I am looking for rod building stuff, this is something that has interested me for a couple years now but don't want to drop a ton of $$ at the beginning because I don't know if I will like it or not. If anyone has some older or manual stuff that they have upgraded and its just laying around let me know, we could work out a trade or I can pay cash for it. Thanks
Be careful! It's easy to become addicted! I'm not sure how much knowledge you have about rod building so please don't be offended by anything I say here. I'm assuming you've got zero exposure to it.
Most guys use "manual" equipment. Hand wrapping is actually easier than power wrapping unless you are doing lots of long underwraps, etc. With the trend towards smaller guides (micro) hand wrapping is the way to go. You can easily make your own gear. I have the plans for a hand wrapper that I could send to you. You can also use a cardboard box with V cuts to hold the rod. You put your spool of thread in a coffee cup and run the thread through the pages of a book for tension. I know - it sounds cheesy - so I built my own. You can also make your own cork reamers from an old broken rod blank. Go to a hardware store and buy a 1" sanding belt and epoxy it on a section of a broken rod in a spiral fashion.
If you want to chat you can reach me at woodsmenrods@gctel.net
I live in Alexandria and make it through Elk River quite often.
Chuck
Reply With Quote