Thinking of BUilding a rod?

[randerson]

Ok Im gonna make some room in my Basement to set up a area to try and build some rods, What tools do you suggest I get or build to make this process as easy as it could be. I have made a few frames to support the blanks and I have picked up a low rpm motor for the drying process what else do you suggest. Thanks Ryan

[that_guy]

Thread tensioner ($5 at the big C), good stool, good lighting, and some cold beer.

[pureinsanity]

I just use a dictionary for my tensioner. you can just use bolts and springs, but they tend to tighten up or loose when you pull. That is why I switched to a book.

good lights are for sure key!

You can get by with the basics for the first few and see how you like building.

[randerson]

Ya I picked up a couple 4' Florissant lights with a couple day light bulbs. I was gonna try the spring bolt tensioner but maybe I will pick one up at the Big C since I work very close to there.

[upnorth]

Quote:

I just use a dictionary for my tensioner. you can just use bolts and springs, but they tend to tighten up or loose when you pull. That is why I switched to a book.

Think jam nuts.

I wouldn't spend a whole to begin with.

A cup to put a spool of thread in.

Couple books for tension.

Cut a couple Vs in a card board box to rest the blank in while you wrap.

Some cheapo wally world type of craft brushes for applying color preserver and thread epoxy.

Couple of round files to enlarge the holes in whatever you use for a handle.

A loop of mono to pull the thread back under the guide wraps to finish them.

A box of econo single edge(unless you are brave) razor blades for trimming thread.

A lot of patience!! Probably the most important.

There was a thread waaaaaayy back where I posted a lot of the tools I use for rod-building, much can be homemade.

[GFNER]

I've been wanting to do the same thing. I just signed up for a class in a community ed. Buddy of mine did it and really liked it. Figured I'd give it a try before I invest much money into it. Class is in Coon Rapids, close for you Randerson.

[Rodbldr4fun]

Being older, one of the important items for me is a mangafying device. It is necessary for me to see the individual wraps and do close-up work which seems to be an ongoing need for rod building.

I am hoping to get one of the circular, large lens with a light. But for the time being I get along with a cheap pair of higher power reading glasses and lots of light.

[randerson]

Well I got my bench set up last night I built a few cradles to hold the rods and a box to get my motor at the right hight to work with the cradles a couple of finishing touches and I will order a blank and give it a shot.

[randerson]

Well I have started my first rod all that is left is to epoxy and then catch a fish and de-virginize it the softwater season cant get here fast enough went with a 6'6" blank by rainshadow I think it should be a good hobby to have, The first one is a learning process but not very difficult.

[pureinsanity]

My first rod was actually better then my second lol.

Post some pics. When I build my own rods its for function not beauty. The gifts or rods for someone else is when I take the time to make sure they look some what nice.

[pureinsanity]

lets see some pics. Make sure you allow that epoxy to cure enough. I used a rod to early and one of the eyes needed an additional coat of epoxy and more cure time. Give it a good 48 hours before you hit the water.

[randerson]

only took a couple of cell phone pics not sure I can load them or not

[Tanker]

I would also love to build my own then also use them as gifts. How much money do you need to get into it.

[randerson]

I used a rainshadow blank fuji guides and a st.croix handle kit and I have about $70 into it

I built all the jigs out scrap wood I had around and we got a motor from axe man

[that_guy]

+1 To Randerson...I built my setup for under $20 using scrap wood and stuff around the house.

The blanks, guides, thread and various chemicals is where the money is.

[pureinsanity]

I had a homemade wrapper donated to me. And I built a dryer out of old grill parts!

[that_guy]

Insanity,

what is and where did you find the rubber piece on the dryer to hold the handle? I'm still working on that part, but can't find one outside of $20. No local stores have anything that I can think to make work.

[pureinsanity]

Insanity,

what is and where did you find the rubber piece on the dryer to hold the handle? I'm still working on that part, but can't find one outside of $20. No local stores have anything that I can think to make work.

That is a Rubber PVC Cap. Any plumbing department should have this piece and it should be relatively cheap. no more than 10 bucks.

I went to the hard ware store and bought a PVC end cap and then a Rubber cap that will fit over that. It has a clamp on it so you can tighten it down on to the pvc end cap. However, I have not needed to tighten it.

If you are making something like mine, I will warn you the direction this spins is very important. I made my mount and mounted the Rotisserie to the stand. I then found a long bolt, and started grinding the bolts end to a square to fit into the Rotisserie. I found the exact center of the PVC end cap and drilled it out and bolted the bolt to it. After giving it a test run I found that the rotation of the motor was key.

The rotisserie I used can go in both directions, so I found after time if it spun counter clock wise the bolt would fall out, but if it spun clockwise it wouldn't fall out. So just a heads up, test your motor for a period of time before using it for epoxy. I was out mowing the lawn the first time i used my dryer and I came in to see the bolt had popped out of the dryer and I had some mess to clean up. Luckily a little bit of heat fixed my problem.

[that_guy]

Thanks! I haven't been able to find a rubber cap, but I'll definitely check again.

The motor I bought from Axeman only turns one way, but it has a shaft already on it so all I will need to do is secure the shaft to the pvc cap.

Cheers!

[Mike Wallace]

That Guy,

You can also just use a couple rubber bands. Screws in the outside of the pVC cap and then wind a rubber band from screw to screw so it makes a "tic-tac-toe" game pattern across the opening. Then your handle can go in between the rubber bands.

[that_guy]

Absolutely, that was my backup plan. Thanks for reminding me though Its nice to know the ideas I come up with aren't necessarily stupid.