Rod Building (sort of)

[Alain Barthelemy]

Thought you might enjoy hearing about my rod building experience.  This started off as a simple guide repair for an old Sage, but quickly expanded to tools collecting, jig building and an all-out build from a blank.  This is my first build, and I'm not sure yet if it is my last.  The rod is on the rack, spinning and drying now as I write.

I really want a Sage TXL-F, but thought it might be wise to attempt a build on less expensive components, in case I messed up the whole thing.  I opted for a Temple Fork Finesse 7' 10" 4-weight kit from J. Stockard.  Kit cost was $130, tools, etc., about $50 more.  I could have purchased a factory version of this rod for less, but that's not the point.  Many of the tools, hardware and wood I already had in my garage.

If you get Scheck's book or look online, you should easily follow on with my comments below.  You should really follow a real expert's advice before mine, but these notes may get you thinking.

Here are some random notes in no order,
(1) I read the book by Scheck called "Fly Rod Building Made Easy" first.  In fact, I read it about 3 times.  This is a detail-oriented endeavor.
(2) I used a one-step process with U-40 Permagloss to seal the thread wraps.  This seems like the easiest approach by far.  The rod is still drying (third coat), but the finish is really glossy and nice.
(3) To bond the seat and the cork, I used U-40 Rod Bond 2-part epoxy.  This epoxy is sort of slippery and waxy, and easy to work with.  I mixed it on scrap cardboard using ice cream sticks.
(4) For thread, I used Fish Hawk size A basic black.  The Gudebrod thread is not readily available anymore.
(5) I built my own rod-building stand from 1X6 oak.  After our summer floods, I had to repair some furniture, so I had a nice piece already.  The mass of the wood helps it stay put.  I don't have a table saw (or room for one!), so I improvised the joinery.  To make the grooves for the rod to ride in, I cut 2 1/4" holes in the oak using a hole saw, and then cut the result in half.  It worked great.  I lined the grooves with craft felt (20 cents / sheet).  To tension the thread, I could have easily built something, but I couldn't find suitable hard chrome washers at the hardware store.  I bought the thread tensioner from J. Stockard.  The tensioner is an excellent product.
(6) The system I built is not optimal in that the thread gets twisted as it goes on.  It would be better to orient the axis of the thread spool in the same axis of the rod, but that requires more desk space.
(7) To hold the rods in the grooves and add a little anti-spin brake, I used 4 hair elastics, attached to little cup hooks.
(8 ) The key to wrapping a guide is tension and thread angle.  I wanted a way to maintain the thread angle, so I devised a little push/pull device in the front.  This device allows you (provide you don't move the rod side to side) to precisely control the wrapping angle.
(9) This rod had 9 guides, a top, a hook keeper and four sections.  That is 25 thread wraps.  It is a lot of work.  I had to repeat 4 of them.  A few came out larger than I wanted, but I was too exhausted to do them again.
(10) For the pull through loop, I used 10lb Power Pro braid.  I had this already, from some euronymphing experimentation.  It is very slippery and strong, and so made an excellent pull through loop.
(11) I used the pull through to both start and stop the wraps.  I found it easier to start a wrap with a pull through, but you could do it the same way as you bind thread to a hook shank.
(12) It is easy to wrap big guides on the thick part of the blank.  This is because the blank is rigid and doesn't flex.  It is hard to wrap thin guides near the rod tip.  As I tensioned the thread wraps on the small guides, I found it best to support the rod with my hand so it wouldn't flex.
(13) Wrapping the ferrules is tricky.  I found it easier to loosely fit two rod sections together so I wouldn't have a floating piece I was trying to wrap.  You can't put too much stress on a unwrapped ferrule, so you must be careful.
(14) I wrapped the ferrules as close to the edge as I could, but a couple of them slipped off; it was painful to watch.
(15) It is hard to cleanly cut the thread when it emerges from a wrap.  I used a double-edged razor blade.  You can cut the thread tab first and tuck it under, but my hands lacked the dexterity to pull this off. 
(16) To clean up the wraps, I used two tools.  A little curved plastic clay pottery tool and a knitting needle.  The pottery tool had a thin dull edge I could use for packing the thread.  I used the knitting needle to burnish the wraps.  Burnishing flattens the thread and magically makes some imperfections disappear.
(17) I bought the 1/16in masking tape to mark the guide locations.  I did the marking on the kitchen table.  On an 11ft rod, you need a longer table!
(18) I wrapped all the guides from the blank up the foot of the guide.  I did not grind or polish any guide feet.
(19) When I mounted the reel seat, I used masking tape to make centering bushings around the blank.  I test fitted everything a few times, but when the epoxy was curing, the cork moved a little bit.  This is because I should have reamed the cork a little more for a slightly looser fit.  To do the cork reaming, I used a "Razorwand" tool that was fantastic and easy.
(20) I bought the cheapest rod motor I could find.  It works well.  The chuck is just a simple rubber disc that grips the rod butt.  It spins at 24 RPM.
(21) I am building a 10ft 2-wt ESN next.
(22) Maybe.

This is the bench:


This is the notch detail:


This is the thread tensioner:


This is the push/pull thread angle adjuster:


This is the rod motor set up:


This is the rod grip:


I will show a close-up of a guide or two when everything dries.

Hope you enjoyed this write-up.

Alain

[David Glass]

Alain
looks great i have built a few rods myself. after the first one there is no turning back
enjoy.
                      Dave

[Alain Barthelemy]

To finish up this thread, thought I should post this.  This is the third fish I caught with the new rod.  It was a satisfying feeling.  The rod is ok, but probably a bit heavier than it should be, due to my ham-handed varnish and epoxy application.  It casts nicely though, and is well-suited to a dry-dropper approach in windy conditions.  That's how I got this one, with one of my Klinkhammers and a nymph you can see on 7X (which reminds me, I have to add something to the Klink thread).