Fishing Forum

Anybody on here made thier own rod. I have found some blanks for cheap and was thinking about maybe trying to piece together a rod. How hard is it and is it even worth it. It seems hard although I havent done much reasearch but seems like it would be fun, sure it wouldnt save a ton of money but would be awesome to catch a fish on a rod you built. Thanks for any input.
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send a PM to Flygoddess or Mojorizing, they both make their own rods and some beauties at that
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It isn't really that hard, but there are a few tricks/secrets that make it easier. There are books and videos about the process, and you can make most or all of the gear you need like the winding cradle.

The fun part is shopping for the parts. You can go basic or as fancy as you like. I would recommend using a very simple winding pattern at first, as the result is permanent. And you can do things you can't find on factory rods. For example, on my 7-wt, I reversed the cork handle, putting the narrow end to the rear instead of to the front. I reasoned that my hand curls that way (smaller at the pinkie finger) and the grip should match. It's VERY comfortable that way.
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Used to teach rod building. do watch some videos. it is not hard.before you buy parts watch the videos to have a good idea of what it intails. Take your time as you build it it will turn out nice. Access to a rod turner and a wrapper makes it easier.
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I built my first fly rod two years ago and have loved using it. I compare to when I first starting tying flies and thought how cool it was catching fish on my own flies. I get that same enjoyment now, when I catch a fish with that rod. I had a friend who had the equipment and walked me through it step by step. It was not nearly as complicated as I thought it would be.
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I agree on it not being hard, but it can be taxing. Like HFT said, take your time. You will have days where the planets all aline and things go great, but also days where "How the &^% did that happen!".
And the cost of the hardware. I get all excited seeing a blank for a great price, but then I look at cork[shocked] then a reel seat and of course guides! That is where it piles up, but you can still come out ahead with a high end rod at half the cost (If you don't include the labor[])
Plus that ONE OF A KIND made specially for you.
A cardboard box with grooves cit in it and a book is really all you need to wrap, plus very sharp scissors or a razor blade and some kind of burnisher (however a spoon or your nail can do this)

You build as nice or as cost effective as you want.

Here are a couple:





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What do you think about these have you heard anything about these guys. I really really like the blue, and I really want to make my own rod.
http://bluehalogear.com/?page_id=7
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Never heard of them so no idea how they are. They are E glass, so very noodly. You fished an E fiberglass rod before? I have a couple if you want to Chechen them out first.
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I havent so that just means that have a lot of flex right,, are they pretty strong. I may want to try it first if I can ever get a chance to fish with you, maybe you can come up to the weber
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Love to
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My uncle and I built a sage rod for about 250... I got the vt-2 6wt 9' and I love it! It took some time but once it was all done it was well worth it! It wasn't too hard... Granted my uncle did most of it but it was prett easy to learn.
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It's not too hard, I've built four (all basic cosmetically, but great rods). Check out Hookhack.com, they've got a lot of info on their site.
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[quote tkidder]It's not too hard, I've built four (all basic cosmetically, but great rods). Check out Hookhack.com, they've got a lot of info on their site.[/quote]

These glass Rods or graphite? Rods are the cheap part. The reel seat, cork, guides, stripping guide, thread is where the cost is. Decide if you want to build a cheap rod that you will out grow quick, or a nice rod you will enjoy for many years. Really no way you can mess it up that can't be fixed. Just food for thought.
It is pretty easy, but time consuming and it can be frustrating. Take the time to smooth the thread, even find the spline of the blank. Lining up guides on multi sections. And even with guide placement chart, Check the rod with guides taped on to see if it is the best place. Little things that can make a big difference.
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The rods I've built are all graphite rods. I actually love the way that they cast, and they look pretty good too. The blanks I bought are all lifetime guaranteed (and yes I've had to send in a tip section that I broke, and yes they replaced it. Though I did have to re-wrap it.) I believe if you can tie a fly you can probably wrap a rod. It takes some time, but it's not rocket science. I totally agree that the blank isn't the entire cost though, you need to look at what components (guides, handle, reel seat, etc) you'd like to put on it to figure the final cost. I'd also advocate buying from a reputable dealer that's going to help you out and set you up with components that are compatible. I've had a good experience with hookhack.com. They've been good to deal with, and like I said before they have a lot of good information on their site.
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Also Jans Net Craft and Mudd Hole. They are who I deal with.
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