6 replies to this topic

[Nu2Cal]

Hello everyone,

I have been making/modifying lures for years now and I have decided to give rod building a try. I am interested in building a 7' MH fiberglass crankbait baitcasting rod with specs as follows: line 12-20 lb, lure weight 3/8-1 oz., butt size .658", tip 7.0/64th. I would like to put an EVA foam split grip on this rod as well and I have some questions about the components/materials.

As far as guides go, I have done some searching on this forum and have found little information on what sizes to use for a rig like this. So, I would appreciate any clarification on what size guides to use for this particular set up.

I am also curious to know if I can use an epoxy like Devcon, or is there a rod building specific epoxy? And if the butt size is as stated above what size reel seat should I use?

I will probably have many more questions to ask in the future, but if there is any other advice you can think of that would be useful to someone just starting out it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Joe

[Mattman]

You can buy sets of guides that will accomplish your guide selection for you.

Personally, I tend to dislike sets as I feel they are typically too large and have too many sizes. But, it does take some experience to get to that point. You need to be able to factor in your line sizes, line connection knots, etc.

I'd go with a size 12 double foot, a size 8 single foot bridge, and size 5 fly guides for the remainder of the guides. Spiral wrapped.


Do NOT use Devcon. Great for baits...POOR for rods. Flex Coat, LS 2000 Supreme, Thread Master, etc. There are a good number of thread finishes out there. Use them.


The reel seat and guide sizes have no relation. Most Bass rods are using a size 16 seat.

[Nu2Cal]

Thanks Mattman. I was actually thinking of using the Devcon to set the grip and reel seat, but I will look into getting some Flexcoat epoxy. I'm assuming the fly guides are single foot, correct. I don't have any experience casting the spiral wraped guides. Will it have an effect on casting distance?

Joe

[freon1112]

Do not wrap a rod that you plan on casting with a spiral wrap, this is very good for trolling, but will add a lot of drag to a casting rod. look at rodbuilding.com and mudhole.com and you will be a rod building genius in no time, they have full pictorials and videos that show you how to properly wrap a rod and have rod size and spacing so that you get them close. I like to add more eyes so that it keeps the line off of the blank and makes the lure go farther, just my opinion.
I am certainly not a guru on rods, but I have built a few "good ones"
here is an example

[zaugrishak5150]

Flex Cloat, Diamonite II, Permagloss all have worked well for finishing rods in my experience. For mounting reel seats and grips I only use Rod Bond now.

If you spend the time to set up the eyes right, a spiral wrap will cast a mile. I built one to use as a mini surf-style baitcaster for pier fishing on Lake Michigan, it works well. Having said that I have built 7 "normal" baitcasters since.

I agree about Mudhole, great place for one stop shopping, especially since they added lure making parts recently.

[Mattman]

I whole heartedly disagree with the spiral wrap comments. They do NOT impact casting distance. That is a false claim.


I spiral wrap all of my personal casting rods. The biggest reason is because there is no down side to it. Only ups.
Benefits to spiral wrapping as I see it…

• Eliminate rod torque. With the guides on the bottom the pressure from the fish isn’t trying to spin the guides to the underside of the blank because they are already there and there is no twisting torque applied to the blank.
  
• Eliminate line scrub. With a guides on top rod when you flex the rod the line can then touch the blank.
  
• Reduction in weight. With a spiral wrap since line scrub isn’t an issue, fewer guides can be used. That helps with weight. With a spiral wrap single foot guides can be used even on the heaviest rods since there is no side pressure on the guides. The loss of an extra foot, thread and finish is a big help with the reduction in weight.

A reduction in weight (fewer guides, fewer guide feet, fewer wraps) is going to aid in sensitivity. All of those things add some encumbrance to the blank and reduce its efficiency in transmitting vibration.

You can see in this photo...two identical rods...one spiral wrapped and one conventional wrapped...both mounted in ball bearings...both with the same weight strung from reel seat, thru the guides... http://i163.photobuc...ence/Spiral.jpg The conventionally wrapped rod wants to turn upside down because of the guides being on top of the rod. Once turned, this rod is very difficult to turn back. The spiral wrapped rod remains stable.

And here you can see how a blank twists... http://i163.photobuc...nce/bentrod.jpg While most graphite rods can resist that force, it is still there. And if you can get rid of it, why not?


Devcon will work for assembly. However I would use an epoxy designed for assembly, like Rod Bond.

Fly guides are single foot guides.

[freon1112]

Quote

I whole heartedly disagree with the spiral wrap comments. They do NOT impact casting distance. That is a false claim.

so then I must be missing something, it you turn a casting rod into a spinning rod and you want to use less eyelets, that doesnt make a lot of sense in my book. If you followed that theory, why not just wrap a spinning rod and use three eyelets?
the reason you use more eyelets is so that you get less line slap on the blank and by twisting line around anything, you are adding more friction and increasing your ability to have your line slap your rod blank even more. I do believe that you are doing well with your rod, but I would have a very difficult time believing that if all things were equal, that you can outcast a rod with more eyelets and in line then with a spiral wrap and less eyelets. Using a flyrod with not enough eyelets will quickly prove this. Just my two cents worth. In any case NU, I hope you wrap the rod of your dreams.