Jig. Can be a homemade contraption or store bought. I made my first rods on a jig i made out of scrap wood, a tea cup, dowel rod and a book. (tea cup, dowel rod and book were used as the thread tension device). A large fly tying bobbin can also be used. Flex Coat sells intro wrapping jigs with everything you need to get going. I am currently still using a flex coat wrapping jig. Its starting to loosen up at the joints but it still does what i need.

- Blank (I went cheap on the first build in case i made mistakes). By the way i still have this rod after 22 years and have since rebuilt it several times. The type and material of blank is dependant on what you want to accomplish with it. You need to take into account the line and lure weights you will be using prior to purchasing the blank. Don't buy a blank rated for 2-4lb line and lure weight of 1/8 - 3/8 and expect to cast 2oz jigs. I might work but it will not preform well. Actions of blanks are also important to take into account. Slow action blanks bend more uniformly into the bottom section of the blank. Fast action blanks will have most of the curve in the upper 3rd of the blank.

- Guides (Again no need to buy titanium for the first rod). Fuji sells pre-packaged sets for little money and they will serve you fine. The number of guides and placement depends on the length and action of the blank. For example a 7ft slow action casting rod will need more guides than a 7ft fast action spinning rod. The main purpose for guides is to distribute the load of the line under tension across the blank evenly. You want the line to follow the curve of the blank and in casting rods never touch the blank. any sharp angles in the line while transitioning between guides is a bad thing. You want just want enough guides to accomplish this. adding more guides than that will not hurt the rod but it will dampen the action and add unneeded weight to the rod.

- Tip (Make sure to get the proper tip based on the tip dia of the blank). This info is included in the specs of the blank while purchasing so no guess work needed.

- Handle (Cork, Eva, Cork tape, etc..). You can buy pre made handle kits that include the front grip, rear grip and reel seat. I used these in my first builds and they work great. I'm a fan of cork handles for lite rods and EVA for heaver stuff. The only drawback to cork is the reaming process to fit it to the blank dia. Keep that in mind when buying the handle mats. You don't want a handle with a interior dia of .250 when the blank you are building on has a butt dia of .675. That's allot of cork to remove. Sometimes you have no choice but if you could get the same handle with say a .450 inside dia then why submit your self to needless cussing. EVA is a little more forgiving and will have some stretch to it.

- Reel Seat (Several things to consider with the reel seat). The seat sizes follow this logic. 16mm is smaller than 22mm. Pretty straightforward but there are issues to consider. If you have small hands the smaller seats (16mm) might be more comfortable. The reverse is true for larger hands to an extent. You would not want to put a size 22 reel seat on a 5ft ul action rod. There are also cases where you have to go up a size or down a size based on the foot size of the reel you are matching to the rod. If the hood size of the reel seat is to large for the reel foot it will never seat well and a loose reel sucks. The reverse would be a reel with larger than normal foot size (Avet sx for exp). In that case you cant fit the reel into the hoods on the seat. This is something you don't want to find out after spending the time to build the rod. The inside dia of the reel seat also needs to be accounted for. You want to make sure you have some wiggle room. Measure the dia of the blank where you will be placing the reel seat. Make sure this is smaller than the inside dia of the reel seat. If you don't have the blank on hand make sure it is a little larger than the butt dia of the blank.

- But Cap (to finish off the handle and protect the butt of the rod). Most handle kits include these but if you build you own handle you will need this.

- Rod kits (Good choice for that first rod). They usually include all the items needed to complete the rod (blank, guides, sized tip, handle, reel seat, etc..) This saves some research work and possible mistakes with item compatibility. The handles can also come pre-bored to match the blank which is a plus. Some kits include the Epoxy to glue the handle up as well as thread and rod finish. If you find a kit that matches the rod you are looking to build then maybe this is the best choice.

- Epoxy (To glue up the handle). This is a must. Don't use crazy glue to glue up your handle. Use the appropriate 2 part epoxies specifically made for rod building. I like U40 rod bond but there are several products that work great. I also prefer the two part paste epoxies as there is more room for error when mixing the batch up. Some of the 2 part liquid epoxies require accurate measurements of the resin and hardener to cure properly. You don't want a reel seat to start spinning upside down while fighting a fish. Don't ask me how i know.

- Rod Finish (Epoxy used to coat the butt and guide wraps). Pretty self explanatory. This is a 2 part finish that stands up to UV and other nasties mother nature does to a rod. Don't use off the shelf 2 part epoxies from home depot (Devon, etc..). Get the stuff designed for fishing rods. Also the mix ratio must be correct on these slow curing epoxies to cure properly. Make sure to mix in a batch of at least 4cc of each part. If you try to mix 2cc of each you better be a chemist and ensure your mix is correct. Larger batches have more room for error in mixing. Mix the epoxy for at least 5 mins before applying to the rod to ensure it has been fully blended. Its better to waste 3cc of finish than mix the perfect amount that never fully cures. Again don't ask me how i know this. Permagloss is another option. This is a 1 part urethane finish that dries fast, clear and hard as a rock. The draw backs are it is watery thin and would require 20 coats to get a thick finish like the 2 part finishes. It will also get you buzzed up if you huff on it to long so you need to make sure and ventilate the area. Its shelf life is also very unstable. It sets with humidity so every time you open the bottle you run the risk of starting the curing process.

- Tape (Masking tape). Buy rolls in several sizes (1/4", 1/2", 1"). This is used for various reasons including shimming reel seats, holding thread down while wrapping a decorative butt wrap, Protecting sections of a blank for sanding. The list goes on. Very useful for rod building.

- Tip Glue (Basically a high temp glue stick used for attaching tips).

- Thread (Used to attach the guides and add needless pretty stuff to the rod). You have many options for thread from various manufactures. Lots of colors and sizes to cover everything. Sizes in order are A - C - D - E with A having the smallest dia and E with the largest. 90% of the time Size A is all you need and more than strong enough to hold the guide tight. C and D are often used in offshore rods and I have used E as a ramping thread to tie down and transition cork tape handles on surf rods. There are also NCP threads. NCP means you will not have to use a color preserver on the thread to maintain the color and brightness.

- Color Preserver (If you chose not to use NCP thread). this is a thread sealer used to help keep the original color of the thread. I say helps because its almost impossible to keep the original color of non NCP thread. Even with several coats of CP the thread will still darken a shade after the finish is applied. Not a problem just something to note when selecting colors for a rod.

- x-acto knife and blades.

- Sharp scissors.

- China Marker (A white wax marker used to mark blanks)

- Callipers (They don't have to be nice digital ones. They just need to work)

- Measuring tape (Long enough to cover any length of rod you will build)

- Standard and Metric ruler.

[mmanolis2001]

- Handle reaming tools (To match the inside dia of the handle to the rod blank). In most cases you will have to ream out the inside dia of the handle to fit the rod blank. If this is the case you will need some reamers to accomplish this. Remember the blank is tapered so the end of the handles inside dia will be larger than the inside dia of the fore grip. This inside taper should match the taper of the handle section of the rod blank. You could bore out the handle to match the largest dia of the rod butt and use tape shims to take up the space towards the tip. While this method works fine I prefer a snug matched fit. This means you will need some method to match the taper. They sell reamer sets that consist of various sizes to cover just about all situations. You will need to slowly work up in sizes and test fit constantly (Sliding the handle from the tip down) until you get the handle in the proper location. Always ream the handle from the bottom of the grip up (That sounds bad). The largest inside dia will always be where the butt cap is.

- Thread burnishing tool (Used to pack threads and burnish out gaps). This is a cheap must have tool. Get two.

- Mixing Cups (used to mix epoxy). Make sure to get silicone free mixing cups.

- Tin Foil (Used to make a fancy hat). Actually it is used to pour the mixed rod finish onto before applying it to the rod. The mixing process will add bubbles to the epoxy. The tinfoil spreads the epoxy out thin and allows the air bubbles to release. A couple of hot breaths on the epoxy while flattened out will release the rest leaving a bubble free epoxy ready to apply to the rod.

- Brushes (used to apply epoxy, CP and finish). Buy the cheap plastic bristle craft brushes. Again make sure the fibers are silicon free.


Optional.

- Rod drying setup (This is a nice have item not a must have). You don't need a finishing motor but its a nice option. You can get a perfect lump free finish with out this but it requires multiple thin coats and hours of manually rotating the rod every 5 mins to 10 mins. My first several rods were finished without use of a drying motor. These can also be made easily with a 120v rotisserie motor from EBay and a couple of wood stands to hold the rod. The motor should be between 6 rpm and 12 rpm any faster and finish could fling off. A PVC end cap with 4 thumb screws for a chuck and you will be set to finish and forget.

- Bling (Winding checks, Hook Keepers, Decals, etc..). Not necessary but add a nice touch and are inexpensive.

Items to lookout for

1. I have brought up silicone free items several times. This is a very important point. Keep all silicone sprays coatings etc.. away from the area you will be building the rod in. Silicone will repel the rod finish if it gets on the thread before applying the finish. This will cause fish-eyeing in the finish and that is hard to resolve without redoing the whole thread wrap.

2. Wash and dry your hands before doing any thread work. Oils from you hands can darken and discolor the thread.

3. Do not apply finish in a dusty environment. Rod finish is like a magnet for dust.

4. Take you time reaming out the handle and test fit it often.

5. Measure twice. Then measure again just in case.

6. Use lots of epoxy when gluing up the handle and reel seat. You can always wipe off excess.


If you decide to start building feel free to ask me any questions. I'm no expert but i have learned allot the hard way.

Wow first time hitting the max character limit in a post. I need a beer

[DOGFISH]

I am not one for the books, as I learned from a friend who had a custom tackle shop, thanks Howard. It was one of those small shops where a group of regulars used to sit around drinking coffee, swaping stories and shooting the bull. It was an old fashioned type of thing. I should probably do some reading someday.

Anyway, back to the reply. I agree with the others, Mud Hole is one of the best that I have found. However, look around. I agree with the google search. I still periodically do that for rod building and kayak fishing. My advice, rebuild one of your old rods. That way you get some experience taking a rod apart, as if you are doing a repair. The trick to that is doing it without damaging the blank. Rebuild it on the cheap, as your first rod is a learning experience. It takes time. There is alot to learn, lathe work, layout, winding the guides, decrative wraps and finishes. These can all be an experience in and of themselves. However, it is worth the time.

One caveat, you will come to wonder how the large tackle companies can build rods so inexpensively. Custom rods are not cheap. My advice, once you have learned the art, is to build your rods with the best components you can afford. Then take care of you tackle. Custom rods tend to last along time. You build your own tackle to last. I have rods that seem to have been around forever. I have sold rods to people that still have them, many years after I sold the rods.

I agree with the Dale Clemens suggestion. He has been around forever. Mud Hole even has a get starter section in their catalog, online and they do seminars. Check their schedule online. I started with a jig kit to wrap my first rods. I now have two power winders, lathe, driers and god knows how many other accessories. I am about to build a cabinet for drying the finish. It helps to have this sort of thing to help keep dust off and lights for heat to help set up the finish. Just another fish addiction, just another fish addiction.

Good luck with the learning process. It is an art you'll be glad you learned. There is nothing like rolling your own.

Whoa, did somebody say beer!

[Memory Maker]

For all you guys that spend your long winter hours building fishing rods, where do you recommend a beginner start? Any good kits - web sites etc?

Call me ........ got everything you need and then some if you're willing to drive across the bridge a few days ........

[eastonkayaker]

Thanks everyone for all the good information. I think I am going to give this a try. My father gave me a fishing rod he purchased in the 60's, guides are rusted plus my wife says I need a winter time hobby!

Memory Maker I sent you a PM.